The hubby and I took a much-needed break this last month and visited some Napa Valley wineries. Heaven. Wine has been our obsession recently. I think we have a found a way to deal with autism and developmental delays as a couple. No, not by drinking our sorrows (well, maybe a little). It is more of a shared hobby, an enjoyable one at that. We love learning all about the red wine.
We secured babysitting and away we went. Four days full of wine-ing and dining. We slept in on occasion too! What a concept. We are strong believers (now) that we must carve out time as a couple and individuals so that we can be better parents. Tired parents are less patient and not as clear headed. On the last night, we took the red-eye flight from San Francisco. The flight left at midnight west coast time and arrived at 8am east coast time. My husband jumped right into work, and I jumped into therapies, diapers, and the OTHER type of WHINING. The days of the right kind of wine-ing were forgotten within 15 minutes of setting foot inside the house.
We dove into our usual Tuesday slavedom that is Quinn's new program. Four hours of a "mommy and me meets preschool" type of class where the moms follow the kids around and do exciting things like table tasks and sensory stations. Kill me now. As a second timer (did plenty of rounds with Kai, now 9) this time around with Quinn (28 months) is excruciating. I wish I was taking him to the zoo, the Seaquarium, the park or just on regular playdates. Instead, every morning is filled with a different therapy. The joy. Speech therapy back to back with physical therapy back to back with ABA therapy and on the other days? The preschool classes. I also have to listen to all the mothers, myself included, pronounce all the words with sing-song intonation, give cheerful compliments (for 4 hours) and listen to the kids that have had it and scream the entire time. I know it's part of the process. I know those moms would rather be elsewhere as well. Finding the energy to carry on as enthusiastic as the first-timers is hard though. It helps that I have days of wine-ing to look forward to.
We are still six months away from his Quinn's 3rd birthday. Most importantly, we are still under the glaring possibility of an autism diagnosis which will make this the 2nd round for us. Not saying that will happen but we are still under that "window." Until that window closes and we have a green light of no autism, my stress level will be considerably high. We are working hard towards escaping that autism diagnosis. We are doing everything in our power, but there are days, like today, that I feel like it's not enough. This is where my whining comes in. Who am I kidding, I was talking about me the entire time I mentioned whining, not the kids.
I am whining about it yes. Things could be worse, but they can also be so much better. I can fill in the blank with a lot of "at leasts" Yes, at least I have this and that yadda yadda. The thing is, nothing matters unless you and your family have health. Plain and simple. Health is the single most important factor in our lives. With health, you can do anything. Who cares if we can go to Napa if we would trade it in a heartbeat for our children to have a typical childhood. Shoot, they don't even have to be really smart. Just average. We will take it. Even C students! Detention? Great!
Until then, I am grateful we do our getaways and adult nights. Without them we would only be enveloped in a sea of depression, surrounded by pecs schedules, evaluation appointments, doctor's visits, and well-meaning ABC singing mothers at therapy sessions.
It's Monday, but I am already counting down to the weekend when we can relax and have more whine over wine time. It's what keeps us going.
Cheers!
We dove into our usual Tuesday slavedom that is Quinn's new program. Four hours of a "mommy and me meets preschool" type of class where the moms follow the kids around and do exciting things like table tasks and sensory stations. Kill me now. As a second timer (did plenty of rounds with Kai, now 9) this time around with Quinn (28 months) is excruciating. I wish I was taking him to the zoo, the Seaquarium, the park or just on regular playdates. Instead, every morning is filled with a different therapy. The joy. Speech therapy back to back with physical therapy back to back with ABA therapy and on the other days? The preschool classes. I also have to listen to all the mothers, myself included, pronounce all the words with sing-song intonation, give cheerful compliments (for 4 hours) and listen to the kids that have had it and scream the entire time. I know it's part of the process. I know those moms would rather be elsewhere as well. Finding the energy to carry on as enthusiastic as the first-timers is hard though. It helps that I have days of wine-ing to look forward to.
We are still six months away from his Quinn's 3rd birthday. Most importantly, we are still under the glaring possibility of an autism diagnosis which will make this the 2nd round for us. Not saying that will happen but we are still under that "window." Until that window closes and we have a green light of no autism, my stress level will be considerably high. We are working hard towards escaping that autism diagnosis. We are doing everything in our power, but there are days, like today, that I feel like it's not enough. This is where my whining comes in. Who am I kidding, I was talking about me the entire time I mentioned whining, not the kids.
I am whining about it yes. Things could be worse, but they can also be so much better. I can fill in the blank with a lot of "at leasts" Yes, at least I have this and that yadda yadda. The thing is, nothing matters unless you and your family have health. Plain and simple. Health is the single most important factor in our lives. With health, you can do anything. Who cares if we can go to Napa if we would trade it in a heartbeat for our children to have a typical childhood. Shoot, they don't even have to be really smart. Just average. We will take it. Even C students! Detention? Great!
Until then, I am grateful we do our getaways and adult nights. Without them we would only be enveloped in a sea of depression, surrounded by pecs schedules, evaluation appointments, doctor's visits, and well-meaning ABC singing mothers at therapy sessions.
It's Monday, but I am already counting down to the weekend when we can relax and have more whine over wine time. It's what keeps us going.
Cheers!
