My best friend and I broke up almost a week ago now, and I miss her very much. The silver lining (yes, remember I always try to look for the silver lining, otherwise I'd lose my ever living mind) has been found to be less stress and a lot less drama.
I no longer have to play referee between her seven year old and my babe. I swear little E's mission in life is to get Dayton in trouble. I know this because of the incident that caused the demise of our friendship: the boys are playing hockey outside with another little boy Dayton's age. It's 8pm, which means it's dark outside. I'm visiting the other little boy's mom and standing on her balcony, the only parent watching the boys. Little E is screaming: "Dayton! Don't hit me!!!" while Dayton is chasing after the hockey puck, running farther and farther away from little E. I call out to E and tell him this, and he tells me to "shut up. I don't care."
I'm done with working my butt off to not offend the neurotypical kids around us when they themselves are inconsiderate, rude little pukes.
So here's what I'm wanting to do...
I want to rent out a gym, probably in St. Vital to make it central to everyone living in Winnipeg. I'm thinking of every second Sunday afternoon for about an hour and a half. I have no problem making this a free event for everyone, as I'm not after making a buck. I will pay for the gym facilities for the year, providing I have enough of a turnout. What I want from you is to tell me if you're interested in participating before I spend the money I could use somewhere else...
Here's how I see it turning out:
We meet every second Sunday. The kids have two options: play in the gym or play board games in the lobby or maybe do some crafting. Parents have coffee while volunteers are with the kids. Naturally, anyone supervising the kids will have a criminal record and child abuse registry check. I will go and have this done for myself some time this week.
This will be a time for parents to have a break and mingle with other parents, support each other and get ideas. There is no excuse of "can't find respite, or can't afford it." Your children with autism will have the opportunity to interact with other children who will accept them because they 'understand' them. They will be interacting naturally with their peers in a social setting without the fear of being bullied or discriminated against. Siblings and friends are allowed to come and participate in play as we want to encourage friendships and support with neurotypical children under the supervision of a caring, understanding adult who's main purpose will be to support the children with autism to reach out to others.
Your child's placement on the spectrum may be important to you as a family, but not here... We will include everyone. Participation of the children on the spectrum is minimal: if they chose to interact, great! If they are comfortable to sit back and watch, then that's fine too. The point is not to excel at something, but to feel accepted, something most of our kids don't feel at school or on the play ground. Who knows, maybe by not participating but by sitting and watching, they'll meet others on the spectrum doing the same and enjoy each other's company!!! Everyone needs to get out of the house, right? Let's create a sense of community not just for our kids, but for us parents too!
What I need from you:
All I need from you is to email me at autism.diva.help@gmail.com if you're interested in attending.
If you're interested in volunteering, please let me know this in your email as well. I am prepared to pay for your criminal record check and your child abuse registry check, so this will be of no cost to you. Consider this my Christmas present to you.
Super Dad and I are thinking of a name for this group, and he's come up with a really good one, but we'd like to hear from you in your email with some suggestions too!
Consider yourselves hugged,
Lou
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