Traveling To See Steve, Keri, & The Kiddies...

On March 18th we set out on a very dark nasty stormy drive to Millington, TN (it is right outside of Memphis) to see Paul's brother Steven for the last time before he leaves for Iraq the 20th of April. The weather was so horrible when we left we actually contemplated waiting until the next day, but Rob & Tressa (Paul's parents) were there visiting as well and we wanted to have some time with them. They were going to be leaving the 19th to fly back to Gaithersburg. So needless to say the weather was yucky nasty, rainy, and a bit foggy...but nothing we hadn't traveled in before and besides it is only a 7 hour drive. Well we got to Blythesville, Arkansas and the sky lit by lighting and we knew we were in trouble. The lighting revealed that we were heading towards a ledge that certainly had the possiblity of producing a tornado. Paul & I both thought Oh Dear God, but didn't say a word. The tension was definitely there though, we pulled under a bypass and turned on the radio. Well, not being from that area we had no idea that the counties they were reporting about were several miles away. We thought it was for us and that we were only in a watch when in fact we were actually in an area that was under a tornado warning. Right about that time we decided that maybe we should find somewhere to stop for the night. But of course there is absolutely nothing between Blythesville, AK and Millington, TN so we finally stopped when we got the chance. We checked in, got all the sleeping children in the room, and finally fell asleep. We awoke very early the next morning to finish our drive, and as we were checking out I asked how far we were from Memphis. 12 miles she replied, well what a waste of $80.00 when we could have saved it and been there the night before. But oh well we got there early and safe, we had a wonderful visit with Rob & Tressa before they had to leave for the airport and enjoyed the rest of our day with Steve, Keri, Laurel, and Reagan. Getting there sure was nerve wracking though...

Still Trying To Get Caught Up...

My goodness just about the time I think everything has settled down and I can catch up on life something else happens. But for now I think I can finish getting this blog caught up. Love to all...

A Sad Good-bye to Dustin, Heather, Trinity, and Tristian...

On March 15th we bid a sad good-bye to Dustin, Heather, & the kids. It was so wonderful to see them and spend time with. I have missed them all so very much. they were here for 21 days, but my goodness did those 21 days fly by. It was incredible at how fast they went. However I am very pleased that we were able to spend time with them. Trinity wasn't real keen on the idea of leaving all the family, but Tristian, well he couldn't get home fast enough. But in Tristian's defense at 2 years old I am sure that 21 days seemed like a lifetime to him. Once Dustin is back home in sunny warm Hawaii (it is only 32 degrees here) he will be there for about 2 1/2 weeks and then he will leave for Thailand for 45 days. Then he will be home (in Hawaii) for about 6 months and will then leave to go to Iraq for 18 months. So, needless to say I have no idea when we will see him again. We will miss him and pray for him to be stay safe while he is gone. I have posted the pictures that I took of them while they were here on http://perchalskifamilypics.blogspot.com/

Trying To Catch Up...

Ok, as all of you can probably imagine my life has been a little crazy the last few days...no I take that back it has been VERY crazy. Anyway, I just wanted to take a few minutes and sit down to try to catch up on this blog. There are so many things happening in our lives right now and it is all happening so fast!! So the next few post will be somewhat out of order, but my plan is to catch up so that everything will be current. Love to all...

The New Filly...

