Fireworks are fast approaching. And in some places they are already starting with the shows in some neighborhoods. But who really wants to play out the nose for noise cancelling head phones? $50.00, for a pair of head phones. Are you serious?
I'm a bargain shopper. That's all it boils down to for me. I'm not going to pay $50.00 for a pair of head phones Doodle may or may not eat or tear apart. So what's a parent to do when they are faced with having to constantly buy things over and over and over again.
There is this wonderful store called Harbor Freight. When there is something that I need that I know I will be able to find at this store for what can only be deemed as the store for men. They have just about anything when it comes to tools. tools and more tools. I like it here cause when I was looking for something for my soaping projects they had it for far cheaper then Walmart. Yes, cheaper then Walmart.
So when it came to finding the noise cancelling headphones for Doodle's first concert, Harbor Freight was the first place I went too. You normally get a flyer in your Sunday newspaper for Harbor Freight. 20% on any item in the store. So with my flyer in hand the moment I walked into the door I saw the noise cancelling headphones right near the registers on an end aisle cap. And the price was $6.99. How is that for savings? With my 20% off coupon I paid far less then what they were advertised for in the store. SCORE!!!!
And the best part is that Doodle has yet to tear up these head phones. Which makes this the best investment in a long time.
So for your nightmare night, save yourself some time and money and invest in your local Harbor Freight store and pick up a pair of noise cancelling head phones. You'll thank yourself later.
You guys have a great day!
Doodle's headphones/ear muffs are orange and not black.
I wasn't sure if I was going to post today or not. But it never hurts to tell you all Merry Christmas from Doodle and myself. Doodle made off like a bandit with shopkins. Her movie night box from Wednesday's craft was a big hit, as Doodle loves to snack. When the Minions movie was playing on the tv she actually stopped to watch the movie, which made it a success.
I know some moms raising kids on the spectrum aren't having the best of days because their kiddo's don't get it. I have a friend that doesn't decorate and doesn't do the whole presents thing. It's her day off and she enjoys it with her kid who isn't on the spectrum. If next year you don't want to do the whole gift thing or decorating thing, don't worry about it. Christmas is about what you make it to be. Don't look for too many expectations. Don't worry about going above and beyond. Keep it simple. Don't stress yourself out, it's just not worth it. I think I ran myself more ragged when Doodle and I had an actual family unit. Trying to please others was just too exhausting. Christmas was just miserable to me. Not anymore. I just do the simple now and I'm much happier then I've been in a long time.
Doodle got some shopkins and all she cares about right now is coloring and watching Alvin and the Chipmunks chipwrecked. She got an art kit like she does every year and a chipmunk coloring book. This time around they had the road chip coloring book. Doodle has loved Alvin and the Chipmunks since she was three. And I can only get Alvin and the chipmunks coloring books at Michael's craft store for just a dollar! It's my go to coloring book where I know I'm not gonna fail at Christmas.
And the next big thing to celebrate for us is Doodle's birthday which is in January. So it's soon going to be time to figure out what to get Doodle for her birthday. I'm sure $50 in shopkins will do the trick. I will need to figure out if there is anything that Alvin and the Chipmunks has out and maybe also a large Care Bear. As Care Bears are something that she's getting into right now. Autism obsessions are grating my nerves! It's something I will need to seriously think on. You guys have a great day and enjoy some pictures of Doodle ripping into gifts from this morning.
So today is Wednesday and I wrote this on Monday so that this could be posted on time. Yeah I know at this point Christmas is two sleeps away and I've got a last minute DIY. This project was done on December 21st on Monday before I wrote Monday's blog post. Monday was a huge day for me. It was the day I got the last of my Christmas shopping done. I knew not to take Doodle with me but at this point it couldn't be helped. I did it and I will do it again if I need too. But I am completely done with Christmas shopping.
So on with the DIY Christmas gift I know she will love. Last month I got Doodle and I some new boots for the cold days and got myself some riding boots. Best investment I have made in awhile! The box for those boots helped to make this DIY.
I got this idea from a youtube video. For this you can put your own spin on it.
All you need is a large shoe box. If a shoe box is the hardest thing to find, Michaels Craft store has you covered with plenty of different size boxes that you can fill to your hearts content! To decorate the box I got some chalk board stickers to place around the box to cover the fact it's a boot box. And on the chalk board labels I wrote in chalk (which was provided) Movie Night. In the shoe box I put in a pair of pajama's. This is why Doodle went shopping with me. She picked out the pj's she wanted. A shopkins shirt and I picked out her pink plaid bottom pants.
