Looking toward Middle School

School is out, and has been for a few weeks for my kids. It didn't take long for them and us to fall into our lazy summer schedule. With my work hours being shortened in the summer and the kids with little to no schedule, it has allowed us all to exhale a bit and not carry the typical worries and stressors the school year brings of deadlines, grades, homework and early mornings. I'm going to revel in this current piece of mind because coming just a few short months away is what many of us with kids on the spectrum DREAD...that's right...MIDDLE SCHOOL! Gone are the days of cute holiday class parties, recess and homeroom moms, and on to organized chaos of preteen school days. To a child who thrives in structure and sameness, the idea of the freedom of Middle School scares the heck out of him. Along with that fear, the uncertainty of the way some of the older kids will react to and treat Colton already keeps me up at night. We are surrounded by amazing teachers, who are also my friends, who I know will look out for him, but it's at lunch and PE and those unobserved times that I worry. So we are working hard this summer to prepare him, from a social standpoint, how to handle any adverse situations and how to be bold enough to stand up for yourself. If I could homeschool him and keep him under my wing forever I would, but I know he NEEDS to be with others and experience life. As for his diet we have allowed him to relax a bit letting him actually eat off restaurants "Gluten Free" menus. Some are better than others meaning ACTUALLY gluten free. He's had some meals at some where within 5 minutes is starring into space and begins forgetting things. It happened last week even and it scared us. To come this far and to so quickly relapse was a huge lesson in how to manage what and when we allow him to eat at a restaurant. We even gave in and let him have a snowcone AND a real slice of pizza at the end of school. Surprisingly neither were as good as he remembered. I guess eating healthy and clean for a year and a half can remind you what "real food" tastes like. I did create a new Gluten Free Apple Crisp dessert that is now Cole's new favorite
Gluten Free Apple Crisp 2 Cups GF Flour 2 Cups GF Rolled Oats 2 Cups Coconut Palm Sugar 2 TBS Cinnamon 1 1/2 stick of butter, at room temperature One large can of canned apples Mix first 4 ingredients in a large ziplock. Then mix in butter. Close back and knead with your hands until mixture turns into consistent sized crumbles. Spread apples in the bottom of a 9x9 pan or a pie plate. To with crumble mixture. Bake 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.