I did it!!! I am Published

 I did it!!! I finally pushed myself and got something published - already thinking what to do next.  But first this one.  I put together a running planner.  Put in the intro pages to explain me and options to get started.   Then January - Dec 1(race day) I have calendar pages to tell you want to do each day.  It is a combination of all the pieces that got me not only to run, but to increase my speed.  

If you have never run before or only casual run, but you want to run a half marathon - if you follow this it will get you there.   There is a facebook group to help support each other - but you have to get the book to get the link to the facebook group.  However the planner is free right now on Kindle unlimited or just $20 if you want the hard copy in your hands.  There are pages at the end of the planner to also take notes and write what works and doesn't work for you so a hard copy might be nice if you are a note taker.    Running Planner

Never felt so seen or understood... from a book

Wow. It's been a while since I read not only a paperback book (rather than in my kindle app), but also a non-fiction book.  

I do not tend to read non-fiction books fast. However this one I read in about three sit downs with it.  I was already a fan of Sally Rippin through her School of Monsters early reader books my son loves, so I got this book on a whim to learn more about Sally.  Oh man did I get way more than that.  I feel seen, I feel heard, I laughed,  I cried and I kept thinking of all the people in my lofe that I need to get a copy of this for.  

Since with every new chapter I thought of another person who needed to read this I decided to make a post about it.  Below you will find a few excerpts tjat I felt drawn to capture amd share, but there is so much more in this book.  

It doesn't bash any one or any system, but ot does ask some thought provoking questions.  I have also included the link right at the top of the pictures so you can find it easy (it is an affiliate like so if you choose to use it I may make a little off of it)  

Wild Things by Sally Rippin

 

Decision made - jumping in with both feet

Post have been on the slower side because we made a big decision as a family and had to get things set up.  I am thankful for my tribe that allows this to be possible.  We have decided to homeschool our youngest.  We will reevaluate after a year or two, but after much reflection and reaching out to different schools who specialize with neurodivergent kiddos and either not feeling they would be a good fit or no response back we have decided to homeschool.  

We are 9 days in and have figured out our schedule.  Things are calm and we are thriving.  We are using on online guided course and then using the unschooling philosophy for additional learning.  He is able to take breaks as he needs them and spend extra time on things that feed his interest.  In just the last couple of days he has shown a renewed interest in music and instruments.  I'm sorry to all our neighbors who are getting serenated by the harmonica in the morning! He is also being exposed to a Spanish lessons as well.  

This has nothing to do with the schools themselves or teachers.  We have wonderful teachers in our lives and we love them dearly.  For us I just couldn't have him going on to hate school - which we were setting ourselves up for.  Right now he needs small focused lessons followed by breaks where he can be active.  I know there are IEPs and 504s, but I just didn't feel that this level could be accommodated in the school setting with as many kids as they have.  As we figure out the balance between his ADHD and his Autism and he gets older this will be more manageable and we will see what fits at that time. 

So what curriculum are we using.  www.miacademy.co is what we chose.  They have the core classes as well as extras i.e. foreign language, music, fitness, etc. Each course you can set the grade level.  There are also assessments to gage if they are understanding the lessons.  It keeps track of attendance and reports that will be needed to provide to the state at the end of the year.  

We are still very new to this, so any advice, lessons learned you want to share we would love to hear it. 

Things that we have found useful, so far, I have linked below.  To help with his writing practice and support his "prop" needs we have weights we put on his pencils.  We has have sensory gels that we put on the pencils that he says help him. 

Then we have an Ipad that is just for school work and learning apps and of course has a kid proof case, because 6 year old boy.  We supplemented with a key board and a mouse to help with those skills as they come up, rather than a whole other computer or laptop.  Also I got the pencil, because I like gadgets, but it is also helping with pencil control and writing practice.   

We will share more from our journey as we travel this road.  I don't expect it to all be sunshine and rainbows, but just the weight lifted and the stress that seemed to have lifted from both of us in just these 9 days is worth it already.  After the last year and how it ended we knew that a different path needed to be taken.  

Next post I will share more of our dye free things that we have tried and liked or hated.  If you have dye free things you are wondering about leave a comment and we let you know. 

 Disclaimer: Some of the links included in this article are affiliate links, meaning that at no additional cost to you if you click through and make a purchase, I will earn a small commission.

Pencil Weights

Pencil Grip Soft Gel Pen Grip

Ipad  and  Ipad case

Ipad keyboard and mouse

Metapen iPad Pencil

Cabin Fever, what do you do?

 It's raining, it's thundering, and it has been for a few hours.  We were going a little stir crazy. So where do you take you prop sensory seeking child?  Why do the trampoline park of course!! Along with what feels like just about every other child in our city.  

Well today we had some amazing wins! We played nicely with multiple other children. We waited our turn without being told.  As we jumped we were aware of our surroundings and held up when required. 

When it was time to go, we struggled a bit, but then were able to rain it in and walk out nicely.

We will be back! 

What's for Dinner

 Well last night this made some amazing grill cheese and grilled cheese with salami sandwiches.  Tonight they are going to make hamburgers.  I was gifted this, but this is one of the most favorite tools in my house.  Also being in a FL my house is very warm, and not having to turn on the stove/oven is an extra icing on the cake win for me. 

*affiliate link below 

 

Panini Press Grill and Gourmet Sandwich Maker

How do you make letter learning fun with sensory kids?

Is your child a hands on sensory learner?  Are they just learning their letters or starting spelling and reading?  These sensory squishy letters and cards are a great way to make that learning fun!  

Tested with a new letter learner and a stating to read learner and both were able to learn and have fun with these.   The only con that we have found is we really need two sets, not because we have two students, but because some of the words they have on the cards to spell call out things with double letters.  

There are small cards with the word and pictures and there are the flat cards with just the letters to match the shapes of the letters.  They are also soft and squishy so they can also be used in a "bean bag" fashion if you lay out a big board on the floor to spell out words.  Many many possibilities await with these fun letters. 

*affiliate links below

Alphabet Letters Sensory Toys

 

Number Blocks - calming in our house

Since my little man was about 3 he fell in love the show Number Blocks.  Numbers are calming for him and he was learning along the way.  

This shows characters are based on the cubes we use to use in math class when I was in elementary school.  I will randomly hear my little man signing the songs around the house and he even used one to show his cousin how to draw the number 8 the other day.  The below activity set now brings number blocks into your home.  You have to do some set up with the stickers yourself, but it even gives you which episodes different activities are associated with. 

 

*affiliate link

MathLink Cubes Numberblocks