Then I filled the box up with plenty of snacks. I actually went to Michael's craft store and picked up clear bags to fill popcorn with. I didn't want her to have an entire bag of popcorn as it's not really a serving size. These bags are the perfect serving size. I also picked up some chocolate chip cookies and some hot cocoa mix to go in the mug that I made for Doodle for Christmas. Along with a bag of chips.
Also hidden in the box is the new Minions movie and a DVD of Alvin and the Chipmunks that plays on Nickelodeon everyday. But Doodle isn't the only one getting new pj's. Since Doodle is getting an 18 inch doll that she wanted last month (another Christmas present) the new doll is going to be getting pj's too!
So this is a creative way to fill a box with all things fun while your kid watches a movie. The Movie Night box as I like to call it. And on that note Christmas lands on the next day that the next blog post is suppose to go out. Since this is our family day together I doubt I will be posting. So you guys have a fabulous time with your family and please fill free to make your own version of the Movie Night box, if you are having a hard time getting a gift for that hard to buy for person in your life. And considering that it's last minute you can still get plenty of treats for your box along with pj's and movies.
I forgot to remove the doritos to show you guys the two DVD's that Doodle is getting for Christmas.
Now I know how Kreed's family feels when they take him to concerts. If you don't know who Kreed is then you have to look up Kreed's World. Kreed has autism and though Doodle isn't has sever as Kreed some of her regression prevents her from doing a lot of things right now. This was Doodle's first concert and I had been really nervous about it. I wasn't sure how she was going to react. But she did awesome and clapped and cheered at appropriate parts. She was getting tired without help from melatonin by the time Tobymac got on the stage at 9:00 pm.
Yep, Doodle went to see Tobymac. And she loved it. This was her very first concert and she had a blast. She sang the chorus on some songs and decided since there was no one sitting in the seats in front of us she was going to sit in one of them. I didn't mind as long as she didn't bolt for it. She did great. She laughed and yelled out. Jumped around and danced. Her favorite part of the concert was when the confetti was flying around the room.
Of course we bought swag. Can't go to a concert and not come back with what you want. Doodle and myself got shirts that read Label me a Jesus Freak. And her Uncle who went to the concert with us got, This is not a Test t-shirt. I also got the CD for his new album because it was cheaper then at the Christian store.
It was a great family time at the concert. We all danced and sang. A great time was had. And yes I will do it again. I can't wait until Newsboys come our way or Big Daddy Weave. Of course it will be awesome when Jamie Grace comes to our little neck of the woods.
You guys have a great day and I will see you guys on Wednesday!
Getting ready for the concert.
Tobymac and Hollyn rehearsing before the concert. She pranked him by wearing a shirt identical to his.
Tobymac and Michael from Newsboys. For those who don't know Michael and Tobymac were in the group DC Talk. The number one song of all time was and is Jesus Freak.
Tobymac and Diversecity
Waiting for the concert to start.
The shirts Doodle and I got.
This is the Princess. She is Nirva Ready and she is the only woman in Diversecity, so Doodle calls her the princess. Mrs. Ready has the best voice!
I think this is the first year I've been more joyous about Christmas. Usually, it's just the motion of making sure that all the kids got presents and of course the teachers, therapists, the para educators and the crossing guards. I do believe that everything changed for me the moment that Doodle started to progress again. That's when I got my joy back. It's not just Thanksgiving that I was to have something thankful for. This year I am thankful for progression! And I an thankful that as they say the trash has taken itself out on facebook.
Yeah that just came into play! So far this year I haven't been tagged in stupid stuff for the holidays. YAY me!!! That and I've also turned off my notification sounds. Oh boy will that drive someone to drink.
Doodle's Christmas is just about done with. All I have to do now is get some pajama's in either My Little Pony or Minions and finish putting together her movie box. I was going to make her 18 inch doll she is getting for Christmas some slippers but Doodle took off with the foam. And now I will have to go back to work to get more. Thanks Doodle. But it could be worse. I could be unclogging the bathroom sink again from glitter, sticks and dirt again. It's the small things that mean so much to me.
This years gifts to the teachers, therapists and para's was a holiday mug. And with a little note to the teacher that read my cup runneth over. Thank you! I am truly blessed with this new teacher. It seems like ages since I've had a teacher that got. It feels like ages even though it's only been part of the school year.
And on that note I have just now remembered how to add books to my kindle on the computer and need to get back to testing.
Let me know what you guys need help with or what you want to see in the blog. Because at this point I think what's going to start showing up while Doodle is out of school will be thinks I've written previously but never posted. I don't know why I didn't do that on Monday or Wednesday but hey, we all have lives and a good portion of you who read the blog know the struggles of Autism and how it can be a topsy turvy of a time.
Yeah you read that title correctly. This week I've had two iep meetings. Both were emergency meetings. Yesterday was my second one and it involved the school board.
