Level 3 here we come

What is level 3 - well at school his class has a level system they go through- Marcus applied to advanced to level 3 because he is choosing to make better choices- to keep his hands and feet to himslef and to be concerned of his choices and not others-

They have to apply to get to the next level and it is either approved or disapproved by the principal and behavior specialist- well Level 3 was approved today - however he will have to wait to advance to it until next week do to an incident in the very late afternoon in his basic education class- His teacher called me and I had to tell him- he handled it very very well-I am telling you this child is different - vey very different- I honestly believe in my heart God is working in him.

Oh he is still a kid- but when I told him he had to wait for next week to advanced he was like uhh why- I said because of your choice in Ms S's class this afternoon- Oh he said - I will do my best tomorrow and work on my behavior- I said great- so he took it well and I told him how proud I was for making Level 3 for next week and how proud I was on how he took the news that he had to wait.

We had a psychiatrist appointment and we spoke of how well he is doing- I did speak to her about a concern of mine and he did exactly what I was going to ask- he tends to regress in situations in his not familiar with or people he is not familiar with- he goes into baby talk mode and silly acting out mode- I asked her if that was normal - she said that this is how he may deal with anxiety- oh okay- so we got outside and it was like he was back to young man Marcus mode- amazing - I will have to look at this more when we have new situations arise that he may be unfamiliar with.

Survivor Tupperware Party

Went to a friend of mine's tupperware party last night- she only lives about a mile from my house so Marcus and I biked there- it was a great evening- Marcus played with Nick (which he played on soccer team) and it was a good chance to get us both out of the house and spend time with adults (for me) and kids (for him)


I also work with Beth - so it is an added plus- her husband is serving in Iraq and is due home at the end of May - so Pray for him while he is still there.

We left about 10 O clock biked back home with our flashlights - took all the sidewalks home and had no problems



Marcus slept in till about 9:30 ish- and is taking a nap as I type- I guess the late night and lonf week has caught up to him.

The party was fun and they have so many products - I love- well I got a couple of things- I do not have a lot of bowls and storage stuff - also got this great thing to make fresh salsa-it was yummyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

So if you need tupperware let me know I could hook you up!

Woke up not feeling too great this morning- but must press in and get the rest of the laundry done and grocery shopping done

We talked about Faith at church last night and sometimes I wonder how much faith a person can have? We often say a child like faith -What does this actually mean? For me it is simple-that you will believe no matter what. Often as adults (me) included we know God wants to do something but we doubt or do not believe- Why not go back to the days of believing for the impossible- We serve a mighty God - we have seen things even the littliest of things happen - he does perform miracles everyday- do we miss them in our busyness?
What miracle happened today in your life? For me:


I woke up- thank you Jesus that is a miracle I could have stopped breathing in my sleep
I made it to work safely- this is a miracle in itself living in Tampa
Marcus had a great day (2 days in a row) this is truly a miracle- Honestly I am believing for more days like this then not- I have been for a long while-
Marcus has come a long way-in weeks-in a month -I see him changing before my eyes- miraculously.
God has opened doors for me to speak about special needs children-adopted children
God opened my eyes for a need of educating those around myself and others about special needs children - they are smart and wonderfully made.
I have a home-
I have transportation-
Oh I hear you all yes Michele that is great- it is -
By the grace of God - I am a single mom thriving in this world- and I will not be defeated- not by people or things that may attack at my family- my son- God gives me his miraculous strength. HE provides my every need.

Faith - I believe miracles are happening in my son's life- I believe it-when will it happen - all in God's time- and the hardest part is not knowing when that time will be-
I want that child like faith - Marcus taught me something on the way to church last night.
I was asking him how he was and he said his head hurt - did you hit something or bang it I asked. He said he banged it at school- My reply was did you get ice- no mommy I did not need ice-Why Marcus - I do not need it.okay- Why ? Because God is going to take care of it-he said this - and I am like wow-I need more of what he has-so when he said that I did pray believing his head would stop hurting- and on the way home he said it did- Thank you God for showing me child like Faith.

