Mega-cooking: When I mega-cook I make a big mess with all my pots and pans and giant containers. For clean up I use my mega-dish washer also known as my bath tub. It works great to use regular dishwasher detergent (low suds) and place the large containers in the tub and then set the whirlpool function for 10 minutes. All my giant containers get cleaned. Then I drain and rinse with the spray head on the tub and I saved lots of time and conflict trying to fit those large containers in the kitchen sink.
This also works well with any other odds and ends (like shelves, boxes, storage containers) from around the house.
PREACCH (Autism): As I recover from another bout of my medical conditions, I find I must get more and more help from Trent (age 19). It is a double blessing. As I try to describe what I need him to do, it tests my use of English and patience and it stretches his comprehension. So, instead of getting frustrated, I'm trying to make it a learning experience for him. When I am bedridden, he has to get me things. Here's how it works: I'll ask him to get me a blueberry yogurt. Now that is all I would have to say to my daughter, but that does not work for Trent. I have to think through each step (almost as if I was programming a robot and had to break down the task into many steps). "Trent, go to the small refrigerator (we have two fridges in our kitchen) and look for a small container with blueberries on it." And as he tries to bring me what I want I could end up with juice, butter, salad dressing or other items as he tries to complete the task. It can take up to fifteen minutes for him to grasp what I want, trying to use words that he understands. His learning curve is improving as is his vocabulary.
It really has made me reflect on how much I just "do things" without thinking of how wonderful it is to be able to complete simple tasks. I rarely stopped and thanked God that I could get ketchup whenever I wanted it out of my kitchen. Now I realize how complacent I had become about the little things. Now that I have to rely on others for the simplest tasks, I appreciate all the aspects involved. Just the fact that I have wonderful refrigerators that keep my food healthy is worth being happy about (today there are many in our own state who have lost their homes to fires, and there are others in our own nation who have lost everything to weather -- then there are the life-changing (for those that survived) events in Burma and China). There is the aspect of thankfulness that someone makes ketchup for us and we don't HAVE TO make it ourselves and that we can afford ketchup. Of course, I'm just using ketchup as an example, but how many little things in our life are we failing to praise about because we don't stop and reflect.
Well, now I have time to reflect and I'm impressed with how much of a blessing it is.
Again, as application for our children with autism, how often we miss a possible therapy because it is so commonplace or boring. For example, Trent never could stand yogurt -- he said, "YUCK!" Now even though he thinks it is disgusting, he can now recognize a yogurt container from the fridge -- I might get a different flavor than I asked for, but it is progress. And with his learning curve improving, he now automatically gets a bowl and a spoon without me having to specifically ask for it as I did the first few times.
Wrap-up: Stop and be thankful for the commonplace items around your home. Now train your child with autism to do the same and teach him or her a simple task. Imagine you couldn't get out of bed and he or she had to complete the task. It helps them grow and it helps you appreciate your life.
Homeschooling: As BK (now 17) is preparing for her senior year in high school, we're drilling for the SAT. We're going back and reviewing math concepts and vocabulary. We're working back through Steven P. Demme's Math-U-See program. I really appreciate the program and his methodical approach to concepts. We have dual enrollment in Florida so she has been working toward her A.A. degree during her high school years. I'm finding as we prepare for the SAT how much review is important. Some of these concepts we did years ago. It is so easy to forget rules, concepts, and methods (especially in math). I'm always eager with new subjects and lessons that I don't review past subjects as regularly as I should have. So, I'm thrilled that we have this summer to take a breather and reflect and review. Yesterday, we pulled out photographs and they served as wonderful reminders of previous field trips, projects, and tasks. It was also fun. I'm glad I documented so many of their homeschooling milestones with photos and regret that I didn't do more.
Have a blessed day!
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