Oh God oh god oh GOD only 2 weeks until the Summer Holidays

[colditz]

The dreaded Summer Holidays

Have defiant 5 year old (aren't they all?) and ASD and ADHD 8 year old.

Gin Tips needed

.... urm ..........well if i were you i would ........ er ....... um....... .... perhaps you could.........perhaps not .......... have you thought about ........ no that wont work ....... urm ....... could you ......... no ..... have you tried ....... no that isnt going to help ...... try ........p'haps not ...... ok try this ...... The french foreign legion - for you (not them).

Sorry, my DS (ADHD, ODD) breaks up on Friday for 9 weeks !!! Have got kids club for four of those weeks but the other 5 ......... ??????

Good luck - I think you are going to need it !!!!!!!!! x

I always make dh take a couple of weeks off in the middle of the holidays so we can either go away or have a few days out as a family and of course, so that I get some respite. (I have a very two-year-old dd, a stroppy 7 year old ds2 and ds1 with ASD).

I find it helps to have some loose structure to the day, so we spend an hour doing educational (not necessarily in the academic sense) every day at roughly the same time, the boys have their nintendo time at the same time each day and snack and lunch time are also fairly routine. Personally, I hate being this restricted, but it really helps ds1 to cope.

We try to get out most days, even if its just to the local shop or the park (two minutes away). Being a mean sort of mum, I also insist on flinging them out in the garden at least once a day, whether they like or not - and they usually don't.

I also get a stock of puzzle books, comics, mini lego sets and cheap dvds off ebay etc that can be pulled out on days where it all looks like its going to go pearshaped.

I feel your pain. I love to get ds1 back, once he's had time to relax a bit after breaking up from school, but all the same, the summer holidays are a very long time to be together 24/7.

I can't wait! This academic year has been horrific and has messed DS up so much (permanently excluded in Feb, & then things got worse).

We NEED this break badly so we can both regain our balance. DS needs to spend a month pottering, making mud pies and just being a kid instead of enduring.

I need it more than DS (if it's possible) as if I attend one more meeting where I'm patronisingly told I'm a crap Mum I'll end up proving it by punching someone! Todays gem was the OT telling me my flat's too small - I KNOW THAT! My plans to move this summer somewhere larger are wrecked and if something doesn't happen soon enablng me to return to work we'll have been repossessed by Xmas.

How about we start a life-swap club where we nominate an "expert" from school (or similar) to live our lives with our kids for a week (in our houses) - each expert (or in my case exhusband) gets to spend a week in each of our homes,living our lives - at the end of the summer break when we are all back at school we can rest assured that these experts have had some really worthwile training over the summer break. Meanwhile us bedraggled mums can shoot off to the Bahamas for a bit of R&R while the experts are looking after our kids better than we obviously can (!) . Anyone up for this ? ......

Brilliant runningonmt, you really gave me a good laugh :o

funnily enough, i am actually looking forward to the holidays because it means that dd1 will have finally finished at the mainstream school that has made her life (and mine) hell for the last 2 years. we are hoping she will be starting a special school in sept. but also kind of dreading the summer because i will have ds1 (stroppy almost teenager at 12) ds2 (10, dyspraxia and possible HFA) dd1 (6 and possible aspergers) and dd2 (stroppy 5 year old) at home for 6 weeks

No Idea but know I'm dreading them too. Have 2 very SLD boys here, cannot read/write/play anything/play computers, be left alone at all...

One who just wants to sit in front of power rangers, the other wants to go out at 6am and stay out til 8pm...
Both bigger than me and much much stronger. Eldest won't do anything so if i say 'lets go walk the pups', youngest will be in car b4 I've said it with keys in ignition ( I live on main road) and eldest will run upstairs screaming to his bedroom and refuse to move.
Have 7 wks, 2 days a wk of playscheme for 6 of them but otherwise zilch!
Am stressing already...

Running, I would defo have to nominate my boys SW! Talk about...well I dunno if she's totally devious or totally thick but either way she aint got a frigging clue about my boys or what our needs as a family are!
Mind you I wouldn't wanna do it to them!
My mate asked me once if she was married, I said 'yeah she's the bride of satan'!

running- can i nominate my ex too, hee hee x

i am seriously stressing aswell. i know from past summer holidays that i wont cope well. ended up quite depressed last time.

Another one dreading it here. I'm trying ot organise lots of reciprocal play dates with other mums of kids with ASD, round each others houses. I've given up doing daytrips out due to the boden-clad judgy types that ruin our days.

