All Dressed up and Ready to Go::Michael::43/52::Halloween 2015

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015
Scary Skeleton (Michael) - this is the first time Michael has ever wanted to wear a costume for Halloween. Usually, all I can manage to get him to wear is a Halloween T-shirt. (He did ditch the mask about a 1/2 hour into wearing it. Ah well, progress, not perfection. ;) )

He's my tortoise::Slow and steady wins the race.

26/52::Michael at the Ponds::July 4

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

♥ Melody

25/52::Riding the Pony at Lavender Days

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

This past Saturday was Lavender Days. Michael went on a horse-drawn wagon ride, watched jousting, and rode on this pony. He barely passed the weight limit, so this is probably his last year of riding the ponies on Lavender Days. He is growing up, which is a very bitter-sweet thought.
♥ Melody

24/52::In the Van

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Michael was sick this week. He spiked a fever of 102.8* on Thursday night (the 11th). He slept in Steve's and my bed, he felt so crummy. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, his temperature hovered between 99* & 100*. I took him to the doc on Monday, and they ran a strep culture, which later came back negative. It was just a really yucky virus. This pic was taken on the 19th. By then he was feeling better, but I can tell by his eyes that the isn't feeling entirely himself.

Michael loves to take the seat out of the van, turn it upside down, and work on it - though what he is trying to fix is unknown to me. He always puts it back in place when he's done, though.

On this particular day, I was trying to get him to go inside. He had the seat on his lap and had no intentions of going inside any time soon. When I said, "Let's go inside." He replied, "Take my picture." LOL Smart boy, to appeal to the photographer in me :) He loved looking at his picture on the computer.

He's an interesting kid, this funny, funny boy that I love.

♥ Melody

22/52::"At Graduation"

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015
♥ Melody

14/52 Best Buddies

"Best Buddies"
A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

You've seen this picture before. It is the same one that I posted for Jared's birthday post. Now, it is serving double duty :)

Michael adores Jared. Years ago, Michael was left to be babysat by Jared. A lot. They forged a bond that can't be broken.

At one point, Jared thought Michael didn't like him. Michael was especially naughty for Jared many times, and then something just clicked and Jared "got" Michael. Thereafter, they were good buddies (and Michael's behaviour problems magically went away).
♥ Melody

13/52::"I've got your glug"

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Michael thinks it is funny to tease/play tricks on me. He "gets my spot" and steals my glug - that's what he calls my waterbottle because that's what it sounds like when the water comes out.

A few weeks ago, he began hiding it. They're good spots that he hides them in, too! When I can't find it, after I've looked good and hard, I have him show me where it is. It is his version of "hot" and "cold". If he says, "It's in here, Mommy," there is a good chance it's not. If he says, "It's not in there, Mommy!" and pulls me away, there is a good chance that is exactly where it is.

I'm thinking that in a past life, he must have been the Easter Bunny. ;)

♥ Melody

11/52::On the Trampoline

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Michael has a hard time with little kids. It started with Aiden; he called him a "stinky little baby". :) He doesn't like crying, whining, or bickering. So usually, when the grandkids come to visit, Michael hides in the basement and asks several times when Josh is going home or when Karen is coming to get the kids. ;)

Lately, though, I've noticed that he has started hanging out a little bit more when the kids come. He even teased Aiden the other day, telling him that he was going to play his game (on the Xbox). Aiden, at first, was concerned and then just laughed and played along.

I don't know if it is that the grandkiddos are getting older, or if Michael is just getting more used to them, but when I saw him playing with them on the trampoline on purpose, it made my heart happy and I wanted to capture on film forever.

This is another of Michael's milestones. <3

♥ Melody

8/52::A few of his favorite things

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

There is a lot happening in this picture besides Michael sitting in the chair.

First off was the lighting. The morning light was shining in from the dining room window, casting the perfect light and shadows on Michael's face as he sat in the chair, so of course I had to capture that! (I haven't done as much capturing of the light lately. I need to regain my photography mojo.) I was glad that he sat still long enough for me to grab my camera and take a few shots.

Second, the other stuff in the picture are a few of his favorite things:

Under the stool you'll see the handle of the back massager that I gave to Steve for Christmas a few years ago; Michael likes it more than Steve does and has even tried giving others a back massage. I wouldn't recommend it. ;)

The blue thing in front of the couch is a pool noodle, which is a new love. He uses them for booby traps - he places them above the door, one end on the open door, the other end on the top of the door trim; then he waits for someone to move the door and have it crash on their head. He is a fan of slap stick humor, for sure ;)

The red is the food cooler that we use when we go camping. I'm not sure why he loves it so much, but he feels that he needs to know where it is at all times.

The green thing on top of the cooler is a Hulk toy that used to light up when you press a button. We only bought that toy to replace the batteries in a similar Sponge Bob toy that he has - a new toy (the Hulk) for $4 or just replacing the batteries for $18. I detest watch battery toys - all toys need standard size batteries. Give me AA battery toys or give me death!! Okay, maybe I don't have that much passion for standard size battery toys. Maybe.

