Using Transitions to Create Traditions

Because changes and transitions can often be more jarring and stressful for those on the spectrum, it's often recommended to plan ahead with lots of warnings and preparation. It's also usually not advised to start something new at the same time.

However, sometimes I feel like one change can make it easier to make another change and use it to piggy-back. For example, right now life is pretty crazy with our move, but we're trying to keep the Little Man's daily routine as stable as possible. We started him at the new daycare (closer to my work and the new place) a week before we move house. On the weekend we will move and after the long weekend, he's back at the new daycare, so not too many changes happen at once.

Now I pick up the Little Man from daycare and bring him home with me and Dada has dinner ready for us. I've used this NEW routine to institute sitting at the table for meals. We've tried this many times and failed, but we know it's possible. So we've been consistent this week about making sure food is on the table as soon as he comes in. He gets washed up and we get to the table as a family. He has no time to get distracted by toys or anything else. It means I sit down and eat a bit even if I'm not that hungry at that time. It means I usually miss my favourite show and pretty much the only TV I watch, Coronation Street. But we are teaching him the lifelong skill of sitting nicely at the table, not kicking anyone, and just eating.

We've been soooo impressed with him! Not only does he sit and eat fairly well (with a lot of prodding) but he has even asked for more some days! It's so nice to see such a change in him. So now we just have to make sure we keep it up once we move, despite the chaos and possibly, lack of kitchen.

Making transitions easier takes planning and consistency. If you want to institute a new routine/habit/tradition,  pick something manageable and don't get expectations too high. If it doesn't work this time and causes too much stress, drop it and wait for another time. In the end, our children will learn and cope at their own pace and life isn't a race to the finish!

How Not To Become Overwhelmed With Life

Ask for help.





There, this post is done.






lol, ok, seriously though. It's true.


I'm writing this post for all the people who have helped us along the way. Help has come from places I didn't even know existed. Help came in the form of close friends and not so close friends. Some help has been free, some help has been paid for. Some help was expected, some wasn't.

The point is it doesn't always appear in the ways you think it should/would. It doesn't always come from the people you most want it from, but if you ask and keep an open mind, it will come. Don't say no to offers, however small! In general, people want to help you!

You don't need to make excuses for needing help either. If you are a special needs parent, you have more on your plate. Maybe you don't trust anyone else to watch over your child, but you can stay with them and let someone else wash the dishes. Or let someone cook you a meal. There are lots of options if you think outside the box.

That's how not to become overwhelmed with life.

Then, when all is said and done, don't forget to say THANK YOU!

Finding My Voice Again

I was *that* person blasting industrial techno music as I drove down the street. I had a 2001 silver Pontiac Sunfire and it had a pretty good sound system. Better than my home one, anyway.

In my car, barreling down the highway, my music disturbed no one (or at least not for long as I sped by).  I sang loudly, in tune thank you very much, and didn't hold back. My car was a concert stage. Yes, I was *that* person.

The second I got pregnant for the fourth time, that stopped. My world went silent. I wanted no noise. I don't know why - call it mother's instincts or something, but I no longer felt the need for noise in my car.

My world went silent

After my son was born, of course I did not want to hurt his delicate little ears, so there was no noise in the car other than his protests from the car seat. He hated the car seat!

We didn't spend a lot of time apart during the early years, but I found when I was out in the car alone, I still wanted silence (can you blame me?).

It's only recently that I'm starting to slowly go back to my old ways. I am slowly making my way back to my previous free-spirited, child-free, fun-loving old self. Except I'm forging a new me with a child.

Aside from just getting out more again, I see it as an analogy for my life in general. I had to be his voice and advocate for him when he couldn't speak. I had to fight for evaluations and services, so I had to find my confidence as a mother and get a new voice.

Things are pretty stable now, despite a lot of changes (new daycare, new house) but I feel more at ease about the future and the decisions we've made for him. I'm just getting this new voice warmed up. Soon I'll be singing it from the rooftops.

App Review - Mini Forest Flyer and Mini Sound Box

Earlier this year, I introduced you to Toca Boca, a Swedish company that makes apps we absolutely love. Since that review, we've actually downloaded more of their apps - Toca Train and Toca Store.

We can't get enough of them! Which is good since they've now teamed up with another developer and call their new partnership Sago Sago.
Together they've created two new apps:


Sago Mini Sound Box and Sago Mini Forest Flyer. I'll share the company's descriptions with you:

§  Sago Mini Sound Box engages children through visuals and sound allowing them to explore at their own pace. The app features layered functionality – kids tap to create a sound, tap in different areas to get different notes, fling them around, tilt the device and see them move, tap with multiple fingers for specially-colored balls and tap and hold for a fun surprise.  Some children find themselves repeatedly tapping and holding for the fun animations while older kids will figure out how to play a little tune like a piano.                                                          

§  Sago Mini Forest Flyer sends children on an adventure of guiding a bird to different areas on the screen to uncover fun animation sequences. The open-play environment allows kids to take the engagement in any direction or path – they are in control.  Some may gravitate to certain actions and watch them over and over, while others will treat it as a race to uncover as many animations as they can.  In nearly all cases, children will begin to narrate their activity.  

 I'll admit a little mistake now. I got free promo codes for these apps so I could review them and I got excited an downloaded them to *my* iPad. Usually, this isn't a problem and I just take them from the cloud and download them onto the Little Man's, but that didn't work, so they're stuck on mine. What I'll probably do is pay for them once they're available to the public. (Sound Box will be available May 16 and Forest Flyer on May 23)

Anyway, all this to say, I fell in love with them immediately while on my lunch break at work. I liked Forest Flyer so much, I forced a co-worker to try it out and he liked it, too! I finally let the Little Man try out Forest Flyer this evening and he explored it and laughed at the different scenarios. He played some of the same animations over and over again and laughed, so I say it's a hit.

Also, bonus for parents: these apps have no ads and no offers to make in-app purchases. It's just simple worry-free fun!

Let me know if you try out any of these apps and what you think!

Allergy Awareness - What To Do

Allergic Living Magazine is giving out a simple 6-step infographic to help people know what to do during a possible allergic anaphylaxis reaction. 

You can download it off their site or mine (just right-click and "save image"). Share it with your friends!

What To Do After You've Completed a Goal

If you read me often enough, you know I talk a fair bit about making goals and having a vision board and all that good stuff. But I realize I left something out...

What do you do after you've accomplished the goal??

I mean, aside from make new ones. I have this vision board up in my room and I had a goal still on it that I had accomplished: my trip to Asia. I didn't know what to do!

Do I take it down? Then what? Burn it? Throw it away? It all seemed kind of weird and most websites talk about how to make a vision board, but not what to do after!

So I searched online until I found something that resonated with me - after the goal is complete, take it off the board and keep it in a new scrapbook full of all your completed goals. Oooooh, what a nice idea! I can look back later proudly, and keep track of how well this wonderful goal-setting thing works!

What sort of celebrations do you hold after you complete a goal, or is completing it celebration enough?

Happy visioning!

Mother's Day Eve

So, what are you doing Mother's Day Eve? BlogHer has some great ideas and ways to celebrate.

I think it's a great idea, but I just don't think I can manage it this year. All my weekends are taken up with packing right now (moving soon!) and I guess what I'm saying is I'm not able to take time for myself to party? Sounds bad, doesn't it?

 Ok, I don't think this celebration was created to make me feel guilty.

I just have to plan better next year. So what will you be doing?