Summer and toddler fun
Maisie is a happy and playful little girl, curious about everything around her, and is demanding and so much fun in equal measure! She’s really come in to her own little personality and she can be quite the rascal and full of mischief. Quiet at times and will cling to me or cry if someone else takes her but a little distraction and she is happy once again. She is walking now, a little unsteady on her feet and still preferring the Koala Clasp as we like to call it. Therefore being her mum can be pretty full on at times. Yet we are delighted she is walking and with a bit more encouragement we hope she’ll be flying it by the end of the summer.
Parenting a child with additional needs can be challenging but not anywhere as much as I thought it would be. In fact I take much joy from being able to communicate with Maisie through Lámh, an Irish method of signing. I love how responsive she is to it and she actively participates by signing back to us. In time Maisie will drop the sign once she can say the word. Physio is important but this is always done through play. She’s been standing sturdily for almost a year so I did expect her to take steps soon afterwards but it’s important I remind myself that Maisie will do things at her own pace. She is becoming more confident at walking, loves to join in games with her siblings or play by herself, bounce on the trampoline, read her stories etc. Sounds like a busy little girl wanting to do lots of things for herself which, is something any parent of a toddler can relate to. (Maybe this is one of the reasons I write about her or have a public page on Instagram…I want to advocate for her, and to demonstrate that she is more than her diagnosis. We are immensely proud of her, as we are of our other kids(who btw also face their own challenges like all kids do) but with Maisie, we have to shout a little bit louder!)
Maisie’s favourite games currently include hide and seek and hanging up the laundry. She used to love hiding objects or toys but now she loves to go into the play tent in her room, hiding from us and playing peek a boo. It’s so cute! As are her attempts at hanging up the washing. It’s great to know I won’t have to bribe her to help with household chores unlike her older brother!
Music is big in our house. Prior to now Maisie would have moved around on her bottom to music but more recently she stands in the one spot and waves her arms in the air, side to side, with the addition of some fabulous facial expressions it’s so much fun to watch her and even more fun to join in.
I’m in a lucky position to be able to be with the kids at home. Sure they drive me demented at times and I’m sleep deprived most nights but soon I’ll be back at work part time in my garden studio, creating my ceramic and textile work (I did my BA degree in Contemporary Crafts at MMU, a long time ago!) During the pandemic I got stuck into gardening🌸 Planting seeds and growing flowers gives me joy and some much needed head space. My garden studio has become just that, a place to store my gardening tools, dried flowers etc plus it’s my workspace and in effect, my happy place.
