Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Growing Up is Hard to Do

The other day we went to the mall, all four of us, to get Kaleigh's haircut.  She goes to a special place that caters to children.  It is pretty neat.  Next door to it is an indoor playground.  I usually let her play for a while after her haircut; there is a height restriction.  Anyone taller than 50" cannot enter.  Guess who was very disappointed?  That's right, Austin.

When Austin walked up to the sign and was well above the limit, he realized that he would not be able to go in with Kaleigh.  Oh boy, it was not a happy moment, not at all.  Poor Austin started to cry and I took him over to the food court to settle him down.  Meanwhile, my husband took Kaleigh into play.

I sat and cuddled Austin and explained that there are somethings he cannot do because he is getting so tall.  He is growing like a weed!  It was not easy for him to understand that he could not go in and play.  Oh my, it really broke my heart to see him cry like that. :(  The people around us watching and wondering why he was so upset.  I have gotten used to it and can ignore the comments where they used to really get to me.  Interestingly enough, because Austin is crying softly and not melting down on the floor, the comments were not the same.  They were sympathetic.  That's a switch!  Austin hid his face from everyone because he is starting to be embarrassed.  This is new behaviour for him.  He eventually stopped crying but only after I had finally figured out how to put a real positive spin on the fact he could not go into the playground anymore ... Disney World!  Good old Disney World!

I told Austin that me may not be able to go to the small indoor parks in the mall anymore because of his height but that it would benefit him when we go to big amusement parks.  He will be big enough to go on the big rides because he is tall enough " ... like at Disney World!"  That is what popped into my mind.  The smile on his face was all the reassurance I needed that all would be well.  He knows that we are going to try to make a trip to Florida in the next couple of years and also looks forward to the big rides at the local exhibitions.  My husband will go on with him! :D

There is one thing that will be a challenge, Kaleigh is only about 43" tall.  Well, you can win them all! ;)

All the best! *HUGS*

Delightful Dining at a Compact Christmas!

We had almost 20 family members over for Christmas dinner this year.  I have to say, it went pretty smoothly.  I was not expecting Austin to deal with the situation as well as he did.  Very PROUD of you Dude! :) OX

To start, we have a small house, it is very homey and quaint.  Almost everyone who comes to our house says that it makes them feel "welcome" and it is "cozy".  The wood stove in the living room helps.  Did I mention that is where we served dinner with two, or was it three, tables put together?  Oh well, I was busy cooking and getting the dishes organized.  It was pretty full in our little house but I believe, that is what makes some of the best Christmas experiences.  It is wonderful to have a whole bunch of family all together, so what if it is on the "cozy" side.  Well, unless you are dealing with a child on the spectrum, then it can be a challenge.

We told Austin that we would be having a lot of people over for Christmas dinner.  He did not react well to the announcement.  I thought "Oh boy!  We are in trouble now!"  I thought he would be bouncing off the walls, literally.  He was discussing "safety zones", not a term we ever heard from Austin.  The weeks leading up to Christmas Day, we thought it was best not to continue to talk about how many people were going to be here.  Austin approached me Christmas Day to talk about dinner.  Oh my!  I thought he was going to want to leave the house at first.  He was very agitated that all these "strangers" he called them, were coming into "his house".  I told him that they were all family and not to worry.  He was concerned that there were way too many ... well, it would be a full house for sure.  He did finally settle out when I reminded him that his "safety zone" was my bedroom and he could play on the computer and lock the door to keep people out.  He calmed down right away.  I thought, "That was easy, too easy".  I was sure he would get upset, I was ... wrong.

Once people arrived, Austin went to play in his room with Kaleigh.  They have a Wii, so they played for a while and were really good.  The house was filled with family when Kaleigh realized one of the cousins had brought a mixture of soda pop.  We had coke and ginger ale, things like that but you know kids, soda pop is much more appealing when it has colour!  Orange pop, grape pop, cream soda, root beer, the kiddies hit the jackpot!  I do not let Austin have this too much because he reacts to the dyes in the soda, especially anything red.  They asked their cousin if they could have one and she said it was fine so I thought, well it is Christmas.  I am sure my husband was wondering what I was thinking.  Anyway, they both had two pops each throughout the whole evening and Austin was fine.  He came out to have a bite to eat.  He does not eat Christmas dinner so I prepared something separate for him.  He went to my room and played on the computer, to his "safety zone".  He was pretty calm and very well behaved all night, Kaleigh also.

We all sat down and had dinner.  The food was great!  Everyone brings a dish and the hosts make the turkey.  Everyone enjoyed dinner even though it was a little warm in the living/dining room due to the wood stove and we squeezed almost 20 people at the tables.  All in all, it was a really nice Christmas.  Whew!  :)

So, all that fretting and worrying was for nothing.  Some habits are hard to break. ;)

All the best!  *HUGS*