You see the school wanted to make Doodle a half day student because of her new aggressive behavior. Flinging chairs in class has never been something that Doodle has ever done. But when her teacher conditioned her that she can get out of class with crying well it started the regression. When crying in class no longer worked to get out of doing school work Doodle amped the anti. Or she took it up a notch. Apparently this teacher hasn't had much experience with teaching children with autism though she claims that she comes from a school in our state that is nothing but an autism school. So she would have learned how to deal with these type of behaviors and she would have known the way that kids on the spectrum are to be taught and treated.
I came into this second meeting with information from Doodle's teacher from 3 years ago. The one who pulled Doodle out of her first regression. And I also had information from Doodle's pediatrician. All three of us are in agreement that medication is not going to work as there is lack of structure in the classroom. Once the structure is re-established then and only then would any type of medication be effective. But considering that Doodle can function very well without medication, there really is no need to put her on it. The stuff I use at home works at home but doesn't work at the school. So where does the problem lie? You guessed it, with the teacher and her teaching methods.
Now as you all know I'm not a happy camper with my childs' regression and I'm not a happy camper with with her aggression in the classroom. I don't have aggressive behaviors with her at home. It's only happening at school.
So going into the meeting I made them very much aware of what Doodle's teacher from 3 years ago informed me of. Finding out the function of her behavior. Is it avoiding, wanting to avoid, attention escape or sensory? Those are the questions that have to be asked when trying to figure out why the child with asd is acting the way that they are. According to her previous teacher it's because she was trying to escape doing her school work. And with that information on the table I went straight into what needs to be done to nip this in the bud according to her previous teacher.
Doodle is going to need to re-take compliance training, hand over hand training and even re-taught her expectations. Once who ever the teacher is going to be in that classroom does this it will all stop. But according to the temporary teacher in the classroom right now, Tuesday was the only day Doodle flew into a rage and right now everything is getting back on track. Doodle is actually progressing at home and is progressing at school since Tuesday.
She's been placed on half days currently but it's not from 7:30-11:30, it's 7:30-1:30 and we will work it back to normal schedule from there. Being that she is getting out at 1:30 every day won't be going against FAPE. IDEA and FAPE both say that a special education student has to have the same time frame in school as regular ed students. They have to be treated equally. And unless all the children in the school are getting out at 11:30 everyday that was a no go.
What I have noticed this week is Doodle is now speaking in complete sentences. I'm pretty shocked and ecstatic over this development. Last night watching Rudolph's Shiny New Year with her she pointed to the television and said, "Look its a vulture. V V V (v sounds) starts with V". That may sound normal but for me its not. She normally says, "Look mom look, its a bird!" So you can see that her naming the type of bird that this creature was is a huge step in the right direction!
I do know that the teacher that was teaching this class will be back on Monday. She's out this week. But when she comes back Doodle's not the only one taking compliance training. The teacher and the para educators will be too.
You see the reason I am pushing so hard is because Doodle was diagnosed as mildly autistic which means that with the right help and therapy she will have a normal life eventually as a regular ed student. She will be able to get into college and will be able to become a doctor just like she wants. She will always have her autism but she will be in regular ed classes, can do the work without help like regular ed students, be able to get into art classes with regular ed students (technically she's allowed that right now, it's in IDEA and not allowing this will be in violation of IDEA and FAPE).
I can't stress this enough, know your laws, know your rights. Not everyone can hold your hand every moment of the day. If someone who has a lot of experience with ieps and they get results is giving you advice, make sure you are following it to a T. No if's, and's or butt's about it.
And for another part of the meeting, I really hated to do this but it had to b done. Doodle's regular education progress report came home (not her iep/special education report which is against the law if I don't get it) and she made A-B honor roll. Now the meeting we had 2 weeks ago it was stated in that meeting that Doodle eats more work then she does. Which means that my child is not on A B honor roll. I really hate being lied to. I can't stand it. So I requested that her grades be changed to reflect the current work in class. Yes, there is a possibility that she will flunk this year and it will look bad on review when she applies to college. This could damage all changes of getting into college. I'm aware and I'm already dreading it. But what can I do? Let's not sugar coat the situation and say yeah I haven't done my job as a teacher so since I'm forced to put grades into the computer system let's lie about it.
If she's graded on homework, yeah, she will make A-B honor roll but since she's not. Can't be done. I am working with the school to try and get this resolved. Doodle used to test very high at the school and now she doesn't. So right now until the FBA (Functional Behavioral Assessment) comes in we are pretty much at a stand still with everything.
You guys have a great day, I need to get back to work.
