Three books for parents of newly diagnosed autistic kids

I was pretty sure that our eldest was autistic before he was diagnosed. But it was still an odd feeling to hear it confirmed.  The paediatrician seemed to be expecting tears or questions and it made me feel nervous - it made the diagnosis feel like an occasion.

14 weeks till Christmas: The challenges of my ADHD son using his learned knowledge

Anthony is great at his times tables. He learned them by rote. A very popular learning method for many. Sometimes it takes a moment as he rattles through them in his head, but he always gets them right.  So if he knows it's 14 weeks until Christmas, why can't he tell me how many days it is?

What Roald Dahl reveals to my autistic son

I remember reading both the Magic Finger and Fantastic Mr Fox at school.  Honestly I couldn't remember much about the stories except that I was pretty sure they involved some magic.  So I'm not surprised that Anthony has also been reading, or at least listening to these books at school too.  But I am surprised that he learned so much from Roald Dahl himself.

Helping my son to focus on what he is doing

There is sometimes a misconception that kids with ADHD can't focus on anything.  With our lad at least, this isn't always the case. Anthony can actually super focus on some things of his choosing. Often his biggest challenge is being able to focus on the task at hand, on what he should be doing especially if it's something he's not interested in.

Thinking about melatonin?

Sleep has been fairly absent in our past.  Our beautiful kids have a variety of challenges and autism and ADHD are among them.  This has resulted in poor sleep for most of the family for most of the time.  A few years ago, David started on melatonin.  It was not an easy decision to make or an easy prescription to get and in the end didn't work for us.  But if you are thinking about helping you or someone you love get to sleep so they can wake up to a good morning, here's some information on it for you.

SEND and SpectrumSunday 75

Summer is past!  However it went, I'd love you to come share your SEND & autism posts with me here on our SEND and Spectrum Sunday linky - the place you can share and find blog posts about autism, mental health, education and anything related to autism and special educational needs and disabilities parenting. 

Keeping our autistic kids safe outside in the sun

Many kids with autism have challenges with their sensory system. Their brains are wired a bit differently and this means they interpret the world around them differently too. This can sometimes make it a bit more complicated when keeping them safe outside in the sun. But we've learned a few things as they've been growing that help us.

Four things to do near Sherwood Pines Forest with my autistic kids

Travelling can sometimes be a bit challenging for our autistic kids.  It involves changes in routine, unfamiliar places and people which can be confusing. But they still greatly benefit from time away and days out.  We've recently been to Sherwood Pines Forest in Nottinghamshire and here's some of the things we got up to that you could try.

Talking to an autistic child when someone dies

My Papa, the kids' Great Papa has died.    It hurts, but death is part of the process of our and our children's lives.