Okay, this has the potential to be a very long post, so bear with me and I will try to keep it short. I am not sure if everyone knows yet, but no so long ago we sold all of Kaitlin's horses. Well, that is not entirely true we still technically own Breeze, but we have leased out for breeding. Anyway, selling the horse was really not a good thing for Kate. Shortly after we sold them she became very depressed started doing some pretty rebellious things. Suddenly she became a child we did not know, just grumpy and sad all the time. So finally after months and months of this I took her out to dinner just the two of us and had a real heart to heart talk with her. Well come to find out her passion for horses runs much deeper than either Paul or I ever gave credit to. She was just missing her "babies" very much, and just wishing we hadn't sold them. I asked her if she would consider looking for a new "baby", that we couldn't just go and get the other ones back. Of course the idea of a new "baby" perked her up, however the idea of her "babies" being gone forever was a bit unsettling to her. About a year ago she began mucking stalls and working horses for a woman, named Beverly, on the outskirts of town. I guess we thought her work and Beverly's horses would be enough for her, but we couldn't have been any more wrong on that. So about 3 weeks ago we began looking for a new "baby", and found a beautiful little filly. She is not quite a year old, as she is a May baby. Kaitlin has not yet chosen a name for her. She wants to work with her for a bit and see if a name will come to her that will fit the filly. Anyway, to make a long story short Kate is a very happy camper, and she is looking forward to working with the filly. Hooray, the old Kate is back. Thank you God, Dave Clark, and Beverly we couldn't have done it without all of you. To view more pics of the filly & Kate you can go to: http://perchalskifamilypics.blogspot.com

Miss Francine...

This is Francine aka Franny the Nanny Goat, she is currently living with us while Kaitlin does an FFA record book on her. She is just now about a year old, was originally adopted by my Dad & Beth, then Kaitlin asked if she could use her as her FFA project. So she came to stay with us. I do have to say that I was not sure about the idea of having a goat live in my house (yes, people she is housebroken) but she has been a lot of fun. It is true that a goat will eat just about anything, I meanly really who needs a paper shredder when you can have a pygmy goat. She will eat your personal documents and dispose of them in nice little pellets that no one could ever put back together. She is a really funny girl, she loves Caleb...Caleb will get down on his hands and knees and play the head butt game with her. Even though she is small she can head butt pretty hard, but Caleb has learned to lean back so that she doesn't hit him so hard. Of course since it has been winter Franny has not had any green to graze on, all she has had all winter long is hay. When we put her in the other pen (usually the dogs are in this pen) she got so excited b/c there were just a few leaves (dead of course) hanging from branch that she just had to have. So she decided to climb the tree to get to those few dead leaves. Up she went and there she was munching on her leaves when I went to check on her...I thought she just looked too cute standing in the tree like that so I took a few pics to share.

Cas's Book Club's #3 pick

I loved...loved...LOVED this book. I have recently read "The Kite Runner" by this same author and liked the book. So I thought I would give this one a page turn or two or 234. I enjoyed this book more than The Kite Runner, but I must tip my hat to this author b/c both books have been very compelling. This is the 2nd book and it was a best seller within days of hitting the stands. Once you read it you will completely understand why. I can't wait for him to publish another book.

Here is what the book is about:

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years—from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to the post-Taliban rebuilding—that puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives—the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness—are inextricable from the history playing out around them.Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love—a stunning accomplishment
-Khaled Hosseini A Thousand Splendid Suns

A Beautiful Sunset...

After dinner tonight we had sent Matthew outside for a bit to get some fresh air, he was only outside for about 10 minutes when he came running back in saying "Come outside and see the sunset!"
So we all went outside to see the sunset. It was a beautiful sunset, the sky looked like it was on fire and the colors were amazing. Matthew asked me to please take a few pictures for him. They came out a lot better than I thought they would. However, I can tell you that as nice as these pictures turned out they really did not do this gorgeous sunset justice. That is one thing I can say about this area...The sunsets are stunning and since it is so flat here it seems like it just goes on for miles and miles.

Keystone Light...

