Quilts and Sewing

We are having another sewing lesson with Amy today.  We had a field trip last week to pick out our quilt backs, batting and quilting thread.  I learned a lot just on that trip.  I learned about the different types of batting that are available, and I learned that there are different types of thread available and that to quilt we needed "machine quilting thread." I was amazed that there were so many different types of thread and that they all had a specific purpose. 

Here are pictures of the finished quilt tops and the quilt backs.  The girls picked everything out themselves.  The picture quality isn't good because it was cloudy outside and I had an awful lamp for lighting.

Sami's quilt is very colorful.  The picture doesn't do the bright colors justice, and several colors can't be seen in the picture.  I will retake the picture later when it's not in the back of the car and I'm not in my bathrobe.     

Megan's quilt is still colorful, but is more muted.

And here is mine.

I want to make a quilt for my bed, but it's hard to figure out what to make that is dog and cat hair proof.  It seems silly to make a home-made quilt that will be covered in hair and will need to be washed constantly.  I suppose I could make one out of burlap and dye it.

Crafty Days

We've been working on bead jewelry again this week. 

This is what Megan made.  She chose glass mushroom beads to make a bracelet and matching earrings.  The earrings are a little heavy, so she wants to save those for special occasions. 

This is what Sami is working on.  She chose Swarovski crystals in red, simple beads in clear and blue, and eventually she will add a clear and blue heart pendant.  Sami is very meticulous and is taking her time finishing her project.  I can't wait to show her finished project.   

I used multi-colored beads, but I'm not sure what they are made of...I just thought they were pretty.  Polymer, maybe?  I added some odd and end glass beads in between.

Beading is a fun project, but can quickly turn expensive if one isn't disciplined when picking out beads.  I had a couple of tools left over from years ago when I wanted to do beading (but never got around to it), and we now have the metal thingies (pins?) to connect the beads.  Now the only expense is buying the beads and being careful not to buy too many.

She Touched the Toilet! :)

How many parents can say that they are proud that their daughter touched the toilet?  Not only that, but she stuck her hand IN THE WATER? 

Apparently Sami's OCD made her use way too much toilet paper after going #1.  She flushed, and it clogged the toilet.  Sami didn't want it to overflow and she was too embarrassed to ask for help, so all by herself she STUCK HER HAND IN THE TOILET WATER AND PULLED OUT THE CLOGGED PAPER. 

She told me afterwards and I whooped for joy!  We were both very happy that she was able to kick those OCD germ phobias to the curb for just a few moments and do something that non-OCD people would avoid.  She was so proud that she told her grandma and called the other grandma to tell her, too. 

How strange is that?  Bragging to the grandmothers about sticking her hand in the toilet water?  I don't care.  We had a real good moment and we were happy. 

Forget the Snow Days

Forget the Snow Days.  We close down school when it's nice outside!  It's the opposite of public schools, where they have school when the weather is decent and close when it's nasty outside.  I only knew of one other homeschooling family that did this until I read The Juggling Payne's Blog about the same thing.  Surely there must be more. 

We snuggle up inside when the weather is bad.  We read, do school work, we do unschool work, make crafts, cook food, and draw.   

When it's warm and beautiful outside, we drop school and enjoy the day outside.  Of course, learning is still happening.  The girls don't always know it's happening, but it does.  We've been known to take a good book and have read-aloud time together in swing set fort (it's big enough for the three of us, the pug and various cats).  They make crafts with natural elements, they run, they pretend, and swing, and they explore. 

The bonus is that it helps Sami's OCD.  She does better when she is outside in nice weather, and the outside germs just don't bother her as much when she is outside playing (as opposed to being inside and worrying about the outside germs that we carry inside). 

Last Friday, the weather was gorgeous and we were going to meet some friends for a park play date.  After getting a late start because of an OCD meltdown, we finally got on the way.  Sami was worried the whole drive over and was having OCD moments the whole trip.  After we got there, it was if OCD had never been there.  After a couple of hours of play, Sami didn't want to leave.  As Sami put it, "I had two glorious OCD free hours!"

Jewelry Making and Library Time

The girls had library story time yesterday.  For the last couple of weeks, the kids have been coming up with various ways of reporting on inventions.  Some have made things and some have done power point presentations.  Some have had hands-on demonstrations.  Each homeschool kids did their own thing. 

Megan talked about the history of Lego bricks.  Who knew that Lego's were originally called "automatic binding bricks"?  When she was preparing her report, she wanted to sit at the computer and type it herself.  She's always been a natural speller, but it still surprised me when she sat down and just started typing away without needing spell check.  She was scared to talk in front of the kids, but she did it and was proud of herself.

Sami struggled for three weeks on what to do.  She is such a perfectionist that she convinced herself that she needed to make an original invention that worked for her report.  I finally got her focused after two weeks of struggling, so she ended up making a solar panel windmill from a kit.  Sami was very scared to talk in front of the other kids also, but she showed her windmill in a show-and-tell fashion.  We were both pleased that she was able to do this after all that she's been through in the last few weeks.

