Witcher 3

[Ashvis]

I keep talking about how amazing and brilliant Witcher 3 is on other threads. I thought it was probably about time we had a dedicated Witcher thread (though I do like getting derailed and talking about other games too). So, who else is playing/has played/wants to play? Anyone else obsessed with Gwent? Triss or Yen? What big decisions have you made? I'm on my second play through, on game plus mode. I've got the first dlc pack but need to be a couple levels higher before I can play the new missions. I know some of you out there love it too, right?

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Yes, curry was uninterrupted thankfully! I did enjoy Sherlock, but I agree about the jumping around; I was disappointed to leave the main story! But did enjoy seeing Moriaty again. Molly in drag was quite ridiculous, bless her!

Yep, drama is not attractive to me, though clearly some people enjoy it whilst claiming not to. I can't even watch Jeremy Kyle, I hate everyone on it. I also have some crazy relatives, they are just distant enough that the stories are entertaining and don't generally impact my life DH had a fairly wild youth, but was well out of it by the time I met him, and I've never been one for staying up much past midnight...these days if I can't get a seat in a pub I leave! Though I've just drunkenly agreed to go to Download this year with my friend, so apparently I'm having a midlife crisis of some kind..!

[Ashvis]

Molly in drag was awesome, I loved it! She couldn't pull it off properly to save her life, but it was very funny! Moriarty is brilliant, he's a fantastic villain. He's clever and funny and when he threatens to burn the heart out of someone you actually believe they would.

My dh had the relatively quiet youth to my slightly more riotous one, but both loving the quiet life now. Yy to shows like Jeremy Kyle, what possesses people to air their dirty laundry on national telly? Madness, just crazy. My mother constantly tells me she just wants a quiet life while actively creating drama. I really don't think she's aware of it either. Download sounds like great fun though, I hope you tell me about it afterwards since I'm living vicariously through others these days! I am going out for dinner with a friend tonight, a very long overdue grown up night out, and ds has been up since 5:20. I'm currently deciding between napping while he's in nursery, or playing Witcher. Dh finished the main quest last night and I desperately want to play. But desperately want more sleep and am definitely not wanting to be snoozing in my pint tonight! I'm with you on leaving a pub if you can't get a seat, seats are necessary in evenings! And it'd be too loud otherwise as well. I'm delighted my friend has booked a table so we needn't worry about that tonight!

We'd an awkward play date a couple days ago. Dh had a very good friend who moved to China years ago. He visits pretty frequently for weeks at a time and we spend loads of time with him when he comes home. He's married a lovely Chinese lady and they have a daughter together, about 18 months younger than ds. A couple days ago was the first time the wife and daughter met my ds and the wife spent much of the time looking at ds like he was an alien. I honestly don't think she's met anyone who is autistic before! To be fair, she did play with him, but she genuinely had no clue about what was going on with him. Her husband knows full well too, so we assumed he had spoken to her about ds and his delightful quirks. Didn't help that at one point, their daughter screamed in ds' face (think glass shattering, eardrum piercing type scream) and terrified the hell out of him - he cried for nearly half an hour! Most awkward play date ever. They are moving back here in the summer, so I really hope she learns a bit about autism before then! It's made me wonder if asc kids still get institutionalised in China.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Hope you're enjoying your night! It's like they know when you have a late night planned and get up extra early... I love grown up nights out, me and DH need to have more now that DS usually goes down for the night OK quite early. My mum is happy to sit for us but I worry in case he wakes up and we're not there needs to grow a pair I do get out with my friends occasionally, but there's various shift patterns that conspire against us, plus lack of funds!

