Yes, call the insurance company. It might need prior authorization. Also, call the doctor and see if they have some samples to get you through a few weeks until you can straighten this out. If none of that works, call the maker of Abilify and ask for a hardship voucher (or whatever they call them) so that you can get the meds at a lower cost or free. My dd with bipolar is on Risperdal and I know that is expensive as well. Oh, one more thought. I don't know what pill sizes Abilify comes in but sometimes you can get a bigger strength pill and cut it in 1/2 for about the same price as the smaller strength pills. We did that with Ripserdal as it was about the same to get 30 of the 1mg and cut them in 1/2 (so we could dose 1/2mg twice a day for a month) as it was to get 30 of the 1/2mg tablets (which would only last us 15 days). Ask the doctor or pharmacist though if they can be split as some meds can and others can't.

Where in the artic are you? My friend lived in Wainwright AK for 15 years and has stories to tell about the Arctic. Her dh is now in Barrow AK working. Anyway, do you think it could be that your new schedule is a bit much for him? At 7, Saxon 2 would be a fine placement. Likely he is balking over the extra work, more difficult schedule, lack of sunshine (have you tried the inside "sun" lightbulbs), and cabin fever.

You know, honestly, I was going to mention ACE PACES for your boys. I kept putting them off for a few years thinking they are not a "good enough" education, etc. but now we are in our 2nd year of using them and I LOVE them and my kids LOVE them. They have placement tests so that you can start them out exactly where they need to be and go from there. My 4th grade dd does hers almost all on her own. My older dd is mentally impaired but just about done with ACE 1st grade and she does much of it on her own as well.

I would certainly check out the I See Sam books http://www.iseesam.com or http://www.roadstoeverywhere.com/3RsPlusRead.html (check out the UK link on the right for a wealth of information). The books are a structured phonics series but have a lot of practice at each level. NO NEED for boring word lists, etc. The child just blends the sounds to say the words and reads the cute stories. Email me if you would like a sample.

Just got back from doing 45 minutes of Leslie Sansone with 3 other ladies from church. We get together each Monday evening and do 2+ miles of indoor walking and then when the weather is nice (actually more when it is light outside at 7pm) we head outside for 1-2 more miles of outdoor walking.

Just make sure they know I won't scar them for life. My girls remember EVERYTHING (in addition to having special needs) and once I threw out one thing and my dd remembered it and cried for it off and on for a YEAR. We are going to keep downsizing though. I gave away all of the LEGOS---horrors I know and the wooden blocks. They are great toys, foster creativity but we don't NEED them. I am also downsizing coat, snowpants, etc. We have good coats and play coats and living in Michigan you need spring/fall coats, rain coats, winter coats, artic blast coats and snowpants. Then they have barn boots, winter boots, rain boots and riding boots. I am just trying to cut back some of that but still have enough stuff. They are outside 2-4 hour every day in the winter so they need that stuff. I do have plans for dh to make a few more shelves and then modify one area so that we can handle this stuff better. We don't have a mud room and the garage opens right up to the dining area with open living room.

Well, we are on the opposite end right now, looking for a house. I would certainly try to declutter as much as you can. Load it up in a vehicle, etc. and don't leave it in the house as it will make the room/closet, etc. look very messy. I know you can't do this today, but maybe take the week off from school and DEJUNK as much as possible. If it is something you won't move to your next home, get RID of it NOW. Make one box/bag for trash and one for donation---every item you touch much have a nice home to stay or it goes into one of these boxes. If the appliances are staying, clean them. Make sure the bathrooms are clean and have plenty of TP (my dd had to go at one home we were looking at) Honestly, the biggest thing for me was not having clutter around--make the closets only 1/2 full so they look bigger, same thing with cabinets, etc.

So sorry. That just doesn't seem right. For one thing, if they are taking fewer kids, what if one gets sick, injured, etc.? They don't make "cuts" here at our Special Olympics--even for state games. My 3 kids have been involved in various sports over time but honestly, right now, none of them are interested in competing so we dont' go.

I use a probiotic for my girls EVERY day. They have immune deficiencies and this has really helped them. They take the supremadophillus from https://www.houston-enzymes.com/store/product.php?c=12. They also take Omega Brites http://www.omegabrite.com but I don't know if they help with immune stuff or not.

Guess I just need to get MOTIVATED for this. Dh and I have decided that unless/until the PERFECT home comes up, we will stay put. Our biggest thing we are looking at is more acreage so we can bring our horses home and have them in our yard. Those of you that have done this.......how do you keep the kids from wanting to keep EVERYTHING and pitching fits as stuff is leaving? Honestly, I can say that my girls play with EACH AND EVERY toy they own. They have way too many but they do play with ALL of it. How do you justify selling/giving away stuff that they do love and use just because they have TOO MUCH? We moved into this house before kids and have since adopted 3 and fostered over 100 others so we have lots of stuff.

I would pick out a few of the easier ones and rotate them to start. Try to mix up what you are doing. Honestly, if you can do 20-30 minutes 4-5 times a week you are in good shape.