T-R-A-N-S-P-O-R-T-A-T-I-O-N

Our prayers were answered today with a phone call we can start as early as tomorrow to pick him up- wow okay- thank you God for answered prayer- We start Wednesday. Yipee-

Just got to work out the details but - this is a big relief-

I told Marcus and his reaction was so rewarding- I said Marcus Wednesday you go to the the other Kids r Kids- WOO HOO!!! and through his arms up in victory- wow wow-

So we get to sleep in 20 extra minutes-I will be getting home an extra 20 minutes earlier-

They will work with him there. Marcus has a friend there from soccer so yeah

The bus will pick him up and drop him off there - so happy - see I am smiling :)

Energy Zap

Okay I know I am not alone out there- but by 2 pm today my energy was on low-
For those of you who are blessed that your children go to school in your neighborhood or close by - be very thankful.
I drove to get Marcus from after care 20 minutes from work- then we drove home another 20 minutes. Most days I do not mind the drive - it is my get a lone time with God- crank up the praise and worship on the way to and from work and pray- 40 minutes alone in my world with GOd- it is great and we have wonderful conversations-
But today I just wanted to come home a plop on the couch - never mind getting dinner ready- laundry needed to be done- dishes cleaned- dog fed- and walked-porch cleaned out-things do not get done with me plopped on the couch- but I am energy zapped even now-not sure just a long week- not a bad week just a long week-
I guess the 445 mornings get to me by Thursday - I so look forward to sleeping in on Saturdays til 630 (it is the internal alarm clock ) so if they get to me imagine how Marcus was at the end of today- tired too- he went to bed early and usually does Thursday just because church is Wednesday night and last night we were there a little later then normal - he was playing the drums- I need to get the boy in lessons.
Anyway I am up at 445 every morning- through the week- leave the house by 540 and have him at before care by 6- then me off to work and start at 6:30 work all day get off at 3 drive to pick him up and be home about 4 ish- oh it does not stop there. make sure he gets all his things away- get him set up to do his homework- make dinner- throw in a load of clothes- feed the dog and cats- wash the dishes - get his shower ready- pay bills- sort through the mail- get him tucked in- finish laundry work on some veterinary stuff- look up things- read for Sunday School- red my books- take the dog out- and....... then usually I settle in around 11 or so.
Whew I am tired just writing no wonder I have my energy zapped right now.

I am amazed..

Well we as a church have been on the Daniel Fast- or 1 4 50 Fast or Fasting something since Easter. The first week or so- was a little difficult- but I have learned a lot about myself over the course of these days- we are almost half there to May 11 and I am sure I will learn so much more.As far as the food goes- it is not bad- I have tried new things and some of which are pretty good-

Previously if I had not eaten for an extended length of time I would get a headache or just feel weak.Well- since doing the fast there have been several incidences where I have had extended length of time before eating and the headaches or weaknesses have diminished greatly- there maybe have been 1 or 2 incidences where this has occured out of the course of time being on the fast and to me that is amazing.

In the evenings- I would look for the ice cream to eat or the sweet thing to eat (cookies ectera) now I read my books on conversation peace- praying for your children- pray more- read the word of God more-I am reading Acts- doing a study on that- I am also spending more time on my Sunday School lessons- I usually work on it daily - I still do but there are ideas and illustrations that I work on to help the youth get a better understanding of what I am talking about-oh I still crave that sweet thing every now and then but that is when I grab some fruit-

In fact I changed up my classroom and it seems to be working a little bit better-

Marcus' behavior seems to be improving - many have reasons for going on the fast- mine is for my son- I am believing for a miracle- decrease in aggression and impulsive behavior increase in kindness, gentleness, and self control. I was blessed to be able to spend a week of taking him into school and picking him up from school at first I thought this was a major obstacle- cutting into my work time losing hours- but I quickly learned that it was an opportunity for us to spend some additional time together where I can help him make better choices-It was beneficial maybe more for me then him- it showed me something I knew that he can behave and make good choices-

We also in this past week- began biking together- just making time for him and not worrying at those moments how tired I am or how long my day was.

