Keeping it Up
This was an unusual weekend for us. We worked the business that we own as our employee planned to spend a romantic weekend with her betrothed. Nice, huh? A weekend with nothing to do but wrap yourself up in the warm blanket of love you share with your One. No interruptions, no demands, no tears, no spills, no breastfeeding. While I admit to daydreaming about such a weekend day, I’m not yet ready to give up the giggles, the hugs and the kisses that out pace the tears and the spills. I could do with a little less nursing though (Ess, are you listening?).
Our business is located at a very large, very busy, very crowded flea market. Generally not a good combination for a sensory sensitive kid. Chee has had her ups and downs visiting it. Right now she’s in a good place. She calls it The Farm (most of the doors are painted red like barn doors) and there are plastic giraffes and other animals a top the various buildings. A little bit “Green Acres meets Old Las Vegas.”
This was an Up weekend for her. She insisted upon pushing Ess’ stroller - a wise move as it kept her focused and moving and one that I need to slip into my bag of “Managing Chee” tricks to pull out for occasional use. If your kid is anything like mine, they’ve figured out when they are being distracted played by Mommy and the bag of tricks has to be restocked and reinvented often.
I am hopeful all things will remain Up this week. We’re meeting a new speech therapist. I was unable to find anyone locally who has experience with hyperlexia, so I took the recommendation of a fellow Therapy Mom and we’re meeting with Nancy who has very many years of experience. After a phone conversation with her discussing Chee’s history and her language, I feel confident that she will develop a therapy approach that uses Chee’s strengths, particularly her reading ability.
And we also have our first Parent-Teacher Conference. I swing up and down between excited and nervous about it. I am so hoping to get a good report. There is the nagging worry though, a whiny little voice that sits on my shoulder, plaguing me with concerns that things have been awful at school and they’ve just not told me. Or that she’s been a behavioral nightmare. Probably neither of those things are true. My pendulum of worry swings pretty wide here. Friday can’t come soon enough.
Other things are on the Up this week, for me personally. I am spending Friday night scrapbooking with some girlfriends. They paper scrap, while I am all digital, but with my trusty laptop I can scrap anywhere anytime … no mess. And I’m finally, finally taking the time to dive into my reading list. I started this weekend with The Kite Runner. Next up is Water for Elephants.
I like when things are Up.
Up is good.
The Kite Runner is a beautiful book. Savor it. And I’m so happy to hear you found a therapist who seems to have experience with Chee’s particular issues. I hope all goes well.
And, good luck at the parent-teacher conference. I’m sure the reports will be glowing.
I’m so glad things have been Up. They won’t stay that way forever, because life isn’t Disney, but hold onto that memory and it’ll help you get through the Down times. And with some luck, the Ups will outnumber the Downs.
I’ve always have that sort of push-pull feeling about parent-teacher conferences, but my experience has been that most of the teachers are pretty well-trained and practiced in how to do it, and it’s a positive experience. No bombshells - because if there was something huge going on, they’d have called you beforehand to let you know. C is vibrant and beautiful, and I’m sure they’ve seen that in her.
Good luck!
I will always have the same excitement/trepidation combo about parent-teacher conferences, so I understand.
It’s always good, too, to be able to add something to the Mom bag of tricks. Just about everything in there has an expiration date, and goodness knows I don’t want to be caught with an empty bag.
Up is good! how fun to have an upcoming night with some girlfriends!
good luck with the conference.
Hope you enjoy both books - they’re lovely.
[...] big things too. We all went out to the flea market to close up our booth. Normally she is terrified of even coming near our booth, but today she came [...]