William- update on speech

About a month ago I wrote a post about William not talking. I received some great advice and encouragement through comments, email and Facebook. I am very proud to report that the little fella has really been trying and it seems like overnight he has started running his mouth a whole lot. He sticks to simple things but I feel like it is progress. I learned something important during this time as well. His sisters are now back to school and volleyball each day so we are alone from about 7-6 daily. He has done so many things he never attempted when the girls were around. If he only tried to take one step he would be stopped by a very protective big sister shielding him from potential harm. Of course there is really nothing harmful around, they are just being loving big sisters but were ultimately hindering him. I am even guilty of it.

Since he is on his own during the day I have noticed a new little William. He communicates so much better. He zeros in on minute objects and points and says "tee" (see). He is learning his body parts. He is learning how to sit alone and play. If you ask him to do certain simple tasks he will do it. He claps and raises his hands in the air and says "YEEAAH!!" when he has done a good job and knows it. He's is an intelligent little boy. He is just taking his time in the speech department. Funny thing is what his favorite word is. When he wants to watch Yo Gabba Gabba on demand he grabs the remote and says "YOOO". It's too cute! I need to capture it on video but as soon as he sees the camera he won't do it. Y'all know how that can be! Thanks to everyone for their helpful insight. It means a lot!

I almost quit

I have been contemplating it for some time. I kept saying that I will give it another shot.

Day after day it was the same old thing. I wanted something better, fresher, richer, newer, more decadent. Decisions... decisions.

Well I have made up my mind. I'm not leaving you, not now and maybe not ever. Sorry I even entertained the idea of getting rid of you.

The disappearing household

Has anyone noticed how busy everyone seems to be these days? Parents working (some at home), kids in school, activities, sports, practices, etc... Don't forget all the games, meets, tournaments, recitals, open houses, PTO/PTA meetings, fundraisers, business functions and the list is endless. Oh and let's not forget the Internet (social sites, email, shopping, uh pretty much everything you can imagine right at your fingertips) I am sure this all sounds very familiar to most of you. I know it has been a theme in my household over the past few years. When you were growing up did you remember your family being this busy? Not me, we actually had so much time on our hands that we became bored. We always found something to do though...riding bikes, rollerskating, hanging out at the mall or going to the movies. Those were much simpler times. Now society tells you that your kids need to be involved in extracurricular activities every single day. We did this last year with the girls. They went from a variety of summer camps then to school volleyball, club volleyball and piano on top of a FULL school workload. Once you added in all the travel time and expenses (yes, it was very expensive) the end result was a completely burned out family. Every last one of us.

I was chatting with a friend on the phone the other day and we discussed how hard it is to have your children involved in multiple activities and school at the same time. She mentioned that she even knew a couple that divorced over the same thing. Their marriage suffered because of neglect due to traveling all over with the kids. I can't imagine it coming to that extreme. I decided a few weeks back that things will be very different around the Ismail household. We are going to say NO to some things. We can't attend every single game or event. We have to say no to some parties and gatherings. We have to put our family first. We must have more sit-down dinners around the table. We must connect on a daily basis. We can't let all the "stuff" we have going on take over our entire life. No way. Already I have been feeling so relaxed and not so cluttered with feeling like there is no time. I can't stand when people always complain that they have no time. Sometimes just moving things around a bit can give you some more breathing room. I think we will be a even happier household in the long run. I apologize for such a long post. Thanks for taking the time to read this and please share your thoughts on this subject.

Vent Day Wednesday

Welcome to this week's edition of Vent Day Wednesday. We know that we have not posted a video in a while so for all of you that emailed about not getting your VDW fix here you go...Be sure to hit us up in the comments section with your vents!

Social Networking and teens

It's everywhere...so many of us are on these networks. I am on so many I have lost count. Social Networking is a growing trend and even kids and teenagers are a part of it. Dwayne and I let our daughters each get a FaceBook account to keep in touch with friends and family. It's been really good especially for our older daughter since she started high school and most of her friends attend different schools. I wish we had these types of services in my school days! Now all of this comes with a list of rules. We approve all photos before they are uploaded. I have seen some photos that teens post and it is appalling! Friends can only tag photos we approve of. No IMing. You must ask permission to go on and you have a set time. They have ONE time to mess up and poof! It's deleted. Not on hold or you can't use it for 2 weeks. DE-LETED.


So far they have been following the rules and have had no problems. Some people may think we are a bit overboard and really we don't care. We want our children to be a part of all the technology we have but it comes with limits and we care about their safety.



How about you...do you allow your kids to partake in any social networking? Do you have any special rules or guidelines you want to share?