List of the most popular hashtags for theme #ADDITIONALNEEDS

I was looking for a photo to post from the weekend, to update you, we haven’t done much anyway. Also Aubree has been a bit of a stinker the last few days, moaning a lot, she’s been clinging to me a lot too. I’m thinking it’s her teeth so hopefully she will be okay in a few days. But then as I was scrolling, looking at older pictures of Aubree. It’s painful, it pains me to look at her before the “horrible diagnosis” happened. Then it got me thinking, in regards to @daiseys_journey stories yesterday. I realised why I’m feeling like that. I’m still grieving for that child. It’s the same child, you wouldn’t understand. It doesn’t make sense. Even in my head it’s confusing but I am. I feel like Aubree back then is a completely different child, and I’ve lost her. The “normal” life I thought we’d have. It’s gone. Whenever you lose something dear to you, you go through a grieving process. Our children’s future was a big deal to us. It’s gone! The future we thought they wound have. For some, even their whole future has been stolen in an instant. Life limiting. Let that sink in. What some of us parents are dealing with! I grieve for the loss of movement she has. For the giggles I have never heard. For the words she’s never spoke. For the first steps I may never see. For the pain free and peaceful life I wanted her to have. We do these journeys so people who don’t understand, who luckily don’t really need to understand realise how we’re feeling. Most people are happy to show support. We have grieved and we are still grieving. Some days it’s all so raw, others it’s a million miles away. It doesn’t mean we’re not happy with our children or our lives. But it does mean WE ARE HUMAN! I’ve looked through photos and it’s all come flooding back, I could look next week and feel so so happy to see my little baby. But today it has effected me in a way I didn’t want it to myself, but that’s the annoying thing when you care, when you’re worried about your child’s future, when you’re a parent to a child with different needs. It’s life! #greif

She’s always teaching me to slow down & enjoy the ride . #thankyouangel #soblessed @thelosttribe_

Lovely morning at @aldenhamcountrypark SEND Pavilion - the outdoor play area is open to only SEND between 9-11 and the pavilion is exclusively SEND all day. Lots to do at Aldenham #aldenhamcountrypark #aldenham #elstree #hertfordshire #london #outdoorplay #sen #send #specialneeds #additionalneeds #autism #asc #asd #sensoryroom #sensoryplay #sensoryseeker

So today we finally found out that Pooka got his spot at the specialist school that we wanted for him! It’s a weird one, because I wasn’t happy or upset, I was very meh about the whole situation. I think because we’ve been left waiting for so long, I’ve kind of buried my head in the sand and forgot all about school to be honest, so as not to remain angry over something out of my control. This was the only school my boy was ever going to be going to, mainstream is not an option for us and I wouldn’t have put him or the school through that had he not got a specialist setting. I was fairly certain he would though, due to the severity of his needs. But nobody ever likes to assume anything in this SEN game! Realisation did hit me tonight, that my little buddy who I’ve given up my whole life for, is going to be spending even more time away from me and I will truly miss him. But I guess it gives me more reasons to find super fun things to do together after school! I’m not sure who is going to find this transition harder in September, him or me?! ‍♀️‍♀️ #autism #autismmom #autismmum #autismkids #autismschool #meandmyboy #mamasboy #autismlife #lifewithautism #sen #additionalneeds

Swimming costume envy today at hydrotherapy, I dug these out that we’re brought in the sale for her last year. Sometimes you come along these things at just the right time! The hydro therapists are already getting to know Aubree, she was telling them off when they were doing certain things and they turned round and said to me, she knows what she wants welcome to my life, trying to make a non verbal child happy, who knows what she wants but can’t tell me is always interesting, never a dull moment that’s for sure! I’m glad she does know what she wants and likes though, to know this and have preferences shows that her brain is telling her something. It’s telling her to react if she doesn’t like something and smile brightly if she does. Even though it can be a pickle trying to guess what’s wrong sometimes, she will always be able to tell people when she doesn’t like something. #hydrotherapy #swimming

