Babies Born ~ September 2007 #75

Hi everyone :)

MP, a dog is a lovely addition to the family :) Have you considered getting a second hand dog, one that is out of the puppy stage so it would be happier to be at home alone during the day?

Cass, the trip went pretty well really. We went to my hometown the night before, left at 7am for the ferry and then drove straight through arriving here at 4am. We only stopped for a play and then for dinner, the kids were amazing really. They just chatted and had their notebooks for drawing and movies on the laptop as required. They all fell asleep around 8pm and we were congratulating ourselves for a well conceived plan. Then they all woke at midnight lol. But they were still good. Only in the last half hour Miss E kept saying "Mum, I don't really think I should be sitting in my car seat all the time" lol.

Still busy trying to unpack. I spent about 5 hours putting together the new bunks for the girls. They all seem to be settling in well. A likes her new kindy. W has had a trial day at two schools and we need to pick one for next week. I think I am spending way too much money having shops right there - so easy to pop in and spend $20 on nothing for no reason! Will have to learn some control!

Happy mothers day my lovely friends xx

Hello my lovely September mummies - I hope you've all been spoiled today!

Arte - belated hugs for all the goodbyes and the transitions etc. The good thing about kindy is you will always have the memory of that warmth and kindness in you, it will light your way. And I'm sure you will find a way to pay it forwards so that it's a blessing to someone else too. xxx Happy housewarming in your new place. I hope school gets off to a good start - how did you end up deciding?

MP - good on you giving your own self some focus and pilates time. I'm sorry to hear your friends are having some challenges. :hug: A puppy sounds like a great idea, but if you don't have a huge amount of time, a cat is better. They cope ok by themselves.

Oz - wishing you all the blessings in the world for your birthing time. xxx

As for me - all good, very busy here. Work has been crazy (when I've been there) because they're shrinking our office space & there aren't enough desks so I've been working from home some days (=nice). I took an extra week of leave after the school hols finished and had an awesome time pottering around the house, clearing stuff out, organising etc. Miss E has lost herself another tooth in that time, she seems calmer and more pleasant since the school hols. And last week I started a tai chi chi kung (qigong) course - it was FANTASTIC, can't wait to go again this week. So all good here. :)

Hi MD. I have no idea what Tai Chi involves, but I am glad you are enjoying it :)

I ended up deciding on a very small school again. We tried one slightly bigger but he still just isn't there. I specifically returned at lunch to watch the social interaction and he was lost, spit hand washing (massive anxiety tell sign) and then a barrage of angst driven yelling at everyone and everything on the way home. Then we had a trial day at the smaller school and he came home calm and happy. He just cannot integrate into busy school yard play, as much as he wants to and looks to be, he just is just that bit out of sync itms. He seems fine when it is only a few other kids though. I know that in the long run getting used to the bigger class would be better but I am taking the easy out because the reality is that we all have to keep living with him and it is pretty hard going when he is a ball of anxiety.
Also he paces himself in class when there are lots of kids around - he was given a worksheet he could buzz though in a couple of minutes but only finished the first segment and got some wrong just like the kid next to him...

Tai chi/chi kung is basically lots of standing and swaying and waving your arms around in very precise ways while breathing deeply and relaxing. LOL It seems too simple to be something to produce much of an effect, but I was fully in the zone. It must be a chi thing.

It's brilliant that you got to "trial" both of the schools. I remember being that age and how terribly wrong one of the kindies I went to was for me, and how fabulous the other one was for me. Funnily enough, it came down to the busy school yard factor. So I can imagine how different those schools would be for him. It's really important for kids to feel comfortable in the environment where they spend so much time. How are you all settling in to your new place?

I hope everyone else is going well.

Arte: woah! that is some epic driving man hahaha! we so cannot manage more than 2.5 hours before a break. but i think that if we had a DVD player or video game the older girls would be ok...but Miss E would still go cray cray on us.

