Dear Amy

Dear Amy,
I demand no apointment.
I demand no summer school and no day camp.
I want to ask you:
Have you ever wondered when something is fun be comes a lot less fun
when you do it?
It happened to me.
I desreve to stay home than(then) go to the beach this summer.
Your bored friend,
JOEL ETHINGTON


Joel sent me the above email a week or so ago. He had heard what I had planned for him for the summer and he was not into it. He told me, "It feels too much like school." He even got really freaked out about going to Soaring Over Seven camp (which he loves) in July. While last February he kept asking me, "Mom, have you signed me up for Soaring Over Seven yet?"

The fact is I have to try to keep Joel pretty busy during the summer. If I don't he just melds into the computer 24/7. And once computer meld has set in getting Joel to do anything else becomes next to impossible. There is much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, and if he starts school in said state, wo unto the teacher who has to work with him.

However luckily everything has gone pretty well so far. We started speech therapy again recently because we have some FSA money that we need to use ASAP. On the first appointment the SLP tested Joel's vocabulary. He didn't slip up until the 17/18 year old section. What the what? The speech therapist was surprised and so was I. I had no idea the depth of his vocabulary. It's very difficult to have any kind of conversation with Joel, so I don't really know what all's up in his head. The SLP asked me where his vocab came from. ??????????????????? Don't ask me, I have no clue. When I told Joel he had tested into the 17 to 18 year old range, he got that twinkle in his eye that means, "Damn, I'm good." He damn sure is.

Eli was looking out the window watching the lightening bugs the other night when he turns to me and says, "Mommy the world's turned into glitter." He can be so sweet at times . . . (sigh) . . .

Cara's our little princess and she knows it. She went to a birthday party last Saturday and insisted on bringing all the stuff from her goody bag to church on Sunday. She entered the chapel in full regalia: two crowns, two necklaces as well as multiple bracelets and rings. She wanted to show off all da bling she got.