I think that title pretty much sums it up. How would there be a violation on rights would you ask? Well, that's an easy one. Doodle's teacher conditioned Doodle to escape work. If she cried she got to go out of the classroom and walk around for awhile until she calmed down. When it got to the point the crying wasn't working Doodle upped the anti. Being aggressive got her to escape school work. So for the past 4 months as long as she didn't have to do school work Doodle was happy which helped with the regression. Because well, Doodle didn't have to learn anything.
Oh dear! That's just not a good thing. Well, now there is a new teacher in the classroom and she's fearing for her life! The previous teacher caused that issue and I can't correct the issue because it's not my problem. And when I say it's not my problem I'm saying this. It didn't happen on my watch. The teacher caused the issue the school is responsible for fixing the issue. As some would say, "It's not on my hand receipt".
So yesterday I was to go into the school and attend the Santa workshop with Doodle. 45 minutes before it was time for me to go in I got a call from the school. Doodle flipped her wig and they had to evacuate the classroom. It's a safety issue the school is dealing with and I haven't been prepped on their behavioral intervention plan yet. But the school was more then happy with wanting to put her on half days. Not in the right mind of thinking I went down to the school and signed the paperwork for half days. Because you don't really think to research when the school is demanding that you come down there immediately. Upon returning home with Doodle I got to do my research and her rights are being violated by going to half days.
If you want to know about your child's rights you can look up Special Needs rights, FAPE (Free and Appropriate Public Education) and FERPA (Family Education Rights and Privacy Act). Just reading through FAPE last night I saw so many infractions from Doodle's teacher alone I was pretty much grinning all night long. Why would I be grinning? That's pretty much a hands down blink and I've won lawsuit.
And did you know that even after you sign the IEP you can revoke it after the fact. Most people don't realize that game changer. Not even most schools. So that's what I tried to do this morning. And I was shut down in my tracks. Oh that's so nice of them. So I tapped the counter with my nails and said, see here's the problem. If I end up going back home I'm going to be tempted to contact my lawyer over a rushed IEP and Doodle's rights being violated. I didn't want to do that. I wanted to try and fix it here. Then I smiled at the woman at the front desk and left.
I was almost finished with the email to the lawyer when I got the call from the school. Doodle is to stay there until normal time to leave as she was used to and I have an IEP meeting tomorrow morning with the heads of the school board at 8 am. Bring it, I'm not scared! As a matter of fact I'm bringing all the papers for FAPE and FERPA outlined in highlighter all the violations. Please do not treat me like I'm stupid. Yes, I have a college degree, yes I am still trying to learn something new every single day! Stupid by far I am not.
So as I continue to get my way I'm going to finish up this email to my lawyer and click send before time escapes me and prepare for what the school thinks is a battle and I think is a puddle. You guys have a great day and I will update you on Friday!
I bet you guys thought you wouldn't hear from me at all. I mean I have missed two Mondays prior so it's natural that would think that you wouldn't hear from me at all.
Over the weekend I had a little issue with Doodle and the iPad and what Youtube was suggesting for my kid to watch. Just because it's in a "cartoon" form doesn't mean that it's for kids. And it was driving me nuts. But what child on the spectrum doesn't basically live on an iPad? Mine this week. She gets to do Youtube video's but it is locked up tight now. And she's only allowed 10 minutes of video and that's it. The iPad locks up and she can't get out of it or change the video.
When that is done she can play for 30 minutes on a game and once that time is over with, she's done with the iPad for the rest of the night. Her game of choice is Minions.
So now I can work again and not have to worry about what she's watching. And by the way, I still don't like Youtube for some of it's suggestions for a child with a toddlers mind. But now I have more control over it.
If you want to know how to lock up your childs' iPad here are the guided instructions to help you out. This is how I control more of what she watches considering that the apps I downloaded to stop those videos aren't stopping them. http://www.wikihow.com/Use-Guided-Access-to-Disable-Parts-of-an-iPad-Screen
And well Doodle Got her progress report finally. All the other parents got theirs last month. I finally got hers last Friday. She made honor roll. A-B honor roll but she made honor roll. I'm not jumping up and down over this at all. And let me tell you why! Doodle has eaten more work in class then she has actually done work in class. The last iep meeting the complaint was they couldn't get her to do any work at all. And that the only work that she does is the homework. So how can a child who won't do work get A-B honor? I really hate being lied to. And quite frankly my feathers are ruffled again.
Well, I'm off here as I have lots to do this week. You guys have a great day.
Today's blog I'm going to tackle light sensory with Autism. Now Doodle is a huge fan of night lights with fish on them. Flash lights, candle lights, just about any type of small light she is all over! So in this blog I'm going to show you the easiest way to make your own light sensory that your ASD kids will fall in love with. And he's the shocker it's super cheap! I found a large portion of supplies at The Dollar Tree.
