ways to help distract your autistic child?

I'm always looking for ways to help the days go easier with my 4 year old autistic son,anything that helps to stop constant screaming in my household is gladly appreciated :)
Here is the top 3 things that so far seem to work for us:

1. Dressing up 

Ethan loves dressing into differant costumes no matter how mad or silly,hes not good with roleplaying but loves to stand for pictures when all done up and this can pass an hour easily :)

2. Cooking

a new thing ethan has really gotten into is cooking whether its home pizzas,cookies or cakes he just loves them all and has great fun experimenting and tasting this has not only helped to stimilate him as he hates certain textures but has learnt to touch them in a fun way, it has also helped his appetite as he is more willing to try new things.

3. Animals and bugs

whether its a trip to our local garden centre to see the animals or finding bugs in the garden ethan loves them all and will happily spend 30 mins to several hours happily in his task of looking for/looking after them :)

Any ideas from anyone greatly appreciated or tips on happy mealtimes/helping to convince to use cutlery greatly appreciated :)

Its easter!

Happy Easter everyone!

I hope you have all had a good day we for one certainly have,we have done lots of colouring,watching dvds and dressing up as silly as we possibly could and lets not forget the excitement the kids have had from eating their easter eggs!  the kids were even lovely enough to give daddy and me a cream egg each so we all had some CHOCOLATE  hehe
it was great fun....love to each and every one of my fantastic followers.

silent sunday

Babble Bib review

The lovely people over at Babble Bib have very kindly sent me one of their bibs for my son to test and review.

Babble Bib the perfect bib for dribbling babies who want to look cool while they do it!

Suitable for ages 4-36 months in the Baby/Toddler sizes however they do also stock sizes to fit upto 10 years great if a older child wants to look cool or if like my 4 year old they have a disability which in my sons case results in them dribbling alot and being very messy when eating.

Washable at 30 degrees,it is made from stretch jersey cotton and cotton micro-fleece with 2 nickel free fasteners.

Made in the uk

Our thoughts:

We received the City Slicker design RRP:  £3.99

The first things that caught my eye was how smart it looked and how very soft it felt,i have brought and tested other dribble bibs and i must say out of all of them this was by far the softest.

I loved how there wasn't much packaging involved which is brilliant as i hate all the fiddly bits and pieces.We used our bib right away to go into town it fit him well and i must say he seemed to be really comfy in it :)

Now aaron tends to dribble loads as hes yet to get his first tooth through yet is constantly teething!

When we removed for washing at the end of the day it was really wet on the outer part due to my sons dribbling however the fleecy underneath had stayed really nice and dry and he had no redness or anything around his neck or chin from it rubbing or anything.

I placed it into a 30 degree wash and it came out and got put on the washing line.Afterwards i checked it and found it had retained its shape and softness which i was really grateful for as some tend to look wrinkled or misshapen but it still looked like it had just come out of the package,also i would love to add they have great popper attachments you find some really tough to clip in or get open again but they went in well and came off easily(but not soo easily that a baby could pull off)

We both love this product! 

To view their products,get more information or to buy please visit their website by clicking here

To view their facebook page please click here

To follow their twitter page please click here

Disclosure: i was not paid to do this review only to keep the product as a thank you for the time put into my review,all thoughts and opinions are my own.

saturday is caption day

Daisy roots review

I was recently sent  a gorgeous pair of shoes for my son to review by the wonderful people over at Daisy Roots.

Daisy roots use eco friendly leather which make their shoes safer for the enviroment and also those that like to suck their toes like my son.

They also have them vegetable dyed so they contain no nasty chemicals.

Designed and manufactured in northamptonshire since 1995 they currently have over 300 retailers worldwide making them one of the largest independant uk producers of childrens soft leather shoes.

What i thought:

I received the Bee design in size 6-12 months RRP: £18.50

My first thoughts were how it looked soo pretty in the bag it came in it really displayed them well and being clear packaging showed you exactly what you were getting perfect for if you were purchasing from a shop as it saves you having to get them out to look at them first.

I loved the bright colours and design they were differant and made my son stand out in the crowd i  even had a few mummy's stop me in town and comment on how lovely they were and were to buy them from which i was more than happy to tell them.

My son found these to be really comfortable both inside and out as they are soo soft and flexible they allowed good foot movement and also had a good amount  of room for foot growth without being too large.