Let me start out by saying that these are not Mr. Keystone's best picture. Okay, he is a Blue Point Siamese, and he is 7 months old. He was brought home to me in Dec b/c Paul thought I had taken one of my older cats to be put down earlier in the day. One of the older cats, Kahlua, has stomach cancer and really does need to be put done, I am just really having a hard time doing it. So imagine the surprise when it was realized that I did not put the older cat down, but to be honest I think Paul actually fell in love with this kitten. Let me explain his name...All of our cats are named after alcohol. We have Amaretto, Kahlua, Tequila, and Bailey. So needles to say we could not break the trend with this little guy, however we were really having a hard time deciding which one to call him. We would call him Captain Morgan for a few days, then it was Bacardi, and then it was Smirnoff for a few days. Well, I guess he was sick of not having a name b/c one night we had some friends over for a couple of beers, Keystone Light beers to be exact. My friend Mary accidentally spilled a little bit of her beer on the end table. That kitten jumped right up and started licking the beer up. And so he became Keystone. The other reason we stayed with that name is b/c his eyes are as blue as the blue on the can of beer. His name doesn't really match the others, but at least it is in the alcohol family. Keystone was brought home for me, but I must say he has become more Paul's cat than mine. He sleeps right next to Paul (under the covers no less), he waits for Paul to get out of the shower in the am, and he sits with Paul while he eats his breakfast. He even goes crazy at Paul's feet when he come home from work every night. This is the first and only cat that we have had that Paul actually likes. Paul will actually pick Keystone up and carry him around the house, it is kind of cute. For being a Siamese, Keystone, has a very sweet disposition. I was a little bit worried about it b/c I have heard horror stories about this breed of cat, but I must say our little Keystone has been wonderful.

Roxie Girl...

Well, here she is...we call her Roxie Girl, but Roxie for short. She is a 9 month old Golden Retriever. The story behind her basically goes like this...In Oct. I went to visit my cousin in Tennessee, and she has a Golden Retriever that had had a litter of pups back in June. They were going to keep this particular pup, nut after having her for about 4 months changed their minds. So the weekend that I was there visiting we were all sitting around talking about what they were going to do with her. Well they were just going to take her to the pound, well she was so adorable and very good mannered that I just couldn't let that happen. So I called Paul and discussed it with him, he said just bring her home and we will hope for the best. Well, I must say I am not much of a dog person, but even I have fallen in love with her. She has the cutest sweetest personality, sometimes she is almost human like. For instance when she has to go out she will go in the bathroom get a roll of toilet paper and sit by the door with it, or like the time Kate had a headache and somehow Roxie managed to get a hold of the bottle of Motrin and came bringing to Kate. She loves to dance with you, all you have to do is start singing and she will come in and jump up on you so you can dance with her. Roxie is just such a good girl, she has only had a few potty accidents in the house. She house broke so easy, and no she did not come house broken, my cousin kept her outside at all times. She has taken Kate on as her person. Roxie sleeps with Kate and only Kate and she whines during the day when Kate is at school. I think she has been an excellent addition to our family. And I am sure Paul, Kate, Matthew, and Caleb would all agree.

Posted on Thursday, March 13, 2008 at 05:34PM by Perchalski Family

Kaitlin's FFA District Record Book Interview...

On Wed. March 5th Kaitlin went to Jacksonville, IL to give her record book interview at the District level. As you know from early blog posting she won 1st place at the Chapter level. She needed to win at District as well to progress on to the State level. Unfortunately, she came in 2nd at the District level. She was kind of bummed, she knows her stuff, but they judge you interview and book on what you have done over this year with your project. And as many of you know right now we are horseless, we are looking though to acquire a baby in the very near future. So Kaitlin was a bit upset when one of the judges made mention that seems all she ever does around horses is muck stalls. Needless to say she found that very insulting. I mean after she has been riding since she was 8, but again they only base it off of what you are currently doing. One of the judges told he wanted to ask her how to saddle a horse but decided not to b/c it has been sooo long since she last rode (what like about 8 months?) and he wasn't sure she would remember how. Kaitlin said she wanted to ask him if he ever forgot how to ride a bike, b/c saddling is like riding a bike you never really forget. I told her she should have asked...you like to know English or Western? That would have floored him since out here very few people ride English let alone do both styles. But anyway, she did get 2nd out of 6...and she was the only sophomore in the equine studies section, so all in all we are very proud of her and feel like she did an excellent job. To better view the plaque you can click on it, when it pops up it will probably be too big to view, so you will have to zoom out on it once it is loaded.