For the supplies you will need:
1 jar
1 pack of battery lights
acrylic paints
marker
E6000 glue
paint brushes
water
This are some impressive battery powered lights. Those the ones with colored bulbs aren't working.
Found these jars in the glass ware section
Some of the paints I use when I go into work to teach painting
Paint brushes
And a permanent marker to draw with. Pencil won't cut it on this project.
Using the E6000 glue, glue your lights to the top of the lid on the inside.
While you wait on the glue to dry, now is the time to draw what you want on your light light.
Now is the time to paint. I added a little water to my acrylic paints just in case so the light would shine through better. Let it dry. It will take about 10 minutes.
Add your batteries to your pack and put the lid on top. It's that easy!
This entire project took me about 30 minutes. And Doodle will be happy she has a brighter light for her night light now. You guys have a great day!
So as we all know Christmas is just around the corner. It's already the 2nd of December and Doodle is very excited about it. She knows we celebrate the birth of Christ in December. So what do you get those in your family or close to you that your child on the spectrum can do? Even though Doodle has autism she can still doodle pretty well.
In this tutorial I will give you all the types of things you will need to make a one of a kind cups that you and your child can work on together. Create one of a kind products that everyone will love. This turned out the be the easiest thing that Doodle could do and still make something special and beautiful.
What you want to do is start out with a pencil and a ceramic mug, much like this image.You can purchase your ceramic mugs from any where you wish to use. I got a good majority of the mugs I used from the Dollar Tree. The coffee cups without handles came from Michaels Craft store. Because I love those type mugs. They are my favorite.
The pencil you see is a sketching pencil with a grading scale of HB. This worked very well for Doodle to doodle on the cup with.
As you can see this lead is the best for drawing on the cups and being seen. If you don't believe me check out my art on a cup. I did not use an HB pencil. I used a regular one.
This cup I purchased at Michaels Craft store for $4.99
Not so easy to see.
When your images are finished and you're ready to really create your master piece as a lasting piece to be used over and over again, grab yourself some porcelain pens. If you have a little trouble with what a porcelain pen is, here is some help. These are oil-based paint pens. I found these at Michaels Craft Store. They are made by the company craft smart. Some what tricky to get started but works great once the ink drops. Only use oil-based markers. You can NOT use sharpies unless it states it's an oil-based marker.
With these pens you will be able to outline all that has been drawn on the cups. As shown here.
All I did was trace on her pencil drawings with the black oil-based paint pen. The image directly above this short paragraph, its a polar bear wearing a scarf. How cute!
Once you have everything outlined, it's time to color.
Yes, they are vibrant and so adorable. And who ever gets this for Christmas gets a piece of Doodle's history. But we aren't done just yet. Now it's time to bake. Bake??? you ask. Yes, you have to bake the paint into the ceramic cup. It's the best way to make sure that you have a mug or cup that can be washed and used for years without the paint coming off.
From this point you place your ceramic mugs in the oven. Do not turn your oven on before you put the mugs in the oven or else they will crack or break. You want the ceramic to warm up with the oven and heat up with the temperature. Place your ceramic mugs in the oven and turn it on to 425 degrees (if you're in the United States). Bake your ceramic mugs for 30 minutes. Once it's been 30 minutes, turn your oven off and keep your mugs in the oven as they cool down with your oven. You will be able to take your mugs out of the oven after 2 hours and they have fully cooled down.
You guys enjoy your day! And have some fun being creative!
So right now it's Friday and in an hour it will be Saturday. I'm late getting this together but I'm sure you guys won't mind. Doodle is still not on medication and her regression was driving me up the wall this week. The guttural hums and screams have really tried my nerves. And I've been out of her calm child which helps her sleep at night, it pairs well with her melatonin. I ran out last Friday and had my health food store order it but it still hasn't come in yet. This has not been the best week for Doodle. She broke the bedroom window earlier in the week. And other then stepping on the iPad she's never broken anything before.
Look at it this way. Most children on the spectrum don't sleep. AT ALL! I mean they get like a 5 minute nap and then they are up for 24 hours. It's just the way their brain functions. I went by the health food store today (they weren't having a black Friday sale so it was pretty slow over there). That's the way I like it when Doodle and I go shopping. She's not very patient. Most kids on the spectrum are that way. You want me to wait in line? I'll circle the store for 30 minutes, thank you. Well, the order still hadn't come in. I've got a $20 bill in my pocket book burning a hole in my pocket to be spent on this calm child.
When Doodle doesn't sleep, I don't sleep. Nothing like your child waking you in the middle of the night with a gruntal scream and then the guttural humming. Her father had a bad habit of waking me in the middle of the night over something stupid and now Doodle wakes me in the middle of the night because she is wide eyed and bushy tailed. So as you can see I was desperate!
