SPD

Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) by Hartley

A font of information to help anyone with SPD.

Sponges plain & lemon

When Dad landed in his room last night, he was hooked up to twenty-eleven hoses coming out of & going into places Dad didn't know existed. Thank God his nurse was down to earth & able to throw back whatever he threw at her. He told her I was torturing him, wouldn't let him drink water, refused to give him ice chips...She carried on with him & was funny along with him.

Oddly enough, when he was brought to his room post-op, he was offered ice chips. As hours passed, they brought him a small cup of water to given sparingly. Somewhere between sparingly & 3am, I unwittingly gave him drinks as his first nurse told me to & twice his tubing overflowed courtesy of his eldest daughter.

Throughout the night, he has been in pain with little to no rest as differing machines sounded off through the dark of night, telling his nurses when he pulled a tube loose by movement or wasn't breathing deeply enough.

Dad has gradually become more mobile-with or without the nurses' permission. He tried to talk the nurses into going ahead and letting him walk a little to which they all emphatically thwarted his attempts at freedom. He charmed his way into lemon sponge sabs to moisten his mouth a moment ago, making me laugh as he told his nurse completely straightfaced that anything had to be better than plain sponge sabs.

Meanwhile back in the jungle, the skies are grey & rain gently falls as Dad & I watch ESPN & he tells me again not to text and drive. In the in-between, we both get still and almost...catch that ever elusive three second nap.

God love us everyone. :)

And for that

Mom & Dad called the hospital this morning before leaving home & were told that yes, the tool needed for his procedure was there. After an iv was started, we were informed that no...the tool wasn't there because it was in use @ St. Vincent Hospital in Little Rock & should be on it's way by noon.

He was in surgery almost three full hours. That little tiny voice inside told me it was a good three hours. His dr. felt that he'd done alot with the tool, cleaning out the gallbladder bed, removing lymph nodes near the area as well as a partial piece of the lining of the liver. He mentioned feeling good about it, but cautioned that although rare, this form of cancer is aggressive & that further actions would begin after his pathology report came in Thursday. We'd be meeting an oncologist, (throwing in the fact that this type cancer does NOT respond to chemo-stopping my heart almost dead in it's tracks) & she'd set up a plan for aggressive treatment.

Mom went home a few hours ago behind Dan & Mich, I'm sitting up in my comfy recliner with my feet in the not-so-comfy bed chair, covered in a couple blankets while I run the prayer loop I've been praying in in my head & heart since I found out. I'm sure all the angels & God Himself are exhausted from hearing my prayers pouring straight into heaven on this midnight flight.

Aggressive and cancer should be stricken from the English language, banished as the bad words they are for describing the horrible pain and suffering they depict. Anything that horrendous, spiteful & ugly shouldn't be a sentence regarding my Dad or anyone else I love or dislike. No one should have to live a life sentenced to pain, weakness & sickness.

I know I'm selfish. I know I don't share well with others when it comes to any minute possibility of losing someone I love that I'm not ready to. No way. UhUh. We didn't sign on for this. I would love to rail at the heavens, scream and thrash and kick on the floor, but am afraid if I were to start, I mightn't finish for a very long time. I refuse to give in to that.

Yet...
that same tiny voice slows my roll, jerks me out of any mode of fear I find myself in. It reminds me of the saying I posted on my FB earlier...

Faith & fear cannot occupy the same space. Goodbye fear.

My God is wonderful, loving, a kind God determined to teach lessons even in the midst of pain, laughter in the midst of sorrow & love in the midst of fear. His time may not be mine, but His own. His healing might not be as I would heal, but His own way. The agony of watching someone hurt this badly that I love as I love my Dad breaks my heart, hurts my soul & infuriates me.

I don't have answers, but I have the belief that God will send angels to stand guard over Dad if I get still tonight or my eyes close in the chair beside me. I have the power of prayer, the strength of belief and a multitide of love coming from family and friends from across the nation as well as other countries and being sent by the multitude to heavenly mailboxes on high.

And for this and many other things, I am thankful.

Thankful that we've had the best Dad, provider, co-parenting team of anyone-I might be partial, but so might we all. I've had tears, laughter, love and family ties that some might not have had the chance to experience. With many of my close friends having lost a parent to cancer, diabetes, any ailment that has marked the passing of a great and shining light, our circle grows tighter around those that remain.