That does sound really awkward I suspect even if they aren't institutionalised over there, they tend to be hidden away a bit and it's kept 'in the family' so to speak. I think I would have cried too for half an hour if someone shrieked in my face though TBH! Sure she'll get used to it, and with any luck her DH will have spoken to her afterwards about it all... DS apparently said 'baby' in the presence of a baby yesterday, and he's babbling away like...well, like a one year old, I guess, which only puts us around 18 months behind! He had his first speech therapy session today, basically the therapist just played with him for half an hour, so he seems happy with it for now

I've finally finished the Avallach bit, thank fuck! Am now on a boat sailing to Skellige with them all. How long's left at this point? I have a couple of hours tomorrow and then some time on monday, so hoping to get it finished then. Didn't get the expansion for xmas so might treat myself afterwards!

[Ashvis]

I had a lovely night, thank you! We discovered my mate is my nieces' and nephew's dentist. And, rather randomly, her fil probably went to school with my dad! My dad passed away a few years ago, so she's checking with her fil soon to see if that's the case. Very random, but I hope they were friends and didn't hate each other or anything! It took us ages to get comfortable leaving ds with others to go out. Did it a few times when he was a baby, but at one point we came home and my lovely mil was doing everything we said he didn't like when he woke up crying so didn't ask them again for years! Over the last year or so, since dropping his nap, he's been going to bed and falling asleep just after 7 so it means we can go out and not worry too much because he never wakes up before midnight, and it's very, very rare anyway. More often than not we've a voucher for dinner!

I'm sure our friend's wife will be very lovely and accepting of quirks soon, I guess that asc kids where she is from (very rural China, not touristy or metropolitan in the slightest) kids get shipped off to relatives or hidden away. We were surprised because they met working in schools. I shouldn't expect others to know much about autism, but that was pretty unexpected. We have a birthday party today where, other than the birthday boy and his family, it's probable we won't know anyone else there. It's a superhero themed party (with Batman! Batman! Clearly someone who had a treat yo'self day) and ds doesn't own any superhero costumes. I've tried encouraging him to look at them but he's just not fussed, so we may put on his "autism is my super power" t shirt. Unless he desperately wants to wear a different, non superhero costume (of which we have loads!). He does have a long, Tom Baker-ish scarf, wonder if we could put together a quick Doctor costume...

That's awesome that your ds is babbling away and identifying babies, brilliant news! All the sessions my ds had were just him playing with the speech therapist too, they all seem lovely to me. Ds loves his, and often talks about her when playing with similar toys elsewhere (loads of playmobil and duplo, can't go wrong with them). Big celebrations with you guys then! My ds babbled a lot until just about 6 months ago - with him there was a lot of identifiable speech but loads of babbling too, although sometimes difficult to differentiate. His friends all stopped babbling, in some cases years before him and I was really worried he'd babble forever (pointlessly, I know, but you do!)

Well done on finishing the Avallach bit, that's rock hard! I think from where you're at, it took dh about 4 hours to complete. He did it all in one sitting. The ending is like lord of the rings in that, you think you're nearly done but there's another wee bit, and another wee bit, and another - all fun, interesting things but not many save points after the final battle. Man, I've some catching up to do now! The expansion is awesome, definitely worth it. Might be worth looking into some deals with the next expansion pack too, I bought both at a discounted price but that was ages ago, prob different deals now.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Aw, that will be nice if he did know your dad! It's such a small world... We're having a grown up day tomorrow, me and DH are off and DS is going to the childminders, so we're having a day away and getting a nice lunch somewhere. Unless DS gets ill overnight, which he has done a couple of times when we've planned these types of day! It's like he has a radar...he was up at 4.30 this morning, managed to persuade him to have another 45 minutes then he was up for the day

God, the thought of birthday parties fills me with dread, let alone ones that require costumes DS has only been to one, although he spent the entire ten minutes we were there screaming and clinging to me before we left So not a roaring success! We don't own any costumes, DS is not remotely interested in clothes yet and dressing him is such a chore I wouldn't put anything unnecessary on him! Hope MiniAsh enjoyed his party though, costumed or not

