A Day In The Life Of An Autistic Woman

Initially this post was about the pandemic and how having autism has impacted on my experiences throughout the pandemic but as I began writing I realised that I can't really detail how the pandemic has affected me if you don't already know how my autism effects me. I've written a bit about how I got my autism diagnosis, shared my experiences growing up undiagnosed in a mainstream school and I've talked about how autism impacts on dating and holidays but I've never really shared how it impacts me on a daily basis. I've never shared an 'ordinary' day with autism. So here it is, the thoughts, feelings and emotions of an autistic mother on a 'normal' day. 

Books We've Been Reading | February 2021| PLUS! WIN A MYSTERY BOOK BUNDLE!

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to read. It's something I've always enjoyed and I think it's so important that we grow and nurture a love of reading for future generations. We are really missing our trips to the library but thankfully we have a rather hefty children's book collection and I've been making the most of our libraries online ebook loan service to keep my kindle well stocked with reading material. Here's what we've been reading this month....

#BWBR Book Link Up | March 2021

 

Reading has always been a big part of our family life. I read so much as a child and my daughter appears to be following in my footsteps. Each month we aim to share the Books We've Been Reading and I thought it might be nice to have a nosey through the books that others have enjoyed. As a reader I'm always on the hunt for new reads and as a parent I always want to know what books to keep an eye out for in the library so whether it's children's books or adults books I'd love for you to take part in this link up and help us all to grow our 'to be read' piles!

The Doll Factory By Elizabeth MacNeal

Title: The Doll Factory, Author: Elizabeth MacNeal, Pages: 384, Published by: Picador, Publication Date: 2nd May 2019, ISBN: 978-1529002393

Iris and Rose spend their days creating dolls for the oppressive and most often comatose, Mrs Salter. Though fortunate to be employed, the passionate and creative Iris longs for more than the monotonous life she currently leads. Iris yearns to escape, to paint more than doll faces. She wishes to paint freely and with no constraints- to be an artist in her own right.

Could a chance encounter with Silas Reed, collector, taxidermist and prop creator for the Pre-Raphealite Brotherhood set Iris on the path to freedom? Will love, life and art blossom? Or is death and decay the only fate for those that wander the dark, dank streets of Victorian London?

Autism & Relationships: How Autism Impacts On Dating

So Valentines Day, there's no escaping it, even if you don't actively partake in it there's hearts, flowers and declarations of love everywhere you go. I thought about all the posts I could write, the gift guides, the 'how to's' and the 'top ten romantic...' which are all great ideas but they felt a little dishonest, how can I talk about those things when I haven't acknowledged the thing Valentines Day is mostly about, relationships, or more specifically romantic relationships. Having Aspergers effects all aspects of every relationship I have but today I've decided to open up about how having Aspergers effects dating.

Books We've Been Reading | January 2021 | Plus WIN! A MYSTERY BOOK BUNDLE!

Anyone who knows me knows that I love to read. It's something I've always enjoyed and I think it's so important that we grow and nurture a love of reading for future generations. We are really missing our trips to the library but thankfully we have a rather hefty children's book collection and I've been making the most of our libraries online ebook loan service to keep my kindle well stocked with reading material. Here's what we've been reading this month....

NEW! Book Based Blogger Link Up. NOW OPEN!

Reading has always been a big part of our family life. I read so much as a child and my daughter appears to be following in my footsteps. Each month we aim to share the Books We've Been Reading and I thought it might be nice to have a nosey through the books that others have enjoyed. As a reader I'm always on the hunt for new reads and as a parent I always want to know what books to keep an eye out for in the library so whether it's children's books or adults books I'd love for you to take part in this link up and help us all to grow our 'to be read' piles!

Diagnosing Coeliac Disease And Living Gluten Free

Coeliac disease is an autoimmune condition. It is not to be confused with a gluten intolerance or a fad diet. People with coeliac disease have an immune response when they ingest gluten. Continued exposure to gluten causes damage to the villi in the intestine. The villi are finger like structures that usually stand upright and help the body to absorb vitamins and minerals from the food we eat. In those with untreated coeliac disease the villi become flattened and can no longer perform their function.

Undiagnosed Autism and Mainstream School | My Experience

 The days are long but the years are short- the most significant parenting quote i've ever read. I vividly remember thinking "I can't wait for Iris to start nursery, only a few more years to go". Being at home with young babies and toddlers is immensely hard work. To me it felt like my entire existence was being swallowed by a teeny tiny, snack monster. Constantly on demand, constantly needing to be aware and constantly being 'switched on'. It all felt so constant. So unending. Now nursery isn't a few years away, it's now and I'm not ready. It isn't because Iris isn't ready, she's been ready for months, she's been craving the structure and mental stimulation that only a learning environment can give and it certainly isn't because I'm not ready for the break- I am chomping at the bit to get some time back to re-discover myself and give myself the opportunity to work, exercise and be creative again. The reason I'm not ready for Iris to start nursery is because I'm not ready to deal with what 'school' means to me. I'm not emotionally ready to send her into the system that destroyed me.