I reckon that there is no worries with him going to a small school. it is a very rare occurrence in life to be thrown into a large, contained crowd of people and told to spend all week exposed to them in a uniform way ITMS. At least when you are in the workforce you have a bit more autonomy and can choose to socialise with some people and politely not have much to do with others...whereas at school you are required in most situations to all work it out together. this is what Miss L is really struggling with in the new school. i think it has a lot to do with the classroom structure but it is getting better and her teacher is working really well with us to achieve as harmonious space as possible. it helps that he knows the school she came from and the approach they had, that's for sure.

MD: work from home?! wow! how is that? I guess with your Miss E being at school there is actually a chance of getting work done lol....in my house i have buckleys chance haha. ahhh the joys of small people!

I had a mate that swore by his tai chi training. still does it almost 15 years later. he found it really centering and grounded him as a teen.

AFM: not much new here. just enjoying the awesomeness that this season is throwing at us and enjoying the changes in the colours of the trees. the two youngest have taken to collecting all the leaves for craft projects which usually just means that they get crushed up on my new rug.

Thanks guys. I am feeling alright with the small school system. As long as they don't shut down on us then we will be fine. He is rather unsettled atm with the changes but hopefully he will find his place soon and everything will right itself. Cass, I entirely agree with the school class systems not being a false system that won't occur anywhere else in life. The whole ASD thing is only a problem if it is a problem and as long as we stick to what works then it isn't an issue. Not sure what we will do when it comes to high school but that is years away yet and probably its own tangle of impracticality.

W started scouts tonight, looked like lots of fun. I think I need some ideas for indoor things to do after school - the current regime of everyone irritating the hell out of each other and subsequent screaming and yelling isn't really doing it for me lol.

Hello, my lovelies - I don't have much time but I did want to pop in and say hello while I've got my lappy open... I do too much BB surfing on my phone and it's hard to find our lovely September babies home that way.

Anyhoo, I'm here now. How the goshdarnheck is everyone?

Cass, working from home is a dream... when the family is out. LOL. There was one day in the school hols when they were at home, and well, let's just say it wasn't my most productive day ever LOL. How's the countryside now that the seasons are shifting? Starting to feel more settled?

Arte, how's things, luv? Scouts sounds awesomesauce. DD1 did scouts briefly before swapping over to Guides - I found the Scouts to be more activity-based things while Guides there seemed to be more of a social-learning kind of feel to it (which was what DD1 needed). Just realised last week that Miss E is probably old enough to join the fluffy ducklings group (or whatever it is that Brownies is called now that it's not Brownies). They've just started a Ranger group in our area too, much to DD1's delight. Any progress on after-school activities? It might help to have a weekly routine, eg, Mondays is craft, Tuesdays we walk to the park, Wednesdays is cooking, Thursdays we go to the library, Fridays you're allowed to sit on your bum and watch telly all afternoon (LOL). Just a thought...

I'm waiting for MP to drop back in and tell us all about her new furry four-legged family member...?

Hi MD :) I am floating around but I got a kindle for my birthday and that has been taking up most of my free time :)

Thanks for the day of the week activity. We had already started doing that but honestly the behaviour is just making it not worth it. Hopefully things will settle down soon.

Ha - love that you've discovered the Kindle joy!! Best reads so far? I'm currently wading into Finnikin of the Rock - which is kind of a YA fantasy by Melina Marchetta who wrote Looking for Alibrandi... slow start but *everyone* says it's worth hanging in there for. It's not on my Kindle though... which means every night I fall asleep and lose my page (!). LOL

How's the after school stuff - improving I hope. E goes to after school care on most days, but we still get a load of grumpy off-ness of an evening. I put it down to tiredness & also all the moments of holding in the way she's feeling during the school day. I've started encouraging her to relax with things like an earlier bath, a back rub, drawing it out (DIY art therapy LOL), and I'm also thinking of teaching my mob some mindfulness & relaxation techniques. I learnt a good one the other day 7-11 breathing. You breathe in for the count of 7 and then breathe out for the count of 11 (challenge). The inhale adds oxygen and the exhale builds the level of CO2 in the blood, which acts like a natural betablocker & lowers BP, etc. I've practiced this my whole life, but it's the first time I've heard of the 7-11 timing - but it works like a charm, and "Seven Eleven Breathing" is a quick way to refer to it with the kids. Am thinking of adding it as a permanent agenda slot to our family meetings. LOL. These days I'm all about getting them ALL ONBOARD so I'm not the only idiot pushing the bus forwards while everyone else sits back having a free ride.

