Jack has been at a coding class all week during the fall break, so I thought we could take Heidi for a walk at the dog park when I picked him up yesterday.  He was happy to get outside and walk.  We all needed the exercise and Heidi was especially happy to wander off leash.

There was a fine dusting of snow last night so I'll wait a little while to walk the dogs this morning, and I will wear my ice cleats (even though I hate them).  They feel weird on my feet and make a horrible noise on cement.  I am tired of slipping and falling though.

I just finished sending off a blistering comment to our contemptible premier with regards to her last three years in office, all of her broken promises, and all of the money she has wasted in this province.  Somewhat satisfying.  Right now there are only two MLAs with active recall petitions being signed, with more in the pipeline.  More satisfying.  I'm also gathering signatures for a petition to stop public tax dollars from going to private schools.  

As the weather is now upleasant, I've decided to restart work on the quilts that are works in progress.  I started on Jack's yesterday.  It won't take long and when I have it together, I will take a photo of it.  Not sure if he'll like it but the fabric has been bought already, and it is Superman.  

Skills building group on Wednesday was excellent again.  I didn't cry this time which was nice.  We talked about a variety of topics, but mostly problem solving and active listening.  They're good skills to have now and to have going forward as Jack gets older and the problems get more complicated.  I always have a hard time knowing if Jack's behaviors are normal or from his trauma, so asked the pediatric psychiatrists.  They all declared the behaviors were normal in children.  Thank you.

I'm also working really hard on staying calm at suppertime and bathtime, or the witching hour/hours.  Everybody is tired and hungry.  But I'm working on it.  Jack was kind enough to offer me a way to keep calm the other night, which didn't irritate me at all (it did irritate me but I kept my mouth shut).  I guess on the pro side, he's learning new ways of dealing with his anger and the anger of others.  They also spend a lot of time working on how to deal with bullying from other the kids (in my life it was a huge problem).  

All of the kids are in the group are old enough to realize they are different and I think that carries some shame for them sadly.  I always point out to Jack that I have the same thoughts and behaviors as he does, that it's okay, he's not the only one.  He's been worried about bad thoughts lately.  When I asked him what kinds of bad thoughts, he told me he thinks about swear words a lot.  I told him, me too:)  I also told him that if he needs to get them out, he can tell me the swear words while we're in the car, and it will be private (a way to safely vent).

I'm off to quilt.