In years past, my stomach would be in absolute summersaults leading up to Winter Break. Alan is not super rountine oriented, he can go with the flow most days, but there is always that worry when he has an extended period of time off of school that it's going to effect him. This year, was different, it was refreshing and dare I say... enjoyable for everyone?
My husband and I always talk about this time of year. How usually it is extremely hard on Alan, on us and the rest of the family. Plus throwing the baby in this year makes things a little tougher and more stressful. The days leading up to break were horrible for us. Mid December my third boy, Joey got diagnosed with RSV. Which any parent will go into complete panic mode when you have RSV in your house and an 8 month old baby. It was stressful trying to keep everyone apart, cleaning, wiping things down constatnly. But when you have four kids, one who is oral sensory seeking, it is almost physically impossible from preventing the spread of anything. Ricki, our baby, ened up catching the RSV along with Vinny. Vin got it the worst and his turned into Pnemounia, which is never fun. So we were out of comission for the first part of break, trying to get everyone on the mend. Luckily for us, it could be the functional route we are on, focusing on Alan's immune system, the sauna sessions, the detox baths, the supplements just everything we have been doing for months, he did not catch RSV. He was the only one that did not.
We finally made it over that hump as Winter Break progressed. Alan was actually enjoying himself this year. He was sleeping in (which never happens consistently) he was engaging with his brothers and they were seeking him out to include him in wrestling matches, games, rollerblading, sledding, conversations, everything. It was so refreshing not only to see them ineract with him out of their own volition, but he actually wanted to be with them, and do what they were doing and not running away so he can be secluded. Every day, I would hold my breath that it was going to change back to the old winter breaks, where either Alan or I would be in tears by the end of the day. But it never happened and I am so thankful. Usually with all the chaos of the holidays, different people, activities, smells, food, noises and the list goes on and on, at some point he is over it. This year when he was over it, it just turned into a lot of cuddle time with Mom, and I gladly accepted it!
Alan has developed a new love for ice skating. And I say love loosly, it is more of an obsession. He will trype "ice skates" on his talker multiple times a day. He will gather his winter clothing to show us that he is ready to go to the rink. He is absolutely at peace when he is on the ice and it is a miraculous thing to witness. I don't know what it is about the ice rinks, he will go during open skates when it is completely crazy and chaotic, and it doesn't bother him. As long as he is skating in the cold air, he is at peace inwardly. My husband must have taken him to over ten open skates throughout break all at different rinks. He transitioned, he listened and he succeeded evrey time. I then signed him up for actual lessons every Saturday. I got in touch with the program director (it is actually a parent/tot class, not meant for a 9 year old) and explained to her what we were looking for. She said we can bring him and they haev accomodated him perfectly so far. Ice skating has been a game changer for us this break.
Toward the end of break he participated in our Super Celtic Basketball Camp. Again, his best year yet. It is my third year hosting it, and every year it gets better and he enjoys himself more. This year he really loved his buddy, Claire. She was his buddy last year as well, so there was some familiarity there which I think always helps. He would take her hand and bring her everywhere, it was the best feeling to watch him initiate the interaction and follow through with a typical peer. My mama heart (and coach heart) was bursting at the seams.
I don't want this to come off as a bragging blog but more of an inspirational post. If your little one struggles with the long breaks from school or routines, I am here to tell you that it will get better. We have always made a point to ensure that Alan was able to pick up and go whenever we wanted and I think that has paid off. He truly thrived this break and I don't say that lightly. I am sure this roller coaster of a journey will bring me back down at some point, and I will log on and write my feelings here again with a different tone, but for now I'm going to ride this wave of happiness and be so proud of my little man for the complete bliss he gave us these last couple weeks.
With grace,
This Autism Mama
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