In other news, Miss E surprised me yesterday by bringing out a novel that we had started reading together a couple of months ago & then set aside, with a bookmark inserted two chapters from the end. Apparently she's been sitting up in bed every night reading it. ie = actually reading, not just lying there looking at the pictures (!!). It's only one of those easy reader things (rainbow fairy style) but it was a thickish one. She watched the first Harry Potter movie on the weekend, and I told her she couldn't watch the next one until she'd read the book - and she's taken that as a challenge. She's determined to prove that she can read well enough to take on HP. Unreal. This never happened with H, who poo-poohed all my early novel reading suggestions for years & then suddenly picked up a really random book and read it.

MD, best so far is the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson. I read a Terry Brooks trilogy and it wasn't that great, but I ran out of Sanderson so I am back for more Brooks :)
Well done to E with the reading!! It is super satisfying to have a kid that reads for enjoyment :) I sometimes find W in his room reading a book. He has started HP a couple of times but it seems quite hard going. He is working his way through How to train your dragon which is quite a fun series and I may just borrow them at some point :)

I would give your 7-11 thingo a try, but I just stopped smoking on Friday and I don't think I could manage a whole 7 count breath in lol.

Everyone has been sick on and off for nearly a week now. It is some crazy sleeping sickness - when I got it I woke enough to tell DH I was sick and then slept until 2pm! The girls had it on Saturday and slept from lunch until tea time, had tea and a bath and then went to bed again! Now they seem to have it again today with a big day nap and a very early bed time and slight temp. W had the day off school yesterday. As far as sicknesses go, I would take sleeping bug over V and D anytime! I wonder if we will get sick more living in a bigger town?

Just spent half an hour blubbing on the phone to an ASD agency. I don't know what to do with him any more. It is so hard :( All these years and I still can't figure out if it is sensory, anxiety, ASD, gifted or bad parenting. Probably a mix of everything. Whatever it is I am just so tired of dealing with it every.single.day.

Get some help arte! You are not a professional. It is not your job to work out what you are dealing with. Leave it up to the professionals who have years of study and experience to work out what is going on. There is plenty of help and support out there for you. You just have to reach out to get it.

Oh Arte - big hugs to you. I agree with Ginger though, I think you should get some help with him. Maybe there are no answers but maybe there someone out there who can really help you and help him, and make it a whole lot easier for you all. I know you have investigated many things in the past, and I didnt realise there were still so many issues.. but if it is this hard at this age and has been going on for so long there just must be some answers out there for you all. Hugs - sounds like a tough time, we are all here to listen to you at any time!
G - how are you my lovely? been ages!!!looks like all is well in your neck of the woods. HOw is J doing? I thought of you the other day as we were in the hills - i remembered visiting you there :-)
Hope everyone is having a good long weekend
DH is away - he left yesterday so the boys and i have been having a great time. we went to the miniature trains at eltham yesterday with friends and then the boys demanded i get them new soccer balls. i did this and we spent all afternoon playing soccer int he park. and today all morning! they even slept with those soccer balls! LOL! Its great as N has been edging away from all football etc, he hates the tackling so this is a good option for him. he is also doing tae kwon do - and loving it.
have any of you looked into istruments for the kids? i was v musical as a kid and n really wants to do something performance related so i am thinking what he should do. he would like an instrument but i am just thinkinghe isnt picuring the practice!!! maybe drama or vocal training? he has a lovely voice! think it would be great for his confidence too.
only 3 weeks til we head on holidays - cant wait!

