Take Each Day By Day

I was thinking lately how the excuse that we give ourselves and others when we don't' attend to something regularly is that time just flies, we are busy and snap it's been a year.  I often found it curious to live in a teacher cycle where we have 10-week rotations followed by a 2 week break then repeat 4 times a year. We then have a weird count down system where we look at 1-5 as wow so much of the term left the 6-10 as a holy crap where did time go mentality.  Funnily enough, I neither like or dislike this cycle but just try to live in the present, in that moment of each week. However, deadline drive needs can make this a challenge.  So rather than then give excuses for my year long absence or stress that recommitting myself to a guarantee writing time, article drop, I am merely going to say...  Hello. Hello. Hello. I was really lucky this week to attend a PD on education research that was aimed at inspiring teachers, on the ground to be the thinking, planning, i

I have been meaning to write a few blogs on how to stay sane during the busy school marking season, or end of year traditions to try and implement but needless to say that I needed to take my own advice as I was snowed under with work. My new tradition became falling asleep in front of TV Friday night, as I was exhausted from a busy week at school. Throw in Christmas, my son’s birthday, graduation and a hernia operation (my sons not mine again)  term four was pretty full on. So in light of any words of wisdom, I think I will just do a top 3 of 2017. On a side note, I was looking through my memories on Facebook and it's interesting to see that I declared 2014 and 2015 as rough years and hoped for better. Can't say that 2017 was any better but I am really confident with the changes we have made this year that 2018 will be a better year Top 3 1) Promotion at work. I work in such a small school that promotions rarely become available and it was exciting that a

I have to admit that this week I am totally uninspired. I think I am in a rut. A cranky, tired, sore nose, sneezing rut. I have so much but so little to say this week and as much as I don’t really have a deadline to   my writing my new dedication of an article a week for my blog is totally out the window only two weeks in. EPIC FAIL. So this weekend was much better than the last one – no meltdown in the street with shop owners checking the security out the front of their premises, so that was a win. Visit to kmart happened – so that was a win. Built a chair from kmart and only had one screw left over so that really was a big win. Found myself out to dinner and the movies on Saturday night – so again feel like I am winning. Dinner was great, good company and I have to say I definitely don’t think that Bad Moms 2 deserves the bad reviews because I thought it was hilarious.   I thoroughly enjoyed my night out. Except for a random voice message from my mum but that really is a

I now know that the problem was that I said it out loud. I said it to my friends. I said it to my husband, I even said it to his teacher. I now know better. Never say it out loud.   "He's having a really good week."   And he really had been. My little ASDer had been happy, cheerful and compliant. Excited to go to school and doing extra homework he was ever a delight.    Saturday came and under the illusion of this wonderful behaviour, I didn't hesitat e to take my child to a boxing class at the beach. He was great! This streak was continuing so off to breakfast I suggested to a friend.    Fate and luck had run out.    He chose the wrong food.    He didn't like the toys that were there.   He was bored.    So after his chocolate milkshake was consumed and he ate the discovered gingerbread that marginally saved breakfast- it was time to go. Suddenly instead of being the rational human he usually is - impatient but still considerat

Off to Diamond Beach. My little ASDer was so excited! We had been to this holiday park before and even though last time we packed up after a rough couple of days and our instincts should have warned us we were still hopeful that this time it would better. This was our first big adventure family  since my husband had been diagnosed with his work-related PTSD. All the trip planning had been his idea so I was confident that he would be ok venturing so far away from home. We settled in and everything seemed to be going well until my son attempted to bring some routine to his daily activities. For two days he wanted to do the same thing in the same order and the same way. Not such a big deal but within 24 hours of being away from home, the stress and great outdoors started to affect my husband. He was down. He was restless and he craved the dullness of a few beers. He couldn't handle the friendliness of families by the pool - people who just wanted to say hi as our sudden

Ok not really, that is a little dramatic but it did occur to me recently that I have referenced my husband's PTSD several times without actually addressing it directly.  So rather than put words in his mouth, or in this case type my own ideas on things (that can be a whole separate post...) here are his words directly. Hope they clear up a bit more of the journey we are on and help anyone out there who is suffering. His background is a sad but all too familiar one of giving his life up to serve and help others. Entering a job whilst practically a baby and although he smashed it and was a success in terms of patient treatment and team player the demons he was already exposed to took advantage of the horrors that we only hear or read about.  Here is his most recent post from his facebook page Racing REHAB. "Mental Health awareness is front row and centre at the moment and I can safely say that if you are struggling mentally in Australia there is so much help out there