In these days I want more of God in my life- more opportunities to stretch and grow- more opportunities to share how God has guided and strengthen me since becoming a mom -Just more of Him- more of Him to be a teacher to my son- to show him how much he is loved through God and myself-

I started something new with Marcus over this past week. I ask him who he is and he usually says Marcus John- I said that is your name who are you?

This is who he is - a child of God- person created in his image- a kind, gentle, caring, a self-controlling person- one that is loved no matter what.

My Furry Friends and Me

Libby Lu (aka Lipless)- or what you see of her- she is not the friendliests of kitties- she has been with me the longest- over 10 + years. I found her by our chicken coup at my mom and dad's - she was about the size of my palm when I found her and scared to death- she was injured- we had to do a skin graph to put her lower lip back together- you can not tell except if youopen her mouth or raise her chin up-

This is Felix- he was left at the animal hospital I use to work for- he was a troubled kitty and now is so sweet




Crossed Eyed Clarence- he is so lovable and talkative- he was also left at the animal hospital I use to work for with a note - please take care of Snowball- we are unable to-

My fuzz head Isaac- he was about 8 weeks old when he was brought to the clinic- picked on at his house by the other puppies in the litter and had injured leg- He is protective but a chicken at heart.

Thanks for looking at my furry family- they give off so much unconditional love- they are there no matter what- (too bad they can not drive when I am sick).

Speaking from experience- hopefully I will not get into trouble

I was reading a comment from one of the blogs I read and got a little aggravated- so today I will be commenting on how sometimes we may say things (self included) when we probably should not- again my opinion and I know this was this person's opinion-however I am speaking from first hand experience.

The comment talked about not putting a child on medication-for ADHD- because of what type of drug they were prescribed- first of all as parent - you never would like to place your child on medication but sometimes you need too- I needed to with Marcus-and it has helped him and we had to try several before we got the right one- Trying one medication may not work and it is a constant effort to see which one does-

The comment stated that the medications turn kids into zombies- have you ever seen Marcus he is fully functional and definately not a zombie- I know other children that are not zombies either-

that is just a generalized statement - again different medications affect others differently- some of the stimulant drugs Marcus tried early on had the opposite effect- he became even more hyper and impulsive and aggressive. I agree with the comment regarding the teacher diagnosing - they are not MDs but in that same token they see a lot of behaviors and are sometimes pretty accurate in what they observe- What it boils down to is you are no less of a parent taking your son or daughter to a psychiatrist or psychologist and getting an accurate diagnosis. You the parent are the best one to observe and report what is going on- but honesty is the only way to help your child. Your teachers at school can document and see where the troubles occur and see if there are patterns. Their documentation can help with diagnosis and being hyper is not just one form of ADHD. Children are allowed to be themselves they can be noisy but they also need to be respectful and obedient- Marcus does not have to be quiet but he needs to be in control and he is out of control when he is not on his medication- even if I am maybe an hour late he changes into an uncontrollable wild man-with no focus. I never looked for a quick fix with Marcus I worked hard to change things by behavior modification and that alone did not work.

We as parents- friend- family- need to remember that each child is uniquely made and requires different ways in which to raise them- what may work for one child may not work for another-

Medication for children is not a curse it is a helpful agent- did I want Marcus on medication no way- but am I glad- absolutely- he functions better- is focused better- and behaves so much better- does it make him perfect no way. Is medication the only thing helping him no way- behavior modification - over and over again- consistency- talking with his Drs- talking with other special needs parents- going to classes - reading books- asking for help and guidance from my wonderful pastors and friends- for me it is constantly seeking out ways to improve myself as a parent so Marcus can improve himself as a child- Am I the best no- Am I perfect No WAY

Just remember - medication for children or teens is not a bad thing-it does not always turn them into zombies- and many times it is helpful-

Does that mean I do not trust Jesus--no I trust Him and I am believing for a miracle for Marcus- our prayers have been God pour into Marcus kindness, gentleness, and self control- increase this in his life and decrease aggression and impulsiveness. So I am believing for a miracle in his life- I know God created a special and unique young man and at this time in his life he needs that added help-

There is this young lady...