Thankful that our many family members and closest friends are beside us on bended knee, eyes closed, lips moving quietly or maybe ringing out loudly, hearts raised to Heaven as one, praying for Dad to be healed. There's a comfort in knowing we are prayed over as a family, wrapped in tenderness and love by people that we've known all our days from all walks of life and all corners of the world.

I am eternally grateful for the memories we have together from Chicago in Little Rock to Motley Crue in Shreveport to tea parties in our living room to pink pathers  at the family business to double pump jump shots to traveling the western half of the states and so many more that dance fleetingly through my heart. 

I'm thankful that we have been given the honor of knowing of the cancer before the holidays because the blessings were great this Christmas in our family. We shared laughter, love and stories...grilled burgers and gave thanks, albeit silently, for each of us there together as a collective whole, one family, many lives intertwined.

My God is wonderful, loving, a kind God determined to teach lessons even in the midst of pain, laughter in the midst of sorrow & love in the midst of fear. His time may not be mine, but His own. His healing might not be as I would heal, but His own way. The agony of watching someone hurt this badly that I love as I love my Dad breaks my heart, hurts my soul & takes my breath away.

I don't have answers, but I have the belief that God will send angels to stand guard over Dad if I get still tonight or my eyes close as I sit in the chair beside him. I have the power of prayer, the strength of belief and a multitide of love coming from on high.

For this, too, I am thankful.

Sheer Fortitude

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.


Christmas this year was poignant, softly, quietly the most beautiful Christmas i can recall. We had a house full of eight, then eleven, then seventeen. Amazing that such a small house turned into a home full of shining, beautiful love with new memories of stockings decorated at the kitchen table, five and one jumping on the trampoline, laughter spilling through the house in tandem and fantastic grilled burgers for Christmas Eve dinner.


Equally amazing was the perfectly timed adjustment in medication for Blue that made his entire holiday his shining moment...the entire day before the Eve of Christmas, Christmas Eve as well as Christmas day, the holiday began and ended perfectly with him declaring...I'm getting a hold on this holiday thing, Mom. :)
I celebrated this special Christmas with the most wonderful man on earth, my husband of three months and three weeks, our six healthy, beautiful children, my parents, my sister andr fiancee and thier beautiful almost year old beautiful baby girl as well as my husbands' parents, a fantastic pair of inlaws.


As I prayed throughout each moment for healing for my dad, I appreciated each small thing I was blessed with...our combined family, the sideways laughter, the excitement in thier voices as they asked from 7 am on Christmas Eve morning, can we open just one now? I gave thanks then as I do now, smiling, remembering that we are *not* alone, whether near or far, in heart. Miles calibrate distance, never taking into account the strength of love, the sheer fortitude of those that love truly and deeply.


We were blessed with two of the greatest friends on earth, both sacrificing a portion of thier Christmas Eve morning to take a myraid of family pictures for us. They braved elements of freezing temperatures and freezing snow around thier own Christmas preparations to indelibly etch in time pure love, unseen strength and raw courage tightly corded together by family.


Christmas Eve night, we went to "the house", my parents' home that will ever be Christmas Eve's home in both my sister's and my heart. We enjoyed perfectly grilled burgers, banana pudding and love overflowing. As presents were opened, laughter flew from corner to corner as orbs oversaw the proceedings, gently through the night. There were times when I could almost feel both Grans (D & G) watching over thier babies (my dad & mom), us, Uncle Bob nearby laughing with us, watching over his Wooligan, my mother.


Every day should be as radiant as was Christmas Eve this year. The quiet peace, the thankfulness that we, a family unit, made wonderful Christmas memories although not mentioned, yet not overlooked at any given moment.


The last few days, my eyes, my heart & my soul have been lifting my dad and mom in prayer, asking for healing, asking for no pain, asking for everything to be perfect for him tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning, we gather at the hospital as many people across our family and friendship lines gather in heart and soul to pray unceasing for his doctor to find no more cancer and that if he does, it will be taken care of quickly...painlessly, praising and glorfying His name.


As time draws nigh, I pray for the healing, peace, laughter and love that have brought us this far to take us into a new year together, family in our hearts, friends by our sides, healthy, happy and one.

