Roughly twenty years ago I started my journey with the Alexander Technique. I feel like all of my experience thus far has been preparing me for this moment in my life now, helping Amy with her Schroth therapy homework. So far we only have three things for her to practice – breathing to engage her diaphragm, sitting upright with her arms in a certain raised position, and a squat of sorts while holding onto a support above her head. I love being able to help guide her with my hands and verbal directions so that she is using her whole body easily to support her and not narrowing her back in an effort to be upright. I love seeing and feeling the slight changes in her in response to my guidance. Yesterday as I helped her sit upright before she raised her arms, I asked if she felt supported or if it was hard to sit upright. She said with some surprise that it felt much easier than usual. There are so many times in life when someone may suggest a lifestyle change or homework that feels new and overwhelming, so it feels comforting that my hands and voice know just what to do without having to reinvent the wheel.
A week ago Sarah had a rough Sunday evening. She took her customary looooong bath, but when she was done I could tell there was still shampoo in her hair and that some of her hair hadn’t gotten wet or clean at all. I surprised myself by my calm insistence that we had to remedy the situation. After much screaming in protest she agreed to get in the shower and let me wash her hair. In the midst of that, somehow things went awry and she slipped and fell in the tub. That was a scary moment but luckily she was ok. Shaken and upset (as was I), but ok. After finally getting her hair clean and freshly braided, she was dressed and downstairs as Carl was fixing dinner. She started playing with a new model truck that Carl received for Father’s Day. It matches the trucks he works on automating. Unfortunately, Sarah tried to open the truck doors using the side mirrors. While the doors are made to open, the mirrors aren’t strong enough to be the handles and they snapped off. Carl was not pleased and Sarah felt very upset. To her credit, later in the week when she made a birthday card for Carl, she drew a truck and colored it with the colors of the rainbow. She also wore a shirt with a truck on it.
Amy had another good week of camp, including swimming! She also reconnected with a friend she had from preschool but hadn’t seen in years. It had been so long that it took them a few days to realize that they used to know each other. Unfortunately, most of the outdoor events for camp had to be inside because the air quality in Pittsburgh was terrible due to to the Canadian wildfires. It was so bizarre to have a situation where we wanted to mask outside and then could remove masks inside – the reverse of our experience for the pandemic years. It also points out how unusual these past few years have been that everyone of course has masks at the ready. On the first day of camp with bad air I didn’t think to send Amy with a mask and now she has a bit of a cough which we suspect may be from the time outside as she went in between her classes.
Sarah and I went to the Science Center twice and it was lovely to have such relaxed time together. She currently loves pretending to be Daniel Tiger and Mom Tiger as they embark on a journey and hold hands. So now Sarah wants to hold my hand! I relish this because she hasn’t wanted to hold my hand walking places in years. We started each visit with lunch in the cafeteria and then walked up the ramps to the fourth floor ball area. Technically it is for ages 6 and under and they even check with some parents as they enter. Luckily no one challenged our entry and Sarah happily spent an hour or more watching the balls and putting them into one of the chutes. I was the one who instigated our departure each time because it is so loud in that area that I felt like an hour was plenty for our nervous systems to be processing. Then we came home for naps.
I ordered some tiger t-shirts for the girls because one can never have enough tiger t-shirts! Unfortunately I made the mistake of asking Sarah if she wanted one instead of ordering it in secret. So now she is asking about when her shirt will arrive and has times of having big feelings of impatience. She also had big feelings Friday night when we went to a craft fair and she saw watches that she wanted. To be clear, she usually wants any and all watches. Unfortunately, these were necklaces and she doesn’t wear necklaces. Fortunately, Anna was there to help Sarah navigate her feelings without screaming or causing destruction. I slightly shut down into panic mode as I saw where Sarah’s feelings were headed, so I was not as effective as Anna in helping Sarah.
We celebrated Carl’s birthday with family and carrot cakes. I made my usual carrot cake and an additional gluten-free vegan cake. Amy made a PlayDoh carrot cake and even put it under a clear cover to match the other cakes before they were served. Having just learned to make pop-up cards in camp, Amy used her skills to create the best birthday card for Carl ever. On the front it said, “You’re 47 now, but wait, you’re also a…” Inside there was a pop-up drawing of a potato.
Yesterday Carl and Amy went to a Scuba class to see if Amy would be interested in getting trained and certified. She persevered beautifully through a lot of challenging moments in the class, but ultimately decided it’s not for her at this time. She didn’t mind the requisite stop for ice cream after the class though!
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