First week.

WOW! We completed a week in the house! We are still around boxes and trying to get used to the routine.

So far, Pedro seems very calm at moments, but still having "his moments" of anger. The school goes very well some days and a disaster in other days. I keep trying. One day I was so exhausted and frustrated with his behavior at school that I had a thought of giving up, but a second thought came and I realize if I give up no one in Earh will never believe Pedro can do it.

Slowly Pedro is starting to feel at home but he still struggles with the new noise, smells, light ...all his sensory is very disorganized (me too) and I hope I can restart hlping him on this next week.

Luís is amazing, he is doing what he knows best, he is keeping energy high, happy and intense!

I am still feeling in a survivor mode. At home I just have one of my helpers (I am still looking for the second one). Pedro and her can understand each other most of the time, she already learnt some wods in English like apple, bread and drink. I also found a gluten/casein free bread for Pedro and he loved it, he is eating a loaf a day.

Luís likes the helper too and sometimes he follows her and Pedro working as a translator reapeting in English everything she says in Portuguese to Pedro. If I ask Luís about his Portuguese he answers he can just speak and understand English and Spanish (the second is not true).

I am planning to take pictures around the house when fewer boxes would be around. :)

Love,
Maria Schenk

A chave!

Ontem foi um dia super corrido, trabalhoso e sobrou trabalho para um mês no mínimo, mas finalmente tomamos posse da chave.

A casa ainda tem mil e uma pendêcias que com certeza a construtora irá solucionar, nesse meio tempo nós vamos dando mais trabalho, quase no final da desova do container descobriu-se que a geladeira nao passava na porta entāo a construtora retirou a porta, depois o batente, depois a janela ao lado, depois a porta da geladeira e ai a geladeira entrou :).

Entāo chegou o técnico para instalar o fogão que também nāo cabia no lugar designado e lá entrou a Santa Angela (construtora) em ação, corta mámore, cresce plataforma, e provavelmente sábado o fogão será instalado.

Apesar de todo o trabalho o dia foi divertido, importantíssima a manutenção do bom humor.

Houve uma cerimônia de entrega das chaves e nesse momento a porta estava fora da parede, o rapaz da entrega muito sério e formal acabou as gargalhadas quando batemos a foto do momento ao lado da porta desmontada e o muro ainda não terminado, como nós somos os primeiros moradores tiramos outra foto em frente a uma parede já terminada.

Os móveis vão dar um trabalhão para serem montados e principalmente para encontrarmos todas as partes que estão misturadas e espalhadas pela casa, mas, como diz a Ana, vamos que vamos! Acho que o pior já passou porque agora é só "dar forma" às nossas vidas e ir ajustando detalhes na casa.

Elaine, minha linda amiga, obrigada pela torcida, construção no Brasil não tem nada a ver com construção nos EUA, o condomínio ainda é um grande canteiro de obras com um vai e vem de tratores, o lado bom é que todos os nossos probleminhas na entrada das coisas foram solucionados de imediato porque é só chamar as equipes que já estão trabalhando na casa do vizinho. Tomara que não apareçam mais imprevistos para que os vizinhos tenham as casas finalizadas.

Por agora, somos os únicos a ter a posse da casa no condimínio e no fim de semana ja devemos mudar de vez.

Bjs, Marie :D (cansada e feliz)

Pedro at school

On Monday Pedro started school. His class has 25 kids including him.

First day was very confusing and hard for Pedro, there was a lot of talking and that disturbed him. We could hold there for one hour.

Second day the teacher adjust her talking and started with a worksheet, Pedro had access to a drawing book and the day ( a shorted one anyway) was smooth. The teacher asked me to have a meeting on the following day and I confess that got me a little nervous.

Third day, it was today and the meeting day :) the teacher adapted even further her class and started the day with a song and a rythm activity, Pedro was as happy as I ever seen him in the school, then she finalize with hugs between the kids, Pedro was so, so happy and the teacher too.

