The Decision

Last week was a crazy one. It was my 30th birthday on the Tuesday (which I spent in Wales with Foz and Bee - more on that in another post) so literally every day that week was spent visiting various family members to celebrate the big occasion. Friday brought one of our favourite events of the year: Magic Weekend. 14 Rugby League teams, 7 games, 2 days, 1 stadium. It's always amazing! Before I dropped Bee at her grandparents on Friday afternoon I needed to get our packing done and do a little bit of shopping.

At nursery that morning Bee's teacher had asked if we'd heard back from our school appeal yet, which we hadn't. It's been over a month and I'd rang the council a couple of times and left messages but still nothing. Bee's teacher assured me it shouldn't be anything to worry about, the council seem to be behind in the statementing process with a lot of families.

So Friday afternoon brought me mooching around Tesco with Bee, picking up some bits for Magic Weekend. My phone rang and I answered it to find someone from the Inclusion Team at Warrington Council on the other end. Firstly she apologised for taking so long to get back to us. She went on to say that after reviewing Bee's proposal statement and our appeal the council would be happy for Bee to attend Bewsey Lodge Primary School. What!? WHAT!? I had to ask her to say it again. I never once thought that we would receive our answer over the phone like that, I'd expected her to confirm when we'd receive a letter with the decision! The woman went on to say that the proposal statement would be amended and sent out to us soon to confirm. I ended the call and stood for a moment in the bread aisle of Tesco, unbelieving. Then the tears came. I was so happy, so very happy. I hadn't realised what a weight it had been, the waiting for an answer.

So there it is: in September Bee will attend a mainstream primary school in a supported class. We're so thrilled! 

New Play

Recently a new soft play center opened in Warrington, but this is soft play with a difference.

Warrington play & Sensory Center is designed and aimed exclusively at disabled children and adults. And it's wonderful!

Bee loves soft play but visiting can be stressful. Generally she's not content in the under 3's section anymore and even if she was, we often get dirty looks from other parents as she's clearly over the upper age limit, even though mobility-wise she's not too old. So we use the big play frame for the older children but due to her mobility problems she needs lifting on and off things and helping between level. She won't go on the slides or anything that needs to be climbed over. I often look at the other mums sitting with their cuppas in envy! Then there's the music, these places seem to thrive on banging dance music blasted out at full volume. Partner that with lots of running, screaming kids and you have a very loud place. Although Bee loves soft play her confidence in the environment is very low, fueled by lots of bigger kids moving around in a fast and loud manner, equipment that she can't handle by herself and a loud, overwhelming amount of background noise.

So our first visit to Warring Play & Sensory Center was a revelation.

Walking in through the door the first thing that struck me was the noise. Or lack thereof. There was just quiet: no loud music, no screaming. Just peace and calm. I paid (£2 - a bargain!) and signed us in. We made our way to a table and it became apparent that we were the only people there, perfect! Bee was practically bouncing at my side, anxious to be off and playing. I removed her shoes and let her go while I bought a tea from the counter. By the time I had purchased it and laced it with milk and sugar Bee had made it all the way to the top of the play frame and was preparing to come down the slide. BY HERSELF!

That may seem like a really small thing but for us it's huge. Colossal. Bee climbed the play frame without needing my physical support or needing my emotional support. She's never accessed a play frame without the support of an adult. I could have cried watching her come down the slide laughing. There wasn't an ounce of hesitation in her. From then there was no stopping her, she was like a child possessed. She explored the whole play frame, the sensory room, the chill out zone, all of it.
For the first time I was able to sit and drink my cup of tea in peace while Bee played independently. It didn't last long, she soon wanted my attention, but those 10 minutes were bliss. Not just for the cuppa but for the knowledge that Bee could play independently in that kind of environment.

The center is so well designed, between each level is steps for older children and adults and smaller steps for children. There's a sensory room and a chill out zone, equipment for seriously disabled children, hoists, soft music, the ball pool isn't too deep (and overwhelming)... I could go on and on about how wonderful it is. Every town needs one!

