Lots to catch up on...it has been awhile since I blogged. :-)

Well for starters let me wish everyone a Happy New Year! Can you believe its 2009? My how 2008 has flown by the past few months. It seems like since grandma & papa moved into their new house and moved daddy, Tori & I into their other house no one has had time for anything! Geesh! I had no idea how busy our lives would become but that is precisely what has happened. So....my hope is for grandma and I to get back to blogging at least once a week like we use to so everyone knows what is going on in the life of me; Miss Emma. :-)

I have so much to share with you so I will first tell you that we had a wonderful holiday season. Santa was very good to both Tori and me this year. And God has been looking out for me health-wise as I have been healthier than in the past winters for some reason. Grandma and daddy think it is the change in homes. Our other house was drafty and this one is not, and we no longer have hardwood floors but carpeting throughout so no cool floors for me to tend with. Maybe this is why or maybe it is simply because I am getting a wee bit older? Who knows? All I can say is that I AM the healthiest (knock on wood) I have ever been for the winter to be upon us. And my family is so thankful for this little miracle.

I have grown a bit these past 6 months and my looks are changing rapidly. Here is what I looked like last year. Many will remember this as my blog page picture if you followed my blog at all.

Now take a moment and look at my blog page picture! See how I am changing? Grandma and daddy say I am getting prettier by each given day. I just laugh as my whole family is quite prejudice when it comes to me. (Hee-hee) And I know this to be true! But I will agree with them that I am changing a great deal. Getting taller, slimmer and definitely looking older than last year.

So now for the big news; I am changing schools! Yes, you are reading this correctly so don't go anywhere till you get the low down. I am going to public school. The same elementary school as my big sister Tori. Is that not the coolest thing you ever heard? Me! Miss Emma in a regular school with typical kids all around me. Kids to talk to and play with and learn beside. My family is so excited they are bursting at the seams over this. And I too am getting pretty excited. Can you just imagine me having lots of other kids to talk to me? I have been popping out with words here and there for some time now, but I don't seem to do it regular enough. Grandma says that seems to be the norm for kids with Angelman Syndrome. We speak a word one day and then forget to say it again for days, weeks and sometime months on end. Is that not strange? Not that I don't believe her, but makes me wonder why I cannot simply say these words over and over again like others do. Oh well, maybe I will figure this all out at the new school and start using more words and signs. I sure hope so.

It is not easy for others to get me when I want something as I still cannot get most to understand what I am hinting for. My family gets it and is good at meeting my needs and desires but I wish the rest of my world could. It would make life so much more enjoyable if people understood my body language or followed my moves more and could see what I want when I want things. I get frustrated like most angels and will throw things to get their attention. At home I am not permitted to do such! I get put in "time-outs" for throwing things. And let me tell you time-outs are not the greatest thing for a busy little girl to have to do. I don't know about other kids but I hate sitting in a chair for too long. I like to be busy, busy, busy. Hee-hee.

Anyway on with the new school stuff. Grandma emailed Maddie's mommy (Emilie) and she has sent a few links to Maddie's videos in which she does her homework and school participation stuff. My new teachers and therapists are going to take a look at them and see that the possibilities for me are endless. Angels are not textbook articles that one reads, but rather each of us are individuals with many capabilities to be nurtured and fed. My grandma believes in her heart that I can do much of what Maddie does given the guidance and support she has in her life. So........that is our hope with inclusion school. Please pray for me and wish me luck over the next few months.

We know many will find my personality unique, challenging yet delightful and energetic. But will they see beyond the obvious traits of an angel and realize that "I GET IT and I GET THINGS far more than most realize? Oh how my family is praying they do. I can and do do so many wonderful yet typical things at home that the school does not get to see. I pick up my own toys and put them away, I sit at the big table and eat my dinner like everyone else. I understand what you say to me and follow directions quite well. Honestly. I may not speak but I am listening and willing to learn if only others are as willing to teach and work with me as my family does at home.

I have come so far in the past year that no one in my family ever thought was possible. My daddy and grandma had the faith in me to push me to be the best that I could and here I am today willing and ready to push myself further. That is what this inclusion education hopefully will offer me. New challenges and milestones to be gained is the game plan for me. And I cannot wait to spread my angel wings and fly..........

Oh yeah...best of all. The Resource teacher at the new school knew what ABA was!!! Can you believe this? The first time my family has met or heard anyone outside of the Angelman Families that actually knew what we were talking about. Apparently she has been to seminars and such for ABA. So I may finally get a chance to participate in ABA like so many other fellow angels have been. Wouldn't that be something for Miss Emma here in Ohio to get a chance to participate in an ABA program like many are doing in the research studies right now? I may not have been able to travel to get into one of the current programs but I may just get lucky enough to get it right here at Lodi Elementary School. Woo Hoo!!!! I will definitely let you know if I do. Promise.

Well for now I am going to close as grandma and I have to get things emailed to the new school for the teachers and therapists to review. Lots to share with them before I start next week. Oh yeah, my first day at the new school is January 12, 2009. So, the New Year is ringing in with excitement all around Miss Emma's world. Wish me well and keep me in your prayers.

I will be in touch next week to let you know how my first week goes. Angel hugs and sloppy kisses to all.