We had our meeting and it was very nice, the teacher read a "manual' about Pedro's sensory I gave her and she called some friends (a neurologist and a psicologist) on her own and they came up with the song plan :). She has some other ideas to be implemented. Next step is to build Pedro's spot in the class with books, stuffed animals, pillows and big enough that can fit 3 kids at least. She really got the idea!

She is getting some material to introduce autism to the other staff at school, we were so lucky Pedro's neighborhood school is very little, and then she wants to intruduce Pedro to the full school.

Not all schools in Brazil are so welcoming for people with challenges, I can say that this is not the norm. It was really a bless to get this teacher with a supportive principal.

I have in mind and the tacher agrees Pedro's adaptation will take at least a year because of the language and his own challenges , slow we go, the important is keep going ...

A fun fact, Pedro puts his pencil behind his ear, he doesn't do it at home, just at school, I know one of his aids at Washington did that but I don't recall who. He does that and looks at me as saying "I know where I am!".

Monkeys!

Our house is not ready yet, after a lot of rain that delayed the outside painting the construction company put 17 people working hard to finalize the house, but (there is always a "but") the company responsible for delivering the stairs (it is a 3 storage little house) could not make it, they ran out of wood, can anyone belive that? and now they ordered from another company. Hopefully they will deliver on Friday :)

Our stuff is already at Santos, this is the main port and is wating for the paper work and the inspection person scheduled for Thursday, if that happen (anything can happen) on Friday we will have our things in the new house.

So, let's pray!

Anyway, every moment has a good side. I could not keep driving so long distance every day so I found a Hotel near the new house, and schools, and etc. so we could get in a routine.

The hotel is a very little farm and the people are very nice and welcoming, they have a chikencoop with a chicken and a rooster, Pedro's favorite spot :) and in the morning some monkeys come for breakfast, they are Luís best friends!

Primeiro dia do Pedro na escola

Sete da manhã e lá fomos nós .... Pedro e eu, como seu suporte na classe, fomos para a escola.

O Pedro parecia disposto e quando viu as outras crianças esperando a abertura do portão foi se misturando, ele carregava seu "turkey" (um peru que ele ama e é cintilante vermelho e amarelo).

Entrando na escola, no chão já haviam as marcações de onde deveria ser formada a fila da classe do Pedro e isso ajudou que a entrada fosse tranquila. O Pedro entrou na classe e ficou observando a movimentação. Depois de alguns comentários com a classe a professora pediu que as crianças sentassem em círculo no chão, havia somente uma cadeira, a da professora e o Pedro lá sentou, um rdirecionamento rápido e ele sentou no chão com as outras crianças.

A professora é simpática, calma e doce, ela parece aceitar bem a presença do Pedro em sua classe, a hora da conversa com os alunos foi um pouco longa parao Pedro que com a dificuldade de entender o idioma ficava difícil engajá-lo, fizemos alguns recessos no pátio, alguns alongamentos e ele voltava para a sala, começou uma atividade de fazer um crachá, escrever o próprio nome num papel, como o Pedro é rápido nessas atividades foi cometido pelo tédio que gerou inquietação e essa segunda desrregulada, sem minhas "ferramentas" por perto não deu para contornar.

Voltei para a classe e avisei ao Pedro que para podermos ir embora ele teria que se acalmar, entrar na classe, juntar suas coisas, dar tchau aos colegas e aí sim, poderíamos ir embora, não foi fácil, mas foi possível. Duramos 1 hora na escola, já é um começo e ninguém tem pressa :) a adaptação do Pedro provavelmente demorará o ano inteiro, mas o importante é seguir caminhando.

Mãe sofre, não é fácil controlar as crises de frustração dos nossos filhos, isso é igual em todos os lugares do mundo, as sensações, os sentimentos são os mesmos, a grande diferença de Brasil e EUA que eu pude sentir hoje é "o meter a colher " de quem não sabe do que está falando, assim, só pelo bem. Só não fica claropara o "bem" de quem.

