Kid-Centered Video about Sensory Processing Disorders

Just finished a three-part video continuing ed series by Dr. Rondalyn Whitney and this video was recommended for helping folks understand sensory processing disorders:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1G5ssZlVUw

Check it out and see what you think. 

Great Blog--Sugar Aunts!

One of my OT buddies recommended this site to our staff; it's a goldmine of activities and great explanations about why we do what we do:

http://www.sugaraunts.com/2016/06/functional-skills-for-kids.html

Where is the Snow, Virginia?

There were some school-based therapists a little sorry that the fluffy, white stuff was not all over the ground when we woke up today...

Ah, well--there are several more months left for the clouds to open up and treat us to staying home on an unexpected morning.

My e-mail signature now includes this line:

"All days are special, but snow days are more special

than others."  m.d. 

 

(with apologies to George Orwell)

Fine Motor and Sensory Exploration Ideas for January

Some fine motor/sensory exploration ideas for January:

Pine Cones and Elastic Bands

Rainbow Color Collage   (try doing one color of the rainbow each day of the school week--ask families to contribute items in all of the colors)

Writing in the Dust (Fairy Dust, that is)

Thanks to http://theimaginationtree.com/  for all these great ideas!

Better Than Doing the Snow Dance

Back at work after the holidays and everyone is looking for snow!  Maybe this will help the skies open up and spread the snowflakes over Virginia:

Erupting Snow Recipe

Polar Bear Cookies

A good friend brought us 3 different kinds of cookies yesterday and these were the cutest:

By varying how you place the eyes, you can create all kinds of expressions to talk about:  "He looks surprised."  "She looks happy."  Super easy recipe to make with kids--try 'em!

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/frosty-polar-bears

Christmas Vacation--Time to Think About What is Important

Ah...two weeks off school.  It's not just the kids who get excited about Christmas break!

First priority:  Get over being sick for a week.

Second priority:  Get ready for a big dinner next Sunday.

Third priority:  Catch up on all those things I've let slide since September 1st.

Oh, really?  My first priority is always to make sure my priorities are in the right order.

Here's a little story I wrote yesterday, a random essay that was stirred up in my brain while I was opening the Christmas cards that had been sitting on my kitchen counter for several days.  Hope you enjoy it.

May you all have a joyful Christmas.

Maybe it's the week-long bout of sinus congestion, coughing and minimal sleep that has contributed to my flighty thoughts this morning, but opening Christmas cards from friends and family made me think about the connection between anxiety and keeping too much stuff.

It's my practice to tear off those little return addresses from envelopes when the info looks unfamiliar, then stuff them in a little cup in my stationery drawer. All through the year I'm reminded of those labels when I open the drawer to root for cards and paper, but I usually don't get around to updating my late 70's address book until just before sending out a mass mailing. If you're pondering when was the last time you received an annual mass mailing from me it was about six years ago.

This morning I looked at the return address of a buddy who lives in the now-frozen tundra of Wisconsin. The info looked pretty familiar, but was I sure? Maybe I should save...no, wait, stop...I don't need to keep it. My worries were taking over, the address looked just like the one I recalled from last year and, if it really turned out to be a new address that I toss out, I could send her a friendly e-mail or locate her with the help of Mr. Google.

Keeping too much stuff in my life, even a tiny slip of paper with a return address, starts with the thought, "I might need this." Little scraps of paper don't take up much room, but they foster the mindset of keeping other things in your life that add up to consume much more space--in your home, in your car or in your mind. Anxiety always asks, "Are you sure?"

Handsome Casaera

There are things I never want to lose--the locket my mom gave me in 8th grade that holds a single cat hair from my beloved companion, Cesaera, the rock with lichen that Casserine "picked" for me on Whiskey Mountain, the shell necklace Uncle Grumpy bought for me from a street vendor in Carytown in '76. I want to linger over these bits of my past, hold them and feel their textures so I can re-live the memories they evoke. Books I don't love, photos of my friends not looking their best and recipes I'd cook if I ever became a perfect wife have long since left the house. They didn't enrich my life or memories while I had them around, why would I keep them.

This time of year is a little too busy to take on extra tasks, like organizing or streamlining this or that area of your life, but it sure is a good time to contemplate what's precious to you. Which ornaments and decorations give you a thrill when you put them out? When you read that holiday letter from a friend, what do you wish you had done this year to stay more connected? If you have a rare moment of quietness in the next week, which thoughts bring tears of thankfulness?

Here's to doing more of what brings us joy next year.