Calen's New Teacher

I heard from Calen's new preschool teacher. Her name is Jennifer Herman. She called me Monday and I missed the call. I returned her call, but I was only able to leave a voicemail. I expressed the fact that I wanted to discuss her ABA training, Calen's diet, and incorporating potty training into Calen's IEP. Calen's first day will be a half-day on August 11th from 8am to 12pm. Then he will have 2 more half-days on the 14th and 15th. His first full day will be August 18th from 8am to 2pm. I can't wait. They've moved the preschool from Highland Park to the building between the Howell-Graves and the BOE building. I haven't had a chance to ride through there yet, but I will find it. There will also be a parent night on August 7 from 6pm to 8pm. I have to find someone to keep my children, but I will be there regardless.

Calen's appointment with his DAN! doc is tomorrow at 2pm. I requested gas vouchers from Medicaid for my trips to Franklin. My first request was denied with a statement saying that the trip wasn't approved prior to the request for the voucher. I was instructed to call Mrs. Foster from the Medicaid office in Florence. I called and left a message, but the call was never returned. Yesterday, I called Medicaid in Montgomery to request another voucher. While speaking to the rep, I asked what I had to do to get the trip approved. I did the work and got Dr. Kalb's office the accept Alabama Medicaid. She didn't understand either, and put me in touch with Mrs. Foster. She stated that she will need a letter from Dr. Kalb stating why Calen is being seen by him and why does he have to go out of state. I left a message for Dr. Kalb's nurse concerning Mrs. Foster's instructions. The nurse called me back and asked that I write down what I want the letter to say and e-mail it to him in an attachment. My Internet at home isn't working for some reason, and I can't do it at work. I created a letter with instructions and faxed it to his office. I hope there isn't a problem. I didn't mention autism in the letter. I said that Calen is being treated for digestive disorders. Since autism is considered untreatable by insurance companies and Medicaid, I made sure not to mention that in the letter so that they will cover it. If the medical coders and staff are smart, they will leave out autism as much as they can so that services will be covered. Mrs. Foster said that she will reimburse me for the previous trip back in May also. That was good news.

My children's dad called yesterday. He didn't want anything. He informed me that he called the daycare to check on the kids. You see, he doesn't do a single thing for the kids, so to ease his own conscience, he calls to check on them. I told him that he was going to have to talk to his mom about Calen's diet, but that won't help because he doesn't know anything about it himself. I informed him about the incident with his mom giving Calen bread. He, of course, took up for his mom using lack of knowledge as the excuse. I talked to her about the diet 4 different times so that excuse doesn't hold up with me. I also told him about her getting out ice cream to give to the kids. I told her (again) that Calen can't eat it. Their aunt told her to put it up because Calen can't have any. The grandmother said that she wasn't going to punish Kylia because Calen can't have any. That made me angry, and I was waiting for her to go ahead and get that ice cream out, but she put it back. Calen is only 3 years old and his level of understanding isn't where it should be. All I ask is that if you want to give Kylia a treat like ice cream, don't be cruel and do it in Calen's face. He doesn't understand that he CAN'T have any. All he sees is that he's being treated different. He already has a lifetime of that crap to face due to his autism, and I will NOT tolerate that mess from family members of all people. When my voice became stern, that's when he changed his tune. He claims that we will have to sit down with her and talk about this, and I agreed to it. I don't think it's too complicated and too deep to understand, but if you're a total dumb*ss....oh well. I told him about my waiting to hear from the University of AL in Tuscaloosa to know if I was accepted. He claimed he was glad to hear that I haven't given up on earning another degree. Then he started..."WHEN WE GET MARRIED, YOU CAN GO TO SCHOOL FOR FREE". Married?? His dad works for one of the colleges in Huntsville and he said that when we get married I can go to that particular college for free. He didn't get a chance to say which one because my phone died in the middle of our conversation. Is that a sign or what!!! Married?? I don't think his current girlfriend would appreciate that!!! LOL .... moving on.... LOL

My kids and I stayed the weekend at my dad's house. My sisters and their families came. It was a houseful! We had a good time. We all haven't been together like that in a long time. I enjoyed myself. Kylia loves her cousin Dee. Dee is 14 years old. They played all weekend. She wouldn't let anyone else hold her. She also loves her Uncle David. He's my sister's husband. She went through a couple of spells where no one but David could hold her. I have her on film fighting Dee. He would touch her on the forehead, and she would hit him really hard and say "don't be hitting me!". It was so funny! They went back and forth all day.