I really do. It's the best time of year for me. There are 3 fall birthdays in our family, including mine, and our anniversary is in the fall. The air is becoming crisp in the mornings and evenings and then warms up a bit in the daytime. I really like that time of year and I seem to have more energy than I do in the hot summer time. Summers are hot here, can be in 100's + with no ocean breezes, just hot valley air. So I really like when the seasons change. The air smells different. The leaves turn majestic colors of orange, brown, red, yellow, etc. I love it. I am most happiest in a pair of jeans, sweater, long sleeved t'shirt, cardigan, and boots. I love fall clothing.
The girls are excited for Halloween and just waiting to go trick or treating. Last year we were not able to get them to trade in their candy for a toy. That's getting harder and harder to have happen and I really wish they would trade it in. Dave takes a lot of the candy to the office so we don't have as much around, but the girls really want to eat it more and more. In previous years they wanted the toy more. We will see how this year pans out. They still want to trick or treat but instead of going round the neighborhood they want to go somewhere more fun. We will see how that works out too, as I believe Halloween is on a week night this year.
The school year is panning out ok, however, the FASD behaviors for LGA have escalated a bit since she turned 9 in the summer. She is in with the big kids for recess (most of the kids that were in her class last year followed her to her class this year) and she seems to be hanging out with some older kids. I am not really liking the behaviors I am seeing with her, so that's presenting a challenge to me this year. It's a day to day process with her.
BGA just started a math and science program her teacher recommended this week and this should be a bit exciting for her. I like seeing her grow a bit in math and she likes science. This program makes Dave happy as he's always been into science and math (me not so much. I never liked math or science, and as a FASD child it these subjects were harder for me). I am hoping she will like it and not get bored of it. The challenge is she is now taking her PM ADHD meds at school because she and the teacher felt this would help her focus more. But she has a habit of forgetting to take her meds at school. So I guess one day she forgot at recess and the teacher has a no kid can get out of their seat rule for 30 mins after lunch so teacher would not let her take her meds. So I told her to tell the teacher if she wants her to focus during the last half of the day to tell her she will need to go take her med. They will figure it out. The teacher will have to remind her. I am not going to interfere on this one. I can tell when she has not had her med and can give it to her at home if I need to. But she will need to take it to focus during this math and science program so I hope she can remember.
The routine is finally getting back to normal after the busyness of the wedding and my friend visiting. I forget how important routine is to LGA. She gets very thrown off schedule when the routine changes. We are now in a very specific bedtime routine as well. This may be her OCD, but it has to be done the same way every night. We are finally seeing this and realize if we skip a step she will remind us. Suffice it to say we put her to bed an hour earlier than we want her to sleep because she takes an hour to settle down (even with melatonin) to go to bed. She is also up at the crack of dawn and has been since the time change in May. I am really hoping with the weather change she will sleep in a bit more but not really sure if we have left sleeping in behind or not. She slept in all during wedding weekend and then once we got back to normal schedule the latest she would sleep in was 6:30, if that. It's very hard for me as I am a night owl, so I am learning to go to bed earlier and get up earlier. For example I was up at 5:45 (when she got up, so Dave could get in the shower) this am. LGA cannot sit in her room and play quietly (pre-meds) and will not stay in her room. She gets up, roams the house and takes things that do not belong to her. We found this out when Dave left his miniature paints on top of the filing cabinet in the family room (where the cabinet had been since before the new floors were put in and just recently it got moved back to where it was). LGA got a chair and got two or three pots of small paint AND paint brushes. She took them to school, they were opened on the bus and in class and three pairs of shorts and three new t'shirts were ruined with non washable paint before it was discovered she had this stuff in her backpack. So she has to be monitored in the am and that means I need to get up at 6 instead of the 7:30 I was getting up at. Ok, change in plans. I can do it. I don't need to be a night owl anyway, it's way over rated.
I am hitting my milestone birthday this year, so it's had me contemplating the next phase of my life. I am not working at the moment (even though we really could benefit from it) because it's too hard to work with the girls' school schedule and the bus schedule for LGA. But I am feeling a bit bored and unsure of what to do in my life. I am procrastinating big time, and have yet to find something to occupy my time. I know my husband, feeling some frustration with his job, is a bit jealous of the time I have. When I explained that I was bored at home and needed something to fill the time, other than housework, laundry, cooking meals, etc., he pretty much said he'd be happy being at home and would not feel bored. Well, unfortunately his capacity to earn is larger than mine so he has to go to work. I think he would be bored, but maybe not. He stayed home for 9 mos once when his whole work unit was laid off. He enjoyed it. I just don't think he'd enjoy being a stay at home dad, though.
So I contemplate what to do.........there is a program called Project Cuddle where I could cuddle babies who are drug/alcohol exposed. I have thought of doing that. The cavalier we got to do be a therapy dog is now skittish. I think LGA was a bit too enthusiastic with her and I think she was a crate/kennel dog. She is too skittish right now to be a therapy dog. So, I have to think of plan B. I am missing the interaction with a senior (mainly miss my mother) so maybe I should volunteer to take a senior on. I could have possibly been on PTA or Site Council, but I really didn't want to be involved in that this year. So I wonder what I could do. Should I join a book club? I am thinking of what to do these days.
So, as I think of my milestone birthday and what the next phase of my life will be like, I am enjoying the upcoming fall season. Some people get depressed when the weather changes. Not me. I seem to come alive. In the meantime, until the weather cools off, I am cooking fall soups, stews, casseroles, and raspberry buckle (a new favorite amongst my family). I am not ready to put the fall clothes on yet (bummer, the temps will be 87 by the weekend, although we will have a 'dip' of 72 tomorrow). But that will be next month sometime. The girls enjoy winter weekend pj days, and always ask for hot chocolate. I think I am going to spend more time with them in the kitchen baking this year, too. The chore schedule has been working great, and it's a lot of help for them to do some house work and we all get it done together (even Dave helped a couple of weeks ago). They take pride in their work too. I think we will introduce some baking and a small amount of cooking as well this fall.
Ready or not, here comes fall.........
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