I really didn't intend to stop writing for so long, and it certainly wasn't a case of Bloggers Block, as the thoughts are all constantly there in my head. I just lacked the time to be able to spew them out in any sense whatsoever. Which doesn't bode well for the re-start, so please do forgive me
To bring you all up to date, life is fine if somewhat manic. Sasha has been slightly unsettled for the past week with her 4th (wow, that time has flown!) birthday in the middle of it. Generally everyone keeps saying how well she is doing, and at nursery she certainly is, but in a way it's a bit like having a pressure cooker on the go. Tamsin is mostly a star as usual, but we do notice certain behaviours creeping in which are obviously a reaction to Sasha's problems too. Her dad sat her down and explained a little more about autism (in a very basic, non-scientific, Sasha-relevant way!) which seemed to go in and help a bit. The next evening she had friends over for playdate and tea, and when they asked why Sasha didn't stay sitting at the table for long for tea, Tamsin blurted out 'yeah, well, she has autism'.
Think it was probably a little bit lost on them, and I'm not entirely sure Tamsin was using it for exactly the right reason, but we let that one go. I also refrained from pointing out that Sasha is only just 4, and Tamsin still rarely sat at the table to eat until after she turned 5! Tamsin still suffers from a terrible case of 'ants in the pants' at mealtimes even now....
The past two mornings I have really struggled to persuade Sasha to get dressed in the morning. She runs off and puts up a real struggle - so much so that on Monday I had to put her in the car still in her pyjamas. As we arrived at school the first friend of hers we saw was dressed as a pirate (someone got the wrong day for dressing up, whoops! Got that excitement to look forward to soon...) and the second was in her own clothes as she was poorly and not going in. So that didn't exactly strengthen my case to Sasha as to why she should change into uniform! Wouldn't have made any difference if they had been in theirs anyway, to be honest - Sasha is certainly not one to be worried about looking or acting differently.... Once I had left her at school she was then apparently quite happy to change into uniform for the teachers, typical.
I'm looking forward to her start in Reception in September mainly because she will be allowed to wear a school summer dress, yippeee! This will make her extremely happy - the less clothing the better (i.e. no tight waistline due to sensory issues) as far as Sasha is concerned. I'm still not really sure what the school will say when she wants to carry on wearing these dresses all through the winter..... she doesn't feel the cold of course, so will see no reason to change to a heavier one.
Tomorrow is the day when we all find out which reception class/teacher our little ones have been allocated, and who their peers through the school will be. I am intrigued to find out, but am definitely thinking 'Que Sera'. I was given a great bit of advice; that I should try and stand back as far as the schooling goes, and wait to be asked for help before getting too involved. I am still feeling very positive about the next year, after such a great start in nursery, and am eternally grateful that we decided on such a good school when choosing for Tamsin. Ha, wonder if I'll be linking back to this post in the future when times are tough. I probably thought similarly about the original nursery we had for Sasha before they said they couldn't cope with her! Ah well, water under the bridge, their loss
For now I'm going to sign off so this doesn't get too wordy, but I know you'll be waiting with baited breath for the 'back instalments'....
The clothing thing is so hard to get your head around! My aspie boy has never worn his school jumper - but won't take off his comfy thermal vest even in the height of summer. It doesn't seem to affect them tho lol. Good to have you back x
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