Today, Elsa had a play date with a friend who lives quite far away and because she finds us all so embarrassing, we weren’t allowed to stay and had to make ourselves disappear for a couple of hours. Rather than get lost trying to find somewhere interesting to visit, I took Jude and Emmeline to the only place I knew how to get to. TESCO! Yes, we went food shopping. Despite it being a typically rather arduous task, nowadays I find it pretty hilarious to food shop with Emmeline. She recognises packaging so points and babbles in her funny little language until I pick up whatever it is she wants plus we never leave a shop without her having chatted to at least a handful of people. Today she entertained her audience by shouting “HIIYYAAAAA HIYYAAA HIYYAA HIYYAA” (repeat) at the top of her voice into her imaginary phone (a small plastic box I was buying for Jude’s packed lunch box) and my god, she is loud. Literally made everyone in the immediate vicinity leap out of their skin and then laugh/smile when they saw the loony responsible for their surprise.
Anyway, successful food shop complete, I thought I’d give my wee crew a treat for making the experience so pleasant. We stopped in at the coffee shop and sat down with a few drinks and one giant cookie to share (I’m generous like that). Emmeline happily ate her chunk but Jude wouldn’t bite his. I’ve seen him do this before but today, sat opposite him I was able to watch more closely without him thinking I was staring. He basically picks bits off with his finger or thumb and eats the crumbs/minute morsels that he creates. He even dug the chocolate chips out with his finger and ate them. Each time he picks a bit off with his finger, he swipes his hand across the table to clear the debris then goes back to picking. He doesn’t hold the cookie at all, it just sits flat on the table where he stabs his finger into it.
I think we have a new weirdie to add to the list!
I even asked Jude “what are you doing?” and he just laughed! I said for him to pick it up and take a bite but it was like he couldn’t do that. Eventually he did pick it up and tentatively bit it with the side of his mouth but discarded this method in favour for picking again.
Here are the pictures…
Jude always stares into space when he’s not talking, I’d love to know what he’s thinking about. Eye contact is now pretty good when he’s talking to you face to face across a table, otherwise his vision goes off in all sorts of angles and he is distracted by every possible moving object. I guess having something like a table to help focus your line of direction makes the difference.
Emmeline was miffed when she’d finished her drink and shouted “mooore” whilst pointing at my drink (her new word). Nothing is sacred with that little Ring Leader around.
Jude picking! He won’t even look directly at the cooking for very long, literally fleeting glances. It’s as if he just needs that sensory feel of it crumbling under his fingers and the visionary sense merely ruins the experience.
So there we have it. A fab shopping trip with the wee’uns, a cookie treat and some funny memories to boot.
A x
Awww love your posts, #ablogginggoodtime
My son would have eaten a cookie like this a few years ago… If a food item is made up of different parts/textures which can be separated he prefers to do that rather than have a combination of textures all in the same mouthful. It must be a sensory thing. The mess generated through this method of eating used to be incredible! I’m in awe that you could do 2 hours in tesco with 2 kids #ablogginggoodtime
I couldn’t normally but he was having a good day so it wasn’t too painful! Thanks for the comments x
Hi Alice, wouldn’t it be good if we had a direct line to our children’s thoughts? Especially when they aren’t so good at verbalizing those thoughts. My son has Aspergers with what I call added baggage (a few bits of added baggage to make things even more interesting), his sensory disorder has had him doing all sorts of strange things over the years, and like you I tend to sit and observe.
At least Jude was enjoying his cookie, even if in a slightly odd way. And Emmeline looks a doll. Love the size of her cup, it looks huge.
xx
Haha it was huge for her but the best they could find me! Thanks for your comments. Yes, I would absolutely love to delve into Jude’s mind…I can only imagine the crazy thoughts he has. A x
I used to do something like this! 🙂 I’m Asperger’s/autistic myself, and I can say that when I did it, I was contemplating everything I could. I was definitely sampling the texture of the cookies (or other food), and also thinking about things like, “what if little people lived on this cookie and it was rocky terrain, like the moon? Would they be afraid of falling off the edge? Would a chocolate chip seem like a really big rock (to scale) and would they trip over it, or maybe sleep on it (if it was big enough)?” Seriously, this is how I would think lol. 🙂 I love how he takes it all in! <3
Wow, that’s absolutely amazing! Jude has severe learning disabilities as well so I’m not sure he thinks that intently but he’s definitely contemplating something as he stares as if he’s deep in thought. Thanks for the comment x
Fantastic – what a success and great day. Pleased for you all. Thanks for linking to #spectrumsunday
Ha ha ha sounds like fun. Great pics too!
Thanks for linking to #ablogginggoodtime
Awww, sounds like a good shopping trip! And cookies for a sensory experience – who knew?! #SpectrumSunday
Ah I hope you had a nice day out? Sometimes you need to do mundane things such as the food shopping, just to escape the house and while away some time. I’ve not read your blog before, but I’m glad that Jude is starting to maintain eye-contact. Emmeline looks like she is enjoying the drink, I’m very familiar with the concept of “mooooreeee”. Thanks so much for linking up at #fortheloveofBLOG. Claire x
I would love to know what my son is thinking, it would make life much easier! I was drawn to the post because of the photo of Jude, I actually thought it was Joseph! And when I read you were in TESCO…it is very much us yet Joseph orders burger and chips every single time…! #spectrumsunday
How funny, Jude lines chips us as well. I guess they make a fab straight line. I’m glad you were drawn to my post, that’s why I started blogging to begin with. I want to reach out to families like ours so no-one feels alone. I know how lonely many parents of SEN children can be. Thanks for the comment x