I also might take DS along to this:

www.dimensions-uk.org/autismfilms/

I know it's only 1 day, but Odeon are going to run it regularly if they get a good response. Found out about it at the autism show last week (which was packed!)

i love them being home but they do get board and its difficult as ive a teen DD and a teen DS and ds 11yo ASD so they all like completely different things but some cheap days out on picnics ect and a couple more expensive ones to theme parks are on the cards and im fancing taking them to the heights of abraham anyone been?

BlackL you are very welcome - we all need a bit of humour to keep us sane - I know I dont have enough of it in real-life - I think Mumsnet has become my respite / lifeline / support group. It is so nice sharing with people who really understand rather than nod their heads and look at you with that slightly confused but mildly concerned look on their face.

unpa1d "Mind you I wouldn't wanna do it to them!" - oh i dunno, sometimes the kids could do with reminding that actually we arnt all that bad as far as mothers / carers go .

*AlysWho" - I have booked yours in and am arranging to have him thrown in the back of a moving van picked up at the beginning of the holidays

cheeryface "i know from past summer holidays that i wont cope well" - I am sure that you will cope though - we dont have to do it well, we just have to get through it one day at a time. For each day we survive (and the kids too lol) we have coped - no-one is saying we have to do it well. And we will cope, because we have no other bloody option, and for the days we feel it didnt go as well as it may have we have mumsnet to pour out our frustrations and have a good laugh with each other about what a cock-up that day was !!! Dont forget on here we laugh with you and not at you -
Ladies - prepare yourself, flat jackets and hard hats at the ready ....... let the next battle begin x

True, Running. Just had eldest screaming abuse at me cos he don't wanna go to the monster car show tonight which my husband has booked an early finish to take them to with me!
Someone suggested I start videoing them to show SW but I'd be all day on the bloody blackberry! .
I can't yet work out if she's completely devious or just totally thick....

DS finishes on Friday FOREVER he starts college in August, had his leavers ceremony yesterday end of an era will miss them all at his school they've made such a difference to him.

hmmm....in one way I am dreading it....6 weeks is a long time! but in another way both ds1 and I need a break (long story!) its been a lot of change and new things for ds1 since last year and we are supposed to be moving house too so....probably going to be quite a stressful summer

Was looking forward to hols until phone call from SN holiday club today to say that DD can only have 1 session in the 4 weeks its running (had only asked for 4). Now I don't know what I'm going to do to keep her amused and more to the point how I'm going to get DS off his playstation when - any places he wants to go are either not wheelchair accessible or just unsuitable for DD, so successful days out on my own with both of them are not going to happen!

This is similar to me Big. Except mine aren't in wheelchairs. But elder son refuses point blank to do anything while younger son wants to go out all the time! So hard.
Took them to this monster car thing tonight; what a palarver that was, tears tantrums, running away, screaming, flapping, wooping...(and that was just me!!!)
younger ds was good as gold really considering he was secretly just as stressed. We kept well away from crowds, didn't have a choice about that anyway! But still was such a stressful time and that was with me and him there. Normally I do it alone and my boys are both bigger than me!

Such a shame cos we plan all these, what we think, are wonderful experiences and we feel so deflated all the time when they are clearly too stressed to enjoy them!

Not sure what we're going to do. We talked about doing outings, but then just yesterday put a small deposit on a puppy, which we'll be bringing home in 2 weeks (when it's old enough). Boys are thrilled (including DH ), I'm excited, but a bit nervous as well. It'll be a lot of extra work. We had planned on waiting until September, but decided to get it a bit early as we found one we liked quite by accident.

So I think on most accounts, that will be our big thing this summer. No holidays, no big DIY projects (although a few small ones), no huge plans. But it will be nice to not deal with the school run twice a day. LOL

Good luck with the pup Triggles. We got 2 springer spaniels last Oct after we lost our huge german shepherd to cancer. I said I'd never get another dog as it was too traumatic and heartbreaking (he was only just 7 too) but then it was youngest birthday and he wanted a puppy soooo...
They are lunatics. Complete and utter mad canines. Eat and chew throughe verything inc 2 leather sofas, 3 puppy beds, pens, loo rolls, cardboard, wood, skirting boards...but they are such good fun and so sweet natured.
Once you get over the poo'ing and wee'ing everwhere you'll love it!

unpa1dcar3r - ah well, DS3 is almost 2 and will be potty training soon, so we'll have the pooing and weeing everywhere anyway