Most Used | 2-3 Years

The terrible twos. The age of "I don't want to walk" but "I don't want to go in the buggy". The urgent cries of "I need a wee-wee" followed by a mad panic and no actual weeing taking place. A challenging year yet an amazing one. The year of long winded conversations and awkward observations in the most inappropriate of places. The emergence of people skills, kindness, turn taking, please and thank yous. A bright and brilliant time. Here's the things we've used the most throughout this wonderfully daunting year.

Gift Ideas For A Two Year Old

It's been almost a whole year since Iris's 2nd birthday. It's been quite the year for us personally and also for the world as a whole. With the Coronavirus still raging across the world and the heightened anxiety about social interactions we've decided against a party for Iris this year which is rather sad as all she's actually asked for is her friends to come and play and a cake. I hope we can still give her an amazing third birthday. Over the last year we've had the chance to work out the most played with, most used and most helpful items from last years gifts and here they are, our collection of perfect gifts for 2 year olds.

Books We've Been Reading | July 2020

We haven't written a Books We've Been Reading post in a very long time. Largely due to the fact I had a rough 18 months where the blog lay abandoned but also due to the local library being struck by disaster...twice. Our town experienced extensive flooding in November, thankfully my families homes were okay but our wonderful local library was completely destroyed. A temporary library was set up in an unused retail unit in town but then Coronavirus made itself known and closed that! Those first few months with no new books were tough but thankfully our local The Works opened and took good care of us with their amazing 10 books for £10 offer. These are some of our favourites.

*please note that the books below were purchased in store and are not available to directly link online. I have therefore linked to the books elsewhere online. These links maybe affiliate links and may earn me a small commission but you will incur no charge. Thank you for supporting my blog.

Living Arrows | Blood Isn't Always Thicker Than Water

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran.

This is Iris with my mum and my mum's husband. He's been in our lives for about 7 years now. I was an adult when he entered my life and because of that I feel like I can't refer to him as 'my dad' but in all the ways a girl could need her dad this man has stepped up. He's been there for me through thick and thin. He's held my hand throughout a fair few mental health challenges, he's listened, he's talked and he's understood but most importantly he has embraced my daughter with a love that goes beyond the boundaries of 'mum's husband'. He's her Papa...he's our Papa and we'd be lost without him.

Living Arrows | Fun With Ben and Holly

Fun with Ben and Holly? An interesting title considering the look on Iris's face. She doesn't exactly look like she's having fun! This is one of my favourite ever pictures of my daughter purely because her grandparents had been telling me for weeks how much she enjoys 'the ride outside Iceland' and when I finally got round to seeing it myself this is what I was met with.

Living Arrows | There's A Toddler On The Loose!

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran. 

Back to blogging and back to our favourite post, our weekly Living Arrows photograph. A link up sharing a snap shot of life as a child and what better celebration of childhood than a family party where you get to put on your best party dress, your fancy new shoes and you get to strut (and I mean strut!) your stuff on the dancefloor.

How To Write New Year's Resolutions

There is a simple answer to this. Don't write them. I never, ever write New Year resolutions in January. Why? Because it's a brand new year and with that comes a sense of a fresh start, a chance to start again, a chance to change, be different, be better. Some would argue that is the perfect time to start again but in the flurry of all that newness and excitement I get carried away and set goals bigger than I can achieve.

Me and Mine | October 2018

The photo above was taken as we strolled through our home town. The gorilla was promoting a local costume and character hire company and he was making quite an impression! There were lots of children (and adults!) that were afraid of this very lifelike beast but Iris astounded me with how keen she was to get near the gorilla, squealing and laughing and reaching out for a high 5! She amazes me with her bravery, she is absolutely fearless.

Most Used Items | 0-12 Month

As first time parents we were easily convinced that we needed so many different things for our little bundle. Despite doing my research there were things that worked and things that didn't. It's largely to do with trial and error. Some babies will take to certain things and not others but these are the things that we found most useful in our first 12 months with Iris.

Living Arrows | Finger (and face, arms, body and toe) Painting!

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran. 

In my mind this was going to be a lovely Pinterest worthy parenting moment. In reality the photo above shows Iris gagging from the paint she just ate. It's made a good photo but ultimately this wasn't the calm, methodical painting session I imagined, partly due to Iris being a little young and partly due to my completely unrealistic expectation!  

Review | Lily and The Polar Bears by Jion Sheibani*

Lily and Grandpa are having a lovely day at the beach but who's that floating on the ocean? 

Lily and the Polar Bears tells the tale of how Lily brings home a whole bunch of polar bears and how after some fish fingers and a bedtime story those sometimes scary and often misunderstood polar bears become part of everyday life.