The Hunt

I don't know what I was thinking.  I guess I imagined a crowd of therapists shoving each other and begging to work with Alex as he stood with his arms crossed glaring at them trying to figure out which one to pick.

Yeah, I don't know what I was thinking.

When we moved to Perkins a month ago we said goodbye to Sensational Kids where Alex was getting all of his therapies. It is about an hour away and between gas and driving, waiting, and driving back with a toddler we just decided, albeit sadly, that we would find some one up here. Everything else had fallen into place and we were hopeful that everything with Alex would fall into place as well.  Honestly, I should have known better. Sometimes advocating for your child can be so frustrating when you are dealing with people who don't follow through on their end.  Alex has now gone a month without services and sadly, when he speaks, I can tell he has gone without therapies and quite honestly, I am frustrated.

I have called and been transferred and then transferred again and then asked to leave a message.  I leave a message and never get a return call.  I actually did speak to some one at a certain therapy clinic and they sent me paper work to fill out, which I did and sent back to them as quickly as I could (because my son needs therapy).  I was told that it could take a couple of weeks . . . so I waited three weeks and called to check on the status of his application/paper work. The clueless woman I spoke to transferred me and another woman informed me that they needed some information from Alex's doctor in order to proceed.  I sat there for a moment letting that sink in and then, in my nicest tone I asked, "Was anyone going to call me and let me know that this information was needed?"  The woman was silent and then apologized.

I had taken Alex to the doctor a week before we moved and asked for this information and was surprised that it was never sent.  So, I called the doctor's office and asked about it.  They took my information and said that some one would call me back.  No one ever did.

Perhaps it is my own fault because I honestly had no idea it would be this difficult to get my child the therapies he so desperately needs. I made one last phone call today and left a message (of course) and hopefully I will hear back soon and this person will be more eager to work with my son.

We haven't even touched occupational therapy, yet and I don't even know where it is available.  One thing at a time, I guess.  Until then, the mother in me is frustrated that it has been this difficult to find some one to work with my child. My sweet mother keeps saying, "Just be patient, maybe you'll find some one better if you don't rush into anything," and "At least this way he can get used to being in a new school and a new town and house before jumping into therapies again."  Very encouraging words from the woman who raised me--words that I needed to hear.

So the hunt continues and I know that eventually we will find the right person for my sweet Alex--and just like everything else, it will all fall into place.

Our Little Adventure

Front yard and part of the house.

The boys on Lovers Lane.  It's beautiful! 

Things have been busy here in Astleyland.  OSU contacted Jacob and said, "We want you to come work for us."  He didn't even have to interview--they just offered him the job.  They offered him more money and we felt a change would be a good thing, so Jacob took the job.  That same day we learned that there was a house available in Perkins if we wanted it. The timing could not have been better and we talked about how everything was falling into place and it seemed "meant to be."  With only 3 weeks to pack up everything, make phone calls and all the other 5 million things you have to do when you move, we made the decision that it would be stressful and hard, but we could do it.

And we did.  It was stressful. It was very stressful, but we did it.  I even managed to get Kailtyn's room painted before we moved in so we could have her room ready.  She knew something was going on but she wasn't sure what and she was having a hard time with it. We moved in around 8:00 on a Saturday night.  By 11:00 or so everything was moved in and our parents and brother-in-law, Dustin, headed back to their homes.Everyone was exhausted and sore. We had Sunday, which we used to do some unpacking and then the next day Jacob started his new job. Things just didn't slow down.

Once we moved in I could NOT stand the boxes everywhere.  Most of my time and energy went towards unpacking and cleaning and getting things organized.  Today, about two and a half weeks after we moved in, there are a few boxes in closets that need to be unpacked but for the most part we are unpacked. And things are going really well.

In the beginning I was not excited about moving.  I didn't want to move.  I loved Edmond.  We had friends there. I thought it was a nice town and I liked it there. It was our home. We had been there for 8 years and I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. I worried about putting Alex in a new school, but I knew that moving was the right thing to do. We have been here almost 2 and a half weeks and I can honestly say that I like it here.  I love this house.  I love all the space we have.  I love that it is NICE and looks nice.  I love the yard.  I love all the trees all over town, all over our street . . . everywhere.  I love how friendly people are.  I love my boys' teachers and the schools.  I love the old buildings and I love that my kids like it here too.  And, did I mention that I love this house?

Jacob's job is going well.  The boys are enjoying school (for the most part).  Kaitlyn is adjusting wonderfully to her new surroundings--she seems to like it too.  She LOVES the back yard.  We are still waiting to hear about therapies for Alex, but once that gets scheduled everything will have fallen into place.

It was an adventure and I can't believe we did so much in just a matter of weeks, but we did and life is good.  This place is just beautiful and it is teaching us to find the beauty in everything.  Confucius said, "Everything has it's beauty, but not everyone sees it."  In this place, where we are now, with all the good changes going on in our lives, we ARE seeing the beauty around us . . . and we're loving every minute of it!