#1874 Thursday 30 August

Wow!

Kaylia has just arrived home from school ....... and she is sooooo excited!


I have rarely seen her so animated ..... and clearly very proud of herself.

 She has brought home this foot stool that she has made.   Note .... she has made the foot stool!  It is a really well made item and I am really impressed.













The finish and workmanship .....on both the woodwork .....and on the cloth seat .....is excellent.


Kaylia is really proud of the stool and she wants it in her room.


During previous "parent nights" I have asked about the amount of the construction that is actually performed by the students ..... and I have been assured that the students really do all the work themselves.  This impresses me and I have thought that I would love to be a 'fly on the wall' to watch how the teaching staff are able to engage the students so that they can do such good work. 

#1873 Wednesday 29 August

Yesterday the class went to the zoo ... even though it was pouring with rain!  Here they are at the elephant enclosure.   Kaylia has always been very keen on elephants.
















This morning as Kaylia was preparing for school, Naomi and I were reflecting on the quality of the time that Kaylia is having with Casey ...... Kaylia is very carefree and relaxed with Casey .... enjoying their time together.  It is so good.   Autism means that Kaylia misses out on much of the normal experience of friendship with peers ....... she get this to a degree in the school setting ..... but she has no social circle during out of school times.  Parents cannot fill this role and so much of the value of having an au-pair is in this social interaction.   We have seen this many times in the past ..... and now we seem to be seeing this friendship at a time in Kaylia's development when she especially needs that social vacuum to be filled.  ..... and Casey is filling that need admirably. The "proof of the pudding" is Kaylia's relaxed atmosphere.

#1872 Monday 27 August

The class went to the Optus Stadium today.....   here Kaylia is ordering a meal in the cafeteria.

#1871 Sunday 26 August

It's 10am ...she's just emerged from a 90minute bath ...... she's very happy as usual.  Last night it was a full moon and she woke at 3am.  It took about an hour to get her off to sleep again.

Today we will go "out".

Many of you will know of my 'leaning' for the right to choose my own time and method of 'end of life' exit ..... you may not be aware that this issue is in the local news as the state government says it will debate the issue in 2019.  The 'battle lines' are being drawn ..... this time the opposition seems based on the potential for "elder abuse".  Of course the inverted logic of this seems to have escaped them..... denying the right to choose is a guaranteed form of elder abuse!