Some caravan parks have cabins you can stay in? Not 5 star accomodation, but you can get one with 2 rooms and some space between you & neighbours.
There is one in Daisy Hill that is beautiful, and its around 30 minutes to Movie World and Sea World. It has a giant koala sanctuary close by that is beautiful to have picnics in.
that sound perfect!!!! will google it tonight when the kids are in bed...I dont want them getting to excited about it. thanks so much babe..your a friggen gem!
thankshon...will go right now (while kids are quiet)..will be heading home through Newcastle for a few days afterwards so will defently have to catch up. We can compare notes in person
One of the best things we did with the move was do a map for Matilda... so like a page for every 5 hours of driving or day etc... We had pictures of the places we were staying in it and when we got there she was running around showing us where things were and everytime we stopped for petrol she wanted to see where it was on the map.
I did it a month before we left and read it to her every other night or so. She took it to Montessori for show n' tell (and it was a bodge job... I printed out photos and pasted them in my "story" and then put contact on every page so they couldn't be ripped off etc. So it truely was bodgy. I had every day of the trip mentioned from the packing of boxes and saying goodbye to the first week of being here. Funny that everything fell apart with Matilda after our first week. Its probably because the book finished!!!
*breath in Breath out* my little mantra for life atm.... just remember to keep breathing....
Matilda injured her neck Wednesday arvo right before we went to the paed. When we got there she had full movement so he didn't worry. She hurt it jumping off the top bunk... yep thats right.... anyway so I took her to the physio on Thursday because she is holding her head crooked and saying it hurt. When I got there they told me to keep her quiet for a few days. OMG are they serious??? I laughed and said "sure" then today we went back because we have to go daily for 3 days. So anyway... we see a different physio today. One that I used to see 8 years ago when we lived here before. She's had 2 children since then & was asking about Matilda... I had to explain that Matilda seeks vestibular sensory experiences and wants to fall and jump and get dizzy and she seeks it all the time. She then was trying to work on Matilda's neck which was like pulling teeth without a GA. At the end she said to me "you know this isn't normal behaviour? Don't you do dog behaviour?? You should know..." I burst into tears "Yes, I know this isn't normal behaviour, yes I do work in animal behaviour, yes I know that I should be doing something about it... I have tried, I have kicked, I have screamed and I have been put aside and been told that it is bad parenting and I'm over it. Someone has to start listening to me, but no one is at the moment." She just stared at me. She said "what about Aspect?" my answer "I've phoned, I've left messages, I've emailed and I've even gone in person and knocked on the door (its only 500m from my new house!!)" She just stared at me again and said "You must be exhausted." and shook her head, jumped up and gave Matilda a stamp and said she wasn't allowed to scream until Christmas. If only wishes came true!!!
Really Christy 3 firm smacks for not putting her in a straight jacket!!! Sorry babe but what the hell do these people expect from you guys!!! GGRRRRRRR WTF is dog behaviour?? She's not an animal she's a child thats a little lost at the moment !!!!! ahahahahaha
maybe you should have asked her WHAT was appropriate behaviour then seeing you have no idea
Christy hun, I have been following your posts but really have not had any words to express how I feel. I still don't. I am so sorry that you are going through this, and that you are not getting more help. The OT sounds really good, but you need so much more support than that. I can't even imagine how you are coping at all. I really hope something can be done to get things somewhat on track for you soon. In the meantime, I admire how strong and patient you are. I can tell you now, you are doing a bucket load better than I would be.
Maz, Saram and everyone else - I wish you all the best with the school holidays and hope that the New Year brings you good things.
I finally rang the Mater to bring DS's assessment forward, but I really feel like a fraud, as I don't deal with anything like what you guys do. He certainly has issues, but they are different, and far easier to cope with on a daily basis. It has also occurred to me that DS2 seems to be showing some warning signs too - he tanties all the time, seems to have sensory issues with clothing, and is pretty hit and miss as to whether he will tolerate being touched. But I guess one step at a time. DS1 for now.
Christy - I wish there was more we could do to help! We have one of those camps up here too but I was under the understanding it was going to be fairly cheap but we had to arange our own accomm. good on you for not smacking that physio in the face! OMG!
