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A momentous week

It’s a momentous week for me. Both my babies are at school. I no longer have a child at home. Elizabeth started school for the first time on Monday and although I’m very happy about this, and so is she, I have felt a bit teary waving her off everyday since then.

School has been great for both of them so far. Daniel has a few learning difficulties because of his autism and Tourette’s syndrome, but the school is bending over backwards for him. We are actually quite stunned by the level of support he is receiving so far. He seems to be happy there too which is a big relief for us. We were quite concerned because they’ve put him in year 4 whereas he was doing year 3 in New Zealand. He also struggled to keep up with some of the things they were doing in year 3, especially hand-writing. Elizabeth, who has only just started school, has better hand-writing than Daniel so he’s kind of at the kindergarten level in this area. But the school thinks this is best and they’re going to give him full-time support in the areas he’s struggling with and full-time support means a teacher sitting with him one-on-one. This is just amazing and is not something he’s ever had before so we are very impressed.

Meanwhile Busby is doing lots of wonderful things like giving me strong legs and more importantly, helping me make friends as he’s quite a talking point here, even more so than in York. I haven’t seen any other cargo bikes at all so far so I’m one-of-a-kind. I feel like a bit of a celebrity (but without all the negative stuff) and I’m lapping it up 🙂

I’ve been cycling on the footpaths mostly, I even ride straight past the police station but so far no-one has complained. I mostly get lots of smiles and compliments and intriguing looks. Life is pretty good.

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Rachel M

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Comments

20 responses to “A momentous week”

  1. Chait Avatar
    Chait

    One-to-one support for Daniel is awesome! I am sure Daniel will be alright as long as you ensure he doesn’t get exposed to peer pressure.

    Glad that it is all good for you 🙂

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      Thanks, Chait. Thankfully Daniel doesn’t have problems socially and always seems to make friends easily. It might get tougher as he gets older but so far so good. I do worry about teasing sometimes, especially with the Tourette’s, but so far it hasn’t been a problem.

      Reply
  2. argentumvulgaris Avatar
    argentumvulgaris

    Careful of the paparazzi… they haunt celebrities. 🙂

    AV

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      Thanks for the tip! 🙂

      Reply
  3. scifihammy Avatar
    scifihammy

    Scottish schooling is excellent! Very glad to hear of all the support Daniel is getting. I am sure he and Elizabeth will thrive. My daughter had a Tourette’s boy in her high school maths class, and when he got a little too much for the teacher, she sent him off for a walk around the field! (He couldn’t sit still) But his maths and music skills were impressive.
    And it is to be expected you are missing your baby – it will happen over and over right up to when they move to another country! But family bonds are strong, so you never lose them. Carry on enjoying Scotland 🙂

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      I hope my babies don’t ever move to a different country.

      Daniel can’t sit still either and he’s pretty good at mathematics too. But the tics can be distracting for other children in the class and it also makes it harder for the teacher so I’m always so grateful to the schools and the teachers he’s had. This one seems to be particularly good. I’ve heard good things about the Scottish education system and so far it all seems to be true.

      Reply
      1. Steve Bloom Avatar
        Steve Bloom

        Assuming your relocation to Scotland is permanent, at some point a different country seems likely to move to them!

      2. Rachel M Avatar
        Rachel M

        I dunno. They might be those kids who like to stay in the place they grew up 🙂

      3. Steve Bloom Avatar
        Steve Bloom

        I was referring to Scotland becoming a country. But if that happens, your kids can always just move to York, thus keeping their current country firmly in place beneath them! .

      4. Rachel M Avatar
        Rachel M

        Oh right. I’m a bit slow 🙂 I doubt that’ll happen. Not in the near future anyway. And yes, our move to Scotland is permanent … I hope!

  4. Sherri Avatar
    Sherri

    Sounds like you are taking Aberdeen by storm Rachel…good for you girl 🙂

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      I’m not sure about that but I’m trying my best.

      Reply
  5. ladysighs Avatar
    ladysighs

    Life is not static.
    Close your eyes and open them again.
    Enjoy each bit of their life. 🙂
    The best is yet to come.

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      “The best is yet to come” I’m not sure how it could possibly get any better 🙂

      Reply
      1. ladysighs Avatar
        ladysighs

        The teen years will be much better. lol

        Glad to hear the schools are meeting expectations and more.

  6. GrahamInHats Avatar
    GrahamInHats

    I’m glad Daniel has such good schooling. I’m sure it will make a world of difference to his future.
    Hang on a mo. I’ve just got to beat the internet to death. Thash better.

    Sounds as if you are going to have a great time in Aberdeen and I’m very pleased for you all. Watch out for the deep winter though, that part of Scotland can get very Norwegian. Prepared is warm and cosy. 🐻 🙂

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      Everyone is warning me about the weather and I’m well prepared. I have so many crocheted winter woollies (or at least I will once the ship with our belonging arrives) and crocheted things are extra warm.

      Reply
      1. GrahamInHats Avatar
        GrahamInHats

        Glad to hear it. 🙂

  7. Denise Avatar
    Denise

    I’m so pleased school is working out. It can be such a matter of luck as to what your local school is like regarding support, and the facilities they have for it. The noticeable thing about our primary schools is just how much learning is expected of our children – it’s a political thing. The irony being that the system as a whole doesn’t seem to be producing generations that are any better educated than previous ones, in a number of important areas. So much is crammed into the curriculum before many children are ready for it, all in the name of “raising standards.”

    Reply
    1. Rachel M Avatar
      Rachel M

      Yes, I agree. We checked out three schools before deciding on one to go with and this one was the clear winner. They were just much more relaxed and their attitude is to go with whatever works for the kids which I think is great.

      Reply

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