Still reading...

I'm still getting used to the change in our lives since B found he can immerse himself in a book to overcome the OCD thoughts (most of the time). He has been working steadily through the "Young Jedi Knights" series, occasionally updating me as he goes along, which is great because I read these books when he was a baby & have forgotten a lot of the story. Because of the reading, B hasn't had a melt-down since Monday & I feel almost a vacuum from the lack of these intense incidents that usually pepper our days. When he's not reading B has been preferring to work on his legos & the stories he dreams up to go with them. He hasn't played on the computer for a couple of days & the only tv he's watching is in the morning before I get up. It's all very different, but it feels good & healthy for him.

B's aversion to meat is becoming more a part of daily life as well. He's been choosing good protein alternatives (a concern because he's sensitive to certain textures, tastes, & smells & rejects a lot of what he's offered). He's been taking a multivitamin with iron for a few years now, so living on beans, dairy (with lactaid tablets), & tofu should be ok (he eats fresh fruit every day & likes veggies like edamame soybeans, peas, carrots, & will eat a salad without cucumber :). B told me today while grocery shopping that the thing that sets off meltdowns at the store is going by the meat section, so we came up with a compromise. We had gotten some corn & they had a station where you could shuck the corn bfore taking it home. So I left him shucking corn while I quickly got the items that were near the meat section (cheese & bagels). It worked like a charm & he hardly ticced at all until we were almost done & checked out. Another victory! It was lovely not to be scrambling for diversions while trying to get everything on the list :)

Yesterday we had a visit from dear friends who live in Buffalo. Ros, a folk singer & composer, composed a song for us & sang it for our wedding nearly 18 years ago & her husband Tom is a brilliant former geologist who can converse on just about any topic. They are like an extra set of grandparents for B & behave accordingly, always remembering his birthday & bringing a little present when they come to visit, or have something for him when we vist them. I have known Ros for 24 years. We met when she came up to the summer camp I worked at in the early 80's to do one of the weekly programmes for the campers. A shared love of music was what started our friendship, & we always do something musical when we get together, like have a jam session with rhythm instruments or hear a newly composed song. We also love to share our local ethnic restaurants with each other, so yesterday we went for Thai. B loved the fried tofu with his rice & the mango juice. He & I folded origami balloons while we waited for the food, as we all chatted. C had decided that Tom would be a good person for B to challenge to a game of go & it turned out that he had played go many years ago but was rusty on the rules, so he & C ended up challenging B to 2 games, the first of which they won, but then B came back to win the second (!). Ros & I just caught up on things. After lunch we took home-made ice cream down to the bay & ate it with a lovely breeze coming off the water. It was so civilised. B had a nice time visiting, too, between playing go & telling Ros about school.

Today B gets to spend the afternoon with his best buddy, E. So, off to lunch & a fun afternoon!