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It really does take a village
As some of you may know my youngest son is autistic. He was only three-years-old when diagnosed and I can still remember the day as if it were yesterday. I felt as if I were thrown from a ship in the middle of an ocean. I was shocked and terrified, but most of all I was sad. That was fifteen years ago and my son is now eighteen.
I’m sure you’ve all heard the African proverb ‘It takes a village to raise a child’ it was also the title of a book written by Hilary Rodham Clinton. Well, it definitely took a village to raise my son and not just one… but three!
When he was ten we moved from Norway to Houston and lived there for two years. From Houston we moved to the Netherlands, where we lived for three years before returning home to Norway. Over the last fifteen years teachers, assistants, caseworkers, specialists, neighbors, friends and family in three different countries have helped and taught both me and my son. It hasn’t been easy and I’m tremendously thankful to each and every one of these people!
If you look Autism up in the dictionary it says… A mental condition, present from early childhood, characterized by great difficulty in communicating and forming relationships with other people and in using language and abstract concepts.
This is not incorrect, but it is a very general definition because autistics are not all alike. For example, my son can communicate in two languages, Norwegian and English. He’s never met a video game he couldn’t beat and he’s learning to play the Bagpipes online! Yes, my son is autistic, but he’s also unique and I wouldn’t change one thing about him, even if I could.
Mia & Khloe
I’d like to introduce you to my girls, Mia and Khloe, otherwise known as Trouble and Double Trouble. Only Kidding – well, maybe not. I do after all walk them almost everyday, pick up their you-know-what and clean their feet, so they don’t track dirt all over my house. This list could go on and on…
What do I get in return from these two silky, little King Charles Spaniels – love. Endless and unconditional love. Whether I’m gone for ten days, or just ten minutes, they’re always at the door with wagging tails to greet me. They never leave my side and comfort me when I’m down. Keep me company when I’m alone and make me laugh when I’m sad. I guess I need them as much as they need me.
The grandchildren love them too…
Could this be a sign?
To say that I’ve been preoccupied with everything going on in America lately is an understatement. With a six hour time difference between here and there I’ve been spending most of my nights on the sofa watching CNN, and following my friends (from over there) on Facebook. I watched as Sandy struck my home-state of New Jersey and then walloped the area in which I come from. Due to power outages and poor cell service, I’ve had very little contact with my family this week. The news reports and pictures I’ve seen are heartbreaking.
And then I found a piece of burned up paper on my doormat this morning.
I picked it up, turned it over and saw a picture of a globe. The paper was burned all around the edges, almost in a perfect circle like the globe. As I stood there looking at this picture that had somehow blown to my doorstep in the night, I just knew, America will be alright.
My mother called a few hours later, they finally got their electricity back!
But everyone’s fine and that’s all that matters.
Goodbye summer
I’m always happiest in the summer. I want to say its because of the nice weather, but we don’t always get the nicest weather here in Norway. Warm sunny days pop up randomly but can never be counted on. What we do get, is plenty of daylight. While the north of Norway basks in twenty-four-hours of it, we here in the South get about four hours of dusk, to which we call night. I get super charged by the light and run around like the Duracell Bunny all summer long.
As you may have guessed, by the end of summer I’m more than ready to go into winter hibernation. Especially since our long days of daylight turn into long days of darkness. I get through these months mostly in pajama pants, with plenty of books and lots of vitamin D. (Exercise and eating healthy also helps).
As the days steadily get shorter and the kids head back to school, I can feel my energy already starting to deplete. I’ve been sending children to school without a break since 1982, and with only twenty months to go, I’m eager to put that part of life behind me!
My book came out in April and its been nonstop since then with blogging, promoting and travel. I’m happy to report an excerpt from the book was recently highlighted in the Foreign Exchange Newsletter and put up on their Expat Exchange web sight. Feel free to go in and push the fb like button or tweet it. Thank you!
Which brings me to the next order of business, I promised a book giveaway. The lovely Emily (granddaughter) took time away from her painting to pull a name for me…
And the winner is Crazytraintotinkytown which is a great blog, that comes to us all the way from Turkey… Yay!
Later this week my daughter and grandson are coming from America for a visit. Its not often I get both of my daughters in the same country. I’ve therefore decided to take a short break from blogging and enjoy every minute I can with them. I hope you all enjoy your week as much as I know I’ll enjoy mine. -Maggie
Happy Birthday Khloe
Today is our puppy Khloe’s first birthday. Khloe, who joined our family last summer is a King Charles Spaniel (sometimes called a Cavalier). She is all brown except for a thin stripe of white on top of her head, on her chest and the tip of her pawns. Khloe is a happy, true fast, energetic girl.
We have another Cavalier named Mia, who came to us in 2005. She’s the perfect combination of chestnut brown and pearly white fur. Mia is a global nomad, who’s lived with us in Norway, Texas and the Netherlands. She even has her own passport. Mia is sweet and gentle.
Mia welcomed the new puppy into our home with open paws and never showed any signs of seniority. When Khloe wants to play, Mia simply hides under the table. When we go for a walk, Khloe leads and Mia follows. When Khloe finishes her treats (she eats fast) Mia will share what’s left of hers. Mia even gave up her bed when Khloe insisted on taking it over. Don’t feel too bad for Mia, because she got upgraded into my bed.
Two years ago Mia was diagnosed with MVD and Syringomyelia, we were hit hard by this devastating news. Unable to imagine our home without Mia and knowing how hard it will be to replace her, we decided to get another dog right away. Hence, Khloe.
We brought home a silky little puppy, who loves to cuddle and play. She follows me around the house all day long and whenever I sit, she hops right in my lap. As I’m writing this post I’ve had to stop twice to let her out, and then in again. She has brought me her toy to throw three times and I caught her chewing a pencil that dropped from my desk. All the while Mia’s been snoring on the sofa.
The question I’ve asked myself everyday since we brought Khloe home is; Will I ever love her as much as I do my old friend Mia? The answer is; Yes, I will…
Its amazing how attached we can get to a pet (or two). I happily obligingly vacuum up dog hair EVERY day…
Happy Birthday Khloe! Khloe & Mia