The best blanket/duvet we have ever invested in!! A beautiful weighted blanket from @brilliantlykalm! The best soother and calming aid for meltdowns, sensory over load, and Isla’s best friend! It’s been dragged around, been in numerous ambulances and hospital beds, dragged into her sensory tent, and helped make the “nasty” days a little bit easier! . #autism #adhd #neurodiverse #sensory #sensoryprocessingdisorder #neurodevelopmental #weightedblanket #specialneeds #specialneedsfamily #specialneedskids #calmer #soother #ASD #PDA #brilliantlykalm #sensoryblanket #blanket #babyblanket #medicallycomplex #complexneeds #additionalneeds #godsend #makeslifealittleeasier #meltdown #sensoryoverload #blog #mumbloggers #influencer #ukblogger #familyblog

I look at pictures like this and I wonder if the feeling of worry ever goes or lessens. The feeling you only know when you’re the black mother to a black child, particularly a black male child. I look at him, with his blonde hair and his eyes an ever changing mix of grey, blue and green and I wonder how the world will see him when he’s older. Today of all days, the first annual Stephen Lawrence Day. The day when someone just like me, a mother to a son, got a call to say that her son was killed, stabbed by a pack of white racist youths for no other reason than being black. It’s a conversation I’ve had with Simon many times, how it might feel, how we can’t bury our heads and pretend that it might never happen. It took me a year to go out with Alfie on my own, afraid that something might happen to us, to me, to him because of me. I was terrified that we would be the victims of some racially motivated attack where they wouldn’t believe he was mine. He was so fair skinned as a baby, his hair was so light, his eyes were bright blue. So many people asked me if he was mine that I became scared that someone wouldn’t believe me one day. Some racist would think I stole him and kill me in front of him. He’s darker than he was but not by much. Really, in some sick genetic twist of fate that I can’t account for, he’s lucky, luckier than some. He’s a light skinned mixed race boy with light eyes and blonde hair. Society seems to favour that. Hell even black folk favour that cause the colourism is REAL. But I have to be real too, I know he has a privilege amongst his lack of it. He is a man too so there’s that. But he’s gonna grow up to be a black man and even though it seems like it’s only on the inside, he still isn’t white. People are going to hate him. People already do. People already think that people like him should have never been born and my god does that hurt. My heart sank when I found out he was a boy. I can make a strong black woman, I can make a fearless unapologetic black woman; I am one. How do I protect this boy in a world where his end might be just around the wrong corner.

I understand we hurt for our kids who have special needs, BUT I have something to share that i feel will deeply help many families... . Heres the thing, if we continue to sit in a place of victimhood.. meaning we share our heart-wrenching stories about our children, about our circumstances, about our sadness & grief, the things we CANT do, the things that they (and we) struggle with... . What happens is this: . We attract the exact energy from others that we so dearly need to propel out of our lives in order to create positive change! . If we want our kids to feel happy & thriving, then we cannot continually project negitivity into the world about them... & social media is the first (& most powerful) place to start. . What we project, we recieve back 10-fold. . Ever heard the saying ‘where our focus goes, our energy flows’? . When we post about our grief & our child’s percieved hardship in order to create ‘awareness’ from others: We recieve sorrowful energy We recieve empathetic energy We recieve sadness. . All of this energy is immediately absorbed by you... & more importantly by our children (whom are the most sensitive to all of this than anyone). . If we want to attract positive energy into our family’s lives, & therefore shift our challenges & hardship, then we need to step away from being the victim & begin to create our own positive energy... our own positive change. . This can only happen with the self. . I feel this every single time i log onto social media & its time that we all know just how powerful our shares are on our families. . We dont need to be fake, just mindful of what we are inviting in. . Real change takes action & belief, but when we commit to a new way of being, everything transforms. I see it every day first hand ❤️ . #lawofattraction

This has been a stressful few months and hopefully the majority of the stress will be lifted soon. This week it’s been at max while we wait to hear where or even if Dylan has a P1 place. I was supposed to get a call this afternoon to let me know what was happening but I didn’t Me being me I’m in overdrive worrying about everything, bank holiday Monday means I have to try and keep it all together until Tuesday and hope we hear then. Keep your fingers crossed we get the outcome that Dylan deserves