These are the days

The morning began at a dead run, warming water in the mircowave as I do often for my tea & it lit up like the Fourth of July, sparking and the whole nine yards. After narrowly averting the kitchen exploding, I gatheried all our eggs in one basket, organizing & loading up a partial list of presents into the Sopwith Sonata. We flew over hills and dells to exchange my Vallee kids in Nashville w/ thier Mom. On the way there, Blue & I sang Have a Holly Jolly Christmas by Burl Ives & have I mentioned how incredible his gift of mimicry is? You'd have thought Mt. Ives was in the car with us. :) We sang Please Santa Don't Be Late by the Chipmunks at the top of our lungs punctuating it with much laughter and love.

After picking the kids up, we had a long, quiet, discussion about thier Papaw...my most wonderful Dad. G asked me if his cancer was really serious & I explained to the boys what the procedure was and W was quick to reassure me that they told thier Papa and that Papaw's name was on thier prayer list @ church...my eyes immediately welled up with tears as I told them I know you guys don't see me down ever, but it may be a rough few days for me. G said I understand and it's okay to feel that way. I'm in awe of what a good job his Mom and Dad have done raising him. (them)

On arrival home almost 6 hours after departure, the kids unloaded & hit the trampoline @ breakneck speed. As I watched them, it dawned on me that water was pouring out of the ground...praying it was oil geyser to no avail, i called the most wonderful husband on earth & described it to him. He explained to me how to turn the water off until he got home and promised he would give it a look when he got home. (have I mentioned how much I love that man?)

I went straight to the kitchen to start the sausage, got out the flour (in the big ziplock baggy) for the gravy & disaster struck. It seems that the water pipe and refridgerator were co-conspiring against me as the flour was now wet & runny dough. No gravy tonight in my kitchen, no gravy tonight in thier tums...

MOG

There are days that chewing through the restraints isn't to be valued or trusted. Maybe today was rough because I'm tender about Dad having cancer. Maybe it was tender because holidays are hard on Blue & sentimental moreso than any other time of the year. Maybe...SuperMom(StepMomster) needs a few seconds to recharge.

All in all, the outpouring of love, prayer & faith the last few days is cause enough to give pure, true thanks & appreciate the beauty & simplicity of God's grace unwavering and His love true...

The call

Meet us in the carport. We need to talk.
I was there a few minutes later, my sister a few seconds after.


Dad had gallbladder surgery Monday a week ago. The resulting biopsy showed his gallbladder to "a minute amount" of cancer.


Faith. Love.  Pray. Positive. To everything a season.

Isaiah 40:30-31
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;they shall mount up with wings like eagles;they shall run and not be weary;they shall walk and not faint.


Fight. Faith. Friends. Laughter. Love.


I'm not happy about his diagnosis, but I will remain positve no matter what comes & will deal with it the same.


I'm thankful for the fantastic support system in place, my wonderful husband, the family strength & determination that will fight side by side with me & the friends that will stay near in heart & prayer.


Tomorrow-another day.

Collapse of the Momster

Rare are the times that a Mom gets sick, especially a Mom with a child with Autism or any other special need. I slept from 10am-3pm yesterday, came up for air when my girlfriend dropped the boys off from school, staying awake long enough for Blue to be picked up by hus dad & crashed again, waking @ 7pm to see Tbear off to his Dad's & then...sleep...coughing, coughing, coughing & more sleep...

Day two of perfecting operation reclining Momster, chicken noodle soup, cough meds, my Razorback Snugglie & a Sean Connery movie fest.

The phone rang a a few seconds ago for me to hear an angelic soft voice on the other end singing:
Good moring, Moma beautiful, how was your night? Hope you are feeling better!!! I have a sore throat a little bit and I miss you, but Dad says you need some rest because you are bad sick so you rest & feel better & I'll come by & kiss you before we go to town. Love you Mom! Bye!

Nothing in any world could compare to the love given freely from any of my boy children...hard fought & sweetly won. :)

ADHD/Autism Grape Flavored

Have faith in what you are doing and in yourself. Remember that he CAN verbalize even if it's only anger & frustration @ this moment. It took a while to recognize the challenges & will take a while to straighten out any curves you can.  It's got to be frustrating to be him & not be able to express all of his pent up feelings in a way that he knows is right. He may not be able to express his love for you when he's screaming, but never forget that he can only do that with the person (s) he feels safest with that he knows won't abandon him hell or high water.

