Lora's United States of Whatever

Recently, I have had a heavy feeling on my heart about my role as an advocate for Izzy and others with autism. As a teacher in Katy, TX, I feel confident in that role. I am blessed to have taught many students who are on the spectrum and worked with fabulous teachers who just get it. What’s been bothering me, though, is my portrayal of my life on social media… my highlight reel, if you will. I’ve not been very vocal about our challenges. And if you’ve only seen pics and short videos of Izzy, you may think that she’s a normally functioning kiddo. Rodeo Houston 2018 Many of our friends and family members who live in Dallas/Ft. Worth, Oklahoma, and even further across the nation don’t know about Izzy’s diagnosis. Under the guise of “I don’t want to be an oversharer on social media,” I’ve shared nothing. I’m realizing that others need to hear our story. Our story can help others, and, in some ways, also help us. This is our story. Izzy was born on January 20, 2008 in Charlotte...

Since school started, I haven't had much extra time to blog. My extra time has been spent lesson planning, organizing forms, packing lunches, cooking and running around like a chicken with my head cut off! A blog is long overdue, and I'm not sure where to begin. Right now, Greg is out of town, and Izzy and I are on our own for a few days. We started off this morning with banana pancakes... Izzy calls them banana cookies. They are so easy and delicious. I mashed up two bananas and mixed in one egg and two tablespoons of almond butter. I cooked them in a skillet for a few minutes on each side. Yum! They remind me of banana nut bread. We have really been trying to lay off of bananas, so this was a special treat! Of course, we had some bacon with our pancakes! :) We've done a pretty good job staying on our diet since school started. Each Sunday I chop up fruit and vegetables, so it's easy to throw things into our lunches each night. I've been making breakfast for Izzy a...

I decided to skip out on trying a new vegetable this week and enjoy some of my favorite vegetables instead. Last night I tried a recipe that I found on the Everyday Paleo web site . It reminded me of the lettuce wraps from Pei Wei or P.F. Changs, so I had to try it. Plus, I had been craving Chinese food, and I thought this might just quench my desire to order an A13. When Greg got home from work, he said, "Man, it smells just like Pei Wei!" Yes! I knew right then it was going to be a successful new dinner. Warning: This recipe requires a lot of chopping. I love to chop... it's almost therapeutic for me, so I didn't mind at all. http://everydaypaleo.com/2010/04/04/chicken-lettuce-wraps/ I made the Thai peanut sauce with my trusty almond butter, and it was the perfect topping. It really added flavor to the wraps. Also, this made a ton of food. I packed Greg's lunch with leftovers, and there is more than enough for Izzy and I to have for lunch. I just had to post th...

When I first entered the blogging world I wrote a blog about my dear husband, who is constantly crying "wolf". I've recently realized that I have a little girl that does the same thing! Izzy tells us that her belly hurts, her fingers hurt and her chin hurts. We always kiss what hurts, and it always feels better. Lately, though, she's been crying "wolf" when it comes to potty training. Today we went to one of our favorite places for burgers, Mooyah. They have delicious beef patties, and Izzy and I always get Iceburgers... our beef patty and toppings are wrapped up in iceberg lettuce... my new favorite way to eat a burger! Greg, of course, gets a bun, but that's part of what I love about eat out at Mooyah... we can all three get our burgers just the way we want them. I added bacon, onions, tomato, mustard, pickles and cheese. Delicious! Anyway, during our scrumptious lunch, Izzy was also experiencing her first outing in big girl panties (Cars panties, of ...

Well, my swiss chard frittata wasn't what I thought it would be. First of all, it took forever to finely chop the swiss chard. My chopping skills got very sloppy towards the end of my big bunch of swiss chard. I sauteed the onions (just two tablespoons) in a little bacon grease and then added the swiss chard and cooked just until it wilted. I tasted the swiss chard at this point and it was pretty tasteless. The texture reminded me of spinach. Next I added some dried basil and oregano and then six beaten eggs. I stirred it just a bit and then let the eggs start to cook up. When it was firm around the edges, I put it under the broiler for about five minutes. The first bite I took was straight swiss chard. Blech. I added lots of salt and pepper, and it wasn't that bad. I cut the fritatta into wedges and put it in the fridge to eat later. Greg tried a piece and liked it. While I really like the concept of a fritatta, I'm not too crazy about the swiss chard. I'd love a frita...

I haven't made a lot of time for blogging lately, so I'm going to try to get into the habit of writing at least a little bit more often rather than my usual once in a while lengthy blogging. Today's blog will be short and sweet. The Top Ten Things I'm Excited About 10. Decorating my classroom... I know this sounds nerdy, but I love shopping for cute borders and letters and organizing my room. That's nerdy, but that's something I get excited about! 9. Swiss Chard... I know. Really weird, but I'm trying to eat a new vegetable every week, and this week is swiss chard. I'm going to make a frittata with it once I finish this blog. There's just something about the name "swiss chard" that sounds so... international! 8. Shelby's baby shower... I am so excited for my sis! She is so very pregnant right now and so deserves this big day to be showered with precious gifts for Miss Abbey. I cannot wait! 7. Fingerpaint... I bought Izzy some fingerpain...

Man, I'm really slacking in my blogging! I have some good excuses though... Greg and I had a wonderful weekend. We shipped Izzy to Bee Bee's house on Friday afternoon. By "shipped" I mean I met my mother-in-law halfway. That's two hours to the drop off spot and two hours back. Friday evening we went out to eat, and that was the first time I cheated on my diet. I ordered my favorite cheese-filled, beef fajita meat-stuffed enchiladas with rice and beans. The first few bites were amazing. Then I started to feel really full, and I had no interest in eating the rest of it. I did, however, resist my temptation to have a margarita... and it was happy hour! I patted myself on the back for that one! Saturday morning I had to get my bangs trimmed and get a pedi before the day's festivities. I ate bacon and eggs for breakfast and headed out. I went to a baby shower at 1 pm in downtown Houston and a wedding at 6 pm in Houston/reception in Katy. I won't even get into t...