THE MARCH OF ASPEREGRS

Our new tub will be huge.

We all know the old saying, March comes in like a lamb and goes out like a lion.  Well, in regards to Jacob's classroom behaviour, February came in like a lion and went out like a lamb.  I'm glad to see that all the hard work, plus the changes we've implemented, seem to have affect Jacob's behaviour for the better.  Last week in school Jacob earned 6 out of 8 reward stickers for his calendar.

When we implemented some changes at school, we all felt that school should stay at school, and home should be home.  This is why Jacob no longer receives homework (insert cheering here), but we should also stop monitoring his school days on our calendar.  But it's hard to just quit giving him stickers when we've been doing it since SK.  We feel that if it helps him have positive days, then why quit?

Now onto the beginning of March.  A hectic month that's always loaded with action.  And with the arrival of March, we know that Spring is just around the corner, along with Jacob's birthday.  Now on top of the normal March stuff going on, we're also undergoing some renovations.  Our bathroom is scheduled for demolition on next Thursday.

We've never renovated like this since Jacob's been alive and we have no idea how he's going to handle the noise, dust or presence of workers in our home.  The dust is a major concern because when Jacob was young, he was diagnosed with asthma and we've been to the hospital a few times.  So just to be on the safe side, our Dyson vacuum and our Shopvac are ready and standing by.  The reno will start while Jacob's in school so there shouldn't been to much angst during the day.  Plus the guys work day is only until 5 and Jacob's school day goes until a little after 3 so there isn't too much overlap.

When we think about the fact that Jacob's turning 9, we get butterflies in our stomachs.  We used to talk about this when Shannie was pregnant.  We would imagine how one day, our child would be 9, then 10, then 13, 16 and then 18.  And as we monitor his development with Asperger's, he seems to be heading in a good direction.  I mean, he's half way to becoming an adult and hopefully going to college or university, but we have our fingers crossed.

All we can do is hope that by the time Jacob finishes high school, he'll have the necessary skills to control his Aspergers on his own.  But if he can't, that's okay too.  Like most parents with kids like ours, there's always a bedroom open should he want to come back home.  We imagine the freedom if he moves out, but I know it won't be long after, that we wish he was back home.