For some reason just plain melatonin doesn't work. She can drink the whole freaking bottle and still not go to sleep. Last night I was flinging lavender essential oil all over her bed like a priest in the middle of an exorcism. That finally worked but it didn't keep her asleep and it took until close to midnight before she finally went to sleep.
Heartbroken that I couldn't find liquid calm child we went to Michaels craft store and bought a little package of shopkins. She loves singing that song and watching people unwrap the toys on youtube. So I know she wanted one of the toys. Every time she wanted to act up or make that horrible noise that has really put an end to the last of my nerves I would hold up the toy and say if you want this you need to calm down. Even when I stopped what I was doing to help a customer (no I wasn't working) she stayed close to my side. Motivation, you know I love it.
By the time I got home I realized that I has a sample bottle of calm child in pill form. Well, I have a mortar and pestal I can crush two of those bad boys up and try it that way. So that's what I did. I slipped it into her hot cocoa at dinner. She didn't finish all of her cocoa which had me a little bummed so I talked to her Godfather and he helped to get it all down. She scarfed that drink down like there was no tomorrow. And when she finished it she said "Eww yucky". Which tells me that she could taste the pill form.
So as it's drawing closer to midnight, what is Doodle doing? She's sleeping so hard and she's been that way since a little after 7:00 pm. I really don't know what to do with myself now that I've got my nights back. Well, I can tell you this, I wasn't writing on the blog. I wasn't working on my publishing company. I was searching youtube for crafting and gift ideas for Doodle to do for Christmas. Oh yeah my priorities are in tack tonight. Not really. I was enjoying the peace and quiet. And Doodle? Well Doodle is still sawing logs hard!
You guys have a great night! I know I will with getting sleep again.
If your local health food store doesn't carry it and you want to try it, here is the link for it at amazon.
So this is the week for our Thanksgiving. I didn't post on Monday because regression has hit our home. Doodle is now doing the autism flapping. The verbal stemming has increased and I'm about at my wits end with it. And let's not forget the autism obsession. This week it's all about trying to remove another tooth. So as you can see I'm pretty busy trying to keep Doodle out of trouble.
So what are Doodle and I doing for the holiday's? Well, I am working with her to try to get her back on track. Anyone who knows me and knows Doodle, knows that she is not a flapper. And for her to be flapping is not a good thing in my book.
Currently I'm trying to get Doodle out of her regression all while trying to work on my businesses. My publishing company needs to be revised and there are new things being added to the website. But since there is only one of me I'm having a hard time trying to juggle everything.
Well, this post is going to be short today because we have a lot of work to do. I can't make any promises for a blog on Friday because it's going to be the day after Thanksgiving. And well, I'm on a time crunch for this new product line. And it all has to be tested. I don't put anything out without being tested. Better to be safe then sorry.
I know that I said in the previous blog that I was just going to put a hold on Doodle's product line but I'm itching to get it started so I'm going to give it the green light anyways. As a business person it's always best to have your hands in as many projects as possible. I don't know why I have to stay so busy, I guess it's ingrained into my DNA. I come from a family that works hard and used to have a business that started in the home as well. Yeah it was an Uncle who created the business back in the 30's. He had his kids that helped him and though he started small, he made it big. My direct side of the family, it's been a tradition to work for the family. My grandfather worked to maintain the houses that my Uncle purchased. My mother worked in the stock room. When I was growing up I got to work on my hand writing by writing the prices on some of the items for sale. Keeping it in the family.
So staying busy is something I was raised to do and learning about business and building a loyal customer fan base was important.
And on that note, I hope you guys have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday. This afternoon I will be forcing Doodle to ride her bike. This should be interesting as her level of autism with exercise and riding her bike are just about at 0. Starting from scratch. Have a great day!
So as I told you guys on Wednesday I had an IEP meeting yesterday on Thursday. I won the iep but it was at a cost. Keep reading to find out what all happened. It's a long one. As you, who are following the blog knows Doodle has regressed. And it's not a good regression but we all know any regression is not a good regression. But yesterdays meeting left me with so many feelings I didn't know what to do. I was in emotional over load! I think shock out weighed it all yesterday. By the time I left the teacher was in tears. By the time I got to my car I was in tears. I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around everything.
At this point in Doodle's regression she's shut down. No one at that school can get her to do anything. Not a single thing at all! We all know where the regression has come from at this point but can it be stopped is a whole other ball game. I really need my miracle workers. They would be the ones that could stop it and bring her out of it because they've done it before.