This must be very tough. I think though that you do have to have some "tough love" as it used to be called. I don't know if it would help at all or not but on Focus on the Family or Family Life Today or one of those radio shows they had a segment on THE PRODIGAL where a mom wrote how her daughter was a prodigal and what they went through to restore the relationship. Sorry I don't have more information. Make sure that you have the supports you need through this as well.

I was VERY happy with it and it was a huge resource source for me. Right now, I did not renew my membership as my dd is quite stable, we have the right meds, etc. but if a problem comes up, I will renew as these people know their stuff. They have a lot of great resources. I LOVED the email groups as they help put you in ones where they have simlilar age kids, or location, or homeschooling, etc.---you can specify what group you would like. It is great to hear from other parents in the same situation. They have great printouts---the bipolar treatment guidelines are about the best out there. I would certainly try it for the 2 weeks.

My title wasn't very clear. I didn't mean that if you did it, did your home not sell but rather if you did something like that and then decided to STAY in your home. We are in the spot where we can move if the right place comes around. If not, we can easily stay here for a few years--at least until the highway dozes this place. Since the highway is most likely coming through, we really don't know if we want to spend $30,000+ to put up a barn, etc. here as we likely would not recoup that cost when the highway came through. It is the not knowing that is hard. If they move the highway over just 100 feet we will be looking at it instead of moving. I would just like to DEJUNK this home majorly and maybe do some updating--but not spend too much money. I just know the design to sell shows make a huge difference in a home with only $1-2 thousand dollars.

Just to clarify, it was the HEADACHES that were the biggest symptom of the migraseizures. She also had some falling down, tripping, etc. occ. She did not have any grand mal seizures or honestly anything else that made us think seizures until the neurologist wanted an EEG due to the headaches.

We are trying to decide to sell or not right now. House prices are VERY low right now where we are and there is a highway supposed to be coming through our home (was supposed to be here last year but it could be 1-5+ years yet). Anyway, a friend and I were talking this morning about the Designed to Sell show on HGTV where they spend about $1500-2000 and really spruce up the house. I told her that we could do that and even if we lived her only 1-2 more months it could make our home much more enjoyable for US and if we would sell, make it easier to sell. So, has anyone gone through their home and been RUTHLESS with getting ride of stuff (we have way too much STUFF) and then fixed it up some like they were putting it on the market to sell but then didn't sell? Basically, we are at the point where we could buy another home and not have to sell this one but we don't HAVE to buy another home for years. If the RIGHT home (3+ bedrooms, barn for horses, 5+ acres, etc) comes up in our target area, we would buy. If not, we would just stay here longer. Any hints for me? One of the big appeals to me honestly, is moving so that we would be FORCED to dejunk. I told dh, it might be worth $200 to pay someone to help me once I do the major stuff to get this house totally cleaned up, maybe help with decore ideas, etc. This would still be way cheaper than even 1 month of a house payment.

Has she been evaluated for seizures/migraines? My 12dd has what they call migra-seizures and she would fall down, trip, etc. and also had headaches. The neurologist did an EEG after she had a major seizure episode. We then started her on meds that covered both seizures and migraines (Lamictal) and she has only fallen once since then and only had a few headaches in the past 2 1/2 years.

http://www.bpkids.org/site/PageServe...trial_register This is a free trial from Jan. 12-31. This would allow you to access the forums, members only area, etc. I just wanted to mention this to any of you that might be concerned about bipolar or mood disorders in their children. If you like what you see and want to stay a member but finances are tight, you can ask for a sponsored membership/fee waiver if needed.

Check out http://www.horse.com They have forums. Then http://www.horseforum.com If you can get to some horse clinics that is a great way to learn as well. I also have RFD-TV and have learned a lot from various trainers on there---as well as what I like and don't like. The BEST thing though is to link up with a local riding instructor and other local horse people that can give you some in person help.

We have a highway coming through our house. We are looking for at least 5 acres, preferably 10-15 acres--even more would be great. I like having room for the kids to roam. Ds rides his dirtbike and makes tracks. The girls and I have horses. Dh wants his pole barn for his car repair. You do though have to think about what YOU want. I have a friend that lives in a condo and LOVES it. It fits her lifestyle perfectly. She would not be as happy on acreage and I would not be as happy in a condo.

I would see about some probiotics to help settle his tummy from the antibiotics. Health food stores have some that you can use for a little guy. Next time, ask the doctor for the ear drops that numb the ear. They are WONDERFUL for pain as they hit right where the pain in and you don't need the motrin then (at least not as much). They work almost instantly. You do have to make sure though that you don't use them if the ear drum has burst.

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09086.html

This is quick, but where are they adopted from? Is Fetal Alcohol a possiblity for either of them? Some of what you say fits with that so well. I will try to get back to this tomorrow.

http://www.prometheantrust.org/soundfoundationsbooks.htm This program really works and is very easy to use. They keep repeating the words over and over in various settings. They use dictation as well so they apply previous spelling to the sentences they are writing.

http://www.prometheantrust.org/soundfoundationsbooks.htm Check out the Apples and Pears Spelling program. It is the BEST I have found and the spelling really carries over to other subjects.