The evil ADHD

She's so cute isn't she!

I love her to pieces and am never truly angry with her. She is very mild-mannered, always wants to please, and is the peacemaker in our home.

So if I'm going to vent a frustration, here it is--the evil, skulking, ever-lurking-in-our-lives ADHD!

Now I'm not saying Ellie has ADHD. Perhaps I'm in denial. I'm not ready to have her tested, medicated or labeled with it yet. Let's just say the tendency is there--and I would like to banish ADHD from ever rearing it's ugly head in the vicinity of our home again!

This afternoon, I picked Ellie up from school and she informed me that when she opened up her backpack, her homework was not in it--but that the teacher would give her (some) credit, if she turned it in Monday. This is homework that she worked and slaved all week on with me by her side. I of course asked the oh so useless question, "well, why isn't it in your backpack?!"

She replied, "I thought it was in my backpack."

This is not the first time this has happened--or even the second or third. This is a constant struggle! When we got home and started looking for it, we found it on the floor of her room--all stapled together, ready to turn in, signed, sealed, but not delivered.

I can picture the scene. Paul helps her staple the papers together, hands it to her and watches her walk toward her room to put it into her backpack before leaving this morning. She gets to her room, is distracted by some toy, the bracelet she's wearing, or something outside the bedroom window; she sets the papers down and continues on her path of distraction until Paul calls her saying it's time to go. She grabs her backpack--without having put the papers in it--and they head to school.

I know, I know, you're sitting there saying, "she's eight, it's normal, it could happen to anyone." But all the time??????? I ask her put her jacket away. I watch her pick it up and head toward the coat rack. I turn to finish what I am doing. When I look back a moment later, the jacket is on the floor again maybe six feet closer to the coat rack and Ellie is browsing the books on the bookshelf. This may be repeated as many as 4 or 5 times before she can complete the task without being sidetracked. These occurances are happening several times a day!

Getting the homework from the desk to the backpack and then to school is a daily battle that I fear I am losing more often than not. Ellie is not a defiant child, nor does she argue with me about doing homework or other tasks--she is simply highly distractable, like most of her siblings and father before her who have been diagnosed with the unmentionable.

Still I'm holding out some hope that this is a stage she will outgrow...please, please, please!!!

Family Home Evening in the ADHD Zone

Family Home Evening at our house can be an interesting experience with half the family having ADHD moments since the meds have worn off by the end of the day.

Last night Maddie and Ellie prepared the lesson on Avoiding Gossip. They really did a pretty good job using scripture and quotes from general authorities as well as a game of hangman and an activity to help teach the lesson. However, the presentation of the lesson was a little unconventional. It went something like this...

Game of Hangman to introduce the subject.

Maddie starts, "Who can guess a letter?....(hands raised)...um Daniel."

"P," says Daniel after thinking for a moment.

"Yes!" calls Maddie, by now in the other room, and she front walk-over's her way back to the living room to fill in the "P" on the hangman.

Now Ellie chooses someone. "Emily." (Maddie is walking on her hands in the entryway)

Daddy says, "Maddie, come back in the living room--the teacher needs to stay in here."

"Okay." And she returns to sit on the piano bench. "How about another letter?"

"Wait it's still my turn!" say Emily indignantly.

Holly whispers to me, "Mom can you tickle my back?"

"Do we have milk for breakfast in the morning?" blurts out Daniel.

I reply, "We'll check after we're done with FHE. Let's finish Maddie's game."

"What game?"

"Hangman!" says an exasperated Daddy. (Maddie is doing back walk-overs in the entry)
Somehow we got through the hangman game and went on to the main part of the lesson.

Maddie and Ellie sat on the piano bench, read a scripture and a quote and then asked a question. (Raised hands) "Um...Holly."

"Let me think for a minute." Then she launches into a lengthy answer ending with 'don't you think, Dad?'

"Next question!" announces the nine-year-old instructor.

After a few more questions, it was time for the closing song, "Trying to be like Jesus." As the last note sounded, Maddie ran from the room calling, "I have to go to the bathroom!"
If you took all the pieces of the (exhausting) lesson and put them together without interruption--there was a good message there--I just hope a few bits of it went into the hearts and minds of each member of our family.

(Sigh) We'll go forth and try again next week!

Welcome to the ADHD zone!

We often joke about our house being "the ADHD zone." It keeps life interesting because you never know...anything can happen at any time.

Several months ago, Maddie had gone into the bathroom and a few minutes later called for some toilet paper (paper toilet in her words). Paul obliged, opened the door and started to hand her the toilet paper. As he did so, he noticed clothes and various other items littering the bathroom floor. He opened the door wider to check the rest of the bathroom. Then, forgetting what he'd actually come there for and what Maddie was doing at the time, he started calling for the owners of the items to come and get them out of the bathroom. All of a sudden, he heard this little voice--

"Hey! Hello---I'm going to the bathroom! Paul sheepishly (but stifling the laughter) apologized and exited the bathroom.
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Holly ran into my room this morning and said, laughing--

"Don't knock on the gates of hell,
Ring the doorbell and run away--
--the devil hates that!"

then she ran off as quickly as she came in!
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--From the Reader's Digest

(we related to this one)

I have CDO. It's like OCD except the letters are arranged alphabetically like they're supposed to be!
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ADHD version of "Silent Night" (we also related strongly to this one)

"Silent Night, Holy Night,
All is calm...." oh, look at the froggy. Have you been to France? I lo-o-ove chocolate!
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Can you relate to any of this?