One day we need to organise a mummy's weekend away so we can all catch up in real life and spend our days having massages and enjoying the silence :-)
Maz - I am racking my brain but I can't think of anywhere we have stayed in brissie that I could recommend :-) Unless you want to stay with my MIL :-) Whenever we travel we stay in those caravan park cabins and they are quite good if you can get one with inside toilet and kitchen fac. We are looking at hiring a campervan for our next trip so that we are always in the same space and we don't have to eat out.
Mantaray - Don't feel like a fraud. When we first started getting DS assessed I felt the same way. We had issues but maybe I was making too much of them etc. The earlier you can get help in understanding where your DS is at the more help you can give him. The most important thing we learnt was not to make little of your worries at your appointment.
Just popping in to introduce myself to this thread.
Aidyn has Autism. He was diagnosed in early Sept this year (aged 4). He is classed as High Functioning. Funnily a multidisciplinary assessment 6 weeks prior to the paed assessment, said he displayed no signs of ASD. *sigh*
But anyway, I do agree with the diagnosis. Aidyn's rigidity and anxiety can be fairly pronounced...
Since getting the diagnosis we have made heaps and heaps of progress.
He has been attending a Early Childhood Development Unit 2 days a week, which he will continue next year as a split placement with prep. They are fantastic there, with a ratio of 7 student to 2 teachers! They teach the kids basic socialising skills, and structure their days so well that the kids just thrive. Aidyn particularly has done SO well attending this program, whereas at his community kindy he was just getting lost, as it was so unstructured.
Um, I have recently set up a visual aid system for home, which is really really helping too. So we have gone from having a tantrum or meltdown about any minor thing (such as breakfast or getting dressed) to only a couple (or NO) tantrums per day.
It has been a hard 6 months for him, as me and XP seperated in May this year, and we have moved house a few times, and he has been staying back and forth between us, and also had a few months period without seeing his dad at all. So I am very proud of him for coping with all of these upheavals.
Anyway, I need to read through this thread properly, then come back to add more replies later!
Christy - I mentioned in another thread (not sure if you saw) if you need any visual aid pictures, feel free to ask, cause I have a whole CD worth, and more....
Hang in there hon...
oh Ambah! I'm so happy to hear how well Aidyn is going with it all. I think I would love to have the visual aides. I've been trying to get mine together & its pretty sucky.
Its hard to set up isn't Christy, cause its such a huge thing... I have a set for home, and am also setting up some to take out with us when we go out (using an A5 folder, with velcro), and am also setting up a shopping list set, so he can help me with the groceries and find things on his own list.
Can you let me know if there are any images you need, and I will email them? Or do you just want me to email everything I have (which is hundreds if I pull everything off the CD).
I even have bought a cheap laminator to laminate my own, however I don't have a printer, so can't print them out for you to do that way, sorry
also let me know if there are any activities she enjoys... ie. Aidyn has cards for trains, cars, drawing, TV, computer, sandpit, park/outside, ball, blocks, lego, stickers, puzzles and heaps more.
I will try and get an email together for you tonight with them all!
Ambah - great to hear how well Aidyn is doing and that you found something that works for you guys. Do you 'post' the pics after he has completed something? Visual aides dont work with Wilhelm...little bugger is to keyed on for that....
does anyone use sign language at all with their kids??? we us finished, wait and later...especially when i notice Wilhelm starting to freak out in public...so much easier cause he jsut doesnt hear the words when he gets to anxious.
Having a bad weekend with him so far......he is not coping with there being no school and is screaming at me that he isnt having a day off on monday.....thank god for Sammi. We're visiting tomorrow and as he loves Sam he told me he need's a day off to visit her and baby Ruby. SO you can guess who's arse i'll be kissing at about 11.30am tomorrow
Maz we use sign language alot since Matilda was a baby. We still use the signs for drink, more (food), stop and finished.... I still use them with Jovie so I still use them with Matilda as well.
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and everytime we stopped for petrol she wanted to see where it was on the map.
I have been following your posts but really have not had any words to express how I feel. I still don't. I am so sorry that you are going through this, and that you are not getting more help. The OT sounds really good, but you need so much more support than that. I can't even imagine how you are coping at all. I really hope something can be done to get things somewhat on track for you soon. In the meantime, I admire how strong and patient you are. I can tell you now, you are doing a bucket load better than I would be.
good on you for not smacking that physio in the face! OMG!
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