Spending my Time....

The first week of school has come and gone. Nick had a bit of a rough afternoon the first day on the bus, and after doing some brainstorming between myself, the bus driver, and the aide on the bus, we decided that the straps on his car seat might have been too tight. The second day they were loosened, and he has been happy ever since.

And as for how I am spending MY time while they are at school? I am back in school myself! I am pursuing my degree in early childhood ed. and am enrolled as a full time student. I am taking three classes Mon-Wed-Fri-Sat. Between homework, school, housework, kids, sports, and errands, there is not much time left. But I am enjoying it.

Michael is doing well in school so far. He comes home everyday and does his homework without being nagged. That's a huge step for him! Not much to post really. Life is good. We are back on a structured schedule, and Nick is thriving. Can't get much better than this.

Summer is Winding Down......

Summer vacation is winding down for both the kiddos. We are in preparation mode for the next school year. Packets of paperwork are filing in from both of their schools. Tomorrow we will be out school shopping, much to Michael's dismay. We need to get proper school attire for Michael as his school has a dress code. I need to call one of the team members that works with Nick tomorrow to provide them with some insurance information. We have school orientation for both of them on the 23rd. Nick will have the same teacher as last year, but Michael will have all new ones.

We have been trying to enjoy the last few days of summer vacation; however autism does not take a vacation. Nick has good days that are really good, and bad days that are really bad. Sleep is sometimes hard to come by. He is sometimes up at 4am, and sometimes he sleeps until 8am...you never know exactly which day will be what. But, yesterday was a good day. So, we went on a little walkabout at a local park. Which he and I both enjoyed.

Today, we had an appointment this morning with a dermatologist. The first thing she noticed about him was his big blue eyes and long eyelashes. Nick was being quite cooperative and charming (as in he did not destroy her office or break any picture frames!) I think we got the hang of this, him and I. I may look like one of those "helicopter parents" from a distance, but unless you want your things destroyed, I do what I gotta do. We walked out of there with three more prescriptions. A special shampoo to use everyday (to get rid of what I can affectionately call "reptile skin" on his head), a spray to use in conjunction with the shampoo, and then a cream to use on his elbows. After that, we had to go to the grocery store to get a few things. Nick is getting better about handling these outings. He will even push the cart  and help put items in. It makes me happy to think that he is developing some coping skills needed to do these things.

I imagine that the  picture on the left kind of sums up what our world can look like to him at times. He is in focus, but the rest of his surroundings are nothing but a blur. With him feeling the chaos and out of control. Then other times, it is peaceful and serene, like the picture on the right.

And when we get the balance just right, we have moments like the one above. We had all of those on one walk in the woods.