Posted on Sunday, March 9, 2008 at 07:39PM by Perchalski Family

2 Special Surprises Last Week...

Surprise #1
I think all of you must know by now that my brother, who is in the Army, was assigned to a duty station in Hawaii for 3 years. He and his family left in June of 2007, I have missed them all quite a bit. Well, I talked to Dustin back in early Feb. to see if he knew when they might be able to come home for a visit. His response was "Since I am getting ready to leave for duty in Thailand I just don't think a visit home is workable." Although I was a bit depressed to hear that I figure oh well so goes the life of a military family. So imagine my surprise when I walked out of the bathroom on Tues last week and there stood my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and nephew. I was so happy to see them. The children have grown so very much, and all 4 of them look wonderful. I picked up little Tristian and he said "Aunt Cas did you miss me?"
I said "Yes, baby, Aunt Cas has missed you very much!"
His reply was "But did you really miss me?"
He is so cute, I can't believe how much him and Trinity have grown. My goodness Trinity will start school in the fall, it so hard to believe how fast they are growing. Needless to say I am very excited to have them home for a visit and can't wait to spend some time with them.
Surprise #2
On Friday as I was walking out of Wal-Mart after filling a prescription, I thought I saw Monique at the check out counter. So I turned back around to say Hi to her and again imagine my surprise to see my sister, Maigan, standing there. For those of you that don't know Maigan moved to Maryland about 4 1/2 years ago, so it was a shock to see her there. I guess she decided to fly in so that she could see Dustin, Heather, and the babies since she hasn't seen them in over a year. It was a fun weekend to have everyone together once again. Too bad Maigan has to leave tomorrow, I would wish she could stay longer. But I am happy that she was able to be home at least for a few days to be with us all.

Posted on Monday, March 3, 2008 at 04:28PM by Perchalski Family Post a Comment

Cas's Book Club Pick...

I literally just finished this book and could not wait to put it on my book club list. This book has an extremely controversial plot, but it could not have been written any better. I read it in one day, I was completely glued to it from page one all the way through. The beginning captivates you and the ending mesmerizes you. You will find yourself on the last page, but longing for more of the story. I have never read a book before that totally captured me like this one has. I think I have found my new favorite author.

Here is an over view of the book:

"Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of pre implantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate-a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister-and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves."
-Jodi Picoult My Sister's Keeper

Posted on Wednesday, February 27, 2008 at 09:32PM by Perchalski Family

Caleb...

I just wanted to put something on here about Caleb. I have been so focused on Matthew, I have updated everyone about Kate, but nothing on Caleb. So here goes:
Caleb is in 3rd grade this year and is doing incredibly well. He hates going to school but loves the social aspect of being with his friends. Caleb and Matthew are both preparing for their First Communion which will be May 11th. Caleb is very much our little powerhouse, he is a very rough and tumble kind of kid. Even though we have had tons of snow here it has not stopped him from riding his bike, scooter or pulling kids around in his little red wagon. Oh by the way that little red wagon is his pride and joy.
On April 1st Caleb will be performing in his school's spring concert. He really seems to be looking forward to it, but he won't tell me what he is doing in it. He says it is a surprise. We told the kids the other night that we will be coming to the east coast this summer to spend time with family and friends and Caleb was very excited about seeing, Chance, Luke, Ronny, Jason, Dylan, and being able to swim in Grandmom and Grandpop's pool. Speaking of Rob & Tressa they will be coming out to visit us for the boys First Communion and Caleb was very excited about that. He is hoping we will have our garden planted and that our grass will be ready to mow when they get here. He wants to take Grandpop on a lawn mower ride, and would like for Grandmom to help him take care of the garden while she is here. Isn't it funny the things that they can come up with.
As far as academically Caleb is a straight A student and doesn't seem to cause any trouble in class. He loves his teacher this year. He is a little apprehensive about next year because Matthew will no longer be with him at the elementary school, but we just keep telling him it will be okay. He doesn't really see Matthew much during the day anyway, I guess it is just the security of knowing his brother is there. But oh well they are all growing up and moving on, soon Caleb won't be at the elementary school either. Now there is a scary thought!!!

Posted on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 11:25AM by Perchalski Family

An Update on Matthew...

