3 hours

That's how long I have left. Three hours until summer vacation officially starts. Don't worry, I'll be just as excited as they are when they get off of the bus.

I'm a really good actress.

Geez, where does the time go? Is anyone else feeling the *insert crickets chirping here* ? You know, that great big nothing hanging out there. The blahs. The I'd-better-think-of-something-to-say-or-they'll-think-I-died thing? Except that I know most of what I have to say amounts to "Dear Diary..."

Whatever. Fuck it. It *is* a journal of sorts, for me anyway. (You don't even want to know how long I have been sitting here trying to figure out how to punctuate that sentence correctly, and I'm pretty sure I still got it wrong. *waving* Hi, Master of Speech, Language, & Hearing degree! If you could only see me now!)

*~*~*

Last week, Bean got her palate expander put in. She was soooo good about it. They put it in to make sure it fit before they cemented it to her teeth, and she popped up with a look on her face that told me she was a little surprised by what it felt like. I asked her if she was okay, and she gave me the "give me a minute" finger. It only took her 30 seconds to calm herself down, and then she went back down to have it taken out and then put back in. Permanently. For 6-9 months, anyway.

She had another little moment when she started to choke on her own saliva. Your mouth mistakes the appliance for food at first, and it goes crazy. Given her very strong gag reflex, I'm surprised she dealt with that so well. It calmed down after a few hours.

It's a similar concept to being stretched on a medieval rack. Every day, we put the key in that little hole and crank the thing open a little bit more. There's a bit of a learning curve to that part. It often takes me a couple of tries before I get it done right. Even though it gets tighter and is uncomfortable for a while, Bean lets me know if I didn't get it.

"You didn't get it, Mom."

"That time?"

"No."

"How about this time?"

"Yep!" and a congratulatory thumbs up. Yay, Mom!

The plan is to turn it every day for 10 days (today will be day number 9), then we see him on Monday to determine if we need to do it more. After we are done expanding, the appliance will stay in place for 6-9 months. There's a whole list of things she can't eat, and she hasn't complained yet. It takes some creativity to find variety when she can't have anything sticky, chewy, or *too* crunchy, and lots of things that are technically ok to eat get stuck and scare her. I got her a waterpik, and she shot me in the face SEVERAL times before she figured out how to keep her hand on the switch to turn it off *before* pulling it out of her mouth.

*~*~*

H made Patrol!!! This is a HUGE deal to him and to us. The Patrols help with bus line up, help children get on and off the bus safely, and deal with any minor safety infractions on the bus. H has wanted to do this since first grade. He had to write an essay describing the qualities a Patrol should have, and why he thought he would be good at the job.

We are proud of him for seeking out this responsibility, and happy with the school for giving it to him. Considering his issues, it would have been very easy to say that he couldn't handle it. It was a nice upturn at the end of a craptastic school year.

I'm going to go enjoy my silence while I can.