 

 
After a couple of hours Bee was starting to flag, she'd had a busy morning at nursery too and so I decided it was time to leave. We still had an hour to kill before collecting Foz from work and with all that playing we'd built up an appetite, so McDonalds called! A treat for her bravery. She chose chips and carrots sticks, that's my girl!

Garden Fun

 

During our recent sunny spell we spent a lovely afternoon in the garden with Bee's grandma...

We got out Bee's water table, play tents, slide, ball and lots of toys. She had a great time!

Eating dinner in her tent!

Squirting!

Sunshine on the Farm

A couple of weeks ago we had a few days of beautiful weather, luckily over the bank holiday weekend. Sadly since the weather has turned cold, rainy and very windy but it's not anything we're not used to! Foz unfortunately had to work on bank holiday Monday but with the weather being so gorgeous I didn't want to miss an opportunity to get some sun so Bee and I headed for a local pick-your-own farm. We'd been once before, back in October, for a little pumpkin-picking at Halloween. Bee hadn't been keen then but months have passed and her confidence has soared so I thought it worth the chance.

Sadly there wasn't much in the way of pick-you-own, it's only early May and the weather has played havoc with crops and plants alike so it was rhubarb or nowt. We went with nowt. I love a good rhubarb crumble but not when I have to make it from fresh rhubarb, plus I don't think the sour taste would agree with Bee!

We made do with a lovely slice of cake in the cafe, along with a cup of tea for me and water for Bee. It was the perfect sustenance for an hour of flower and veg browsing and play time in the meadow!

We went with the play time first, Bee was very excited that we'd brought her Peppa Pig ball along and had a mountain of energy to burn!

We had loads of fun playing throwing and catching, running and chasing, picking flowers and exploring. Bee did really well with the texture of the grass, it was coarse and prickly, unlike the softer grass she's used to. Thankfully her Piedro boots are ankle-high and with her socks above that the grass didn't bother her too much while walking. However she did refuse to sit down, despite my encouragement and would only go as far as bending down to pick up her ball.

Cheeky!

 We played in the meadow for an hour or so before Bee started stumbling over her own feet and the uneven ground, her co-ordination dropping with her energy levels. I decided it was time to head for the vegetables and plants on sale.
 
It's that time, I've been cleaning out the garden pots from last year and we were on the hunt for more veggies for Bee to grow. Once we entered the greenhouse however, I gave up all hope of keeping Bee's attention. She'd spotted the ride-on tractors dotted around, headed straight for the nearest one and climbed aboard.
We took our time looking around, I pointed out flower colours and we tried smelling some of them. Bee's got the hang on sniffing recently and likes to smell things and say "mmmm it nie".
After lots of deliberation we chose a cucumber plant and some pea plants, both of which I know Bee likes to eat and she very much enjoyed picking and eating the peas we grew last year.


We took our plants to the till, where Bee very helpfully gave the lady at the till the pennies and carried our bag to the car. It was starting to get late in the afternoon and I knew we'd need to head into town to collect Foz from work soon but Bee really wanted more time playing on the field with her ball.

Bee's getting much better at throwing, she's releasing the ball from her hands now instead of just passing it to you. She's even started throwing it up in the air and it getting a good height. Plus, we had even more progress on the field that afternoon.... Bee letting the grass touch her bare legs! Winning!

We had a lovely afternoon in the glorious sunshine and by the time we were ready to leave Bee was exhausted. She's done so much physically that her little legs just couldn't carry her anymore. Well done Bee!

Watch and Wait

We've been back for our review appointment at A&E for Bee's ganglion cyst. The doctor has confirmed that the diagnosis was correct and, barring it getting significantly larger or becoming painful, then it's just a watch-and-wait policy. Which we're happy to do if it means no more trouble or discomfort for Bee when it's not really necessary.