Feed Your Feathered Friends This Winter

     For many of us, its winter. The wind is blowing, the snow may be falling. Our feathered friends are finding it hard to get food. So be a good human, and give them some!

Feed Your Feathered Friends This Winter

    Back in NEPA I didn't put out bird feed. We had so many feral cats in our neighborhood, that they would stalk bird feeders. To me, it felt like I was setting my feather friends up to be dinner. Now that we moved south, there aren't feral cats everywhere, so I can finally put out my feeder! Liam and I were both so excited about this! 

 

    So I did what I always do and headed to Chewy.com. That's because Chewy doesn't just carry everything for dogs and cats. They carry everything for every animal you can imagine! And yes, that includes those gorgeous birds in your yard. From experience of watching my parents feed their outdoor birds, I knew that they seemed to enjoy the sunflower seeds the most. So I got Wagner's Four Season 100% Black Oil Sunflower Seeds. This twenty pound bag is going to feed the wild birds for quite some time! 

Wagner's has been feeding outdoor birds since 1894! Their products are made right here in the USA too. They have a ton of different seed varieties to attract all sorts of wild birds to your home and feeders. Whether you want to bring the cardinals, finches, songbirds or more, Wagner's have every kind of bird feed you will want or need. Check them all out on Chewy.com.

Make a Feeder and Enjoy the Birds

    I didn't have a feeder, but I have been wanting to make one out my old china. I had a tea cup and saucer that had a little chip out of them. They weren't okay to be used for us, but I knew they'd be perfect for a bird feeder. I gently sanded the chip down with my Dremel on low speed, that way it wouldn't bother our feathered friends. After I wiped the dust away, I was ready to make our feeder.

    I grabbed my E6000 glue (my go to for most crafts,) and my teacup and saucer. I placed the teacup on the saucer, so I could see which parts touched. Then I carefully placed the glue on those parts. Next, I put the cup on the saucer, and using masking tap, I taped it down to hold it in place. Lastly, take some moist QTips and wipe away any excess glue. You don't want your birdie friends to be pecking around that glue. Let it dry, and voila! Adorable bird feeder! So grab a feeder (either homemade or store bought,) and head to Chewy.com for some of Wagner's seed. Your wild birds will love you for it! 

Stay Cool Wherever You Go

    Here comes the heat wave! At least here in NEPA. They're calling for 100° or higher. Thanks to my new little desk fan from Trustech, I will be keeping cooler.

Stay Cool Wherever You Go

    Even with the air conditioners running, I still get hot flashes. (Thanks so much Mother Nature!) So I was looking for a smaller fan. One I could use on my end table, but one that wouldn't take up a ton of room. I stumbled across the Trustech USB Desk Fan. It's perfect!

    It's small in size, but mighty in power, and really helps me through those dreaded hot flashes. Because it runs off of a USB cord, you can plug it into your computer, laptop, and more. This is super handy because that means you can use it at work. You could take it camping as well.

Sturdy Design

    The Trustech USB Desk Fan is sturdy in design. Both the frame, and the fan blades are made of lightweight metal. So you don't have to worry about it becoming dented or cracking. This fan only weighs fourteen ounces, so it's lightweight and easily goes wherever you do. 

360° Cooling

    You can position your Trustech USB Desk Fan a full 360° for optimal cooling. You can set it on any flat surface, or you can even hang it over something thanks to base. And don't worry that the metal will scratch up your surfaces. It comes with rubber covers to place on the bottom to save your table tops.

Power Saving

    The Trustech USB Desk Fan only uses five watts of power per hour. So you don't have to worry about it running up your electric bill. It also has an on and off switch so you don't have to unplug it to turn it off.

Staycation Autism Style

     We're sick of winter! Feeling cooped up because of sub zero temps is getting old. So we decided to take a little staycation.

Staycation Autism Style

    As autism parents, we know autism doesn't take a vacation. But that's okay. We're accustomed to this lifestyle. However, if you're looking to break up the monotony of the mundane parts of life that we do have control over, then I suggest a staycation.

    Choose a family friendly hotel not far from home, prepare your kiddo, pack some bags and get ready to relax. Well kind of....because we know our kids are always go, go, go!

Best Western Fun

     We chose the Best Western Grand Victorian Inn in Sayre Pa. We've stayed there before for mini staycations and we know it's a great place for families.

    First and foremost the rooms are spotless. I'm picky when it comes to a hotel room, but my autie has worse OCD than I do, so he's even more picky. Liam even went so far as to combing the room with a black light. (I kid you not!) And he gives their rooms "two thumbs up!" Our housekeeper Tammie certainly rocks at her job!

Shout out to Tammie! You rock!!

    Also, let me add that the rooms are virtually sound proof. You can NOT hear your neighbors which is great for two reasons. One being our kids tend to be very loud and not get "inside voice." The other being when they need a sensory escape, the room is quiet so they can chill.

Pick One with a Pool

    Autistics are drawn to water. It calls to us and soothes us in ways that not many other things can. So when we're choosing a place to stay, a pool is a must. The Best Western we chose happens to have an indoor, heated pool, which is necessary in frigid Northeastern Pa. 