The things i really like about these shoes are: 

• The bright bold designs
• The soft materials 
• The elastic around ankle which helped for a good fit and also prevented losing his shoes

The one thing i wasnt too keen on was:

• The price, i would of preferred it if they were nearer to £15.00 to better meet my budget.

All in all i love these shoes and if i were to rate them they would get a big 9/10!

To visit the Daisy Roots website please click here

To visit the Daisy Roots facebook page please click here

To visit Daisy Roots twitter page please click here

National Autism Awareness Month April 2012

As you are all aware my son ethan 4 has autism with it he also has very lax ligaments speech problems and severe headaches and i as a parent and mummy blogger aim to help him in as many ways as possible whether it be coping with everyday life/schooling/speech, fun days out/experiences or products aimed to helping children like him to make everyday living easier be it good sensory toys/flash cards,clothing,good places to take them that understand your child's additional needs ect.


A bit more information about autism:


So you are thinking what is autism?


Autism is a complex developmental disability that causes problems with social interaction and communication.
All people with autism are so very different from each other each with their own problems and difficulties.
It is normally known as a spectrum disorder which is a group of disorders with similar features.you may have 1 person with mild symptoms while another has serious ones.

The current autism spectrum disorder category includes:

• Autistic disorder
• Asperger syndrome
• pervasive developmental disorder or atypical autism

There are 3 groups with a higher than normal risk of having autism these include:

• Boys
• Siblings of those with autism
• People with certain other development disorders such as fragile x syndrome

Some examples of autism spectrum disorder spectrum disorder symptoms include:

• social skills
• speech,language and communication
• repeated behaviors and routines
• development

Symptoms relating to social skills can include:

• not making eye contact and wanting to be alone(my son tends to give brief eye contact)
• trouble understanding other peoples feelings or talking about their own
• not wanting to be held or cuddled or only cuddling when they want to(this is what my son falls under)
• not seeming to notice when people are trying to talk to them
• being really interested in people but not sure of how to talk,play or relate to them(i notice this with my son all the time he will look and watch them often with a smile on his face but often will not make a move to join in with their activities)
• not interacting like others would do or not being interested in others at all.

Symptoms relating to speech,language and communication can include:

• standing too close to some1 when they are talking
• speaking with a flat sounding voice
• inability to control how loudly or softly they talk
• stick with the same conversation for too long
• talking about what they like rather than having a 2 way conversation
• speaking well and knowing loads of words but having trouble listening to others(my son cant speak too well he is getting better but alot of what he says most people still cant understand as it all sounds the same)

Repeated behaviors and routines:

People with autism might repeat actions over and over again,they tend to like having routines where things stay the same so they know what to expect and may have trouble with changes.

Development delay:

Children with autism develop differently from other children.where children without autism develop at  about the same rate in areas of development, like motor,language,cognitive and social skills.children with it develop at different rates in different areas . They may have large delays in language,social and cognitive skills yet their motor skills are about the same as other children their age.they may be good at puzzles or problem solving but not at things others find easy like talking and making friends.you might also find they can learn a skill but then seem to forget it again.

All kids are different whether they have a disability or not all these children want is to be like everyone else they just need a little bit more help  than others the same age.

So the next time you see a child screaming its head off on the floor or hitting out,or like my son did the other day at the bus stop he without warning pulled his trousers over his bum exposing it shook it and shouted at top of his voice my bum baby yours is big!! 

plz don't judge we have a hard enough time as it is helping our children to learn right from wrong(although i must say i struggled not to laugh as this woman kept staring at him for talking funny for his age!)

Autistic children are not a burden they are a blessing with a hidden disability :)

Easter with the kids

Friday 30th march 
Easter egg hunting at school.

Well ethan has been really looking forward to this day talking about egg this and that non stop all week!and the day was finally upon us would it be a success or a failure i wondered?

well to be honest it was a bit of both, it all started off well ethan and his little sister alisha was both handed a piece of paper and a pen on the paper there where shapes that they had to match up to the ones hidden around the school and on the field and we had the put the letter that was on each shape into appropiate shape on the paper to make up a special easter message...easy right?....wrong! it was crazy and manic ethan loved it running off and hiding at every oppurtunity while alisha ran in the opposite direction and i was there trying to keep an eye on both while also looking out for the darn shapes which where well hidden i must say.
All in all it took us 1 1/2 hours and even then only because another parent told us the last 2 which i was extremely grateful for as by now alisha was crying constantly due to being awoken from nap to collect ethan and start the hunt and ethan getting tired due to his routine he has to stick to.
however he seemed happy to win his chocolate egg :)