Mamapan, does his school have a choir? That's something he might really enjoy doing.

MP, Choir would be good then, or a drama club. That sounds exciting and adorable!

I just realised the other day I have never ever heard W sing. I asked him about it and he said he wasn't good so wouldn't do it. Perfection or nothing.

I know I need to get some help. And I know that you have all said it over the years. I have even started down that road but after a dozen of the same appointment saying and hearing the same things, I was still there every day dealing with the fallout of the wrong clothing etc with no new strategies to help. At least in new town there are local agencies, not 1.5 hours away.
It was going alrightish, we were managing, but the move has tipped it all over and we are back to the clothes, shoes, anything issues and he seems determined to sabotage any attempt at fun or happiness so he can scream and carry on. It has been so many years and I am exhausted.

hi trillian - yep he is in the grade 1 choir which he really enjoys. it is on one lunchtime a week. very cute - basically the whole year is in, they chose to go in or not :-) he really enjoys performing, has a gorgeous voice and i think something like a drama/acting or music would be great for his confidence etc too. But i DONT want to be a stage Mum LOL!
Arte - nnow that you are somewhere new maybe the time is right. if you can access some help closer to home maybe it will be more manageable to see it through? It sounds really difficult, and he is old enough now that you know it isnt a stage etc, so it will be best for you all if you have some mechanisms to deal with it. he has been through a lot of chg lately i guess but so have all of you.. and if you had some ways tp help him cope and also to assist your family it would be a lot smoother for you all. big hugs - must be awful to deal with and evenworse to see him like that. poor little man.

Mamapan, surely there would be somewhere down there that would do acting type activities for kids? I think that type of thing is a great activity for them to get into - it does so much for their self confidence.

Hi mp- going along quite well here. J is doing kinder 3 days a week and then does a day of state based early intervention at an autism specific centre. He also does speech therapy. It's pretty busy but seems to be making a difference. He is enrolled to start prep at a mainstream school next year which is awesome. Hoping that goes well but if not we will reconsider out options next year. Did you end up getting a dog?

Arte- an occupational therapist could really help w with all the sensory issues, particularly the clothes etc. I hope you don't take me the wrong way, I have just seen first hand the huge difference that intensive therapy and early
Intervention can make.

hello people!

Arte: i was wondering if the move and all the new things would have some fallout on W :hugs: what support services are there in your town? do you have any friends or know of people with kids that are ASD? It might help to see if there are any support groups. Maybe a chat wiht the principal as she/he might have some good contacts and recommendations. i agree that it would suck majorly to do this all on your own especially without the tools to help. what were the things that you did last time? massive hugs Arte :hugs: it really sounds like a tough gig but maybe the silver lining is that now you are closer to support and services and it might just be the ticket xx

afterschool activities...Miss L has a free after school sport thing on once a week with the school and she really wants to start circus next term. also for home i have just bought these reall naff books with plain faces on them and the girls have gone ballistic each day colouring them in and drawing the hair and clothes on etc. Miss L is really into writing so have also bought her one of those feint ruled excersise books for all her letters and stories. it gives me so much peace and quiet with the two big girls...until the paper starts running out and then it is banshee apocalypse hahahaha

MP: i also played instruments when i was growing up and would love my kids to have that experience...espeically through highschool as it was a bit of a chance to break away from the crap social stuff going on with the larger school population and just hang out with other creative peeps and have our own camps etc. I was thinking of investing in a keyboard as i reckon that piano is a good basis for musicality...seeing that you can basically transfer all piano stuff across to other instruments.

G: cannot believe that Mr J is going to be at school next year! wow time is just whizzing by! How does he do at kinder? Do you think that it could be a problem at the school, or are they pretty well versed with spectrum kids? There is a boy in Miss Ls class who has a TA and is there for only some days for the whole day and the other days are half days where he has intervention stuff etc.