As most of you know by now I took Matthew to to see Dr. Karen Lee (child psychiatrist) and Dr Eugene Schnitzler (child neurologist) for some developmental testing on Tues Feb 19. I was able to view the testing, but I was behind a one way mirror, that way I could see and hear what was going on but could not influence Matthew's answers. To make a long story short we first saw Dr Lee and she played a series of games and asked Matthew several rounds of questions. Then we were off to see Dr Schnitzler for some other testing. His tests consisted of a lot of bending and touching, dexterity manipulation, and eye hand coordination. Paul and I will have to go back to Springfield on March 6th for the evaluation results, this will be without Matthew. Dr Schnitzler wanted to have an MRI performed for him in conjunction with one that is being done by the Otolaryngology for Matthew's sinuses, however the insurance company has denied that portion of the MRI. No big surprise there. So Paul and I have decided that at this time we will not be continuing any more testing for the HFA, the tests are very cashy and to be quite frank we just don't have the money to do it. So like all the other parents with children that have this disorder we will do as much research as possible and do what we can with him here at home.
On the flip side of the coin, we also had our meeting with the school for the possibility of being able to receive some services through the school system. It was about a two hour meeting and we had to go over matthew's entire medical history. Basically now it will be sent to the schools co-op service to be reviewed for any services he may be eligible for. The only problem is they are running 60 days behind, that puts at the end of April and school is only in session until May 16th. So needless to say they are not really going to get anywhere this year, and unfortunately after this year he will not be eligible for school funded services. We are incredibly frustrated with this, but unfortunately we have thrown our fits and spoken our minds and it has just not gotten us anywhere. Paul & I will do everything in our power to do what we can for him here at home, and pray that we can do enough to help him become the productive member of society we see in him.
After meeting with Dr Schnitzler I had a lot of my concerns confirmed. He told me that he was deeply disturbed that at the age of 3 1/2 Matthew was diagnosed with a sensory overload disorder, did not develop speech properly until 2, had a horrible screech as a means of communicating his anger and frustration, rarely played with my daycare children, and did not make eye contact with people and yet this diagnosis was never considered. Those issues I just listed, my friends, are all the criteria for an autism disorder. So, yes, it HAS been looking us in the face since he was a baby and yet it went undiagnosed. It deeply saddens us because if our doctors had been on the ball this would have been diagnosed at an age when therapies would have had a lot better impact on him. There is something called an autism window, it is when the diagnosis needs to be made and therapies begun so that the quality of the child's life will be better. That window is between the age of 3 and 5, Matthew is now 11. How sad it is that this slipped through the cracks and that this child did not get the help that would have best benefited his life. Now at the age of 11 it is like everyone keeps telling us that nothing is going to work because he is too old. Well how do we know when we can't seem to get any of the therapies started. It is like they are giving up without giving it a chance. It is extremely maddening. I thank God every night that Matthew does not have regressive autism and has not been lost forever. I can't help but to think about all the parents that do have children with more severe cases of autism and them not getting the help they need either, whether it a too late diagnosis or an insurance company not willing to pay for the services needed be it testing or therapies. It is just really sad that this is what our health care system has come to.
Sorry to have vented here, but I just wanted our family and friends to know how we are feeling and that we are not giving up. Matthew is extremely smart (he tested at an 11th grade level on almost everything but writing that he only tested on a 2nd grade level, he is in 5th grade this year), and as loving and compassionate as a child with any autism spectrum disorder can be. He is our son and we will fight for what he needs, we aren't going to just give up.

Posted on Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 10:35AM by Perchalski Family

Cas's Book Club's First Pick...

Okay, let me start off by saying this is an older book by Greg Iles. It is a fantastic book, to be perfectly honest I have probably already recommended this book to most of you. So this is really more for the people that haven't already heard me rave about it. This book is incredibly written, and takes a pretty unexpected turn. I am curious to see how many of you were able to put it down before finishing it. This is one of the very few books I read from cover to cover in a day, it was that fascinating to me. I hope you all enjoy it...