That afternoon, the library had a bead class where we got to make our own bracelets.  The hardest part was choosing what beads to use.  After the beads were chosen, the rest kinda fell into place.  Sami, in her perfectionist way, took over an hour to choose her beads and then another hour putting it together and taking it apart to try and make it perfect.  She was so frustrated, but she stuck with it and finished it.  I'm using my 40%off coupons at Hobby Lobby today and get the girls some more beads so that they can make some more jewelry at home.

 

Mine is on top, Sami's is in the middle, and Megan's is on the bottom.  Megan got done early and had time to make a pair of matching earrings.  

Strep Test Results

The doctor's office called today.  Sami has no strep.  I'm glad about that because at least she doesn't have any need for antibiotics.  That means that it isn't strep that is causing Sami's OCD flare up. 

Sami is still fighting the battles, and still winning a lot.  Her hands are raw and red from washing, but I'm thankful that she willingly lets me put a soothing, healing lotion on her hands at night.

We are still waning from the very worst days of the last two weeks.  I wish I knew why because I would certainly like to keep the waning going.  I've made a huge effort to keep us at home a lot more, as that seems to keep her calmer.  We did go out on Tuesday to go clothes shopping, quilt piece shopping, and visit with my sister; that did produce a lot of "hiccups" as expected, but she did quite well in fighting OCD. 

The extended family has been supportive, but it's obvious that they have no clue what OCD means.  She's my daughter, and I'm still struggling with what it means.  I am blessed that they try to understand and are doing their best to help, but only Sami can know what it really feels like.  They are finally picking up on the fact that no amount of reasoning or cajolling about "there aren't any germs on the toy," will convince OCD otherwise and can actually make OCD worse. 

We did get some more homeschooling done yesterday.  Both girls built solar projects from a kit and had a great time making them work on our first really sunny day in a long time.  Sami is going to talk about her solar project at the library today.  Megan worked on a report about the history of LEGOs so she could talk about it in the library; since Megan is a natural speller and fast on the keyboard, she typed it all herself (but I did help with dictation). 

We spent a lot of time outside enjoying the 60+ degree weather.  I cleaned up the garden area and burned off some dried flower, tomato and herb stems.  Megan got covered in mud (thankfully she was wearing old clothes for once).  Here's the neat part:  Sami played BAREFOOTED OUTSIDE.  I was happy that she was barefooted with the outside germs and mud, but I was sad because she thinks that shoes are the germiest things in the world and she hates shoe germs.  I'll take every little win we get.

It's nice to get some smoother sailing and it's nice to go in a positive direction.

Today's Accomplishments

I am happy to say that we all got some meat-and-potatoes homeschool work done yesterday.  Sami couldn't sit at the kitchen table while doing her math and other written work, but she did do her work. 

Megan fussed about doing her math at first, but she sat down, zipped right through, and (here's the funny part) ASKED FOR MORE.  Megan said that she LIKED IT.  I am writing in caps because it was that shocking to me.  She has never once before mentioned liking math.  I am hoping that it is because of my superior parenting skills (*cue crickets chirping*).  Seriously, I have been constantly telling her how good she is at it and that she's a natural and how fun math was for me as a kid because it's like solving puzzles...maybe some of that sunk in.  I'm just delighted, whatever the reason. 

I read out loud about OCD in front of Sami and Meg.  Up to this point, Sami wanted to keep it to herself because she was embarrassed, but now she is accepting that Meg is part of the team and it's okay to talk about it in front of her.  Never mind that Megan was reading, "Pencil of Doom" by Andy Griffiths at the same time.  I didn't stop Megan because I was happy that Sami was including her in the same room. 

We had several OCD hiccups today.  Sami was able to win some OCD battles today, such as touching the Nintendo DS, sitting on my lap, and calming herself through several episodes of OCD nagging her.  She seems to be getting stronger at telling OCD to back off while she delays, changes, or stops the rituals.  It's a good start to the CBT, and I'm hoping that the momentum sticks.  Even though we've only targeted the smaller of the OCD triggers, she's been working on her least favorite bigger triggers by delaying the rituals.  As long as she is happy with her progress and it isn't impossible to keep trying, I think we can bypass any medications. 

OCD vs Politics

Sami and I were discussing her OCD last night, and we made a revelation.  OCD is like a politician.  Now mind you, I am very conservative, but I think this list could work in many cases for liberal or conservative values.

• Bossy
• Won't take "no" for an answer
• Lies about everything but is extremely convincing
• Distorts the truth
• Isn't happy unless you do exactly what it wants, and then it demands even more
• Doesn't do any of the work but expects you to work your butt off for it
• Wants to rule every aspect of your life and take away your freedoms
• Pleasurable things must be taxed
• Takes credit for helping you temporarily feel good

I'm sure there are more things I could add to the list, but these were just off the cuff. 

OCD IV

We're still maintaining in the OCD symptoms.  The symptoms are seeming less severe, but still there.  Sami seems to be coping with them a little better.  Does that mean that she is getting better because of the CBT, or because she is waning (as opposed to waxing) in this bout of OCD? 

