Jude’s first full day back at home and it hasn’t been too bad. To begin with, I had to take Emmeline to the fracture clinic for another check of her arm (cast off next week!) so my mum kindly looked after Jude for me. There is no way Jude would embrace a long wait in a hospital with all those people around us and my attention needed elsewhere. I have no idea how people cope with scenarios like this when they don’t have family around them to help. I would probably end up having to find a babysitter to look after Jude but it isn’t ideal.
Anyway, he had fun with Granny – they went to Granny’s house and then to the allotment for a little while. Jude has his iPad with him at all key moments these days and I’m certainly not going to change that. For now, as long as Jude is content then the boat is not being rocked!
We came home and Jude and Emmeline were inseparable. They played in the garden together, collecting berries and leaves in little tubs and making patterns (no doubt straight lines) with their gatherings, at the end of the garden, by the swings. They’re hilarious. Jude needed the toilet so he shouted to Emmeline “Come on Emmeline, we’ll come back out in a minute!” His vocabulary and ability to express himself is so natural when his stress levels are minimal and they are always at their lowest when he’s outside in the garden, free and engaging in “Jude” games.
It wasn’t all ideal today. Jude had a melt down that left Emmeline in tears and brought back this wave of almost nauseous anxiety within me. That mental muscle situation where my body has retained a fear of certain scenarios. I quickly moved Emmeline out of the way, shut Jude’s door and just left him to it. And it was all because I told him off for taking some of Elsa’s books. But because it’s Jude, he doesn’t just TAKE the books, he’s ripped them up to oblivion which I know will really upset Elsa when she notices their absence from her bookshelf. Not only this, Jude took a couple of her Lego models and has taken them apart (naturally, I can’t find all the bits). I found the shell of a car she made ages ago but there is a vacuous space on her Lego model shelf in her room that is so obvious that I know she’ll kick off when she goes to bed. Never mess with a geeks books and Lego, eh!?
Following my shock at finding the ripped up books, he lost it and inevitably trashed his room. As I’ve mentioned before, Jude can’t handle emotions and my initial response of horror and an immediate “what have you done?!” threw him out completely. On the floor you can see all the paper (plus the mountain of it in his bed), a few jigsaw puzzles he’s thrown and a box of construction pieces. Fantastic!
Elsa has been trying her hardest to stay away from Jude today which is really sad. She chose to come to the hospital with myself and Emmeline this morning rather than stay at home with Jude. She has also asked if she can go and see friends tomorrow which I know is because of Jude. She loves him. She loves him loads but I don’t think she can cope with him at home all the time. I’m not sure how to overcome this situation; I’m hoping it’ll iron itself out with time but for now I’m just going with her requests.
It’s a weird half term, almost like we’re learning how to be around each other again. Jude has fallen back into some old habits but apart from the one meltdown, so far it’s been ok.
Video of Jude will be uploaded on Facebook shortly…
How has your week started?