 

Think of it as an interger-the number line in math-with positives & negatives.

 

The negative number days are the raging, screaming days where you don't think you can give anymore than you have-those days where you close your bedroom door & shake & pray. They are growth opportunities.

 

The sunshine interger moments are those brilliant, blinding moments of shining beauty where you know for a fact that he just crossed a point that he hadn't before & that even IF he can't get back there right now, he knows how fantastic it felt to get there & that it might be a little easier next time.

 

And know you are loved, prayed for & not alone. Write in a journal if you have time. Bubblebath, pedicure...both sounded silly to me until my PDD-NOS son taught me to slow down & appreciate the beauty in small things.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
Kahlil Gibran

In God We Trust

I'm re-evaluating

Weak in Blue

The busdriver motioned for his step-dad or I to come to the bus Monday afternoon as he was coming down the steps. His face was flushed & he was running low grade fever. She pointed her finger at us & said Blue does NOT feel well, his chest is tight, his throat is aching & his head is hurting. TAKE CARE OF MY BLUE!

The ensuing night brought more fever, bone rattling coughing & a general sense of miserable for him as we struggled for him to get any rest between coughing spasms.

The following morning as we drove toward his dr.s' office, his school called to inquire after him. I was told that the previous evening as he waited in line to get on the bus for home, he told another child he'd cut his head off & that furthermore, he'd have two days of suspension for said deed. He went on to ask...are you SURE he is sick? This person has been instrumental in Blue's doing so well this year. He has fought side by side for him, with us. I calmly, quietly & clearly answered...yes. He ran 102 fever last night.

I asked if he'd spoken to anyone else that might've been near, that might have (?) heard my son possibly be provoked because that wasn't one of his common phrases. He said he'd not investigated it further as of yet, but planned to have a classroom meeting later in the day with the other child out of the room.

The following day, my son wasn't feeling much better & as he was suspended anyway, we slept in until I recieved a phone call from the aforementioned party. He had the class meeting & was told by several classmates that the child in question was sometimes annoying, frustrating & didn't always know when to quit. (Please understand I'm not for either side, but DO want the facts of the whole event no matter how good, bad or ugly)

My son remained suspended. He was in school ONE day this week with a SIX day weekend.
I'm highly frustrated as his behavior modification plan specifies in school suspension for verbalizing things such as this. My son is smart enough to be aware that if he says anything in a threatening manner, he will be suspended for 1-2 days, possibly more & has gone a full MONTH holding himself fairly well together.

If I & my husband don't stand our ground for my son, asking questions & getting to the bottom of each detail that paints the entire picture, who will? Who will protect him from bullies, social situations that will harm him & people that aren't willing to hear ALL sides before suspending him?

William Stillman

The Autism Whisperer

William Stillman has been dubbed "The Autism Whisperer," by talk show host Frankie Picasso, for his innate ability to understand and interpret children and adults on the autism spectrum. Lisa Jo Rudy, About.com's autism moderator, has said, "William Stillman is one of the few who can translate the workings of the autistic mind to the neuro-typical community." And Kelly Jad'on, of Internet news outlet BasilandSpice.com, stated, "William Stillman dares to go where few have gone before; without a doubt, he is the forerunner of the beginning of a movement which will alter the development and future of mankind." 

Coronation & Fire Monitors

Hi, this is Blue's Mom calling to see how his day went & if it was good, I'd like to check him out thirty minutes early for Homecoming Cornonation. He had a great day, but I have to tell you what he did! On the way out the door to the playground, he stopped, pulling off & folding his brand new fire monitor shirt carefully. He asked me if I'd please hold it for him so it wouldn't get dirty while he was playing. I'll have him ready for you when you get here. :) Thank you!

I picked him up five minutes later from the office. He was extrememly excited as we got into the truck & he found his surprise snack & drink. He stopped a quarter of a mile from the school suddenly serious & said where...are we going? I answered to Coronation-you want to see your Sunday School teacher, Ms. Kaylee in it, don't you? He said MOM. Are you SERIOUS?! You took me out of school for Coronation?! Turn around & take me back so I can learn. Please.

