hello!

*aaahhh* New look, new post :)
- note: the links on this template aren't as obvious as they were on the last template I used, so feel free to wave your mouse over the light-brown text...(those should work!) Did this? That should take you to something that still tugs at my heart:)

Here we go! Friday was a swim day for both NBear and MBear. A million thanks to LMc and her three darling offspring J,M, and J for inviting us over to the community pool! Both my bears love little J, and can't wait to spend time with her. I was also glad to see the E-V family stop by! (Nice to NOT have any lesson planning books in tow for once, huh guys?)

NBear's love of water has always fascinated me. Most people who work with kids who have autism often find that the BLUE planet ranks high on their interest list. In fact, the school psychologist I work with said something to this effect, after I had mentioned that my NBear loved swimming: "I can't tell you how many kids I've worked with [on the autistic spectrum] that have had an absolute love of water and marine animals!" That was the same year I had "Pete", whom I mainstreamed in my fourth-grade class. Two words to describe him perfectly would be: MARINE EXPERT! Boy, could that kid tell you every little detail about any creature who had inhaled salt water. (He wasn't very interested in fresh water organisms, but can you blame him? Sharks versus bass....yeah. That was tough.)

A friend of mine told me about this surfing therapy they offered for autistic children. Oh my gosh, my NBear would be in heaven. I'd probably have a heart attack on shore while watching her do this because I know FIRSTHAND how hard it is to surf! (Not to mention that being an "island girl" does not necessarily mean you're born with a surfing gene...or the strength to even carry a surfboard!) On my search to look up more info on this topic, I happened upon this other blog. :) - although the last post was back in January :( Hmmmmm....maybe the Dora boogieboard her dad bought for her may come in handy after all! It's currently being used as a makeshift wagon / dance platform for MBear.

What I loved about NBear's afternoon in the pool:

~ interacted with little J - that's a BIG one, trust me!
~ LMc noticed that NBear told her to look at her (NBear's) new bathing suit! *lol*
~ LMc also told me that when D E-V's niece showed up, NBear said "I like your bathing suit, Little Mermaid!" (there was a picture of Ariel on her suit)

...and...*sigh* what I didn't like:

~having to leave early to take her meds before she fell asleep *sob*

~the hard time she gave me when I tried to rinse her off in the showers, and she discovered that the water was cold (and only came in that setting). I felt like a zookeeper trying to get Jumbo the mad elephant to take a shower - didn't know tug-of-war without a rope could last that long! I emerged from the shower room victorious, but my pants were drenched...along with the hair on the left side of my head. Oh, and the slippers that I thought were my beach ones - weren't.

C'est la vie!