by Sarah | Mar 21, 2012 | All About Kennedy, All About Molly, Anger Issues, Autism, Special Needs, Therapy
[flickr id=”6270891807″ thumbnail=”small_320″ overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]We have known for a long time that our sweet little Angel girl had a temper problem.
Dichotomy that she is – she was the sweetest and smilingest baby ever…then on a dime she would launch into a screaming fit the likes of which I can’t begin to describe. She has the capability to burst ear drums with her high pitched scream. Worse than that, and the part that frightened us, was her tendency to self injure. Slamming her head into the corner of doorways, the floor, our faces. You know, whatever is handy.
We hoped she’d outgrow it. She hasn’t. Fortunately the self-injury part of it is softened down to the occasional digging at her nose until it bleeds. While she still throws major tantrums and fits – they have become the slamming her bedroom door and kicking it and the walls while screaming that life is unfair for a six year old little girl.
Then she started school. We didn’t know what would happen there. Feared the worst.
At her parent teacher conference we learned the truth of it.
When a teacher of Kindergarten children says there’s a temper issue – you know there’s a problem.
Since then we’ve heard little (or rather nothing) else that her temper was a continuing or growing issue. Until last week. Angel brought home from school a permission slip. The Guidance Counselor offers “small group counseling” for the students. Angel had been pegged and needed permission to participate in one.
“Friendship and Social Skills (Communication, appropriate expression of feelings and wants, problem solving skills)”
Hmmmm….Temper much?
So now every week my little Angel goes to a counseling session to try to learn to control her temper.
Tell me why this wasn’t offered earlier? Like when I asked the school about how to help her – or expressly said that she had a temper issue and we needed to know how to take care of it if it was noticed at the school.
Why is assistance only after a LONG period of them witnessing it? Why aren’t we listened to when we expressly say there are issues with our children? Are we not a squeaky enough wheel?
*~*~*~*
(P.S. Riley has also come home this week w/ the same note and will start her sessions on monday. Considering she has autism and spends EVERY recess all by herself – this also should have been offered sooner for her)
by Sarah | Jan 6, 2012 | All About Molly, Autism, Crap, Special Needs
[flickr id=”6650056311″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]Every day without fail I pull into the parking lot of the elementary school to pick up Angel. At the same time every day I get into line behind the other parents, sometimes even in front of the line.
85% of the time so I don’t feel rushed to shove her in the car and go I end up toward the back of the line. This prime spot affords me a clear view of the area the older kids have their recess in. It’s mostly parking lot, but to the right there’s a large grassy area with a playground.
Every day in dry weather above freezing they run around like little ants. Hustling and bustling so fast it’s hard to keep track of them. All playing together. Laughing, shouting. Playing tag, pushing each other on the swings. Kicking balls, sliding down the slide. Talking. Laughing. Being with friends.
Except one.
One girl.
My girl.
My beautiful Riley.
Sure she runs. In circles. Behind the other kids.
Mirroring play.
Never participating in it.
Sometimes walking slow, all by herself. Other times watching, laughing after the joke has passed and the group has moved on. Never right in the moment.
And every time I see it, it breaks my heart.
She loves school.
I have seen in the contained space of the classroom how her friends aide her, pull her in to participate, make sure she is included.
It is only in recess that I see this.
If she feels the pain I do when I see it, she can’t express it. Or chooses not to.
But I know it’s there. I know that she will always remember the ‘different’ she felt. I know this, because her dad remembers the same feeling. The same sense of ‘different’. The same attempts to participate without the sense of how.
It’s something I don’t know how to fix for her. I can’t go to the school and force the kids to make the effort in recess. It’s their wild time, it’s expected to just run free.
But still…
What I wouldn’t give for her to be pulled in to the games. Instead of mirroring, melting in.
by Sarah | Dec 8, 2011 | All About Molly
[flickr id=”5984317283″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]For the first six weeks of school they had her in Remedial Reading. Said that her test scores were too low, she had to be in it.
State Law and a state-wide test and all that crap.
We protested. At every meeting we pointed out that she was reading ABOVE her level at home. That her being in Remedial Reading made absolutely no sense.
They kept saying that they test every few weeks when they’re in RR and if she didn’t really need it she’d test out.
