Short Time Away from Reality

It is not often that Trey and I get to spend time away but this week I am on VACATION!  I say "I" am on vacation because this is actually a work week for Trey.  He is spending the week in an Advanced Adaptive Schools Training (which he is absolutely LOVING).  So, I bought a plane ticket and came along with him to Lake Tahoe.

  #imjustatagalong

I would like to give a huge shoutout to my Parents, sister, niece, nephew and Trent who are spending their week taking care of Trachelle.  You know how school teachers say it is just as much work (if not more) to prepare for a sub?  Well last week I spent the entire week preparing for subs!  The DETAILED list of who is caring for Trachelle, feeding, bathing, medicine, taking to day program etc.  I wanted to make sure Trachelle was well taken care of but no one felt wore out when the week was over.  (I want to be able to vacation again :))

This is what yesterday's schedule looked like:

Tuesday

Wake up at Melissa's (change, breakfast, medicine, brush hair, wash face, wash underarms, deodorant, brush teeth.)

*****(Make sure to put a mac and cheese, applesauce and briefs in her backpack)

9:00 am - Logan take to Day Program, pick up at 3 and take to Melissa’s

5:30 pm – Trent pick up at Melissa’s...take home with you...take to Kristin at 9

9:00 pm - Kristin (spend night)

I consider myself a professional planner!  When you are the Mom of a special needs child you are CONSTANTLY planning your child's care on a DAILY basis.   Trachelle completely relies on us.  This is one of those items that I sometimes struggle with (have a tiny pity party with).  To go away for the week and not have to think OR plan a single thing while I am here is so WONDERFUL!!

Since Trey's training did not start till Sunday evening we were able to spend Sunday morning and early afternoon driving around the beautiful lake...and when I say beautiful it was BEAUTIFUL!

Sand Harbor, Lake Tahoe

 Paddle boards, Sand Harbor

 Crystal Clear Water of Sand Harbor

Trey enjoying the early morning COLD water of Sand Harbor (maybe not)

Wheelchair accessible mat to the water, Sand Harbor

This was one of my favorite things about Sand Harbor.  Accessible via some type of mat that went all the way to the water.  NOTE TO SELF - Bring Trachelle to Lake Tahoe someday!!  If you have ever tried pushing a wheelchair on the sand it is IMPOSSIBLE.  I always feel for Trey when we vacation at the beach and he carries Trachelle over his shoulder to our spot...I get exhausted just carrying my beach bag.

After our stop at Sand Harbor we drove on around to South Lake Tahoe.  We  rode the Heavenly Gondola up to the top of the mountain.  Breathtaking views of the lake.  We were at approximately 9,000 feet at the top.  BEAUTIFUL! 

 Riding the Gondola

From inside the Heavenly Gondola, South Lake Tahoe

 View from observation deck part way up mountain

No palm trees?  No problem!  Beach at South Lake Tahoe

Emerald Bay just before the rain storm

Trey at Emerald Bay :)

The high altitude is getting the best of us.  We have to walk up a hill and 3 flights of stairs to get to our room from the lodge.  I know I am out of shape but this high altitude is about to kill us.  We sound like two COMPLETELY out of shape, on our last breath, people once we get to our room (no kidding).  

But we are loving our time away!

Christmas in July?

I hate to admit that sometimes life happens and I struggle with posting to our blog (I am sure some of you share my struggle!).   This time of year we often hear the the term "Christmas in July" so I am choosing to share with you one of our stops during our Christmas Vacation 2014.

This past Christmas we had a very non-traditional Christmas.  My parents left mid December to head south for the winter and Trey's family celebrated Christmas after the Holiday's.  So we spent Christmas on the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX!

One of our biggest struggles in raising a special needs child is finding activities that we can ALL enjoy as a family while on vacation.  Our goal is to let Trent choose at least one activity and then we plan one activity for Trachelle (often not an easy task).  While researching activities in San Antonio I came across Morgan's Wonderland.

Morgan's Wonderland is a 25 acre accessible amusement park in San Antonio, TX for children and adults with special needs.  Read about Morgan and the inspiration for the park here.

  Trachelle and her brother Trenton ready to enter the park.