There is this young lady in my Sunday school class- that I look at each week and know God will use her in a mighty way- Her mom and I relate a lot due to similarities with our children.
However- this young lady over the course of the last couple of weeks is inspiring- she has taken on the challenge of the Daniel Fast and I know God will truly bless her for that.

She wants to know more about God- she is the one who wants to listen in Sunday School- she hushes every one else- this I do not mind at all- She sits up front -I see her changing and growing in God- To see her life change for a heart to have More of God is so great.

I know her parents have had struggles but let me say to you parents ( you know who you are) she is going to make it and do wonderfully- I see her changing - oh she is not going to listen all the time but I see in her eyes and her heart she wants More of God.

I love to teach all the youth - but I love it even more when they grab a hold of God and hang on for their life and see how wonderful and powerful that He is.

Michele can we borrow....

Okay I am at the softball game and Pastor Gray says hey Maynard -okay Adam I finally blogged it- if you are not familiar that is a nickname from Venice and almost 20 years later I still have it- go figure. Anyway...

Pastor Gray goes ugh- Do you have a horse I could borrow for Sunday to ride into service- I said well yes but I am only here til Wednesday- Of course PG said what is more important I said my youth are -I am teaching Sunday School- okay whatever- you have to love him for trying. So anyway- how about we borrow the horse and video what I want to talk about-the bit of a horse can manuever such a large animal- I said that should be no problem- So Tuesday he and Jason come out to video me riding my mom's horse to show how a large animal can be manuevered with a bit- oh there is more to the video and when he sends it to me you can bet I will place it on the blog.

So PG I should be back down in Venice in June so-if you need anything let me know

Headed home to Wesely Chapel soon- always nice to get away but always nice to be home.

Day 1 Continues..

Well-Good news - Thank you God for it only being a fistula- abscess of the 4th premolar- a little bit of antibiotics and possibly removal down the road for my pup Isaac - okay he is 5 and half years old.

Nothing else going on to the vets this AM- then shopping with mom and Marcus- then lunch then some more shopping then home- just got back to the house- Marcus is playing in the living room with his cars-
For those of you reading he has been so sad lately- because he misses our friends in TN- I had him draw what he was feeling that usually helps- wala he showed me them in TN- I said well let us call them- he left a message. So hopefully we will be in better spirits

Spring Break Day 1

Well- first yesterday we had an awesome service at church.
Sunday School was pretty good as well- we began talking about the Holy Spirit an how the trinity is distinct traits. How the Holy Spirit is a counselor- the truth- speaks on wills- deposits into our lifes. I learned somethings and I believe the youth did as well- I had the room set up a little differently and it seemed to do better this way. Had a little illustration and they seemed to be interested in what I was speaking about- they did not go off on tangents like somedays-
We talked about how they were doing on the fast and they seem to be doing okay on it-a couple of struggles but they are holding on- One of the youth ( not going to say the name but you will figure it out some of you :) said they were upset cause they got grounded for their grades but the grounding has not be set yet- they told me what they got on their report card and I said that is not acceptable and you should be grounded- Marcus had unacceptable grades too and he is grounded as well- I told the youth that was being grounded that I know and the parents know that he is capable of doing so much better - no symapathy from me they got.

