Sunday, we had a Valentine's Day themed lesson in church, so of course the girls had to dress for the occasion. Unfortunately, after all the fun we had Saturday and with Rylee Love still not feeling very well, both girls were very whiny, so we went home after Sunday School. But they did get a good start on learning John 3:16. Nothing makes me happier than seeing my babies learn about Jesus! When we got home, we gave them their Valentines from us since Ryan wouldn't be home on Valentine's Day. Payton Joy got Inside Out, a Shimmer and Shine DVD, and gummies. Rylee Love got Minecraft and Kitkats. Then Monday, I got them the Troll movie to share.
Tuesday was Valentine's Day. Since we had school, both girls got to celebrate at school with all their friends. We labeled cards, and of course I had to make them special shirts to wear. Their shirts say "I am SO loved. John 3:16" There is no greater love than that...
I got spoiled at school by my students, and then I came home to more. Ryan had baked my favorite peanut butter cookies and arranged them in a heart around a photo from our wedding, and he bought me flowers! I sure do love him! He got spoiled too. I bought him his favorite Reeses, and cooked then packed his favorite dinner for him to take to work: Salisbury steak, white rice, and green beans. I also included some chocolate chip cookies and a little love note. <3 p="">
Last night at church, we had a Valentine's party for the kids. They ordered pizza, and had treats, and games, and a craft. Unfortunately, Rylee Love was set off when the pizza arrived, and it was Dominos and not her favorite: Pizza Hut. I know this sound trivial, but sometimes with Autism, the triggers to meltdowns aren't the big things, it's the little stuff that the rest of us really wouldn't think twice about. She started to scream. And when she is having a meltdown, it becomes impossible to reason with her. I tried to bribe her to stop, I tried to hold her and calm her, I tried to be tough on her and tell her to dry it up, I offered to just take her home. Nothing worked until the meltdown had passed. Once it had passed, she did the craft with her friends, and then had a blast playing duck-duck-goose. But it was hard to deal with her being so upset and not being able to "fix" it. That's the thing that gets to me about her having autism and why I fought for answers before I knew it was autism, I knew when she would have these meltdowns that it was different than a tantrum. Discipline can prevent tantrums, but the only thing I have found to prevent meltdowns is to avoid triggers. This trigger was a new one. She's eaten Dominos pizza in the past without a problem. I'm not sure why it warranted screaming and crying for half an hour last night, but that's the hardest part is that her triggers are constantly changing, and lately it seems she's even more prone to meltdown than she ever has been before. I am hoping that with some new strategies, and extra sensory breaks, that soon she will be able to recognize when she is close to melting down and be able to use a strategy to avoid going into full meltdown mode.
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