MD: Miss L has also just started taking the initiative to read chapter books one after the other...she just churns through them! so now we have quite a big pile each week from the library lol. i am so so stoked as I am a HUGE reader and just love the escapism. you dont want my book recommendations at the moment...it's all about young adult fiction :rofl: although i am revisiting 'the bride stripped bare'.

I think I would like to read Brandon Sanderson's Alcatraz Vs the evil librarian and the rest in the series. It is a youth book but I just read his Mistborn series that was awesome and he is the guy they picked to finish the Wheel of Time series when Robert Jordan died.

Cass, I also love finding W in his room reading a book just because he actually likes it :) Yeah, it seems like the move has really unsettled him. We weren't without problems before but now he is just so, so angry. Any attempt to talk/play anything with him results in him yelling back. He actually tipped over furniture and threw things tonight in a massive red faced rage. He hasn't been so angry before. And so down on himself and everything that comes out of his mouth is negative and nasty. That is what I really need to focus on. Last time he was morose like this was when his first school wasn't working for him. We changed schools and it was fixed. Can't do that this time :( He needs to learn some ways of dealing with anxiety that isn't just taking out his frustration on everyone else.

G, thanks. Not taken the wrong way at all. It probably frustrates you that I haven't done anything so far. I always think I can manage it. There are times when everything ticks along fine. Then there are times when it doesn't but we always seem to scrape though. I guess making it through the day isn't really living though. What do OT's do? It would be super helpful if we could get past the clothes thing. Velcro on shoes not being even, not wearing more than one layer of top unless it is literally snowing - then he might wear a jersey and then he has to strip down to one layer to put his seatbelt on, the wrong f***ing pants!! Are there real practical ways of making that feel alright to him? Because that would make day to day living quite a bit easier :)
Does J have clothes issues?

MP, you wouldn't be *that* stage mum though - you would be the awesome lady behind the scenes making costumes and bringing amazing finger foods! Does J like performing too?

After school activities - W is doing Kea's (Scouts) one night a week and the ice skating rink is opening again shortly so I think he might do that a time or two a week. He has amazing balance and was really good at skiing so hopefully he will be naturally good at ice skating and get some confidence from that.

And after 6 years of driving around my little town with a bare minimum knowledge of road rules with no problems, only one month into living in a bigger town and I got pulled over for blowing through a stop sign! Sucks!

Hello my lovelies, I'm in crazy town with general busy-ness right now, but I wanted to pop in & say hello & declare an intention to pop back in for a good read & some personals when I get some breathing space. :hug: :hug: :hug: to all of you who need them right now! xxx

Hi there,
Sorry arte, just noticed that you asked me if j has clothes issues. He has a lot of sensory issues but is ok with clothes. When he gets upset, the first thing he does is takes his shoes and socks off. He is very particular about shoes. He has lots of issues with food, and hates getting the sun or water in his eyes. His biggest sensory issue is getting his hair cut, hence the long hair.

Thanks G. That must be hard going.

MD, I hope your busy-ness dies down a bit soon. Have you got time off over the holidays? Although that doesn't actually equate to quiet and relaxing, does it lol.

Had parent teacher interview for W yesterday at the new school. Sounds like he is settling in very well (and got a certificate for it :) ). Two years ahead across the board, more for numeracy.
Whatever stress was causing all the horrible behaviour lately seems to have resolved and he has been (mostly) back to himself the last couple of days.

