I started out this year making a trip back home to the States. To read about that adventure click here. Once we came home, I decided (finally, after a year of debating) to homeschool the kids... yes, all of them. Not great timing as I was at the time, in my last semester of school working towards my BS in Psychology. Happily, I can report, I graduated this month! I haven't received my official diploma yet, but my dear friend made me this diploma and hand delivered it with a cake to celebrate.
Absolutely ebullient to be finished!
Other things that have happened so far this year:
-Technically, this was last year, but it was new news over Christmas break, so almost this year... my oldest was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome.
-We found out one of my twins needs hearing aids and that his speech impediment and his lagging academic skills are most likely a result of his hearing loss. Would have been nice to know that a few years ago.
-Also found out that both twins' tests indicate both boys are severally dyslexic. However, as we already know one needs hearing aides it may be that his hearing is the main cause for his problems and it's not actually dyslexia. However, for the other boy, he is definitely severally dyslexic.
-Major car troubles, which are finally cleared up, but do make for quite a dip in the road.
-Biggest, best news? We have all been sooo much healthier now that the kids are home and not in school. Hooray for no ER visits so far this year... ok, take that back there may have been one or two, but really that is a massive improvement for us.
That's the gist of it, but as you know there is much more to every story than a few key points. All in all, though, we are off to a great start. But there are those inevitable dips...
I'm trying really hard right now to work with the kids on some vital skills, like anger management. Here's the problem I'm having: How do you correct a child without making them feel like they are nothing more than a pile of faults? My oldest, my Aspie boy, his mind works so different from mine and yours, already he has suffered heartache because of his differences. I don't want to be the source of more. How do I find that line between correction and deflation? How do I help him see the errors without making him feel as though he is the error? Time and time again, I can see that I have hurt him, or made him feel less than he is and it breaks my soul in two. Home is where he should be safe. Mother should be the name that means acceptance, love. How do you combine acceptance with correction? I know there is a way to meld the two, I just haven't found the right recipe yet. Like anything else, trial and error, prayer and lots of forgiveness (I hope) will get us there. I just hope I don't lose him somewhere along the way while I figure it out.
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