Na saída, após a crise controlada, a professora da outra classe, não a professora do Pedro, soltou o seguinte comentário: "Posso falar uma coisa? você dveria levá-lo à APAE. Agrrr! Mas mantemos o salto!! :)

Uma semana atribulada ...

Este foi o começo das nossas vidas no Brasil? Parece que sim e foi uma semana atribulada porém já tomando a forma da futura rotina.

Luís começou "new school" e parece ter se adaptado muito bem. Na segunda foi o primeiro dia e eu fiquei na escola mas ele não precisou de mim :) o resto da semana já ficou por si só e parece ter gostado. Para frequentar a escola dirigimos todos os dias de São Paulo a Jundiaí com trânsito e chuvas e o Luís foi muito paciente, posso dizer adorável nessa travessia diária.

De terça a quinta dediquei as trades em Jundiaí para resolver a vidinha do Pedro. Agora já matriculado na rede pública, conheci a professora e a diretora da sua futura escola que é pequena e parece aconchegante apesar da simplisidade das instalações, a prova dos nove será quando ele começar a frequentá-la e os problemas surgirem :).

Ele já está iniciado pelo processo da APAE para a validação do diagnóstico e então inicio de serviços e/ou apoio a inclusão.

Foi uma semana de realizações que não teriam sido possíveis sem a ajuda de uma grande alma, linda pessoa e maravilhosa amiga: a Soninha.

Na sexta ainda pudemos disfrutar de uma linda tarde com o Pedro em Jundiaí que se divertiu regando a grama, pulando a janela e outras macaquices na casa da Soninha.

Foi lindo ver as expressões do Gabriel a cada macaquice nova do Pedro e receber o carinho da minha querida amiga neste mometo em que só um colinho me ajudou a sobreviver.

Não foi fácil, mas hoje tenho o sentimento de que mais uma etapa foi cumprida, porém ainda estou à espera dos tão sonhados "dias melhores".

What a week!!!!!

Was this the beginning of our life in Brazil? I think so. It was a busy week, quite stressfull but full of realizations.

Luís started his new school, in his classroom the teachers speak in English all the time, this helped him a lot. On Monday I stayed in the school all the time but he didn't need me :), the rest of the week I dropped him off and went to research about Pedro's school. Luís is such a big boy!! To go to school every day we had to drive for about 2 hours in trafic, tropical rain and hways, Luís did so great, so patient, so amazing. By the end of the week he was not bitting his nails anymore and he was very happy for having a routine.

On Tuesday I met with Pedro's new school's principal, a nice lady and a figther for inclusion, just what we need. Wendnesday I had a meeting with a psicologist to guide on Pedro's plan but she thinks she cannot really help us, anyway, we will try. Thursday I had a meeting with Pedro's future teacher, another nice lady, with a lot of experience with typical kids, I explained about Pedro and she didn't feel would be hard, let's see .... let's see when class starts :)

Anyway, I will be his aid in the class until they hire and train someone, this can take a while and I prefer like that.

On Thursday I also started Pedro's process to valid his diagnostic and he will finally had some neurologic exames done. To acelerated the process the social worker decided to enroll his USA diagnostic. After this process he will receive some services in a public institution and keep the regular school. About the quality of services I am not sure but I think he is in a point of his development that keeping his mind busy and away from TV is the most important.

Friday I drove him too to the city we are going to live and after dropping off Luís I stoped by the house, not ready yet because of the tropical rain, and from the outside I could explain Pedro about the new house showing the windows and describing each room. then we stopped by his new school I showed the classroom and he seemed very alert about everything, Pedro saw the bathrooms, one pink and one blue and got in the blue one for a potty, so nice. Then he played in the playground for a while.

So we head to spend the afternoon in a friend's house, she has an autistic boy, 13 years old and even with a hard routine she has been helping me a lot, without her help I couldn't done through this week.

Like always, I am managing life by myself, André is travelling.

I miss my friends in Wenatchee but I don't miss the cold weather :D