Yeah, slightly worried DS will babble forever, even though I know statistically it's unlikely! I know there's not many people who are entirely non-verbal without significant other issues, but you do still worry. The speech therapist was lovely, DS seemed comfortable with her fairly quickly, so that's something! There's a woman at work who knows DS is speech delayed, but seems determined to keep me updated with all the annoyingly cute things her same age DS is saying, even when we're in the middle of a conversation about how worried I am about DS I mean, I'm pleased for her, but she doesn't seem to think it might be a bit painful to hear! I know I'm a bit oversensitive about it, but I like to think I'd not want to sound like I was rubbing it in if things were reversed? Anyway, never mind, I'm going to need a thicker skin I think!

I might start the end bit this afternoon, will have a few hours to crack on, just need to keep an eye out for opportunities to save I guess. I can't commit to 4 hours unbroken unfortunately! Yeah, I'll investigate the expansions deals...

[Ashvis]

4:30, I thought I had it rough at 5:30. I take it caffeine is your best friend today! A grown up day sounds amazing. We haven't done that since ds was born, I'm thinking it's long overdue. When he was in afternoon nursery we managed lunch out fairly often, but now it's morning nursery we are much more likely to go home and relax! MiniAsh knows when we have plans too, I swear kids are psychic.

The party was great. Until a friend of mine decided to bring a balloon into the hall. MiniAsh just about coped until it burst. I managed to calm him down just in time for her to get another one, at which point we had to leave the hall and he refused to go back in since he could see the balloon through the window. I wouldn't have minded, but she has known us for 3 years and is fully aware ds is terrified of balloons! The parents of the birthday boy organised balloons for one area but kept them out the hall because they know ds is scared of them, they were very concerned MiniAsh was ok, which he was. I'd cheerfully ban balloons right now. On the plus side, he looks very cute in his "autism is my superpower" tshirt, and he got a fist bump from Batman as well as a high 5 from Captain America. And he didn't get any funny looks from any adult! It's all good. We have been to several parties like the one you went to, and this time last year we wouldn't have even gotten into the hall. We have issues with candles and lots of people singing happy birthday as well. MiniAsh would live in dress up costumes these days, but he only got into them a couple months before his 3rd birthday. We started with things like Buzz Lightyear costume pjs, because he loves Buzz and Woody, and he loves looking in a mirror and seeing himself looking like a character. It's encouraged him to do a lot of role play, and encouraged him to quote movies. I'm very pleased he's into costumes!

Oh, people and their 3 hour conversations with their children who are only just 2, it's really annoying. I have friends with kids a couple years younger than ds whose speech is more developed than his. Most are very thoughtful, and it is nice to hear how well their children are doing, but it is great knowing other kids have issues too! Any time anyone does that with us, I generally tell them their child sounds wonderful, tell them something awesome and non speech related about MiniAsh and waltz off before they can counter. My guess is your colleague's kid is a terror at bedtime, or an even fussier eater, less affectionate or no interest in important things your ds loves. I've often found that when people get very boastful, they are either insecure about something else, it was a big developmental leap for their child or they are just arses. I probably need thicker skin too, but I think I feel so protective of ds, and it annoys me when the stuff he is good at doesn't get valued. Speech isn't the be all and end all, there are more ways to communicate, but parents of toddlers seem obsessed with it! When I'm around non verbal or other speech delayed kids I make a point of telling their parents if I see them doing anything positive - sharing or caring about someone. These things are much more valuable damnit!

Good luck with the gaming today, hope you get on well! I really have to play more Witcher soon, but still torn between main quest and expansion. We got Lego Jurassic World recently and that's taking up some gaming time. I just have to get my ass in gear, but tonight is take out night. I haven't stopped thinking about curry for the last couple days since you mentioned yours, I can't wait! I've a feeling I'll just want to vegetate after the poppadoms but tomorrow morning is pretty free 😊

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Definitely recommend a grown up day, although we got a bit carried away with ours and it turned a bit 'treat yo'self' Nevermind, will just have to work a few extra shifts!

