Stef's Birthday was good, but a little strange. I'm not sure if she really understands the whole bit about birthdays. She shows no interest in presents, or the attention. She does like blowing out her birthday candles though. I usually make such a big thing of birthdays. Lavish cakes, parties with family, parties with friends and pressies of course, stems from a childhood where my birthday was an inconvenience rather than a celebration. It was at the wrong time of year being summer school holidays and close enough to Christmas that I got pressies joined together. I vowed that I would never have a January baby. Stef shares her birthday with 2 special people, Helen her ex intergration aide and Liz who is her current aide at school. It just makes her birthday even more special.....they never forget! I took my mum and the kids out for tea. Stef was so well behaved! She really is very well behaved in public...its one thing that we can be very proud of. A lot of severely autistic kids like Stef would not be able to sit still for a couple of hours with all the sensory stuff going on in a busy restaurant. They came out with a birthday candle in her icecream.....so she still got a cake in a sense. Not sure what we will do yet regarding a family party. No one is around this weekend, so maybe we may do something on Mothers day at tea time and have a joint celebration.
We bought Stef a nintendo ds...she will love it.....eventually when the other kids stop playing and she gets a turn. We will get a program for it that turns it into a speech facilitation machine. It runs along the lines of a Picture Exchange ...we have used it a lot but in the card form where she would hand us the card to make the choices of what she wants....this way at least it will be portable for use at home and school. Amazing how far technology has come for these kids!! My brother also wants to buy her some games that will help her with learning to read and spell...he wants to help her too.
Ok on to my goals.
1. Giving up smoking- LOL, government put up the price today by $3 a pack....Just as well that I am giving up tonight at 12!! Yesterday I wore a patch to my new job so I wouldnt go through withdrawl or feel like a cigarette while I was working. Good move. I can't wait to be free of this addiction. I know that I have done it before, I can do it again....whatever it takes!
2. Getting help for steph- Started by getting that Nintendo for Stef, today will phone DHS to make an appointment. We really need to get her into overnight respite care so that she will be used to residential care later. Apparently they have a ball there as well..I also will ring the care organisation. Apparently there are grants to subsidise childcare so that I can work...whatever we are entitled to we should apply for.
3. Losing weight..hmm now going out for tea dashed that a little, but I was restrained and had a stir fry and only a bit of dessert....and I only had a banana for lunch. Not sure how much I will lose this week if any at all. I really must be very disciplined.
4. Steve has been away, so the relationship bit has been a little difficult this week...but we do keep in touch by sms and phone. Not quite the same as a cuddle though.
5. Doing things for me-I am going to a Carer's day tomorrow. Thats the first time I have booked in for anything like that. I think it will be great to be pampered a bit. Sometimes the last thing on the list is me..and as they say, I have to fill my cup before I fill others..this is a long journey and I need to give myself sustenance along the way.
6. Moving towards owning property...will be putting away my money currently spent on cigarettes into paying off the credit card....We will get there. I have been researching what sort of property in what area. Have been reading up on a site called Property Women...They think moving into owning property in regional areas first where prices are low and vacancy rates are near zero. It means that its likely that it will be positively geared (no extra funds weekly required to cover the interest).
So, there ya go..moving in the right directions......bit by bit with every mouthful the elephant will be eaten!!
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