Here is an overview on the book:

When Jordan Glass, a world-renowned photojournalist, happens on an exhibit of a series of paintings known as "The Sleeping Women," she is stunned to discover that one of the models--a nude who, like the other women in the paintings, looks dead rather than asleep--is her mirror image. But Jordan knows the face in the painting isn't her; it's her twin sister, Jane, who disappeared from her New Orleans home more than a year ago, and is presumed to have been murdered by a serial killer who's been snatching women off the streets of the Crescent City for at least that long. None of the bodies of the missing women have turned up, but their faces match the models in the other Sleeping Women paintings. A veteran FBI agent named John Kaiser brings Jordan into the Bureau's hunt for the anonymous artist, who may also know something about the disappearance of Jordan's father in Vietnam almost 30 years before.
-Greg Iles Dead Sleep

Posted on Sunday, February 24, 2008 at 01:00AM by Perchalski Family 1 Comment

Cas's Book Club...

Okay, here is the deal...
As most of you know I am a very avid reader. I read all the time, sometimes to the detriment of my house work even. (Although that is not very often.) Since I know that a lot of you are readers as well I decided to start my own book club, I mean after all why not? Oprah has one, why can't I? Paul often says that if Cas says a book is fantastic then you probably should listen. The reason I am saying that is because he is right, I read a lot of different authors and alot of different types/styles of writing. I'm just as excited to hear from all of you as I am to continue posting my club picks. Please don't hesitate to send me a title name of an author's name, you never I may not have read it. I do often tend to cling to an author and read everything he/she wrote before moving on to something or someone new. But don't worry I will try not to bore you with the same author repeatedly. Because even though I do have my favorite authors and I always enjoy their books, it takes a lot to blow me away. Therefore I am only going to put exceptional books on the list of my club picks. So be sure to check back often for my new club picks, and since I read so much the list may have new additions fairly often.

Posted on Sunday, February 24, 2008 at 12:37AM by Perchalski Family

Kaitlin's Candidacy...

Kaitlin just informed us that her name is on the list of candidates for the National Honor Society. She did not have very many details other than her name was on list of candidates. I guess we will up date everyone on this when we get some more information. We will certainly let everyone know if she it actually inducted in, we are so incredibly proud of her. I guess it is pretty uncommon for a Sophomore to be inducted into the National Honor Society, so with that being said keep her in your prayers that she becomes an inductee.

Posted on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 10:23PM by Perchalski Family

Kaitlin's FFA Record Book Interview...

On Feb 9th Kaitlin went to Carthage, IL to compete in an FFA record book interview competition at the Chapter level of FFA. We were so proud of her when she sent us a text message (does she even know she can talk on that phone?) to let us know that she won 1st place in the equine division. She has been keeping 4 record books this year, one on the goat, one on her job at the barn and the work she does with the horses there, one on the bees, and one on the puppy. But when it came time for record book interview competition she chose to submit only her equine book, of course that is probably the subject that she has an infinite amount of information and knowledge on. So needless to say she won 1st place in her division in her Chapter and will now be moving on to the competition at the District level. The District level competition will be March 5, so make sure to check back and see how she does there.

Posted on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 05:17PM by Perchalski Family

Matthew And The Diagnosis...

