It has been almost a month since I wrote anything. I find that unacceptable considering so much of my life centers around autism.
We started our Friendship Club a couple of weeks ago. It's so nice to have J go to a group for kids with autism while I go to a support group for parents. It's so hard, but it's so nice to know other parents are going through the same thing I am. Stormy doesn't really want to go; he thinks he may offend someone because he isn't as rainbows and butterflies about autism as some. I think he'd be surprised at how many others sit there and say, "Autism makes me insane! I'm at my breaking point! I just want to take a shortcut home from church without someone questioning my driving!" Really, I think he is more concerned about potentially offending me. Because as accepting as he is of autism, he still struggles with many aspects of it. We all do. As accepting and understanding as I am, I still have a lot of struggles with autism
I had J's IEP meeting at school. It went pretty well. As well as I expected, at least. I dreaded meetings like this at his old school, but the people here are so much more caring that I don't leave in tears anymore. About the same time, we got two kittens from the shelter. It was totally Stormy's idea - at least to get two of them. They're brothers and in the essence of keeping our house as nerdy as possible, we named them Draco Meowfoy and CT-5555 ("Fives" for short, thank god).
Look how ridiculous they are. I should get some better pictures of them, but there you have it. They're actually pretty fun to just watch because they're still kittens so they play and horse around and run around the house like a couple of nuts. They love when my husband comes home because they use him as their nap time bed. He gets a lot of kitten love. I think the kids like them. Tiny thinks they're animated stuffed animals so I always have to keep an eye on him when the kittens are around.
About three weeks ago, J came home with a permission slip to try out for the Academic Bowl at school. It was only open for fourth and fifth graders. I signed it and he went through some rounds of elimination before making it onto the team! He is very excited. His first practice is this week, and I have to go at the very end to find out about uniforms, practice schedules, and meet schedules. As much as that doesn't sound particularly thrilling, I am actually looking forward to see what the Academic Bowl is going to mean for J. I really hope he does well.
I'm finishing up this entry this morning before the bus comes, and I keep getting distracted because all J is doing is that auditory tic that I love so much. It's still here and he's now saying, "I can't help it, it's a tic." I understand that may be a reason for the noise, but it's not an excuse. We are trying to get him to be more aware of it because it does nothing positive for anyone. It annoys and frustrates everyone in the house, and also everyone at school. It is an absolute constant and yet inconsistent enough that it isn't a white noise. I'm about at my wit's end with the noise.
I feel I have been so overwhelmingly busy. The baby started a 1's class at the church down the road and he has a blast going there, which has given me a couple of free hours twice a week to work on my own projects. I'm trying hard to work on projects and hopefully start an etsy shop in order to create some sort of cash flow. I'd rather do something creative than drive to a job where I am under someone else's rules and schedules, but I also really enjoy being home and being able to keep an eye on the kids. I like knowing all the different aspects of their day and being there to help with homework or chores, and being there to do fun stuff, whether it's play outside, watch a movie, or just read. The first seven years of J's life I had to work and I realize how much I ended up missing out on. I don't want to have to continue to miss out on things, even if it's just one day a week.
Tiny, after stuffed animal day at school. Hobbes is his favorite. During nap time or bedtime, all his other stuffed animals get thrown out of the crib, but Hobbes stays inside until it's time to wake up.
We started our Friendship Club a couple of weeks ago. It's so nice to have J go to a group for kids with autism while I go to a support group for parents. It's so hard, but it's so nice to know other parents are going through the same thing I am. Stormy doesn't really want to go; he thinks he may offend someone because he isn't as rainbows and butterflies about autism as some. I think he'd be surprised at how many others sit there and say, "Autism makes me insane! I'm at my breaking point! I just want to take a shortcut home from church without someone questioning my driving!" Really, I think he is more concerned about potentially offending me. Because as accepting as he is of autism, he still struggles with many aspects of it. We all do. As accepting and understanding as I am, I still have a lot of struggles with autism
I had J's IEP meeting at school. It went pretty well. As well as I expected, at least. I dreaded meetings like this at his old school, but the people here are so much more caring that I don't leave in tears anymore. About the same time, we got two kittens from the shelter. It was totally Stormy's idea - at least to get two of them. They're brothers and in the essence of keeping our house as nerdy as possible, we named them Draco Meowfoy and CT-5555 ("Fives" for short, thank god).
About three weeks ago, J came home with a permission slip to try out for the Academic Bowl at school. It was only open for fourth and fifth graders. I signed it and he went through some rounds of elimination before making it onto the team! He is very excited. His first practice is this week, and I have to go at the very end to find out about uniforms, practice schedules, and meet schedules. As much as that doesn't sound particularly thrilling, I am actually looking forward to see what the Academic Bowl is going to mean for J. I really hope he does well.
I'm finishing up this entry this morning before the bus comes, and I keep getting distracted because all J is doing is that auditory tic that I love so much. It's still here and he's now saying, "I can't help it, it's a tic." I understand that may be a reason for the noise, but it's not an excuse. We are trying to get him to be more aware of it because it does nothing positive for anyone. It annoys and frustrates everyone in the house, and also everyone at school. It is an absolute constant and yet inconsistent enough that it isn't a white noise. I'm about at my wit's end with the noise.
I feel I have been so overwhelmingly busy. The baby started a 1's class at the church down the road and he has a blast going there, which has given me a couple of free hours twice a week to work on my own projects. I'm trying hard to work on projects and hopefully start an etsy shop in order to create some sort of cash flow. I'd rather do something creative than drive to a job where I am under someone else's rules and schedules, but I also really enjoy being home and being able to keep an eye on the kids. I like knowing all the different aspects of their day and being there to help with homework or chores, and being there to do fun stuff, whether it's play outside, watch a movie, or just read. The first seven years of J's life I had to work and I realize how much I ended up missing out on. I don't want to have to continue to miss out on things, even if it's just one day a week.
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