When we entered the park Trachelle was super quiet.  Her head was dropped and she seemed tired...we commented about the possibility she was not feeling well.  What we came to realize is there were so many sounds going on in the park she was having a hard time figuring them all out.  Trachelle's vision is impaired so she has VERY sensitive hearing.  Imagine hearing the Merry Go Round, Train, Music Garden (big marimbas, drums, harps etc), Electric Cars, playground swings, kids laughing, screaming etc. all at once VERY loudly!!  No wonder.  Once she got use to all the sounds she had so much fun.

One of the first rides we rode was the Off-Road Adventure Ride.  This type of ride can be found at many adventure parks.  The kind where there is a driving track with a metal bar down the middle of the track.  If the wheels hit the bar it jerks you back the other direction...trust me!  Morgan's Wonderland created the exact same type of track except the cars are trucks and the bed of the truck is wheelchair accessible.  Basically they created a ramp system that you wheel the wheelchair onto and it rotates around to the bed of the truck and the wheelchairs rolls on.  I wish I had a better picture of what the trucks looked like and how they operated.  If you look at the picture below, you will see the front of the truck that is coming in behind her.  

Trachelle riding the off-road adventure ride.

  Trent and I drove her around the track.   I think you can tell by the picture how much she loved it.  

Yes, happy tears for this Mom & Dad!

Trachelle and Trent on the accessible train. 

Getting ready to swing!

Just a swingin...ok I'm telling my age!

Riding the accessible Merry Go Round in her wheelchair!  (Serious business listening to Merry Go Round Music)

Check out all 25 attractions here.

  

Morgan's Wonderland is not your typical thrill-riding amusement park for teenagers but it is the perfect place for a lot of special people.  While driving back home to Missouri we asked Trent what was his favorite part about our vacation.  He immediately said "taking Sis to Morgan's Wonderland".  

Trachelle's joy brought so much joy to our entire family!

I can't say enough about Morgan's Wonderland.  

Happy place for sure!

Memories from 1st Grade

Several weeks ago, while walking the halls of Webster Elementary School, Trey was approached by Mrs. Hamilton, one of our new 1st grade teachers, who stopped him and said, "come to my room I have something to show you".  Trey proceeded to her classroom and Mrs. Hamilton pulled out her very own 1st grade journal from when she attended 1st grade at Webster Elementary!  Trey was impressed to see her journal from 18 years ago.  Such a neat thing for her to be able to share with her students as they create their own journal.

But wait, there's more.  What surprised Trey even more was when Mrs Hamilton opened her journal to September 9, 1997...

  

As a little girl Mrs. Hamilton wrote "Trache is our class." which I translate as "Trachelle is in our class".  I can only imagine the emotion Trey felt in the moment as he stood there visiting with Mrs. Hamilton.  

It is so amazing, 18 years later, to see the effects our baby girl had on her 1st grade classroom.  She was definitely different than the other students but still loved by her teachers and classmates.    

Who is the teacher?

Twenty six years ago I walked into my first classroom thinking I was the teacher and from me the students had much to learn.  I quickly realized, however, though I was the one labeled "teacher," the students had many "lessons" to teach me.

Some of the most significant lessons were ones I didn't even recognize while they were being taught.  Many of these lessons were taught to me by Pete.  When I met Pete, he was a senior enrolled in one of my classes.  Due to a degenerative disease, Pete used a power wheelchair and relied on others for most daily functions.  

At the time, Pete's stated goal was to graduate high school with an Honor Diploma.  What Pete accomplished is so much more.  Despite a diagnosis that left little room for optimism, Pete pursued his goal with an admirable determination.  As a first year teacher, I frequently found myself relying on Pete's positive attitude to lift my spirits.  I could always count on Pete to have a smile on his face, enjoying the moment, lifting the spirits of those around him.

Pete taught me that joy is found in simple, everyday moments.  Be thankful for what you have.  Time spent focused on what you don't have is wasted.  Pete's pursuit and attainment of his goal was a lesson on persevering through overwhelming circumstances; his positive, joy filled attitude was a model of character and hope.

At our annual high school academic awards night, a scholarship is given in Pete's memory.  Each year I am humbled and honored by the request of his family to share some of Pete's story and to announce the recipient of this scholarship.  Twenty-six years after meeting Pete, he is still touching my heart and teaching me lessons on living.

Trey

Look Who's Talking by guest blogger Fancying 4th

In the past I've always considered teaching point of view difficult.  I always felt like my students were giving me the blank look.  This year I was determined to help them understand "who is talking".  My quest included calling on the expertise of my favorite graphic designer who happens to be my twin sister and best friend.  She is the mother of a special needs child, former teacher, and a design genius.

