The rest of the day

It would be so satisfying to write that the rest of the day went incredibly well and Julia is just chomping at the bit to go back to school tomorrow, but it might be that reality is so much more interesting.

I picked Julia up from school early -- we ha a doc appointment that was the only available time for the doc. I arrived just as Julia's class was coming out of the door and heading for the playground. Julia was holding hands with her teacher, Christy, and walking quite easily. She was happy to see me, and Christy told me that Julia had had a good day. I am not sure what that means although I expect that she followed directions and acted like a good kindergarten student. Julia learned this last school year in Indianapolis and I hope that some of it transferred over.

We went to our doctor and Julia had a good visit. She was very cooperative with weight, height, etc. gathering. She completed part of an eye exam. I had a good talk with the doctor and we have registered to be evaluate at a developmental clinic. I told her about my suspicions that Julia has sensory integration issues and the doc confirmed that the clinic was a good place to start. She also said that the school would do some assessment which would be helpful to us and that we might want to see a therapist to help us with Julia's anger.

We left the doc's office and I was feeling pretty good. We have had a good summer. Julia has spent her time with me most of her days. Her behavior improved greatly after we moved to Madison and were living with David again on a full time basis. We worked on her colors, letters, and numbers. She has most of her colors down pretty well, can count and recognize a few letters. However, the early morning at the school made me realize how far we are from truely normal behavior. I explained to the doctor that we have reached a plateau with Julia and I did not know how to move further. My stress level rose pretty quickly but after talking to the doctor I feel like we can do something that will help Julia move on.

Back to the day. After the doctors, Julia and I went to Target to find a lunch box and accesories. I wanted to involve Julia with each part of the purchase so she would be invested in her lunch box. She picked out a "Cars" lunch box, a "Hello Kitty" thermos, and a Dora reuseable ice. She was invested.

And here is when catastophy hit.

I went to check out and discovered that I did not have my wallet and so had no way to pay. I wanted to dash home, get the wallet, and come back to the store. I got Julia outside, and had a time dragging her to the car and getting her in. Then the tantrum really began. Julia let go and had her first major tantrum in a long time. She screamed and kicked and yelled at me (Yes, her language has gotten so much better) for the whole ride back ot the house and some of the return. While she was screaming, I was telling her what I was going to do and later that I had done what I said that I would and that I was her mother and she could trust me.

When Julia calmed down, I asked if she wanted to go into Target to pay for what we had left there. We went in together and paid for her lunch box. Then we did a good food shopping and went home. Julia's behavior was very loving. She wanted lots of hugs and kisses. She talked a lot.

I don't write to complain or whine about our experience. I want to record my impressions of this journey so that I can undertand the big picture at some point in the future.