Hello Sunshine!!! If you live in the metro area…. we went almost the whole month of January without seeing the sun! Whew! So glad to know that it is still there! AND that there are only 43 more days until spring!! Whoop! Whoop! Downhill stretch from here!
So… Social groups, clubs, getting together with friends… How do your kiddos do with those things? My oldest, he is good. He calls everyone his friend. He did many years of social groups and I believe they helped. We also had a service dog… from Can Do Canines, sigh, her name was Windy. She came to us when she was 2 and passed away in 2018 at 12 years of age. She went everywhere with Alex, even to school. I really credit her for the outgoing person he has become. But my second is very quiet. It’s extremely hard for him to make friends. So… we collaborated on a highly coveted Christmas gift. We paid some and he paid some. In turn he was to join a club or group. So… a couple weeks ago, he brought home a listing of new clubs that were starting at school for 2nd semester. Awesome! I looked at the list… there were so many to choose from and many that he liked. So naturally I just starting filling out the form to send in. Done! Not so fast mom –“I’m NOT going to those clubs.” Dang it anyhow! So the search was STILL on… looking for that one club or group where he would feel comfortable and hopefully make some friends. I happened to see a post on Facebook, in one of the groups I belong to. It talked about a social group in Hopkins. I emailed the leader and asked some questions. She said they do a 1 time trial, to see if the student gets along with the current participants and to see if it’s an overall good match. Well… after several weeks of the trial being postponed, on our part, we finally attended last week. After it was finished, I asked my son – “So did you like it?” “Well it was very different than what I thought it would be.” Me – “You didn’t answer my question, did you like it? Yes or No?” “Yes.” Me – “Would you like to come back?” “Yes!” At that moment I think I heard angels singing! It was truly a wish come true! I think I literally flew home that night – nothing was going to put me in a foul mood. Of course… now this week… senior orientation is on the same night and time. MAN!!
(I talked with his case manager and decided….the momentum is there and I don’t want to lose it… so… send home the info on senior orientation – because my son isn’t going… he is going to a social group!) YES!!! And – the case manager totally agreed!!
As always, here are a few links to the subjects I talked about in this month’s Islander.
Social group we are now attending – FunJoyment groups
http://johnmerges.com/mergesgroup/funjoyment-groups/
Local Libraries have free clubs:
https://www.anokacounty.us/2764/Events-Classes – Anoka County
https://hclib.bibliocommons.com/events/search/index- Hennepin County
https://rclreads.bibliocommons.com/events/search/index – Ramsey County
University of MN autism center groups –
Tune in next month for summer planning.
As always… give me a call if you have questions about my services or have resources you think would benefit others!
Need a Guide? Please call!
Lora Cracraft
763-360-9715 call or txt
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Happy Floating! (it’s STILL freezing out there, so… Happy Sliding!)