Rain, Rain Go AWAY!

Due to the rain, Tucker's last two soccer games have been cancelled. They are making up one of the games this Tuesday which rocks, because I will be able to see him play.
This week was not a good one for our household. Not one thing in particular, just a series of unfortunate events. Tucker was officially diagnosed by Dr. Joe as having ADHD with anxiety. Tucker did really well in his interview with Dr. Joe, and the doc was very impressed with his intelligence and his vocabulary. He seems to think that once he gets his attention deficit under control, he will do extremely well in school. I have mixed feelings about Tucker's diagnosis. On one hand, I am glad that they make a medicine that can help kids with ADD. Tucker is bright, he does very well in math, but when it comes to memorizing the stupid sight words that the school system requires kindergartners to do now, it is tough on him. We were working on his sight words the other night, before his appointment, and he broke down in tears because he was so frustrated. He would know three whole pages of words one time, then two seconds later he could only remember half of them and it was because Connor was making noises in the next room. I have ADD too, however mine went undiagnosed, so I understand his frustration. I told him that there is a light switch in his brain that shuts off on him when he gets distracted by things going on around him. This explanation made him feel better, especially when I told him that his mommy had the same faulty light switch. Brad thinks that I am too easy on him, but when he broke down in front of me the other night, I put all 57 pounds of him in my lap and held him like a two year old until he calmed down. It is so sad to see your child upset by something that is totally out of his control.
On the other hand it makes me so sad to think that he will be on medication now. Dr. Joe prescribed Strattera, which is a non-amphetamine ADHD drug that helps more with the anxiety that comes as a side affect of the disorder. The side effects of Strattera are a lot less severe than with Ritalin or Adherol. His appetite should not be affected, but he has to take his pill with his dinner because it can cause an upset stomach as well as drowsiness. So far, his stomach has been okay, but he told me that he is sleepy by the end of the day at school. It takes two weeks for Strattera to get into his system, and until then, we really won't know if it is helping with the ADHD or not. I met with his teacher, who is WONDERFUL, the day after his appointment with Dr. Joe. Our parent teacher conference just happened to be scheduled that day. She was happy that Tucker was going to be on medicine, because like me and Dr. Joe, she can see his potential but knew that the ADHD was holding him back and frustrating him.

So, that has gotten me down a little bit this week. However, one of my dearest friends in the world lost her 9 day old baby three weeks ago. The baby's name was Catie, and she has a twin sister who is still in the NICU at Children's hospital. Amanda's situation is so much more than what mine is, and what she is going through is a reminder that we need to take life for what it is and never, ever take a single moment for granted. Some of my hardest days, do not compare with a good day for some people who have dealt with so much more heartache in their lives. Please pray for Miss Addie, and Amanda, Craig and Wilson. Pray for God to continue to give them strength during these days, and to hold them up when they can't seem to stand any longer.