Next up was the easter hat contest, they all had to stand in a line for 10 minutes while the judges checked out their eggsallent creations easier said than done as ethan dont tend to like standing still for more than a minute and started to get bored of waiting.they didnt win which is fine as im hopeless at helping them with arty projects so didnt expect them to, unfortunatly ethan had a meltdown not understanding why he didnt win  and by time it had ended he and his sister missed out on a lolly for taking part as the lady given them out had disappeared this in turn started him off again upset about that only this time alisha got upset over it too needless to say i was at the point id had enough and we decided to leave for the park right next to the school where ethan and alisha both perked up played and ate their eggs resulting in a lovely end to the day.

All in all a successful day!  :)

April: Bowel cancer awareness month

Did you know some1 dies from bowel cancer every 30 seconds?i could not believe it when i heard that i mean you dont even stop to think about it really just take these things for granted,well i can tell you now it has certainly opened my eyes!


Bowel cancer happens when the cells in your bowel multiply and attack the surrounding tissue it can then spread to other areas of the body.
Another name for it is:  Colen cancer.




Most people can have a really good chance of recovery if caught early but unfortunatly only 9% are caught at the early stage!


Signs to look out for:

• A pain or lump in your stomach
• Feeling more tired than normal
• Losing weight for no obvious reason
• Hving blood in your poo for the last 3 weeks

These symptoms do not mean you have Bowel cancer but it is still best to be seen as it could still be the sign of another problem.

All i can say is you have nothing to lose but Everything to gain! so if you spot any of these do get checked.

300 likes suprise

ok my wonderful followers i have decided to do a random small giveaway to one random follower but first id like to reach 300 blog followers so plz share and spread the word anywhere you can and my blog link and leave a comment below telling me you have to get 1 extra entry(dont forget facebook or twitter name in case you win) xx

Easter ideas

Its Easter!! time for fun! chicks,chocs and Easter gifts and here is my run up of some great finds that i personally and you might love :)

                               Thorntons  Chocolate bramble egg £1.99 or 3 for 2*if you buy online 

                                    Thorntons carrie clutch bag model £6.49

                                     Find me a gift  jellycat bashful bunny currently on sale for £5.99

                                      Find me a gift Happy Easter chocolate pizza £11.95

                                     Not on the high street.com £12.00

                                  Hotel chocolate Easter chicken coup £9.00

                                  delights.co.uk  £19.49

Caption saturday

saturday is caption day

BuggyTug

We were sent the BuggyTug to test and review by the lovely Di from the BuggyTug facebook page
It was sent out pretty fast(shame the same couldn't be said for the postie)


"Made by a mum to make your life easier and your child safer"
The BuggyTug is designed to connect you to your buggy and as such result in your baby being safer as you have total control all the time.

My thoughts:


The first thing i noticed was how there was hardly any packaging involved just enough to safely send and protect the product,this for me was brilliant as i not only hate fiddly,masses of plastic ect i also like to know im doing my bit for the enviroment so this alone gets the big thumbs up from me.
i loved how it felt strong and stretchy.When attaching it was a piece of cake simply wrap it around  the buggy handle and put one end through via the metal hoop and you are ready to go.Upon putting on i was really suprised by how comfortable i found it no rubbing whatsoever.
The only prob i did have was when my 4 year old decided to have a meltdown or run into the road as i had to remove from hand before i could grab him,however a mummy friend has suggested using it for him to hold when hes with me and on my wrist when hes not which is what im going to do from monday :).
All in all i really like the BuggyTug it really is a good idea and a very useful product and for the price you cant go wrong!.

You can buy the BuggyTug directly from the website it costs just £3.99 plus £2.00 p&p
You can also bu from stockists such as:
Boots and john lewis to name a couple.


  
Also coming soon is the TugTrio :)


To visit the BuggyTug website please clickhere
To visit BuggyTug on facebook please click here
To visit BuggyTug on twitter please click here

What was number one when your child was born?

I have recently been tagged in a very simple meme by
Trials and Tribulations of a Brummie mummy   to let you know which song was number one when Carla was born


I can honestly say i didnt know they were number one let alonf for 2 weeks,However i must say i loved(still do infact)this song it was:


Lou Bega and Mambo No 5(A little bit of...) august  29-12 september 1999.

Im tagging the following people to share their first child's number one song.


Tiger Tales
Charlie monsters fun house
Bubbaslovesblog page

Caption saturday