School Mum, Awesome Aspies and puddles..

Yesterday morning I woke on the second alarm ring, having snoozed the first and cuddled up to my littlest man who'd snuck in an hour prior, steeling myself against leaving my warm doona to the fresh, coldness of the still early morning air invading the house.

My foot left the space of warmth for a second when I remembered, I'm going in late today. It didn't take much more than a nano second to pull that foot right back in and reset a later alarm!

When I did eventually get up I got to experience something which is normally an old distant memory...yesterday I got to be a school mum! No rushing out the door with toast eating in the car, thermos cups filled with tea and hot chocolates, dreary eyed children still wiping sleep from their eyes as I drive through the streets while dawn fully emerges from darkness. Instead my beautiful children woke in their time and TOOK THEIR TIME, savoring every minute on this lazy school morning.

An activity only ever indulged on weekend mornings was partook..




And they were delicious.

Eventually it was time to greet the traffic and drop them off. It didn't quite go smoothly, but we survived drop off and then headed to littlest mans appointment.

We walked past puddles on the way in, my pulling him away from them was met with threatened tears, I promised he could go thru them after...was I mad? Perhaps, but jumping in puddles is his ultimate life thrill..if only you could see the joy on his face you would understand :).

The Paed was late...or perhaps I should say he started our appointment late..anxious is not the emotion I wanted to be feeling as I walked into it!

There was much talk, much much much...so much Infact that I was very late into work and only got to be with my class for one lesson yesterday ~eek~

All that 'much talk' came to a definitive conclusion. My Littlest boy has Aspergers Syndrome.

Later that night, I told my big boy K and he shrugged his shoulders, no big deal. I told my girl and she said, "oh that means the boys are the same and I'm just like you!" This diagnosis in our family, well it's not a big deal really..no stigmas come with it, only cool differences and opportunities to play with truly wonderful people every two weeks (o.t etc) . My kids really innocently reacted to this news in a way I could only have dreamed they would feel about ASD three short years after we first got Ks diagnosis and that is with acceptance and love ...and I'm totally taking the credit for those attitudes! ;)

I felt relieved, I knew...I think I always knew and now I'm able to get early intervention funding and assistance for him. I love the little man he is and unlike this same experience three years ago with K I was not blind sided. My world didn't crumble at my feet this time because I have been given the wonderful gift of the understanding and teaching about Aspergers...from K. He is terrific, intelligent, happy, funny...he's everything I ever dreamed in a son and more. The only difference being that his path he's walking, the way he sees things and his interactions with the world are sometimes different to other peoples. He's taught me how important it is to appreciate each and every persons individual journeys and walk along with them with an open mind, ready to learn together.

The lessons his Aspergers have taught me are nothing to fear. We can do this together. I've got wonderful support people in my life, the boys do too. I'm able to help them deal with the things in the world which feel incompatible with them and shape the world to fit them ;). Sure life's a little harder sometimes....but who would want "she lived a dull life" written on their tombstone? ;) not I :).

So yesterday, I felt relief..and acceptance before reverting back to just pure, 100% love towards the boy walking beside me, my baby boy...my second Awesome Aspie!

Oh and those puddles? You can bet your partooty that he walked through them as I squealed mock disgust and he laughed genuine joy at the experience and his wussy Mama! A moment of pure joy etched upon his face...the wetness was well and truly worth it :).