Glad that January is over!

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm sure glad that it's February. January is never an easy month. While the Christmas break is always great, the return to real life can be intense! This year (as expected), the return to school for G was not easy. We had several weeks of lots of separation anxiety, which meant crying and screaming when I dropped him off at school. Since he's had a space of his own at school to give him a safe transition space, things have changed dramatically! I'm so grateful that he has such caring teachers who figure out what they can change when things aren't working for him. He's also been having lots of ups and downs with his health, which makes the anxiety and his ability to cope much worse. I recently read an absolutely fascinating book called "The Fabric of Autism" by Judith Bluestone, and it helped me make sense of the physiological (neurological and biological) factors that may be getting in the way of his ability to engage, focus, and regulate. So, I'll be embarking on some new training. We'll be seeing a naturopath to determine if there are dietary changes that we could make to improve overall health, and we'll continue to work with our RDI consultant. We have seen some remarkable changes in our relationship with G over the past year, and it gives me great hope for his future! I think that if we can address some of the biological factors that may be getting in the way, that we'll see an even bigger difference.

Work has been very busy, but good. I'm so thankful to work in a job, and in a school, that allows me to work from my strengths on a consistent basis. While the year has been intensely busy, I've learned that I thrive when I'm busy doing work that fits with my strengths and what matters to me.

We're all excitedly counting down to a family vacation to Disney World to see Grandma and Grandpa! G has prepared a countdown on the calendar, and has been crossing off the days as they get closer. It sure will be nice to feel warmer, and to spend some time with family!

bringing up the new year

We decided to have a quiet New Year's Eve this year, and just spent the evening with another family. We had a great time... ordered Chinese Take-out, played, and were just visiting while the kids watched a movie... until M started throwing up :-( Not a fun way to ring in the new year. We were home by 10, up every few hours cleaning up.... and then I got it about a week later. Ick.