So here's what went down. The principal was at the meeting only because last week I flipped my wig and sent a message to her after we got back from seeing Doodle's pediatrician. I'm not a happy camper with the work that Doodle is doing in school. The math is not up to par. The comprehension sheets are too advanced for her level. Let's face it until Doodle is taught to comprehend what she reads and I'm taught how to help her with it, she's pretty much at a loss. She learns differently then we do. All kids on the spectrum do. They can't be taught at regular education standards. That's why they have to be taught at different levels and differently then regular education students.
Look I'm going to say this. I'm not a happy camper with my child regressing so badly that she has to have her own para educator. Doodle should be independent because she's always been independent. But now Doodle is eloping. That's what it's called when a child on the spectrum wanders away. She just makes a break for and she's gone! And she only does this at school. Not at home, not while we are out and about together. The first hour and a half was spent listening to how far Doodle has regressed. It was like listening to therapists, teacher assistants and the teacher carve out my heard and starting to stomp it into mush. I will admit I was starting to shut down at this point. I was in a horror movie and couldn't control the plot line.
Tuesday the school sent home progress reports. Doodle didn't get hers and she's not the only student in class to not receive one. When the principal heard that she was not a happy camper either. I wanted to know where the spelling words were that were suppose to come home. The principal wanted to know if Doodle was being tested on spelling words. When I asked about spelling words the teacher gave me this look of why? I simply explained it's always been the way that when a child even Doodle gets spelling and gets tested on it they need to be able to work on them at home to re-enforce memory for the words.
The principal and I were in agreement that Doodle needed to be removed from the class for art because she excels in art. So the principal was trying to set it up in front of me and she asked for Doodle's schedule. It wasn't in the school computer system and the teacher had to leave to get one. She never did bring back Doodle's schedule, she brought back Doodle's new para's schedule.
Doodle's federal file was not on school premises. When I say federal file, I mean her school file that shows her work, that shows the progress, that shows behavior, the notes, everything! It all has to be documented and it has to stay at the school because that's where the iep's are kept. The iep which is a binding corner to corner contract. THAT IS NOT TO LEAVE THE SCHOOL AT ALL!
And the only work the teacher could produce for Doodle was just the work she's been trying to teach Doodle this week. And yes the papers had been balled up and ripped. Some where ripped into many pieces. That shows me right there how frustrated Doodle is. And that's not even the worst part. When the teacher said she was teaching Doodle on second grade level (there went that knife to the heart again) I wanted to just lose it. The last time she was on second grade level she was in the second grade. She's in the 4th grade now. I also informed everyone at the meeting that she's slid into palmer grasp. Palmer grasp is the way that a toddler holds a pencil or crayon in their fist and writes or colors with it that way. Not the way that a normal child is taught how to hold and write with a pencil, pen, crayon or marker. For me palmer grasp is another sign at home of a regression. It's the small ques that can't be overlooked. And how I've noticed that her hearing sensory has gotten worse. That everything is much louder to her now especially when walking into the school from the parking lot and the buses are parked in the drop off area.
Doodle is not a stupid child. She's very smart. So smart she tests higher then half the school. That's how intelligent she is. And this is all thanks to my miracle workers. They got her to that level. They saw potential in her even when I couldn't. So there was no science work to show, no social studies, no spelling. Only reading comprehension and math. Our pediatrician had recommended that I buy some work books and get Doodle back on task at home and I showed them all at the meeting that she was capable of doing the work. Though it was only a math book and thinking projects book I had purchased at the time. I now have a reading comprehension book but I got that after the meeting yesterday.
I've fought hard for Doodle and was able to slack off while Doodle was with her miracle workers. It was by their grace they taught me so much. How to work with her, what my rights were, what I need to be looking for in work and other progress. When it came to really learning about my roll as Doodle's mom they taught me a lot. And I can't forget one of my best friends who taught me even more about iep's and the way they are to be handled. She taught me about my poker face and expectations and how to turn an iep meeting around. She taught me how to stand my ground and not take no for an answer.
There was so much that went down in that meeting it's really hard to say it all and remember it all. To say I was horrified is an understatement. The principal took full responsibility. She sent everyone out but myself and the teacher. Doodle's teacher tried to say there were grades in the system and the principal shut her down. That's when the vice principal showed up and I saw first hand there was not a single grade for Doodle in the computer system. And that's when the teacher tried to blame Doodle's teacher from last year. I see what see did there. Doesn't want to take responsibility for her actions and what she's done wrong. When I left the meeting the vice principal was left with the teacher. And the principal walked me out.
