So Much! Updated with some pics!

Wow....it’s been awhile....

SO much I have to write about...so much has happened since I last wrote...I don’t even know where to start!

I’m feeling so happy and blessed to have all three kids here for Christmas...Callie flew in from San Francisco a couple days ago, and I’ve already got her hooked on The Good Doctor.

When she got here after her red eye flight, she curled up on the downstairs couch with Aidan, and they fell asleep...

And today we learned and played a new song together…her on the electric guitar and me in the acoustics—Can’t Help Falling in Love, the Hailey Reinhart version. We sound pretty good together, I must say...I’ll put up a video next time we attempt it.

Oh! I finally got my first Fortnite win!

The house is decorated inside and out, and the presents are wrapped and under the tree=I’m ahead of schedule this year, for once. The upstairs tree has an annoying flickering lightbulb though, and I need to change it but keep forgetting. Lol.

Here’s a pic right after I put the ornaments on...Zuri, being the wisecracker she is, thought she was the “present,” instead of just a tolerable nuisance. Lol.

Healthwise, its been a pretty rough last few weeks, but I have a very good neurologist now that will help out the mess I’ve made of my C-spine over the last couple decades of what he calls “thrill seeking.” That’s what I call surfing, racing, jet skiing, and all the other competitive sports I’ve done all my life. AND I’ve finally got to be tested (after several years of “forgetting” for that Pheochromacytoma. I’ll start that test on Tuesday and will hopefully have results by next weekend.

Here’s my report from the MRI I had over a year ago...my neurologist said he’d bet the MRI I get next week will look significantly worse.

But the coolest part about my neurologist is that he has a daughter with autism and she actually had a painting chosen by the UN for an autism awareness postage stamp. It’s called “Crazy Love,” and when he realized I have Aspergers, he was very interested in how I adapted to challenges in communication and social skills in life. He’s authored 15 books on ADHD, and he told me about some of his theories and ways he’s come up with to cope with challenges. Right off the bat, out of the blue, he asked what my IQ was. I sat there for a second, wondering what he thinking, but I told him, and he said that I’ve clearly used my “brilliance” to adapt. I laughed and said my “brilliance” is really just watching others and imitating social norms. He said that it was still brilliance, because many with the lower functioning autism having quite mastered it.

I told him I was nowhere near mastering it. I couldn’t even maintain eye contact with him.

Then he said I was the “most adorable sweet pea,” and it wasn’t in a sexual or flirty way, but like a fatherly way.

I LOVE this doctor. He UNDERSTOOD me. He GOT me, and he made me feel good about having autism. And not only that, after his exam, he knew exactly where the problem is stemming from—my neck—and is already taking steps to help before even having the results of the MRIs. I had an EMG, which is a nerve conduction study, today. He discovered there is clearly some nerve involvement which makes one side weaker than the other. So, he prescribed a couple of medicines, and I’ll start occupational therapy next week, too.

AND, he asked me to become a part of a foundation he’s involved in — to be a mentor to others with autism, and other developmental disabilities. But the STARability Foundation doesn’t focus on disabilities, it focuses on abilities, which every single person has in one way or another. We focus on strengths, not weaknesses. Anyway, I contacted the lady he told me to contact, and we are meeting next week. I’m SO excited about this—it’s been a passion and a dream for so long, and now there are so many things in the works to make it a dream come true. I’m BEYOND excited. I’m so glad I didn’t listen to my inner voice that wanted to skip this morning’s appointment!

Okay, so other things....It looks like Joe is going to PRINCETON! And he also won a big trophy today in a math competition. And last weekend, his team won their Model UN competition and he got Outstanding Delagate, an award he has been seeking for a couple years now. I’m BEYOND proud!

Aidan is doing great in her job, working hard six days a week, and quickly making the right kind of friends. Her boyfriend, Adam, has a great job and treats her like a princess—he won’t let her open a single door. He’s a very well-mannered country boy, and he had Thanksgiving dinner with us.

Here’s a quiz thing she took on FB—how perfect!