Hi All
Just thought I would pop on and say hi to everyone, it is a cold sunday arvo here and I am waiting for a few things to be done in the oven before I head to my mum's. DH is away atm (again!) so I needed a few hours to get myself organised for what will be a crazy week - no DH, no nanny and no ILs.... AAARGGGHHHH!!!
All is going well here - we had a fabulous holiday in Indonesia - a week of adventure and a week of luxury relaxation. Kids amazed me on the adventure side - hiking, snorkelling, muddled up routines, no screens etc. was amazing week! they learned and grew so much on that holiday! we had a blast. then we had a week in bali with friends which was also awesome - but a total contrast of course. J tunred 5 when we were away - cant really believe that! we had a fun party when we got back - soccer theme which he loved!
N passed his forst tae kwon do grading and was above average! he was thrilled!!! a couple of stripes on his white belt now and he is proud as punch. i've been so impressed with it, for building his confidence physically. J is still playing soccer and really enjoying it, its so good to see.
I am thinking of taking them next week to a children's festical about an hour or so from here. (woodend childrens festival for the Vctorians) - maybe the weekend away. I figure with DH away we may as well make a weekend of it and getting away is good for my stress levels (which are high at the moment as a lot going on at work)
no other real news for me, as we always do this time of year we are considering house hunting! lucky for me I LOVE that whole process!!
would love to hear how everyone is. and also any bday ideas you have, they are sneaking around again!

Hello lovely ladies. I hope your all well.
All is good here. I can't believe miss E is 2 months old, it's crazy how quick they grow. L didn't want to go back to school at the end of the holidays, I was more then ready for him to go back lol.

hello!!!

Arte: i have to watch myself with the driving now too. only 8 months after we have moved and i am driving country style (AKA any old how hahaha).

Mamapan: we might see you at the festival?!! woodend is just down the road from us and if the weather plays nicely we might head over on the saturday.

Oz: i was the opposite lol...so didnt want Miss L to go back...i enjoy the laziness of not having to rush out of the house or make lunches ahead of time hahaha.

AFM: we are all pretty good. getting used to minus temperatures of a morning, but the sunshiney days really make up for it. i am still having some adjustment issues, i think i have boiled it down to two things: makes committing to work in melbourne harder and i just miss my old hood and the daily interaction of good friends. it is so fabulous up here and i am more social than ever and have been actually going out with girlfriends of a friday night, but i guess i am still moving in and my heart is not totally set on it. i vote that time will win out and i will come around, because humanly and objectively it is a gorgeous place.

No real birthday idea around here MP. I don't know if I can be bothered with the whole party thing when we have only been here a couple of months and none of them have good friends yet. Might do a day away or something. Present wise, W is begging for a tablet but it seems so....something. I am not sure that it is suitable for a 7 year old, yet he has a nintendo DS that he plays so it wouldn't be any different to that, would it? Somehow it seems different though.

Oz, I can't believe how quickly that baby of yours is growing!! She is adorable. I am turning into the liking holidays sort - the allure of staying in bed longer, no rush or lunches.

Cass, I read some quote somewhere that you have to be present in the place you are in, not living elsewhere in your mind/heart. I am trying to be here but it is hard. I too miss all my old people, most were just casual friends but it is nice to have other people to talk to. And it is freaking cold!! But we will get there.

Hi everyone :-)
i am having some much needed time out today - it has truly been one of the most challenging weeks for me. so kids are at my BIL and SIL for a bit and I have done yoga, some serius retail therapy and now chilling at home. Cass - we are going to woodend tomorrow, let me know if you will be there. hoping the weather is ok for it, but I'll brave it anyway!
as i said its been an awful week. dh is away, ILs in italy, nanny in italy - was going to be a hard juggling act anyway.. but then one of my team members in sydney passed away v suddenly on mon night.... so awful. its filled me with anxiety as it was a heart attack (he was 41) and i am paranoid as my dad died at 39 from this... so as i get older i am mega anxious about it all. and i was devestated for the team and his family. anyway i spent wednesday u thetre with them which was so tough, but good too. it meant my poor mum cae over at 4am and tayed til 9pm (working in b/n) and it was also my bday! hard day. the kids have been to various friends afyer school - theyve loved it, but for me, who hates to ask for help - its like my fine balancing act came crashing down and my weaknesses were laid bare!!! anyway, the week s done, dh will be home tomorrow and i am looking to recharge my batteries with some great time with the boys.
for N bday I think we will do a lego party... i just need to book it in. we got J a scooter for hisbday, i am not sure what to get N. he would LOVe a tablet but i am not willing to get that just yet... maybe a remote control car as the main present... i'll have to think.
hope everyone else is doing well. x

MP, our kids have loved remote controlled helicopters, although they don't tend to last that long. Something else W would love is one of those air hogs flying ball things.
Your week sounds exhausting! Must be a big shock losing a team member like that, what a young age for heart attacks - scary! I hope your weekend proves more relaxing than the week.