That's a bit rubbish, especially since the organisers had gone to so much kind effort to make life easier for you both! I hate balloons myself, though DS doesn't seem bothered either way by them. I'm hoping that since he's got used to soft play, which is basically lots of noise and kids in an enclosed space, he might be a bit better with parties and the like now. But I'm not holding my breath!

Yeah, my best friends 1 year old has a wider range of sounds than DS Work colleagues child is a worse sleeper yay! but she goes on about how she doesn't mind getting up with him because "she's his mummy and it's her job"... I may have internally eye-rolled at that! I am very protective of him. I do use a lot of humour about the whole situation, but it's a coping thing and if anyone else joked about it I think I'd have issues!

Didn't get too far with Witcher, got caught up with other stuff obsessed with the breadmaker I got for xmas and then remembered I hadn't finished the fist fight quest, so went and did that, then did a bit more crafting and levelling up. Now I'm about to follow Phillipa into a cave or something...am getting there slowly though! I would be playing now but DS has decided he doesn't want to go to bed

Ha, I'm craving curry again, wondering if I can persuade DH on a takeout!

[Ashvis]

A treat yo'self day does sound fun. Glad I can live vicariously through others for the time being, but thinking a treat yo'self morning at the very least should be done soon.

The balloons were a bloody nuisance, but I'm very grateful that another friend, whose dd has her birthday in the summer, is already planning a MiniAsh friendly birthday party. I love her. It was all I could do not to kiss her when she told me. We've another 2 parties soon, but even closer friends who love MiniAsh a whole lot organising them so I'm hopeful. Midweek soft play parties are his favourite, not too noisy and I love a big slide myself! He has been telling lots is people he saw Captain America so he must have enjoyed himself at the weekend at least.

I actually eye rolled at what your colleague said. A proper big one, worried my eyes were going to get stuck. I do love being a mum, it's brilliant, but I bloody mind getting up in the middle of the night, and early mornings. It's perfectly possible to love your kid without loving every aspect of being a mother, or even liking everything about your child. Sounds like she's trying very hard to present herself as the perfect mum. My favourite toddler group was full of parents trying to compete over whose child was the biggest bastard, not the most amazing. Was nice to be around people who were honest about how they viewed being parents! Humour is a good coping mechanism, I once had a colonoscopy and spent the day before pretty much glued to the toilet. I made lots of jokes about being full of shit but I wouldn't have enjoyed most other people making those kind of jokes!

A bread maker sounds awesome, I'd be obsessive about it too! My parents used to make a lovely sun dried tomato bread. Yum! Phillipa is massively annoying, interesting but annoying. I finished it off this morning. After the Phillipa bit, there's another quest you can do and then the final battle. More places to save than I remembered, don't worry about setting a huge amount of time aside, although the final battle gets going it's very exciting. Still have the dlc to do, but glad Geralt is happier this time around compared with my last game.

My curry last night was fab, best curry in the north east! And I'm going to have to order another one soon.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Yeah, I suspect most people think I hate motherhood, because I don't gloss over the hard bits! I love him to bits but he's definitely a twat sometimes

Aw, that's lovely of your friends! They must think a lot of you both that they want you to come so badly I'm starting to stress about nursery applications, we should find out if he's got in where we want before easter hopefully. I'm hoping the extra socializing will bring him along a bit, whilst also panicking that he'll hate it... I just want him to make friends!

I'm closer to the end than I thought then, that's good! Well done for finishing (again), that's quite an achievement! DH is at the pub tomorrow night so I might crack on with it then.

I managed to convince him on the curry, our usual place (which is amazing) wasn't open so had to try somewhere new. It wasn't bad, but not the same Though I did open the wine whilst waiting for it, so that might have impacted my opinion!

[Ashvis]

I think truly loving someone is to know all aspects of them, the good and the bad. I think it's very clear from what you've written that you adore your ds, and rightly so, he sounds fab!

