11 days and counting..

Just over a week and a half until Nick goes back to school. I know he misses it and frankly, so do I. He thrives on the routine of it and I enjoy the solace when he's at school getting the help and attention he needs. Please don't get me wrong - I LOVE my child more than anything and get so much joy in being with him. I'm just one of those people who needs some alone time. I find that down-time sustains me and refreshes me, allowing me to better focus on the people in my life. This is the main reason that I couldn't be a full-time stay-at-home mom. My hat's off to the people who enjoy being with their children 24/7. That is truly the hardest job in the world, bar none.


My son is off school until next Monday because of the track system his school is on. This break has been much easier for both of us to handle than the one that he had in April. He was much more restless being home during that one for some reason. I think it was because it was the first real break from all therapies he's had since April 2005 when they began. He started in-home therapy in October '05 and that continued through the end of January this year. The in-home therapy was an arduous process for our whole family. It was hard to have someone come into your house day after day to work with your child. It was made harder because of the fact that the hierarchy of the company that worked with Nick was made up with some women who were less than nice... that's as diplomatic as I'm going to get in describing those people. Nick did thrive in that environment for a time and made progress but it was a relief to see it come to an end so we could have a life again. School was a blessing for all of us. It gave Nick the opportunity to be around kids his own age who have similar developmental issues and learn in a structured setting. In addition, mama had some free time to relax. See why I'm counting the days until he goes back??

Nick was supposed to be assessed by a new in-home therapy provider this week but the lady wasn't able to come out because her child was ill. I'm looking forward to Nick getting home therapy again because I think every little bit does help. The amount of hours they'll be here won't be as much as the previous company because they will have to work about Nick's 20 hour school week. Plus, I know a therapist who works for the new company and she assured me that this one respects the views of the parents and actually listens to them when they have something to say. The good thing about having such an unpleasant experience with the previous group of people is that I'll know, going into the situation, what's appropriate and what's not. I won't feel the need to keep my mouth shut if stepped on like before. I only let things go on as long as they did because the therapists working with Nick were awesome. It wasn't their fault the company they worked for had boundary issues with the parents of the children in their care. I now know 2 important things: there are better companies out there and most importantly, Nick does well with change. If I had known those things our involvement with the old company would've been a much shorter one, that's for sure.