Only twelve more years to go!

Well it's been more than a week - a long and interesting and fairly exciting week - since school began.

I am pleased to report that things are going well. For Princess, things are going better than expected (so far!). Maybe not so much for Little Man, but we're working on it. He didn't really want to participate in our first day photos and was pretty cool about going up to his new classroom and just getting on with things, but we all know still waters run deep, and that's a whole other post... Overall though, they've both had a good start to the school year.

For her Prep year, Princess is actually attending two schools - three days a week our local state school, and two days at a nearby special school (officially an ECDP, but don't ask me what that stands for!). We're hoping this combination will cater for her needs socially, intellectually, physically, etc. By the time she begins Grade One next year, she'll be ready to hold her own in the mainstream world!

Anyway, Princess's first ever school day began at home like this...

The excitement was palpable...

...and she wasn't let down. As we all arrived at our local school and began walking/wheeling up the path to her classroom, we were joined quite coincidentally by one of Princess's 'best friends' from her old kindy. Instant relaxation. It was just like old times! On entering her classroom, although busy, a lovely sense of excited calm pervaded. Princess had her factory default face on, but she was clearly happy to be there.

We met her teacher, the fantastic Mrs A, and her new teacher aide, the lovely Ms L. We are really pleased that Ms L is a full-time aide to Princess (as well as another little girl in the class), for the three days she's at that school. Ms L has many years experience working with kids with extra needs, and they've been getting along well.

Thankfully, her teachers already knew lots about Princess before we arrived. The previous week, our OT, AVT:PI (that's Occupational Therapist and Advisory Visiting Teacher:Physical Impairment, respectively) and myself had given a powerpoint presentation all about her to the entire school staff, taking up a fair amount of their pupil-free day too. (Now staff come up and say hi to me all the time, and I haven't a clue who they are! This happens a lot around Princess).

Her OT and AVT:PI were also there on the first day, making adjustments as necessary to the two posture chairs and corner seat acquired for the classroom. A tradesman had been putting the finishing touches onto the purpose-built cubicle in the adjacent bathroom, big enough to accommodate a toilet chair for Princess, with an accessible sink, and we managed to put together a makeshift change table in there as well.

Parents were welcome to hang out for as long as they needed. I stayed quite some time, not because Princess wanted me there - she couldn't have given two hoots! - but it took a while to get the equipment set up right and I was asked to give my input, so I did! I saw Princess happily listening to Mrs A during circle time on the floor (albeit in her wheelchair on the first day - now she sits in her corner chair on the floor with the other children).

After morning tea, Princess sat in her posture chair with a few other kids at the specially-acquired inclusion table to help make a batch of playdough. Another boy she knew from kindy held the bowl for her, unprompted, when it was her turn to stir. I was impressed.

As I finally left, Ms L was about to take her outside to do some easel painting standing up. I kissed Princess goodbye, she gaily said "Bye Mummy, see you when you pick me up!" and didn't look back. Yippee, I sung to myself. This is great. The school has been wonderfully supportive, and the effect has already been positive.

Long may it last.

Back home at the end of their first day the kids didn't feel like smiling for the camera anymore, preferring to ham it up. But truly, they'd had a good day...



Next instalment, First Day at The Other School, coming soon...

Looking Up

I can hardly believe the school year is beginning again...we seem to have had a very busy time of it lately - birthday parties, roller-skating, playdates, movies, shopping for school supplies, a beach holiday, the list goes on. I'm exhausted.

And now I have not only my big Little Man going back to school, but our Princess begins Prep tomorrow too. She's very excited, though she admitted to me tonight that she was feeling "a little bit nervous about it". We're all prepared, her new teacher and teacher's aides are prepared, after two years of kindy I think Princess really is quite prepared. And yet I still have no idea what to expect. Lucky for me though, I know Princess will work it out.

...Stay tuned...

One of the best things that happened during the holidays - Princess finally got her first ever manual wheelchair, and of course, it's pink!

Until recently, Princess has been getting around in a supportive stroller, and while it's been very useful, there was no way she was going to go to big school in a stroller! That's for babies! So after several months of measurements, waiting for funding applications to process and of course the wheelchair to be custom made, we finally have it, just in time for the start of school.

I wondered if I might feel sad about the finality of Princess having a wheelchair - the fact is that she is unlikely to ever be able to walk, though we could kind of pretend when she was only in a stroller like so many other very young children...

But nope, I am actually excited about the wheelchair. A wheelchair means an instant explanation - yes, my daughter is special, yes, she uses a wheelchair, end of story. No need for sidelong glances from strangers wondering why does that child still use a stroller at her age?

She looks great in it too, don't you think? (The pics were taken when we were flying kites on our beach holiday on Queensland's Sunshine Coast).

And the company that made the wheelchair have only just introduced pink as a frame colour, and Princess has the first one out of the factory (they've got orders for at least 12 more so far). We've been told they've officially named the colour after her. How cool is that!

Bring It On

Funny thing.

There we were, driving to a friend's New Year's Eve party, our three kids in the back seat, Darling Hubby at the wheel, and me texting felicitous messages from my mobile phone. I commented how quiet it seemed - we were the only car on a usually quite busy road. Suddenly, Darling Hubby slows the car.

And here's the funny bit. A sleek, JET BLACK CAT had decided to step out on the road right in front of us, slowly amble all the way across with its head held high and tail in the air, and having safely made it all the way across our bit of road, disappeared into the night.

Darling Hubby and I looked at each other. Not known for his optimism, DH stated "That's our year ahead, then."

Now, I don't consider myself a superstitious person in general (though I have been known to knock on wood on many occasions).

But I've decided I'm going to accept this Black Cat Crossing Our Path as gesture of goodwill. It's good luck. We didn't run it over, so that's got to be good. It looked happy enough, not sinister or ill-willed, and I've seen some terribly-mooded cats in my time. And in fact, this cat seemed to be so deliberately flaunting its black-cattedness as it crossed our path, I think it was actually saying to us, "Notice me, because I am a portent of all things good to happen for you on this eve of 2009 - a propitious future is coming your way".

And anyway, the next morning we were swimming in my mother's pool when the children noticed four butterflies dancing around us in the bright morning light. Princess rightly pointed out that having butterflies dancing around you is such very good luck, and would make any bad luck caused by any black cat go away. And Chuckles shrewdly followed up this sentiment with "Butterflies eat black cats" (well, it was more "buffwies eat bwack cat", but you get my drift).

So I'm looking forward to 2009.

2008 was a very challenging year for us. And I'm sure 2009 will be no less challenging. But I'm ready to face it with a spring in my step. That black cat didn't appear for nothing.

Not that I'm superstitious.

And I wish you all a propitious new year too.