24 Hours for the Tourette Syndrome Association

In October of 2010, a go-karting world record was set.  This record was for a solo driver who drove a go-kart 801.38 miles in a 24-period.  The driver of that world record drive was Lloyd de Boltz-Miller from the United Kingdom.  Earlier this week, that record was broken.


Trey Shannon, a 26-year-old aerospace engineer living in Virginia, took his seat behind the wheel of his go-kart on the morning of October 25 with two goals.  One, to break the previous go-karting world record.  Two, to raise money and awareness for the Tourette Syndrome Association.


Trey Shannon, like my Monster Man, has Tourette Syndrome.  He has kept a positive attitude, never allowing his TS to hold him back from doing the things he loves - especially racing.  It is with other children facing a life with TS in mind that Trey Shannon does was can to help the Tourette Syndrome Association.


Thanks to the help of many sponsors and a team of supporters, Trey Shannon drove 847 miles in 24 hours at New Castle Motorsports Park in Indiana, going well beyond the previous world record.  Congratulations to Mr. Shannon, and thank you for raising awareness for those living with Tourette Syndrome!

For news footage, please check out this link.

A video that explains Camp Twitch and Shout

This video was put together by one of the many inspiring girls at Camp Twitch and Shout, the wonderful camp that Monster Man attended over the summer and that our family attended for family camp a couple of weeks ago. The song playing in the background is one of the main theme songs that the kids learn at camp, R. Kelly's 'The World's Greatest'. It is such a positive message to teach these kids, that they can be what they inspire to be. The boy speaking at the end, sharing his wish for the camp, is Monster Man.

There are many great ways to help Camp Twitch and Shout, including 'Spin for Kids' and 'Denim and Pearls', as well as through the Pampered Chef fundraisers I have been holding (I will be holding another closer to Christmas). If you are interested in helping Camp Twitch and Shout, please check out the website.

Stress and sickness

I really don't like it when Monster Man is sick.  When he's sick, it's a whole new experience compared to what it is like when Angel Baby and Little Man are sick.  With Monster Man, even a slight cold can completely knock him out and make him miserable.

Take today, for example.  He started coughing a little last night, but it was nothing major.  In fact, it almost sounded like he was making himself cough, something he's done off and on in the past as one of his tics, so we just kind of ignored it.  This morning, he woke up feeling miserable.  What had started off as a fake-sounding cough last night had turned into a sore throat, headache, stomach ache, body aches, slight cough, and a low-grade fever.

I could barely get him down the stairs when I woke the kids up for school, let alone get him to get dressed.  Even though he knew he was staying home and that he needed to get ready for a trip to the doctor (I thought maybe he had strep throat since it was going around and his tonsils were rather large), it was still a battle to get him to get up and eat breakfast.

It didn't take long for Monster Man's body temp to start to rise.  While I couldn't find the thermometer to take his temperature (which isn't an easy task to begin with when he's ticcing), I could tell that he had gone from being a little warm to burning up.  It's not uncommon for Monster Man to spike a fever like that, and he has even been known to develop a fever when he is stressed out.  And Monster Man was definitely stressed out this morning.  He was convinced that he was majorly sick, and the stress not only added to the fever but also to the severity of his tics.  While in the waiting room at the doctor's office, he was so concerned that his head was shaking almost nonstop during our wait.  The head-shaking didn't slow down until he realized that he was going to get to see his usual pediatrician (who has recently returned from maternity leave).

The trip to the pediatrician's office revealed that he didn't have strep throat after all.  The doctor said his symptoms appeared to be viral.  Amazingly, once he realized that he was going to make it and that he didn't even need a prescription, his temperature started dropping.  By the time we walked back out to the car, he was even smiling and asking if we could go to the store.

It's become apparent to me that Monster Man is able to make himself sick whenever he gets worked up.  It's almost like the stress triggers his entire body to start acting up.  I don't really think that he knows he is doing, just that he gets himself so worked up that he makes himself sick (and not just the usual sick-to-the-stomach kind of sick that usually accompanies stress).

Hopefully we'll be able to find a way to help him cope with his stress without becoming so sick.

Camp Twitch and Shout Family Camp

I've mentioned previously that Monster Man attended Camp Twitch and Shout over the summer, and that the camp has come to mean a lot to him and to our family as a whole.  During the weekend of September 23 - 25, we got to experience Camp Twitch and Shout as a family.

When we arrived at the camp on Friday night, we were a little nervous.  We knew we would be sharing our cabin with another family, but we didn't know who that family would be.  What would it be like to be put in a cabin with a family we didn't even know?  I guess that is what Monster Man must've felt like when we first dropped him off at camp over the summer.  

We'd barely gotten a chance to introduce ourselves to our roommates (which, thankfully, turned out to be the family of one of the boys from Monster Man's summer cabin) when it was time for dinner, followed by some get-to-know-you games and then a dodgeball tournament.

The tournament was followed by s'mores around a campfire and then bedtime.  We had to turn in early because our Saturday was packed with activities.  Shortly after our breakfast, the kids were taken off in supervised groups while the parents had some time for a quick meeting followed by some Minute-To-Win-It games.

Afterward, we had some family time.  We took a few minutes to practice some archery, and then my hubby and the kids all went either kayaking or on paddle boats.

After lunch, the kids went back in their supervised groups while the adults got to enjoy some activities without the kids.  For my hubby, this meant wall-climbing.

After a kickball game and some more family time, it was time for a cookout in the pavilion.  Angel Baby enjoyed this a lot, since she ended up dancing before dinner with some of the counselors and campers.

That night, despite the cool temps, we had a pool party and a build-your-own ice cream sundae event.  We all enjoyed both events before turning in for the night. 

Sunday morning was a little sad.  While we enjoyed the activities that were planned, we knew that our time together was coming to an end.  After breakfast, we spent some family time doing activities we enjoyed.  We spent a little time fishing, and Little Man caught his first fish.

After our family time, the families all came together for some messy olymp-tics games.  

We barely had time to clean up before it was time for lunch and then closing ceremonies.  As part of the closing ceremonies, we were asked to write our wishes for Tourette Syndrome or for Camp Twitch and Shout on a card, which we attached to a balloon and let go at the end of the ceremony.  During the closing ceremony, everyone was invited to come up on stage and share his or her wish with the other campers.  Monster Man shared his wish, that he could have camp everyday, with the crowd before we released the balloons.

We were sad to see family camp come to an end, and to have to say goodbye to all the new friends we made while we were there.  We are already looking forward to Camp Twitch and Shout's family camp next year!