Gavin has something to look forward to this afternoon. He's going to be joining my parents as they venture about an hour and a half outside of town, to retrieve my Grandmother and bring her back for Thanksgiving. He's so excited to surprise her with his presence. lol They'll be leaving this afternoon and returning in the evening. I hope he has fun and enjoys the time with his Great Grandmother. ☺
Good news is that Gavin seems to be having a better day, at least so far. As I mentioned before, yesterday was rather difficult for him and subsequently us as well. The poor kid struggled with simple things, like managing the front door lock, washing a pot we needed for dinner, self awareness, and remembering just about anything we told him. It was frustrating for him because he kept making mistakes and he doesn't like making mistakes. This morning however, he seems to be firing on all cylinders, at least for him. He also appears to be in a much better mood. I'm totally okay with this and I'm grateful he's found some peace today. ☺
Gavin really struggled today. I'd be hard pressed to narrow down a specific area that he struggled in because it was pretty much everything. Maybe he was just having an off day but it was a rough one. The most obvious thing about the last 24 hours is that Gavin seemed unable to remember how to do a great many things. As an example, he couldn't figure out how to open the front door and that's pretty straightforward. I'm going to get more into this in the morning but right now, I'm completely exhausted and the kids are home for the next five days. I need to try and get some sleep.
The boys had a pretty awesome morning. Minimal drama and high levels of cooperation, made for a far less stressful morning than yesterday. Nevertheless, it's a chaotic morning because there's so much that needs done. The kids got to school on time and at present, I'm waiting for Gavin to finish his bloodwork. We only have a small window for that to get accomplished because I also have to have Lizze on the other side of town for a doctor's appointment. At some point, I have to hit the grocery store, swing back to pick Lizze up and head home to get some work done. The kids need picked up from school and we have family therapy. I'm one of those people who very much dislikes chaos be a use…
There's quite a bit that happened today but only some of it I'm going to write about. There's no major reason for excluding anything other than I'm tired and want to focus on the main things. We were supposed to take Gavin for his bloodwork this morning but he was in rough shape when he woke up. He was in a lot of pain, mostly cramping but it was enough that we wanted him to rest. Anything can trigger a medical crisis with him and we don't take chances. Hopefully, we'll be able to get this done in the morning. The boys and I had a pretty good night. Lizze was visiting her grandmother in the hospital, so it was just the guys tonight. Before I go any further, please…
We had a morning full of preteen drama and little brother button pushing. This isn't uncommon when it comes to brothers. Brothers were created to get on each other's nerves. That's where the normalcy stops and the Autism/anxiety/emotional delays complicate things. While these guys pick on each other like typical brothers, their reactions to being picked on are rather extreme. The boys are brilliant kids and for the most part, not very socially awkward. At the same time however, they are some significant emotional delays that make dealing with stressful or emotionally charged situations, very difficult for them. They tend to take things very personally and don't get sarcasm, even though they can be sarcastic themselves. Emmett might be trying to pay Elliott a compliment but Elliott takes it wrong…
The boys came home from their grandparent's house and immediately began bickering. That bickering soon turned to fighting and led to Emmett freaking out for over an hour. I don't know why this evening has been so particularly difficult but they had a great visit with their Grandparents. It could simply have been a long day or maybe it's the holiday creeping closer and closer. Perhaps it's nothing out of the ordinary and they're just fighting because that seems to be what they do best anymore. It's funny how six hours or so of rest, can be undone in minutes.
The boys are gone and rather than be super productive, Lizze and I have decided in a slightly different course. We don't get time to ourselves very often and when we do, we are usually so tired that we don't feel like doing much of anything. Lizze and I have been binge watching The Punisher. It's awesome but not family friendly in the slightest. We only have four episodes left and we should be able to squeeze them in before the kids return. If I squint really hard, it feels like completing the season will be an accomplishment.. ☺