How far we've come

When I think of the boy Blake used to be, I marvel at the young man that he is today.

Both boys now go to a small, private, regular-ed school. I moved them from the charter school over Winter Break. They have adjusted marvelously. Blake is in 7th grade and has several new friends, is fitting in well, and is so happy. He hasn't had one issue with behavior at school and is even thrilled to be joining the school's volleyball team. Academically, with the smaller class sizes, increased accountability and structure and great teachers, he is thriving. He cares and he tries so much harder than he used to. It great to see because he's really a very smart kid. He still has difficulty with executive function, and is losing/forgetting things daily. That's frustrating for all of us! But I have tried to set everything up for success. I am strict about homework time and also go through his binder with him weekly. His wonderful science teacher assures me it's a common problem among many middle school boys!

James went from 33 kids in his charter school class to 14 in the private school. We also moved him down a grade, since he would not have been able to be successful in the fourth grade at the private school. It's academically a bit tougher than the public schools as a whole and James was already very behind for his grade level. So, I think is was a smart move. He has a new best friend there, gets tutoring twice a week from his teacher and is learning so much more. Its good to see. But James still really struggles with the sensory seeking, and his ADHD still. We're working on seeing if adding Intuniv with the stimulant is helpful. Its so bad that 95% of the time, you can't have a logical back and forth conversation. He doesn't have a lot of interests, like sports (like Blake loves). He quit swimming because it was too cold in the Winter and now he doesn't want to go back. I just worry about him because there's so many things he does that are a struggle. He's not really great at anything. And with his lack of impulse control and his often huge energy, he bugs people. He bugs me and I love the heck out of him. So he's not really talented at a sport, or school and he can be annoying. And I know he knows that. Even if his big brother didn't rub it in his face, he'd still know it. And it kills me to see. I worry about him a lot most days. I am hoping this move in school will let him feel more confident and I am still looking for the thing that will light his eyes. We're trying surf camp this summer. :)

The baby is now 4-1/2 years old and is pretty darn amazing. She has shwon me what it's like to have a "typical" child and renewed my confidance in the parenting abilities of me and my husband. She fun and happy and tough. She will start kindergarten next year at the same school. It's K-8th, so yay!