tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50139788728405021432024-03-07T05:56:24.553-08:00The Sucky ThingSallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-10144666614484125032009-01-21T04:51:00.000-08:002009-01-21T05:02:06.974-08:00WowHello strangers!Things are going well at the Johnson House. Chase returned to school without any major meltdowns. Things are really going well now, but it took from September until December for us to have a "normal" week without any (major) meltdowns at school or on the bus. I hope it keeps up for the rest of the year.They are working on reconfiguring the schools in our district, so Chase may Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-6746241533966431062008-12-18T06:38:00.000-08:002008-12-18T06:47:20.085-08:00Happy Holidays!Between Christmas festivities, work, cleaning the house, wrapping presents, and cooking, I've been pretty busy. And, of course, there's more of it the next couple weeks.I thought I should wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year now, before I forget.One fun thing that we've been up to at work is making a video about "Lowercase i Day". It's a spoof on goofy holidays and everyone's Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-57198328065672407172008-11-20T04:36:00.000-08:002008-11-20T05:23:17.533-08:00TryingMost of the time I say that I "try" but really, how hard do I try?I try to keep my house in line, try to cook dinner every night, try to eat dinner together at the table every night, try to get up the first time the alarm goes off, try to be awesome at work, try to write in this blog, try to spend quality time with the kids and Craig, try to get the kids to bed on time, and try to do all kinds ofSallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-81703050205937550502008-10-31T08:14:00.001-07:002008-10-31T08:34:06.560-07:00Pumpkins and Monkey PoopOk, that's really two different topics, but it does sound funny together, eh?PumpkinsSo, we bought the kids some ginormous pumpkins at Sam's. Only $5! Awesome, right? WRONG. These pumpkins have some sort of titanium exoskeleton that killed:two little pumpkin saws (the ones that come with the pattern kits)one of the slightly larger safety pumpkin carving knivesan electric knife (like the kind you Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-13715164181898175382008-10-27T09:56:00.001-07:002008-10-27T09:58:20.862-07:00SickAnd I don't mean "sweet" or "cool". I'm kind of glad that I don't feel better because then I'd have to ponder whether or not to be happy I got sick after everyone else. Even with my stuffy nose and accompanying headache, we brought the kids to a "tailgate" party at my work for the MSU/U of M game. Since it was cold, wet, and muddy, we stayed inside most of the time. Chase and Cory made it for a Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-80386013135806081722008-10-24T06:37:00.001-07:002008-10-24T06:37:41.777-07:00Autism Moms Unite!I wanted to share something with you all. I know that some of you also have Autism in your lives. Some of you don't, but someday will have to help your kids understand our kids.Anyway, there is a very good blog by an Autism mom called Diary of a Mom. The woman, Jess Wilson, and her blog are listed as Resources on the Autism Speaks website. I've checked it out periodically, but this post made me Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-57216505943628443892008-10-22T13:32:00.001-07:002008-10-22T13:32:56.634-07:00Daycare WoesWell, over the past year and a half, I've been very happy with our daycare. Chase is a handful some days, but the teachers have been very understanding and given him the extra attention he needs to survive in a daycare situation.Until now, that is. For some background, Chase (and Cory) go to a very nice daycare each morning. Chase leaves around noon to go to his "real" preschool class.At daycare,Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-82902524083711183912008-10-20T14:03:00.001-07:002008-10-20T14:09:15.076-07:00Better?Well, we had a good weekend and most of the sickness is out of the house. We went up north for the trees. We had a good time and beautiful weather, but the colors were just past peak. Here's a few pictures: We also had two dogs show up at our house last night. I think that they might be purebred Jack Russells. We're looking for their owner. They're pretty cute, but the puppy keeps going after Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-84883391765734045512008-10-16T12:47:00.001-07:002008-10-16T12:47:01.541-07:00Yikes.So, today was the first day I was in the office this week. Chase has been sick. Viral something on Tuesday and 12 hours later, he also had an ear infection.The kids did great at the birthday party, except for leaving... I was the only one with issues. I get so worried when both kids are not in my sight. There were several times when I didn't have either in my sight. It's a safe place, but I'm a Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-24001119921218201852008-10-10T12:52:00.001-07:002008-10-10T12:52:56.831-07:00Have a good weekend!We've got a birthday party, book club, and Craig's leaving for a conference in Texas. I'm excited for Chase's first "friend" birthday party. It's at one of those big inflatable places. He's pumped for it. Of course, I'm wondering if he's going to fit in with all the other kids. I sure hope so. Oh, funny enough, Chase LOVES the song Real Gone by Sheryl Crow from the movie Cars. He's been trying toSallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-3373420849275015532008-10-08T09:43:00.001-07:002008-10-08T09:43:57.642-07:00I'm back...After MUCH prodding, I'm back. While it seems I have time to check out other people's blogs, I can't seem to take the time to write anything myself. So, here I am. Since it's been so long, here's a list of random stuff:Craig finished Fred. It's a great barn/shed/garage-like building. He did a great job. I'm so glad my husband's so handy!We had a nice, but busy summer. Lots of random stuff. I Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-25572086739509245072008-07-18T10:23:00.001-07:002008-07-18T10:23:46.102-07:00MangoApril asked why Jodie calls me that. Jodie! Help me remember exactly what happened!Honestly, I can't remember the exact circumstances. I know that it had to do with the "Mango" character from SNL.I just can't recall how it started. Maybe I tried to do his voice or something. I can't imagine that I was that funny, but after the initial use, which Jodie thought was funny, it just stuck. I would Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-39549260632597143602008-07-17T12:09:00.001-07:002008-07-17T12:09:40.007-07:00Almost doneWell, I'm almost done with my help files. I have two more little topics to finish up, some edit comments, and fixing the templates. Oh, and then make all the HTML tutorials for the Learning Center...Ok, maybe "almost" isn't the correct word...Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-63760811282666791372008-07-16T10:37:00.001-07:002008-07-16T10:37:30.892-07:00WebWorks (well, kind of...)Only one more help file to finish, plus fix some formatting in the help compiler.I have to say, one of the few things I liked about Unicrap was the tools team. We had no responsibility for how the documents were produced. If Ihad a problem, I'd go talk to Jane.There've always been issues with Word, but now, I have to design, implement, and support the document and help styles. It gets to be such Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-8549870631822264962008-07-15T09:50:00.001-07:002008-12-10T17:27:09.179-08:00John DenverSo, if you're reading this, you probably know me decently well. (If not, what could I possibly say that you'd be interested in?)Anyway, as I mentioned, I'm super busy at work. I work in a cube next to a large open meeting area. To concentrate, I listen to my iTunes.I found that I was having issues concentrating, even with my music, so I turned to the old standby: John Denver.I have 6.5 hours of Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-35715051133150401952008-07-14T11:52:00.001-07:002008-07-14T11:52:51.671-07:00Still AliveI'm still here, at least in body. I've been super busy since the beginning of May with work. My product is releasing in early fall, so my final file dates are now coming, so, I'm trying to get everything done. I just got a new Vista laptop for work and this handy little Blogger Buddy desktop gadget. So, it is possible you may hear from me more often...We'll see. :o)Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-86689491498533513902008-05-29T07:58:00.000-07:002008-05-30T19:34:41.062-07:00And, I'm OffI'm heading to the STC conference in Philadelphia. I'm leaving tonight and will be gone a whole week. Am I worried about leaving Craig and the kids for that long? I often feel it would be nice to get away by myself for awhile, but now I'm worried about how much I'll miss them. It didn't seem like that big of a deal until I started packing.Thank God for video and picture messaging.We're on a Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-80586453608057852222008-05-21T06:37:00.000-07:002008-05-21T08:59:11.829-07:00I'm Alive.I'm just so busy! Grrrr.In a nutshell:I went to Michigan Tech as part of the STC dept advisory board. It was a lot of fun, and I went by myself so I had a little break from the kids.We're working on building a garage/barn/shed-thing to replace the well house that had a tree land on it last August. (Yeah, nine months ago. We're really on top of things!) I've decided to call the new building Fred, Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-72961406354329439892008-04-02T07:44:00.000-07:002008-12-10T17:27:09.410-08:00ShiningSo, I'm not a huge fan of the Rolling Stones. That I ended up last night at a sneak peak of their IMAX Martin Scorsese directed movie, is odd.I "won" them from the local TV station. I use the term "won" loosely. I think that they didn't have that many people trying to win, so they gave them to everyone who entered. Anyway, Craig and I both went to see it last night. Aunt Sarah babysat the kids atSallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-17423252888635095452008-04-02T05:38:00.000-07:002008-04-02T07:44:10.807-07:00Cory, too!So after going on about Chase so much yesterday, I thought I should mention my wonderful, adorable neuro-typical daughter. Corinne turned two at the end of February and proceeded to enter the terrible twos. Wow, does she have an attitude. Ok, she actually also has an ear infection, but that's not the only reason for the attitude.She's really into the Disney Princesses right now. Cinderella and Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-66740195568302323592008-04-01T07:51:00.000-07:002008-04-01T08:32:23.392-07:00LabelingSo, having watched Autism: The Musical, I've been thinking that I haven't talked about how Chase is doing lately, when it was the original reason I started this Blog.Chase has "high-functioning" autism. Right now his diagnosis is PDD-NOS, Pervasive Development Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified. Nice and descriptive, huh? But, the more he can communicate, I'm thinking that it is more like Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-57160893761881360642008-03-31T09:42:00.000-07:002008-12-10T17:27:09.644-08:00Say Cheese!I just got this picture from my sister, Sarah. It's from our trip to Frankenmuth earlier this month.In other news...I got a new phone. It's a Palm Treo and runs Windows Mobile. I'm excited about it, but I hate that I had to put in a support request to IT to have them help me hook up my work email to it.Happy last day of March!Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-27493070592429188272008-03-28T09:25:00.000-07:002008-12-10T17:27:10.374-08:00(Insert Snappy Title Here)I'm not feeling real creative today, so I can't think of a good title that will make you want to keep reading...But, in case you've held on this long, I have a few things to tell you about:Until March 30th, you can view "Autism: The Musical" on HBO.com. I haven't watched it yet, but I've read that it really let people see what it's like living with Autism in your family. Here's part of a review Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-55382519782191490542008-03-21T11:05:00.001-07:002008-03-21T11:19:37.836-07:00Drats.So, the cat belonged to the little girl next door. We saw her and her dad riding their 4-wheeler out in the field and flagged them down. Turns out, she was really worried about "Smokey". I guess he goes outside sometimes, but doesn't usually go far from the house. (There's about 6 acres between our houses.)They were really nice and asked Chase to come over and go fishing once their pond thaws Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5013978872840502143.post-75703456913053106092008-03-20T10:34:00.001-07:002008-12-10T17:27:10.681-08:00Cats.I didn't mention it before, but my cat Mica got hit by a car and died a few weeks ago. She was an inside/outside cat, and we knew it would probably happen at some point. But, she was miserable if we made her stay inside all the time.I REALLY had a hard time with her dying. I've never had to explain to a child why they can't see their kitty. I told Chase that Mica ran away and went to a really Sallyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00107191222664352458noreply@blogger.com2