Two weeks ago we got the letter. It said she’d tested out of RR and would no longer need to be in it. She would join her class and their daily reading lessons as always.
We both breathed out under our breath “Finally.” Left it at that.
Fast forward to yesterday. TWO WEEKS after testing out of RR…she comes home beaming and pulls out her homework notebook.
“Look, Mommy! I got a Chapter Book! It’s my new homework!”
There’s a note on her homework sheet from her teacher – “I have decided to move Riley up to the next level reading group.”
She went from reading books with constant repetitive words and sounds “Pat sat on a hat” to full on chapter books with words like “Reindeer”. Her reading assignments are chapters long instead of a few pages.
Riley is proud of herself. Riley is thrilled to have real books to read.
WE are proud of her.
*~*~*
And we’re NOT thumbing our noses at the school saying “I told you so.”
Really. We aren’t.
Really.
Believe me?
by Sarah | Nov 12, 2011 | All About Denver, All About Erik, All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Random
Since I failed to take out my camera this week, I won’t be doing a Weekly Winners or Scavenger Hunt Sunday post this week. Instead I went into the October Prompts from the NaBloPoMo site to find a prompt to inspire me today. I found this one:
If your life flashed before your eyes, what are 5 moments you know would be included?
My immediate response was the births of my three kids and my wedding, taking me up to four moments in the matter of a heartbeat. What else would there be? What one moment stuck out to me in the realm of the birth of my children and the marriage to my wonderhubs?
Would it be the last dance I shared with my Grampa? The one at my brother’s wedding? Would it be the last heart to heart talk I had with my grandma on her front porch the year before she passed away? What about our family trips to Disney World? Our weekends at the campground? The summer that it rained every day the entire summer? Of course I could remember the days spent at the hunting lodge with my dad, uncle and cousins.
Or would it be a place that we all gathered? Where so many of my family could be found?
A 4th of July celebration at our cottage in Ontario. Where all of the family (both sides) had gathered to join the bonfire. Watch the fireworks.
I think that is the last memory that would flash for me.
Every one of the moments would be deep, profound and special. Surrounded by family. Love. Excitement and wonder.
by Sarah | Nov 9, 2011 | All About Denver, All About Erik, All About Kennedy, All About Molly, All of Us, Photography
[flickr id=”6293299563″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
In the morning when you rise
I bless the sun, I bless the skies
I bless your lips, I bless your eyes
My blessing goes with you
[flickr id=”5959711952″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
In the nighttime when you sleep
Oh I bless you while a watch I keep
As you lie in slumber deep
My blessing goes with you
[flickr id=”6247844013″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
This is my prayer for you
There for you, ever true
Each, every day for you
In everything you do
[flickr id=”5888383181″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
And when you come to me
And hold me close to you
I bless you
And you bless me, too
[flickr id=”6217579492″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
When your weary heart is tired
If the world would leave you uninspired
When nothing more of love’s desired
My blessing goes with you
[flickr id=”6087274981″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
When the storms of life are strong
When you’re wounded, when you don’t belong
When you no longer hear my song
My blessing goes with you
[flickr id=”6134809815″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
This is my prayer for you
There for you, ever true
Each, every day for you
In everything you do
[flickr id=”5984317283″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
And when you come to me
And hold me close to you
I bless you
And you bless me, too
[flickr id=”5885134239″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”center”]
I bless you
And you bless me, too
~Celtic Woman – The Blessing
by Sarah | Nov 6, 2011 | All About Denver, All About Kennedy, All About Molly, All of Us
[flickr id=”6270891807″ thumbnail=”small” overlay=”true” size=”small” group=”” align=”left”]Today Angel ran up to me giddy with excitement. “Mommy! Mommy! I lost my tooth!!”
It’s the last of a first. The last child to lose her first tooth (Riley lost hers last year at this time – almost the exact same tooth).
My baby girl is growing up. She’s giving me a new stream of last of the firsts.
She’s still so little. Some days it’s easy to pretend she’s still my baby girl.
But every day I must face a little more that all my baby days are gone. I’ve just got big kids now.
All grown up and growing up faster every day.
A teenager. Two girls in elementary school.
I still don’t know how that happened.
