I received this in an email from Grandpa and laughed because it is so true! I just had to share it with everyone who reads my blog.

1.) “Fine”: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are
right and you need to shut up.

2.) “Five Minutes”: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour.
Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more
minutes to watch the game (or use the computer) before helping around the house.

3.) “Nothing”: This is the calm before the storm. This means something,
and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with “nothing”
usually end in “fine”. (Refer back to #1 for the meaning of “fine”.)

4.) “Go Ahead“: This is a dare, not permission. Don’t Do It!

5.) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement
often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an
idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing
with you about nothing. (Refer back to #3 for the meaning of “nothing”.)

6.) “That’s Okay”: This is one of the most dangerous statements a women
can make to a man. “That’s okay” means she wants to think long and hard
before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7.) “Thanks”: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say
“you’re welcome”.

8.) “Whatever“: Is a women’s way of saying something ugly that can’t be printed here.

9.) “Don’t worry about it, I got it”: Another dangerous statement, meaning
this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but
is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking “What’s
wrong?” (For the woman’s response refer to #3.)

Our poor husbands/men in our lives!

Yesterday I attended the Spotlight on Autism Conference here in Utah.

I think autism is a very interesting disorder and would love to learn more about it. I have been working in early intervention for almost 6 months now and have seen quite a few kids with autism. Each child is unique and requires very different yet similar treatment approaches (if that makes any sense).

The conference offered different sessions regarding diagnosis and treatment. The keynote speaker was Sally Ozonoff, Ph.D who spoke about the research she’s been doing on very young children with autism. Recently there has been a push for doctors to screen all children birth to three for autism and children are being diagnosed with autism at younger and younger ages. Basically her research has found that the onset of autism can be gradual with the emergence of symptoms around 6 months of age to 18 months of age. She also found that a regression in skills (such as communication and social interaction) is common.

With these results we now need to start educating pediatricians and other professionals about the impact this can have on early treatment. Not that I’m looking for more work but think of the difference we can make if we start identifying children with autism earlier – especially those who are mildly affected. We also need to research the most effective treatment for younger children with autism. Is 40 hours of ABA appropriate? Don’t even get me started!

Anyway. I am very glad I was able to attend the conference and look forward to the conference next year (Temple Grandin is going to be the keynote speaker). I bought an Autism Awareness Ribbon at the conference and it came with a card that explained it’s design so I’d like to share that with you.

The puzzle pattern of the ribbon reflects the mystery and complexity of autism. The different colors and shapes represents the diversity of the people and families living with this disorder. The brightness of the ribbon signals hope – hope through research and increased awareness in people like you.

If you’d live to learn more about autism, visit Autism Speaks.

Thanks for reading!

So we decided to keep the kitten. We named her Pumpkin. However, Joey likes to call her many different names like “Nutty”, “Peanut” and “Sweetheart” (that’s suppose to be my name!).

We took her to her first vet appointment this morning. She did really well until they started restraining her to check her temperature or take her blood. They took her out of the room to test her blood and we could hear her screaming in the other room. It was so sad. When they brought her back to us we asked if anyone got hurt because it sounded so horrible. She goes back on Wednesday for some vaccinations. I will be praying for the tech that gets to do them!

Pumpkin loves to play. She runs all over the apartment and gets into everything. She loves her cat toys with catnip. It’s very fun to watch. Here is a video for you to watch. Sorry it’s kind of dark.

Pumpkin playing with catnip mousie from Joey Day on Vimeo.