FIfteen minutes later, he was walking through his dad's door, yelling DAD, you are NOT gonna believe this-Mom checked me out early to go to Coronation when I could've been LEARNING. UGH... Bye, Mom! Love you!

TreeTopInc

Typical & Non-Typical Kids ROCK! :)

Two days, speedbump, three days

Celebrations come few & far between at times & when they do, they are HUGE i tell ya! Ye ol' gorgeous boy of 8 year old persuasion had another excellent day!  He wrote an exceptional amount in his writing lab & his teacher noted it with his 80% B grade. There is a zero difference between his 80% B & another's 100%. His effort is a huge joy to my heart. :) 


Eighteen months & a complete change of school staff later, times making changes & yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus. There ARE reasons to believe & little by little, it's coming together.


Just breathe, darlin.


As quoted by a dear friend in the last few days, "Dear Lord, I know there is but one set of footprints & it is because you are carrying (us) me during this time of trial & struggle." I have faith, hope &  deeply abiding love, the three strongest forces known to any. Another day, another tiny piece of our puzzle comes together.

Amen

In the battle of good versus evil in an autistic mind, is there truly a winner? If behaviors are modified with medicines and behavior modification plans, does that change a child that would not be privy to those changes or demands were they not neurologically impaired? If writing is a trigger for upset, distress and bad behavior, what is a middle of the road modification that is truly a win win situation-one that will benefit that child as well as teachers...as well as the parents that struggle in the darkest night to make sense of a battle that would be a mere blip on the road of another's life?

Today a (nother) new beginning. Today a behavior modification support plan was studied for both strength & weakness, short-term goals & longevity, reminding us all gently to look for even a mere act of GOODness & comment on it, send home a note of joy-your child did this!, in effect, catching him being good instead of the negavtivity that reigns down from all angles.

I make no excuses as I struggle alongside my child to understand my child, to remain his faith, his belief, his anchor. His heart breaks, my heart breaks. His laughter shines, my laughter shines. We are in this growth opportunity together, our God, he, I, his step-father, his school staff, his dr.s and the people that love us, pray with us & struggle through it with us.

For all of this, I give thanks to God. I give thanks for the bad that I can appreciate the good. I give thanks for the frustration that I can appreciate the humor. The heartache so I can appreciate the full blown love of my child, a child that has & will continue to teach me more about parenting than any book or training ever will.

Forever

I could hold you in my arms
I could hold you forever...

Sometimes a note can take a person back to a time that is no longer, yet remains dancing in past memories...a place where September calls, leaves change softly as Tuesday whispers in the stillness.
Eyes closed, reliving, remembering, realizing that glow of a fall day would slowly bring clarity, focus and self awareness.

Trampolining sunbeams

I'll do two problems & go jump, Mom, okay? (the compromising has begun-eights sheets of writing classwork or homework has that effect on him.) I'll take eight problems or two rows & then you can jump. Ummm, no, that's not what I said, Mom. I'm willing to compromise with you & meet you in the middle, Elijah. That is NOT the middle & I'm not doing any working with you. Not. Gonna. Happen.

Tomorrow is another day to seam together the dream team we've assembled, teachers, special ed teachers, the principal & his mom & stepdad.

Until then, we'll snuggle, hug, give (s) mooches & say his prayers as this day ends & another begins.

(James 1:3) 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

(Hebrews 11:1) 1 Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen.

"Grandin"

Sunday night, the movie, "Temple Grandin", was nominated for seven awards & brought home five. As I read the article I'll link to,I cried  for her, her mother, Emily Gerson Saines, Claire Danes & everyone affected by Autism on any scale of the spectrum. I celebrated, I reveled, I cheered her on from my kitchen in West Heaven.

Well done, Temple.


://awards.tv.yahoo.com/blog/50-who-is-temple-grandin?nc

Alpha

The first week of the third grade is officially behind us.  It's taken crying, screaming, attituding on teachers & the principal & a couple direct line paddlings from the principle to get him to this point.  One week down, many tears & rages, more hugs & sweet kisses as he calms himself, pulls himself back around to present, home & being with the parents that love him unconditionally, that he knows will never change or be something they aren't.

I pray for him, his teachers, his principal, his behavior therapist & everyone that doesn't & possibly never will understand the person he is.  I pray for strength, love & tenderness given me through the grace of God for the times I'm not sure how to take another step on his behalf to show him love, truth, tenderness & compassion no matter how bad previous days went, no matter what happened.