She was able to sit some today, but only on two chairs, my bed, and the kitchen chair if it was covered in a clean towel (the first two, she was convinced, had touched Lysol from the kitchen table.  Never mind that I didn't use Lysol).  She's been able to sooth herself and she is learning to wait out the episodes.  This is critical because it is a key factor in battling OCD.  Showers calm her down a lot, so I quit complaining at the length of her showers and I will just pay the increased water bills with a smile. 

Interestingly enough, I've been reading many OCD articles that also include Tourette's Syndrome and tics; OCD and Tourette's/tics are very closely related and many children have both.  After learning about tics, I think I've discovered what has been wrong with a couple of other relatives of mine.  I'm not a doctor, and maybe the fact that I've been reading so much about it makes me look for it in everyone, but there were so many dots connected that I swear I saw the picture.  

I'm looking forward to having a slightly normal homeschool schedule next week.  I think it would do us some good to get back into a routine, even if it has bumps. 

I do have some good news!  I've finally been successfully keeping other people's schedules out of our lives.  We've done a couple of things that we wanted to do, but we haven't been constantly running from here to there.  It's a good thing, too.  It's helped with Sami, and Sami's OCD has forced me to learn to tell people no just to help us have peace in our lives.  God shows us the way, doesn't he? 

OCD III

We've made a little progress in the right direction.  With CBT, any little win is actually a HUGE win.  Baby steps turn into winning the race.  The way OCD came roaring in so hard and fast, it's hard to be patient while it slowly works it's way back out. 

Sami was able to sit some today and was able to delay washing her hands for quite a while.  She was able to go to the library and participate in Story Time (but she sat in a chair because she couldn't sit on the floor), but I was happy that we made it out of the house at all.  She sat at the dinner table while we ate, which was also nice. 

OCD has been Sami's homeschooling this week, or at least reading and learning about it.  We've read a few other fun books and listened to stories on CD, but that's it this week.  That's all we've had the energy to do. 

Last night was terrible.  She accidentally stepped in a little bit of kitty litter that got knocked out of the litter box sometime during the evening.  She just couldn't get it out of her head that it was okay to go to bed with her dirty feet.  I gave her a little benedryl at her request to help her sleep, tucked her in when she got nice a sleepy, and had her usual Harry Potter CD to listen to so that her mind would relax.  She appeared happy and near sleep.

She came into my bedroom crying a little while later, after I had dozed off.  She just couldn't get over having her dirty feet in her bed.  She didn't want to sleep with me because my bed was crowded (Meg was already there)  but she just couldn't sleep in her bed because her sheets were now dirty.  She layed with Meg and me while while I soothed her and calmed her.  I thought she was falling asleep, so I dozed again.  Apparently she got up and tried to get in her bed third time, but woke me up crying again because she just couldn't do it.  She finally decided to stay in bed with us and finally fell asleep somewhere near midnight. 

Poor Meg has been left to her own devices a lot this week.  Sami didn't want Meg listening to all that OCD was causing and felt imbarassed to have Megan hear about it, but after some mild convincing she now realizes that Meg is one of her biggest cheerleaders and is very supportive.  I want to get us all studying this as a family so that Meg doesn't get left out and Sami doesn't feel isolated. 

I've been keeping Dave up to date on our progress while he is in Iraq.  I don't like burdening him with all that has been going on, but it wouldn't be fair to keep what's going on with our daughter a secret either.  Besides, I don't have anyone here who really understands what we are going through.  My family is sypathetic, but they just don't get it. 

Since Sami survived the library yesterday, I'm feeling hopeful that she'll do okay at the homeschool Valentine's party. 

OCD 2

We did end up going to the doctor to get Sami tested for the strep virus.  I don't know any results yet, but am anxiously awaiting. 

This week her OCD syptoms have spiralled out of control.  It's been difficult for all of us.  We are doing the CBT excercises but it's too early to see any results yet.  We did give her OCD a name (Homer), have completed her OCD "map" and put a "temperature" on everything.  The map lists all over her obsessions and compulsions, and the temperature puts them in most difficult to resist to easier to resist order.  We start with the easiest to battle and work our way up the list little by little. 

The hard part is that I HAVE to let Sami be in control or it won't work.  I can't resist the urges for her, and it breaks my heart to see her suffer.  She wants to be better so badly and she hates what OCD has done to her.  We did this once, and we will do it again. 

I am very close to going ahead and trying an SSRI on her to give her a boost just to get this train rolling in the right direction. 

It's so difficult trying to manage with OCD's demands even when we are at home, but going out has become a nightmare.  Activities that we love are making me sick with worry because Homer hates to be out with germs and hates to touch the car.  We have story time at the library tomorrow and a Valentine's Day party Friday.  I pray that we can actually make it and I pray that once there that everything will go smoothly.

It's night, so I'm signing off.  Night time has become extremely difficult as well because Homer won't let her sleep and tells her horrible things.  Listening to stories on CD really helps, and I hope it works again tonight.  I'm exhausted.