As most of you know Paul and I have felt for a long time that there were a few things about Matthew that was very different from the other two children. We began our quest to figure out what the problem was almost 3 years ago. At that time we were still living in Frederick, MD and to be honest the school system was so overburdened that nobody seem to hear our pleas for help. In November of 2005 we moved our family to Bushnell, and again I began questioning the difference in Matthew's behavior vs "normal" children. After about 3 months of getting to know him and observing him the school here agreed that something was very different, so began our journey. I have a very close friend of mine that has a son with Aspberger's Syndrome, she has known Matthew since birth and she kind of alluded that he had some of the same behavior patterns and differences that her son had. We began doing a lot of reading on this form of autism, we felt pretty sure that Matthew fit the Aspberger pattern. Finally after a year and a half of trying to get an evaluation done through the school system, on December 5, 2007 Matthew was evaluated by Tina Veale a Private Autism Consultant. The results were given to us about 3 weeks ago, I am both happy and sad to let people know that Matthew has been diagnosed with High Functioning Autism. It saddens me because I know that there are alot of things in his life that will be a real challenge for him, but I am happy that we finally have a valid diagnosis that we can now work with. We have felt like we were grasping at straws for so long not knowing what the problem really was, that for us to now have an idea of what we are dealing with makes this a lot easier. Basically for right now we have the diagnosis, but we are still patiently waiting for some more testing to be done. On Feb 19th we will take Matthew to Springfield, IL for some neurological tests to be done. The test will help the therapist that will be working with him to better understand his abilities and yes his disabilities as well. Once that has been completed we are hoping he will begin occupational therapy for his fine motor skill issues, group therapy to better learn to socialize in society, and speech therapy for some of the language and mental to verbal issues he has. Now keep in mind we have gone out of our way to explain to Matthew that although he is learning things very differently and has some socializing issues that he will grow up to lead a productive liFe. He is still the Matthew we all know and love, and quite frankly we wouldn't change this diagnosis because it is part of what makes up the wonderful little boy we call Matthew Wayne Perchalski.


Posted on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 04:53PM by Perchalski Family

Matthew And The Diagnosis...

As most of you know Paul and I have felt for a long time that there were a few things about Matthew that was very different from the other two children. We began our quest to figure out what the problem was almost 3 years ago. At that time we were still living in Frederick, MD and to be honest the school system was so overburdened that nobody seem to hear our pleas for help. In November of 2005 we moved our family to Bushnell, and again I began questioning the difference in Matthew's behavior vs "normal" children. After about 3 months of getting to know him and observing him the school here agreed that something was very different, so began our journey. I have a very close friend of mine that has a son with Aspberger's Syndrome, she has known Matthew since birth and she kind of alluded that he had some of the same behavior patterns and differences that her son had. We began doing a lot of reading on this form of autism, we felt pretty sure that Matthew fit the Aspberger pattern. Finally after a year and a half of trying to get an evaluation done through the school system, on December 5, 2007 Matthew was evaluated by Tina Veale a Private Autism Consultant. The results were given to us about 3 weeks ago, I am both happy and sad to let people know that Matthew has been diagnosed with High Functioning Autism. It saddens me because I know that there are alot of things in his life that will be a real challenge for him, but I am happy that we finally have a valid diagnosis that we can now work with. We have felt like we were grasping at straws for so long not knowing what the problem really was, that for us to now have an idea of what we are dealing with makes this a lot easier. Basically for right now we have the diagnosis, but we are still patiently waiting for some more testing to be done. On Feb 19th we will take Matthew to Springfield, IL for some neurological tests to be done. The test will help the therapist that will be working with him to better understand his abilities and yes his disabilities as well. Once that has been completed we are hoping he will begin occupational therapy for his fine motor skill issues, group therapy to better learn to socialize in society, and speech therapy for some of the language and mental to verbal issues he has. Now keep in mind we have gone out of our way to explain to Matthew that although he is learning things very differently and has some socializing issues that he will grow up to lead a productive liFe. He is still the Matthew we all know and love, and quite frankly we wouldn't change this diagnosis because it is part of what makes up the wonderful little boy we call Matthew Wayne Perchalski.

Posted on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 04:53PM by Perchalski Family

Welcome To Our Blog

Ok, I must admit that I have tried keeping a blog before, however it was through a different site and so many of our friends and family could not access it. So we have decided to try again with a different site and hope that everyone can view it. One of my New Year's resolutions was to try to keep our extended family better up to date on what was going on in our lives. Since it is only February I figured I had better get started now before I get too far behind. So please feel free to bookmark this blog and check it often, because as most of you know our lives can be pretty exciting and will often take unexpected turns. I will try to put at least one new entry on this blog every week. Maybe more if there is something that is going on that we want everyone to know about. Check it often and let us know how you think we are doing on the blog. Love to all...

Posted on Friday, February 15, 2008 at 04:44PM by Perchalski Family