All these things I ask in God's name.

Amen

Peace in the sky

Looking up to thank God for a beautiful day, I see peace.

But by the Grace of God go I

There are challenges in going back & forth to Arkansas Children's Hospital in the best of any situation, stretching family & friends to the end of the line as I got Trevor situated last night, this afternoon & tonight @ his football game with the help of my dear friends for example.

.I am thankful for the many blessings from our move two hours south, (family, friends, school support...).

 We stayed last night in North Little Rock (as I silently thanked God again for another dear friend that has become family) to ensure we'd be @ the neurology appointment at 8am & kept a hard pace for the remainder of the day, I know to thank God from the time we roll out of bed to the time we trudge our tired selves home.

I pray the entire time we are at ACH for the children that aren't as healthy as Elijah, for the parents that are torn apart on a daily basis, for the doctors  & therapists that give thier all all the time & for the wonderful nurses that bless each and every one of us that have ever stepped inside the front doors of the hospital, any clinic or wing-no matter if's a routine appointment or months on end, they give thier all.

I give thanks for the blessings as in today we I felt for a split second that we'd conquered the world in one fell swoop, MRI & EEG clear & Elijah ready for take-off.

As the dust settled & the sun began to set @ Trevor's football game tonight, I looked around to see myself surrounded by family & friends & felt myself tearing up, so fortunate to have & recognize the gifts my family is given.

Thank you for the blessings & the beauty of the day, God.

To New Beginnings

Today...Trevor & Elijah went back to school. I did things differently than I have in the past for them. I put them on the bus with a silent prayer & alot of faith instead of taking them to school thier first day. It was hard, but I believe it was the right decision.. Today, I gave them the gift of standing on thier own two feet in a small, quiet way. When school ends, Elijah will ride the bus home...alone & Trevor will stay after school for football practice.

Today begins a new year of prayer & shining hope.

MS Music

http://www.myspace.com/music/my-music

From: Elaine Hall

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elaine-hall/living-with-autism-7-easy_b_681033.html

Life isn't about trophies, the ribbons & accolades. It's about


finding our own truth...creating the life that shines bright in the darkest night.



At times...the sounds of a heart shattering resonate



Each soul stretches, taut, tight, arching against symmetrical force that brings warring

thoughts & hearts together.

Transitions

Wonder if most realize how many changes are made in a day...waking, shower or not to, which clothes...such important decisions that affect later decisions in one's day, running early, running late-rushed either way, practice after school-piano, football or baseball-which child to go where with?, what for dinner, the small grocery store family owned & operated or a rushed grocery run at one of the big conglomerate, loud music on the intercom, voices talking, calling names, lights flashing, people of all kinds coming at one, going as quickly as they come, hurry home, throw groceries in fridge, start dinner, homework as fast & clear as one can, dinner, shower, sliding between nice cool sheets at the end of the day...sigh...
so many transitions.

Can you imagine all of the above packed tightly into five second intervals with no break between? Can you consider the immense overload found in the sensory area of a person that has no brakes-no protection-no way to break all the above down into breathable, doable sections?

Compassion, love for another soul, kindness...begin here.

Life in the Grape Lane

"Mom, are we in a hurry?"

"Yes! I'm getting my hair done & I've got to get on the road.
Please put your bunch of grapes back in the fridge & let's hit the road, son."

"The most wonderful man on earth took my grape eater with him so I could enjoy the process of getting beautiful. I came home to hear, "MOM, you look sixteen! You should do that more often!" :)

Awwww, my heart melted as he hugged me, his eyes looking so sweetly into mine. I freely admit I'm a sucker for sweet heartfelt compliments from 15 & under boychildren of mine.

The day after...
This morning I was awakened by the most wonderful man on earth whispering sweet nothings in my ear as he said, " Remember the grapes you asked him to put in the fridge yesterday on your way out the door?"

I opened an eye to look @ him & croak, "Yes?"

He continued to whisper sweetly as he said, "My khaki shorts & all of our underwear and socks are now grape spotted. He put the entire bunch of grapes in the washer."

We'd been graped!

As luck would have it, the clothes were rewashed & mass bedlam did not ensue as all the stains came out.(Thank you, God above)

Maybe next time he'll choose oranges.