Came to Venice for Spring Break- waiting for the veterinarian I use to work for to open because Isaac has a swelling on his face which good mean one of 2 things- an abscess by his 4th premolar or a mass of some sort- the abscess is what I am hoping for cause if it is the other- it will not be good- Saturday the face was normal Sunday I woke up and saw it ( he likes to put his beak in my face to wake me up) so I am thankful I can have it seen down here by someone I know
Then tonight I am going to go to a softball game at watch Venice Assembly play-

MOre on my day later

Danielson's and Friends take over TIA

Here is a montage of our day today- I think the adults had more fun then the kids- we were able to go out on the Airfield- have a plane land over our heads- see the hangars where they work in them- see where the fire department practices and see the firefighters- they were a hoot- I highly recommend the tour for anyone or any group go to www.tampaairport.com for more information.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Tomorrow is a special day...

I remember it fondly- 7 years ago tomorrow my wonderful son came into this world weighing a little less then 7lbs and 18 inches long - he was born at 1 pm in the afternoon at Tampa General Hospital. He is a true Florida Cracker. I was not there but I can imagine what it was like.


Aww I remember when I first held him in my arms and gave him a hug- how sweet it was. I do remember this exact place and exactly where I was sitting.

He tested positive for syphilis but was treated with anitbiotics and had no residual effects- no drugs were tested in his blood stream- he also was a little jaundice but everything else seemed okay- He did have a umbilical hernia but was later fixed when he was just about to turn 5. Who would have ever thought he would be so healthy now with a history like this- He eats like a horse and is so very active.

We have come so far in 7 years 2 foster homes 2 additional homes that were going to adopt him and then finally the best home ever - OURS.

It is kind of a bittersweet day- many of you remember the birth of your child- you were there - able to hold him or her almost immediately afterwards- me I was not-I wish I could have been but it was not time for me to become his mom yet. I wish I could have held him as an infant - I am sure he was so cute. I love holding babies - never use to ask my oldest niece (she is 19 now)
But I can not change the fact I was not there- I can however look at tomorrow and know that God has promises He will keep- I am hopeful for a changed Marcus by the love of God most important and the love that I have for him.
He started 7 years ago in a rough place and I am so BLESSED to BE CHOSEN to be is MOM - he teaches me just as much as I teach him. Thank you Lord for the responsibilty of loving Your Child.

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY MY YOUNG MAN

What is going on...

Well first of all- my need for something sweet at night or potatoe chips and dip are gone- although I am bored with what I am eating and would like a nice big cheeseburger- oh for those of you who do not know I am doing a Daniel Fast for 50 days with our church- fruits and vegetables- I am getting creative-with the help of others on it as well.
I have lost 8 lbs added plus.
This week Marcus has been suspended for his before and after care and let me tell you this is probably the best thing that has happened - we have talked more- we read our devotions in the morning together and he prays in the morning now- amazing- I asked him yesterday what did he expect God to do for him- he said take away my hitting- he said it not me- so our prayers are take away the aggression and impulsiveness and fill him up with gentleness and kindness.

Well last night I had a dream- kinda was a strange one- I dreamt that Marcus birth mom came and got him and that I could do nothing about it- I woke up this morning at 5 am with tears running down my face- it seemed so real but Horatio Cane from CSI Miami was in it so that was for me a thing that okay it is not real. I never really have thought about her coming back for him- because it is not going to happen- but again the dream felt so real and to wake up with tears running down my cheeks was not a good thing to wake up too. but he was in the other room sleeping.
So I go to the store before church and some woman said Hi how are you-fine- do you know Freda Winters (not the real name) I said yes - it was his foster mom- I thought he looked familiar you adopted him right- yes- wel let me just put it this way I was a little freaked out and forgot what I was doing in the store and bee lined it out of there- my stomach was literal in knots and the tears were flowing as I was driving to church-
I prayed for a bit and seemd to be a little calmer inside- although my stomach is tightening again as I write.
Do I have this fear of them trying to get him back- I am not sure- I would not think so- plus they would have to fight me tooth and nail- cause I have worked ever so hard to get him where he is at today. Not sure how I am feeling about the events of the dream and seeing someone who knew him in his past maybe a little uneasy- that is it uneasy