A Week, Briefly (1/7/19)

It is early Friday morning.  I've completed my personal scripture study (I'm in 1 Corinthians right now--reading The Message Bible), and in taking a moment to play a little on social media I felt inclined to write this post.

It has been a week of challenges and blessings.

The greatest blessing of which has been a lessening of the darkness of my mind.  I knew things were bad--I can see how dark my posts have been even though I've struggled to be as positive as I could be--but oh!

Light!

I hope it stays for a while.

My family could enjoy a season of having a bright, happy mom.

Monday was very Monday-ish.  I won't detail the problems, but it was one small thing after another that left me wiped out, frustrated, angry, and impatient.  I was as careful with our first day of school as I could be, and I cannot remember any problems with school--Ladybug's school, Morning Meeting, Symposium, Academy/lunch, preschool, and one-on-one school all passed seamlessly through the day, and everyone seemed happy to be a part of the school routine again.  The weather was unseasonably warm, and the kids spent hours and hours outside.

Tuesday was better--the same routine only I was nicer.

Symposium:
Language Arts--we started Unit 6
History--we started semester 2
Spanish--we're working on listening and translating

Academy:
Still reading Freedom Train
We studied light and heat and did two experiments for science
We're reading a fairy tale called King of the Golden River by John Ruskin
We've moved from Ancient Greece to Ancient Rome in world history

On Wednesday we got a new-to-us car to replace Sir Walter Scott's little car that was totaled in the accident in early December.  We were doing fine managing our schedules with only 2 cars, but next week Pixie's college class starts, and that changes everything!  We are thankful for the blessing of having enough cars to allow teens and adults the freedom to travel to work and activities.  Ladybug went back to MOSCA, Belle went back to the farm, Pixie went back to dance, and everyone ages 8 and up headed to the church for youth activities.  It was a full day, and most one-on-one school was skipped to make room for all of the activities.

Thursday held school and Brother's consult with the psychiatrist who will be supervising his psychiatric care (unless he is diagnosed with autism--in that case, we'll be referred to a specialty clinic).  We visited for a full hour, and in that hour I grew to trust this woman as a knowledgeable, caring, careful, and understanding psychiatrist.  She says that given the anecdotal evidence I've presented in the two intake sessions and her observations of Brother during our meeting, he is going to qualify for and need treatment for both anxiety and ADHD.  Because has a battery of tests scheduled for next month, she advised that we not start medications now, but wait until March when the tests have been completed and reviewed and we have a better understanding of the workings of his mind and body.

Her actual words were, "Once we gather more information we can ease his suffering and the suffering of your family.  It will take time.  It will not be a quick fix, but there is no reason to keep suffering the way you all have been for so long."

I cried.

She said we're doing right to have enrolled Brother in therapy because in addition to the issues that can be addressed with meds, he does have trauma issues that cannot be fixed medically.  She stressed the need to work with his mind and heart and body.

I feel strongly that being assigned to be one of her patients is a blessing directly from the Lord.  Even if Brother does have Autism and is re-assigned to the specialty clinic, just that hour with this doctor was a gift from the Lord.

I'd prepped a preschool letter 'G' craft before I left for the appointment, and Pixie generously helped the 3 youngest complete it while I was gone at Brother's appointment.

And the rest of the day was filled with our normal school activities.  The teens took a full hour to complete their history section review, but it was so joyful and so full of good reviewing and remembering that I happily closed the new chapter we were going to cover and called it a good day in history.

Today (Friday) is Brother's first day in therapy.  My therapist is at a continuing education seminar, so I won't meet with her until next week, but that's okay.  I can wait.  Our assigned therapy time is 1:00 pm on Fridays (a time when our therapists can usually meet with us simultaneously), so that means we can have school each Friday morning, but our good, long get-it-done-before-the-weekend-starts Friday pattern of last semester is changed.

Time and experience and prayer will guide us to a new Friday pattern.

But today after therapy Sir Walter Scott and I are going out on a date.  We don't know where we're going or what we're doing, but we've reserved the teens as sitters, and we're headed out the door as soon as we can.

But all of that will be after the morning school routine, and it is time for me to wake Ladybug!