Oh my goodness!

This title is in regards to two things: 1. that I haven't posted since October and 2. that there is so much to say because so much has occurred in my blogging hiatus.

I think I will have to tackle this in bullet points and resolve to do better with my blogging in the future. Sorry guys LOL.

Xavier: My little monkey is now three years old as of Jan 16. It is hard to believe how much time has flown. He continues to delight us each and every day. He began a special kinder program in Feb that is run at a special school. That is - a school for children with developmental delays and also disabilities. It is a program where they can do regular kinder activities but with appropriate therapists present - like an Occupational therapists to help kids while they cut and paste and that sort of thing. His teachers are very supportive and he loves going. He has also been granted government funding for an aid at his daycare, so he has someone by his side to constantly help him with activities etc. The daycare suggested it because once he moved up into the 3 year old room at the start of the year there aren't as many staff members per child and he founf it hard to cope with not having so much guidance. He would get confused with what he was supposed to be doing and wander off to another room and things like that. He has had much more direction and been more settled since he has had his aid.
We had our regular check with the pediatrician in Jan and he is still not entirely sure what is going on and therefore we still don't have a "diagnosis" as such. Xavier still struggles with using his hands and fingers. He has improved a little and can now make a little drawing on a piece of paper which is huge progress, but he can't keep it up for very long. I can't work out whether it is painful in his hands to continue or whether it is mentally too draining for him, but he seems to show discomfort and want to stop. I have also noticed some unusual quirks with him. I'm not sure of any other way to put it than that. Things like he won't have a blanket or sheet over him when he goes to bed at night. He just wants to lay on a bed with nothing over him. If you try to coax him into having a blanket he acts distressed like as if the blanket is scary. We just have to make sure we dress him really warmly in the cold months and sneak in after he is asleep to cover him up, which he doesnt seem to mind at all. He also hates any "grooming" activites like having his face washed or his hair brushed or his nappy changed. He screams the place down and gets really distressed and says it hurts. It is really a dreaded situation having to change his nappy when we are out and about because you should see the looks we get LOL. The pediatrician says he is concerned that Xavier may have a sensory processing disorder. Whether this is the complete problem or whether it is part of a larger issue he is not sure (for example, he is pretty sure Xavier is not autisitc however sensory processing disorders can sometimes occur with autism as well as a number of other disorders). He says Xavier is almost at the stage/age where we will be able to do some assessments soon and hopefully try and get some answers as to what is going on. And by the way if I tried to explain what a sensory processing disorder is then we would be here for some time, it is pretty complex and there are even a few sub categories for different types of SPD too. If you google the term though, you will find a wealth of info out there if you are interested. It is amazing to find so much info on a term I had never heard of before!

Our house: We have decided to put our house on the market after almost 6 years here. For the last year we have felt we were outgrowing its small size. Recently we made the decision to take the plunge and sell. It is a slow market here at the moment so we are going to take our time selling so we can hopefully get the price we want. Once we have sold we will then look for something else. We are not sure as to whether we want to build or buy. Joel's folks have kindly offered to have us as extended house guests once we sell while we look for somewhere new to live. I am not someone who responds well to any sort of change so it has been pretty stressful for me. But I am gradually adjusting and getting excited about the future ahead.

"Cate": Some of you might remember the posts in my old blog about my best friend who went through a breakdown a few years ago. I referred to her as Cate. Well she sought the help she needed at the time of the breakdown and has really come a long way since being so unwell. She recently became engaged to her partner and has asked me to be a bridesmaid for their wedding in Jan 2013. Not only that but she and her fiance have asked me to since a song at the wedding. I don't know if I have mentioned that Joel and I met while studying music - so I have a bit of a background in music and love to sing. I was honoured to be asked to perform such a lovely duty. I don't know what song they will choose but I can't wait.

My family: Well there is nothing much to report with Joel. He is still the same lovely husband :) His business is going quite well and he is keeping well too. As for Mum and Dad you might remember last time I wrote they had both been injured - Mum with a fracture in her foot/ankle and Dad with a shoulder injury which required surgery. Mum's injury healed nicely and she is back at work now. Dad unfortuneately has had a rocky road to recovery. After his initial shoulder surgery he developed "frozen shoulder". He recently went in for a second procedure and things seem to be healing now. Hopefully after easter he will be able to start easing into going back to work. He is getting a bit stir crazy at home these days.

My sister: My sister got married last week. She has been divorced from her first husband for quite some time and according to my parents she has had a long term partner for a couple years now. Mum and Dad say he is a really lovely person and they get along well with him. Despite our history, I want the best for my sister so I am really pleased she has met someone nice and she seems really happy according to my parents. I didn't attend the wedding (I wasn't invited which is to be expected considering we are not in contact) but Mum and Dad went and said it was quite nice. My sister's daughter (my niece) has just started contact with her Mum again, however my sister's son (my nephew) won't have any contact. I think he has been quite affected by everything that has happened in the past. My niece stayed with my parents recently and my sister consented to her having a visit with me. I got to see my niece for the first time in over 3 years. It was wonderful! We had a great time and she has grown to be a beautiful little lady. I was very proud of her.

Baby making: is on hold for now due to some health reasons. More info on that later as getting all this info down has been quite a task. I'll get back on the computer tonight and fill you all in. Lots of love to all.