The yellow thing to the side of the couch is a talking Sponge Bob toy that Josh gave him for Christmas. It is a hit with everyone, not just Michael, so it gets a lot of use. :)

I'm not sure which VHS movie that is on the stool, but Michael loves the thought of VHS movies. In reality, they are just hard plastic boxes, though, because none of our VHS video players work. He loves them anyway :)

Oh, the last thing is the red throw on the couch. That's mine :)

♫ These are a few of his favorite things! ♪
♥ Melody

7/52::Milestones

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Okay, so it's not exactly a picture of Michael, but in a way it is.

Michael is developmentally delayed, going through milestones years after his age mates. Last week, I walked into the bathroom and saw the faucet had been painted with fingernail polish. I asked him about it, but he didn't understand, so I took him to the bathroom and showed him and asked where the pink nail polish was. "Oh color?" he asked, and he took me to my desk, where my red fingernail polish sat, capped. I told him that if he ever wanted to use the nail polish (he never had before!), that he needed to ask me to help him. "Okay." was his response :)

Playing in the toilet. Climbing on top of the kitchen table. And now fingernail polish. Each one has brought a smile to my face. They didn't know if he'd breathe on his own. Didn't know if he'd crawl. Doubted that he'd walk or potty train. Yet here he is, doing all of those things. Milestones in development that, even though we get to a whole lot slower, still come. And that makes me pretty happy :)

BTW, I've scrubbed off the toothpaste splatters and as much of the mineral deposits and soap residue that will come off. LOL Taking a picture of something is an entirely different way of looking at something, for sure ;) (And I'm so glad that the nail polish stayed put. As weird as it sounds, it is important to me.)

♥ Melody

6/52::Watching "Barney"

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Michael has never been a tv watcher. He likes the family to watch tv and will sometimes sit down and watch for a couple of minutes, but then he gets bored and walks away. On the 11th (of February), though, he watched a 26 minute episode of Barney (the dinosaur) on youtube. Yay!! Maybe someday soon, he'll even be able to enjoy a movie at the theater :)
♥ Melody

3/52 & 4/52::January 29

3/52
Michael Holding Mercedes

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Josh handed Mercedes over to Michael, and he stood there and held her. Josh told him that he'd make a great babysitter :) He wasn't quite sure what to do with her once he was holding her, so he just held very still :)

P.S. In the background: Can you see the Catan board? Josh and Hayley brought it at Christmastime. It is my new favorite game!! Since it was my birthday, everyone felt obligated to play with me at least once :)



4/52
Michael on Mommy's Birthday

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Michael still calls me Mommy most of the time - mostly in the context of, "I love you, Mommy", which he says several dozen times a day. :)
Sometimes he calls me Mom, but not often - mostly if I've been teasing him and he is exasperated (in a funny, happy way - I try never to frustrate him)

(And yes, I do have a goofy, happy, silly look on my face. I'm not sure what Steve (or someone else in the room) said, but that was the smile that happened :) 45?! Wow! Middle aged. Crazy. And I'm in such denial!!)

♥ Melody

2/52::"I've Got Your Spo-ot!"::January 22

I forgot to post this picture that I took last week:


A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Have you ever watched, "The Big Bang Theory"? If you have, you know that Sheldon Cooper has his "spot". In his spot, he can see in every direction, the airflow is perfect, the temperature is perfect, etc etc. In our house, I am Sheldon Cooper.

I like my spot. My spot is my rocker/recliner in the living room or my chair in front of my computer. Michael loves to tease me by sitting in my spot when I get up to do something. When I come back, he taunts me with his sing-song, "I've got your spo-ot." He delights in it!

My part in this is to say, "You better get out of my spot!" To which he continues his taunting and giggles intermittently. Then I resort to tickles, which I think is what he likes best anyway, combined with reminding him, "You're in my spot!"

Eventually, he laughs and gets out of my spot.

We have rituals at our house, and I think the "You're in My Spot" ritual is the favorite. ;)
♥ Melody

1/52::"Michael in his Christmas PJs and Emily's Fedora"::January 3

A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2015

Isn't it adorable? LOL This kid makes me laugh :)

I love these jammies that Steve & I bought him for Christmas. He has been into buttons lately, so I thought a button up, fuzzy fleece pajama set sounded perfect for him.

I got a picture of him on Christmas day, but I didn't get a good one of him in his pjs, so today I asked him to sit in the chair and let me take a picture of him in his Christmas jammies. So, he did, but first he donned Emily's hat and posed himself just like this. Classic :)

I love this kid! His special needs are challenging, but his personality is so enormous that he makes life fun and wonderful.

The 52 Week Challenge is back, and I'm rocking it so far! 1 for 1! Woot! LOL :) Let's cross our fingers and hope that I have the endurance to keep it going this year. :)
♥ Melody