Together we created a poster and titled it "Look Who's Talking".  It has helped make teaching point of view a breeze.

Look Who's Talking Point of View Poster

First, I sent a PDF of the poster to a local print shop to be enlarged in color.  The poster is displayed in my classroom at a level where students can use it easily.

In addition to the poster, I made black and white copies for each student to place in their interactive writing journals. We glued the mini posters into our notebooks and used them to discuss, highlight and take notes right on the poster.

During class we began a review of point of view for this semester.  I've included the lesson below:

1. Student's opened their interactive writing journal and reviewed the poster by themselves.
2. Next students "taught" 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person to a partner.
3. We shared and discussed the different points of view (key words, examples).
4. Miss Ohmart, our student teacher, read text selections from 3 books.  After each selection Miss Ohmart would direct the students to show her what point of view the text was written in.  The students would indicate the appropriate point of view by raising 1 finger for 1st person, 2 fingers for 2nd person, and 3 fingers for 3rd person.
5. Next the students were given text selections to read and label 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person.
6. Finally, students read an independent reading selection and wrote on a sticky note the author's point of view (to be discussed during conferring).

The poster visual helped make understanding point of view easier for my students. They are becoming experts at determining the author's point of view.

Fancying 4th & Trendy Tech

Valentine Gift Idea

We are loving these cute Valentine gifts.  These editable Valentine bookmarks/name plates can be personalized for each student in your classroom.

Editable Valentine Bookmarks or Desk Name Plates

Are we different?

One of our first challenges raising a special needs child was the transition from the typical baby "stroller" to a pediatric "wheelchair".  We planned our very first Moeller Family Vacation with Trey's family during the summer of 1995 and made arrangements to pick up Trachelle's first wheelchair on our way through St. Louis.  The transition from a stroller to a wheelchair was one of those changes into the unknown that scared us.  It was one of our first steps from normal to "not so normal."  I remember wondering if the new wheelchair would make us different.  What will people think?  How will they look at us?  How will they look at Trachelle?  Will Trachelle be treated differently?  Will our family be treated differently?  Having let my mind wander through the "what ifs," I finally convinced myself that everything would be fine and that I was being silly for thinking things would be so different.

Fast forward a few days...we had arrived at our gulf coast destination; Destin, FL...we had spent our first full day on the beautiful beaches.  Trachelle loved the salty water and was so happy playing in the sugar white sand.  After a full day at the beach we were all ready for some awesome Florida seafood.  We chose a popular seafood restaurant located directly across from our rental condo.  Trachelle looked adorable sitting in her brand new wheelchair.  The frame was raspberry with a bright seat and back with a splash of different colors...kind of a paint brush effect...it was a SHARP looking chair.  I remember crossing the street, convincing myself to suppress my questions about being different.  Surely my fears were unwarranted.  It was a good night, we were all so happy; laughing and joking with each other.  We entered the restaurant and told the hostess we had a party of 8 and one of those 8 was a wheelchair.  No problem...right?

Finally, our name was called and as we entered the restaurant I quickly noticed the change.  Our seat was an oversized booth and Trachelle's wheelchair could only be positioned at the end of the booth...the restaurant's floor plan was obviously not designed for a wheelchair and the wait staff quickly demonstrated their irritation with the inconvenience of a wheelchair being placed in the serving path.  Some of the staff bumped into her chair and passed by in a huff...others made rude comments as they passed.  I was shocked by the way they were acting and was hurt by the treatment we were receiving.  After ordering our food and witnessing several "bumps" to Trachelle's chair, we decided to take her out and hold her until the food arrived; partly to let her stretch but more because I wanted her out of the chair to keep her from getting bumped anymore.  The empty chair next to the booth irritated the staff even more and prompted the manager to ask if he could put her chair in the back.  Trey told him that Trachelle would need to sit in the chair to eat...the manager communicated his displeasure and walked away.  As he left, I could feel the tears forming in my eyes.  I tried and tried to fight them back but it was wasted effort...as the tears rolled down my face, I left the restaurant...yes, my first little pity party.  My fears were coming true...we were "different."  No longer did we fit in.

Our entire family left the restaurant and we shared several tears that night.  Ultimately, we had dinner at a different restaurant and enjoyed spending our time together as a family.  But damage had been done...I will never forget that experience and it's effect on my life.  It was the first of many reminders that life with a special child would be different.