This morning I found out that one of the students in Doodle's class his mom works in the office and the teacher went after her. Asking if she thought that her child wasn't being taught by her either. She informed me she told her flat out the progress that her child was having prior to him being placed in the school has stopped and he has regressed as well. And no she didn't think she was teaching her. We both noted there are no grades for our children. No progress reports to go by. Both of our children have been in therapy for a long time and every single day we took them to therapy we always got progress reports on how they were functioning and where they were going to go from there.
So for anyone who thinks that a regression can't be figured out is in the wrong field. It can be figured out and when it does you can bet someone is going to end up getting fired. I sent Doodle to school today and my biggest worry (yes, I know, I'm not suppose to worry) is that the teacher may retaliate against Doodle. I will know when she comes home if that has happened. She can't tell me but her actions speak louder then words. I did bring this up to the principal and she assured me that Doodle is going to be safe at school today. Doodle's teacher has been reported to her supervisors and if things don't change in a very short amount of time a new teacher is being brought in.
And the only reason I sent Doodle to school was because back where we used to live I got a lot of flack from my best friend when she and I discovered that the kids on the bus were being verbally assaulted on the school bus by the bus driver. I called Doodle's school and the transportation department. So did my best friend. Our children acted different getting on the bus and when it was time to come home and they got off the bus. My best friends' son would try to tip his wheel chair over while on the ramp to get to his Momma. Doodle cried and screamed and it took hours to get her calmed down. Now this is when Doodle was with the miracle workers. So getting homework done was a challenge because of this bus driver. Which is why strict routine is so important. I pulled Doodle from riding the bus. I informed transportation that I was refusing to allow my child to be on the bus while this guy was the driver. My friend did not pull her son. I drove Doodle every morning and afternoon. I told the bus driver that I was working in another city and it was just easier for me to get her and get back to work. Yes it was a partial lie. 2 days a week I worked in several cities and it was easier then trying to make sure that I made it back to the bus stop in time. The rest of the week I worked from home.
So you can see this was my first leveling up (leveling up is in the iep world how well you get results) as I was stopped while walking to get Doodle at school by the previous bus driver that he wanted me to meet the new bus driver. The guy that was taking his place because he was "retiring". I liked the new bus driver. He treated all the kids like they were his own. Super great guy. Doodle and her friend improved once routine was back to normal and they weren't being verbally assaulted by a bus driver anymore.
And then there was last years incident at the school Doodle currently attends. You can read that in the blog post called wrong things said. That was a nightmare but I will fight for my child and I will not have anyone speak down to me. I've dealt with Doodle and her autism for 9 years. The only thing I will change is the way I teach her. I've trained a lot with her miracle workers and know how to properly correct her in every avenue, which is why there is not much of a regression at home. But she's not progressing forward at home either.
Stay vigilant. Stay strong. If you see behavior changing at home call an iep meeting. If you think somethings not right about homework, call an iep meeting. Get all involved from the principal to your teachers supervisor. Take control and get your child back on track. Though it's only the 4th month Doodle's been in school we are still catching it early. Things are going to change and Doodle is going to be getting back on track. If not my advocate is still pretty much aware of what all is going on right now. So all it takes is a simple let's roll.
Yes I have yet another IEP tomorrow. I've already started taking my notes. Last year I was an iep pro to the point where I had over 20 ieps last year alone! This one is about the work that they are giving Doodle. It's not up to par in my personal opinion. How is it I can control my child and the school can't. I didn't have this problem last year and I certainly didn't have this problem the year before last. But here I am with my child back on what I call kindergarten math.
And according to the teacher she put Doodle on second grade math. That's not second grade math. 5+0 and 2+1. That's not going to cut it. My child wants to be a doctor. And darn it a doctor she will be and I will push anybody to make sure she gets to accomplish her dream.
One thing the teacher made mention to me while I was signing the iep meeting form was that Doodle has run out of books to read. Seriously? She's run out of books to read and didn't bring home a reading award? The little boy next door who has some trouble reading brought home a reading award. Where is Doodles? She got reading awards last year and the year before that.
So who is at fault? The school, the teacher or me as the parent? I can attest that I make Doodle do her school work that she didn't finish in school. And I will make her do her homework. And everything gets turned in the next day. Though I haven't seen spelling homework in a long long time. Since the first two weeks of school.
Now I have informed the principal when I brought up my concerns to her that I will be more then happy to provide the school with everything the publishing company comes out with. And that includes worksheets. I'm sending the publishing company in a new direction to help home school parents and teachers as well. But this phase won't be ready until after Thanksgiving holiday and that's if Doodle cooperates while she's on break.
I've got a huge push before Thanksgiving to get more books on the publishing company. So I might end up going quiet for a bit. I have the holidays to worry about and the timing of the books for when they come out. So you can image that it's going to be a bit stressful for me. Never fear I might just go off regular schedule and post when I can. Just to let you know.