MD, how is your study going?

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Cass, I read some quote somewhere that you have to be present in the place you are in, not living elsewhere in your mind/heart.

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Them's true words! x

Arte - I'm glad to hear W is more his usual self again, but I encourage you to take some more steps re getting some support in place for the next time (because there will always be something that tips him out of equilibrium). Ten years on, I'm regretting not doing more to get support for whatever-it-is that DD1's got going on. While she seems to be doing ok, really the family is doing a lot of absorbing and compensating behind the scenes. And it's wearing us out. (And by the family, I mean mostly me). BTW how's the stopping smoking going? AND - thanks for asking about my study. I bombed out last semester (stress overload) but they've extended my deadlines so I'm back into it again now. I'm so freaking close to finishing and so really not close to finishing at all! LOL. How about you?

MP - Sorry you've had such a tough week. So shocking when someone dies so unexpectedly :hug:. I hope the weekend is having a restorative effect.

Re birthdays - I think we'll go for a little backyard party (as usual) with a bit of art/craft involved. I rediscovered shrinky dinks during the school hols - they are the Best Thing Ever & spot on for a not-too-difficult to organise party activity.

E will be getting a tablet (ipad mini) because we told her we would pay for half if she saved up the other half, and she has (!). I'm a little awkward about it, but she already plays with one of our (v.old) iphones sometimes, so the ipad will give her more activities and a bigger screen, but there will still be the same boundaries on its use. In our case, much harder not to go there when DD1 has multiple devices.

Oz - your little bubba is just gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. Such a divine little smile. I can't believe it's been 2 months already!!

Cass, LOL I'm all about the YA right now too. Anything more = too taxing on the brainio. Plus I've got a constant stream of recommendations coming at me from DD1 & her pals. I think you just need a little more time breathing the country air then it will all seem right. xxx

Apologies for my extended absence. I was crazy busy (or maybe just crazy) for a little while back there, so I unplugged from my usual activities for a bit. School holidays were a bust. First week, I fell of the back stairs and mashed my ankle, then our much-loved cat died, and then there wasn't really very much left of the school hols! Still, we managed to rediscover shrinky dinks, learn french knitting, take in the Art Gallery, and have a few pleasant family outings. Not to mention a pyjama day or two. :)

MD, great to see you! I hope you are feeling better now xx I know those patches where your life shrinks down to essentials because there is no brainpower or energy to manage any more :hug:
I have got something in place for W now - after waiting for ages to get an assessment done, we realised that we need more than a one off in the city so I have found someone local that we can see regularly. It took forever and a piece of luck to find a private practice - wasn't keen on waiting several months to see a paediatrician to get a referral and wait another few months to actually see someone in the public system. We have an initial appointment next week for background. She sounded great on the phone so hopefully we might get some actual help this time.
I totally know what you mean about absorbing it as a family. I guess even in the best of times we are still all sacrificing to allow for W's behaviour, walking on egg shells to keep the peace.

Stopping smoking is going well enough, I have a couple now and then if DH buys some but generally I don't even think about it.

I have just withdrawn from this semester of study, and didn't do any last semester either because of the move. I was getting really stressed about finding time to do it since I have Erin at home all the time. Next year she will be at kindy so it made no sense to squish it in this year with bucket loads of stress and then sit around half the day by myself next year. Still frustrated though - it is going to take me 5.5 years to finish a one year course! I hope this semester goes a lot better for you xx

I hadn't heard of shrinky dinks but they look good. I vaguely remember shrinking chip packets in the oven though.

