Lotsa Stuff

Lotsa stuff has happened here. Some of it good. Some of it bad.

Let's get the bad stuff out of the way first.

Beaver has not had a very good time. As puberty hit, things have deteriorated for him. He is extremely aware of his difference and very unhappy about it. Last year this all came to a head around school and the special education program there.

His behaviors went rapidly downhill. He became aggressive and oppositional. Just before Christmas he kept asking to get him some poison so be "could get out of here". And then he tried to drink some nail polish remover.

We ended up with the mental health team at the Children's Hospital where, I have to say, we were seen very quickly and efficiently - despite it being right smack bang in the middle of Christmas time. Beaver was given some anti- depressants for a week, which got him out of his funk.

One of the things that came of all this is a that we are a step closer to understanding the cause of all this.

It seems we are now finally on the road to an official diagnosis of Aspergers.

It may surprise you, but that would actually be a huge relief!

On the positive side, our other two kids are faring well.

Possum has really found his feet last year. He has become a Cub Scouts (with his Dad being a leader), has taken up archery (with Mum) and is still an avid chess player. Like many of his generation he spends much of his time playing Minecraft - although I am pleased to see that he has actually learned some of the programming behind it.

BooBoo had a very big year. She left the special school and went to the same small independent mainstream school her brothers attend.

While it pains me to have to admit that academically she went a bit backwards, socially she has come ahead in leaps and bounds. It has really helped that she find herself in a class of 20 chatterboxes which advanced her speech no end.

She adores sports and has joined Wheelchair Sports NSW and what a ball we have had since! We have made some fantastic new friends and tried some cool sports. Our whole family has become fans of wheelchair basketball, a totally amazing sport to watch. And BooBoo has taken up track - she is a T34 for those in the know - and has a tiny wheelchair she races in.

But that's another story...