As you can see, a lot of time was spent in the pool! Even some toys came along for their autism line up.

    Bonus, it even has a jacuzzi! Holy relaxation! Play in the pool, then chill in the jacuzzi. Repeat. All day! It was just what we needed to spice up the mundane days of winter!

Free Breakfast? Yes please!

    The Best Western Grand Victorian (and all of their other hotels,) offer a free breakfast buffet. Autistics are prone to picky eating, but their buffet has so many options, that it isn't a problem. I wish I had thought to get some pictures, but Liam's plates (more than one because food doesn't touch,) were full! He chose two mini boxes of cereal (they had many of his favorites,) a cinnamon doughnut, and even a "sour" (granny smith) apple.

    I had a Belgian waffle I made myself with some yummy toppings, it was amazing! Even my picky hubby had a large plate of fluffy scrambled eggs, sausage and an English muffin. That wasn't even all of the food they had to offer!

image via Trip Advisor

Good TV's (per Liam)

    Liam goes nowhere without his Xbox One. Thankfully The Best Western has "good tv's." He knew he could take his precious gaming system and actually be able to use it. Plus, it gave us a little break when our skin couldn't possibly prune up any more from the pool and hot tub! (Liam insisted I let you all know about how great their tv's are!)

Friendly Staff

    The staff was fantastic as well. They were so friendly and welcoming. Always smiling when we would pass them at the front desk, pool desk, or in the halls. This was huge for me. It seems that lately so many people are miserable which is a real downer. I loved being surrounded by others that were in a happy mood!

Thank You Best Western!

    We had a great time, and even though we rushed home to avoid winter storm Liam, we are more relaxed and rejuvenated. So what are YOU waiting for? Take a staycation! Just be prepared to spend a lot of time in the pool! :)

So much for being supportive.....

  I was under the assumption that a support group was to support? I mean, am I wrong in that thinking? I won't name names, because even though I want too, I am an adult, and throwing people under a bus isn't so cool to me. (damn being a grown up anyway!) However, I will say it was a local autism support group. It has been together for a little over a year....

  When the founder asked if anyone had anything to say, or wanted to make any points, and stressed it was "our group," she got all over sensitive about your input. Well, don't ask for my opinion if you don't really want to hear it. When we would be at a meeting, and some people would be venting for support, some of those mothers' sat there and rolled their eyes! I know we may not always agree with one another, but it's a SUPPORT group!!! How supportive is this caddy eye rolling?

  It was more of a clique than a support group, but I kept this to myself. More and more people in this area were contacting me. Asking me if I had thought of starting my own. Truth be told, I had. But growing up in a small town, I knew how it would go, and damn if I didn't call it.

  So, I finally decided to give it a go after some final pushes from people I greatly admire. I took the time and wrote the other group's founder a PRIVATE email. I told her I was starting one. I told her I didn't want any hard feelings. I told her it would be great if we could do group outings as a whole. She said it was fine. It was "cool." She understood. She then turned around and behind my back, put me down, and tried to make me look bad in their "private" group page. You see, this group is so cliquey, they have one page for all in the group, and then a SECRET one, for those in their clique. Well, she didn't realize that she left one of my friend's in that secret group. All that she and another mother said was emailed to me. Mind you, her and the other mother went on to MOCK my CHILD for feeling that Autism is his superpower. Yep, the caddy hens stooped that low! If I weren't the person I am, I would post it all here, for all to read..... (bigger person, bigger person.....)

    Now, I took the time, as a FRIEND to email her personally. That was her chance as an adult,  (that mind you is more than 10 years my senior) to tell me she had an issue with it. She didn't. Instead, she chose to take that low road.

  If this isn't enough, she (the founder) then asked to join the support group I created. I waited, I took a deep breath and I sent her a very nice email. I asked her why she wanted to join my group after the way she wrote about me in the secret group. She then got all defensive and started copying and pasting comments into the email. Oddly enough, she LEFT OUT all the nasty, snide things her and the other mother wrote about me, and only pasted the not so incriminating ones. When I emailed her the ENTIRE conversation, she got very nasty to me, un-friended me, and removed me from the group.

  If that isn't bad enough, she then KICKED my FRIEND'S out of her support group!!!!! How's that for supportive???? Way to go cliquey mothers' of the valley...... You set such a wonderful example (ahem, insert snarky smile here~oh and add an eye roll for good measure.) Sadly one of the mother's that was taken out is not from around here. Her family came from out west and as she said, "you know, so much for making me feel welcome in this state!" I hope she doesn't let these few hens ruin her POV about the rest of us here in NEPA......

  So, this is what support looks like in a small town I guess. It's so sad! This won't happen in my support group. All are welcome. We may not all agree, but we won't roll our eyes at you. We won't condemn you for your views on Autism. We won't act like your ideas are useless. We will welcome you, support you and hopefully become friends!

Sorry, I am only human.....

                                                                        ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