ETA, I was very sorry to hear about your dear cat passing on MD. It leaves such a gap when they go :( Especially those ones that were a link with the pre-kids life.

I just had the first session with the psych for W and she was amazing! The difference between her and the public health woman we saw last time were incredible. Last time the lady seemed to have absolutely no idea what she was looking at and could offer me no suggestions besides sitting on his hands to eliminate the constant hand licking. She never really talked to him or tried to find out the underlying issue, just wanted to slap a ASD label on him because then I would get some funding - no help at all. This lady took the time to listen and seemed genuinely interested in getting to the cause of the behaviour. I have been thinking for some time that it was SPD and anxiety, which are often good buddies. She said from the symptoms and behaviours that that was what she was thinking too, so next week we will have an OT appointment with a full sensory assessment and go from there. I am quite hopeful that we can find some strategies that will enable him to cope better without always operating at such a high stress level.

Coincidently, I was talking to his scout leader the other day who is giving up leadership at the end of the year to focus on her son and when I asked if he was alright she said he was getting assessed for SPD! We spent the next 15 minutes swapping tales of our boys and I think we both felt better for finding someone else who is living the same thing - kids that are amazing and perfect for everyone else but are a disaster to live with.

Oh Arte :leap: it is such a burden lifted when you find someone who knows their stuff and is the one looking out for your kid! I feel that way about the neurologist for Miss E. I know that he 'gets' it and he always takes the time with her (and us!).

YAY!!!

That's awesome news Arte.

Arte that is fantastic - and I bet it's a huge relief too after all that sustained non-helpfulness! I think you will be much better served in the private system - my experience with the public system is that it's only resourced to deal with the severe cases. I'm also so pleased that you've found someone who you can talk to who is living it as well, makes such a difference. xxx

Re the studies - sounds like a really sensible decision. Unreal that E is so close to going off to kindy! You won't know yourself once all three are at school :).

I LOL'd at shrinkying chip packets! As I remember it, it all started with the Twisties packets & they did at as an advertising thing. I remember kids going around with them on necklaces, keyrings, hanging off their school bags. I told DD1 about this and she looked at me like I have two heads. PMSL. Apparently you can shrinky anything with a recycling #6, which means that if you can find flattish clear bits (like the trays inside the bicky packets), you can draw on them with texta and cut them out and shrinky them just like regular shrinkydinks.

I have been on the lookout for #6 since you posted :) I told DH about the twisties packet earrings etc and he thought I was crazy!! I guess some of the awesomeness of the 80's didn't make it this far south lol

Yeah, I haven't found any #6s yet, either. I get excited every time I open a packet of biscuits though. More than usual, that is :p...

Hope all is well, and that people have made it through the snow! It's kinda sunny here this week, which is nice, but very, very cold. I'm dreaming of gas central heating...

I've just realised it's August and I'd better get planning a birthday party soon, or it won't happen...

MD, I think take away containers are made of #6. Good excuse to get some Chinese or Indian :)

BIL has a bra1n tum0ur. That explains why he has gotten progressively worse long after effects of the head injury should have stabilised and why he is so much worse than expected from the injury that he had. Apparently it was noted on the scan the night of the accident back in 2003 but no one followed it up, and was the size of a golf ball on a scan a few years ago but they misdiagnosed it as a second head injury from a bar fight several months prior. Pretty upsetting to think of the what ifs - if they had correctly diagnosed it a decade ago he might have had a life. Now it is big and even if they do no extra damage removing it then it has still irreparably damaged his personality/emotional control areas.

Edit, making post less googleable.

Crappers, Arte!! No-one followed it up?!!! How awful, not only the diagnosis, but the knowledge that comes with it. :hug: Are they likely to be able to remove it? Or can they use rads/chemo to shrink it? I know it's been in there a long time, but surely there can still be some healing & repair over time. Even if it sorts out his sleep cycles, there's a lot that restoring sleep can do. Maybe not back to his original self, but any improvement is a win. Massive hugs to the whole family.