I'm very lucky that ds has managed to be charming to some of his friends and they want him at their parties. For all he lacks in speech, he makes up for in many other ways - he's got a fantastic smile and he does care deeply about other people. Plus, he's a bit of an enigma and that's alluring all by itself! Most of his friends have known him since he was only 1 (most went to the same toddler group) and just accept him as he is. Besides, I bring tiffin with me on occasion and that doesn't hurt! When I was younger I had friends who tried to change who I was - despite their best efforts I still don't wear make up or watch reality tv - so I accept people as they are and I'm only interested in friends who pay me the same courtesy. Although more geeky friends in real life would be nice, I love the non geeky ones I have!

I'd a meeting at ds' school yesterday about getting him deferred entry into primary school, giving him an extra year at nursery. Earlier on this year they were full of assurances it shouldn't be a problem, but yesterday they weren't quite as confident as I'd have liked. The head teacher asked me why I thought an extra year at nursery would be useful - I think I stared at her in disbelief for a few seconds before answering! Managed to contain the eye roll but it was bloody hard. There's no way he will be ready to start formal schooling in 7 months! We've a few months before a panel of people, who won't have met him, look at a report and decide whether or not he will get deferred. I'm trying not to worry but I think I'd have to homeschool for a year if they turn him down, or look into a private nursery. Not just for his sake, but for the sake of other children in his class! Urgh, why do they have to make these things more difficult than they need to be?

Having to eat from an inferior curry house?! Better than no curry, but when you know how good it can be that is a shame. You'll enjoy your next awesome one all the more. Hope you managed to crack on with the game, I'm going to go back to the dlc this weekend, might restart it on an older save game because I've noticed I missed out on a trophy. Oh, what a shame, more Witcher for me 😄 Dh is waiting till the new dlc comes out, then going to do both at the same time. He's been playing the new Batman game - keeps telling me the combat is like Witcher in an attempt to get me to play it too. Might do once I've finished the dlc...

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Yeah, I think DS has the 'man of mystery' thing going on; the other kids at his childminders always seem excited to see him, even though he ignores them! I'll be prepared to bribe with baked goods where necessary however! I'm similar in that I got a bit bullied for not wearing makeup/'cool' clothes, it wasn't until I found people that accepted my weirdness that I finally felt good about myself. I eventually caved on the makeup when I realised it could go some way towards hiding my eye bags, but these days it's not even managing that so I often don't bother! I will never watch reality TV except when forced to at work, and then I have to bite my tongue...inane tripe.

That's crap that they're backtracking, hopefully they'll agree it's the best thing for MiniAsh. We were discussing the same issue with the HV the other day, but are obviously not at the point where we'll have to make a decision, we have time to see how he copes with nursery. I wouldn't know where to start with homeschooling so hope it doesn't come to that! We've had the SALT around again today, he was very well behaved considering I'd woke him up from his nap, but he wasn't co-operating much with her efforts to have a tea party with him and a plastic bear! He was more interested in pulling apart the two halves of plastic fruit. He isn't interested in any toy that doesn't 'do' something, really. Not sure if that's just how some kids are though!

Done no more Witchering yet, got a bit obsessed with listening to some of the smaller bands that are playing Download and googling sleeping bags! Just not enough hours in the day... LOL at your DH trying to tempt you with gameplay! I might get the first DLC on payday if I finish the main quest before then...

[Ashvis]

My mother insists on telling me about reality TV shows every time she visits (and we're getting another visit in a few days), I just don't care! I do make vaguely interested noises so I don't appear rude, and is suspect that encourages her. In fairness, she introduced me to Lie To Me which I love now too, and she's a big fan of Castle and White Collar thanks to me. She will very happily sit and watch Star Trek with dh and I as well, so it's not all bad. But I just don't care who wins The Voice! And she doesn't appreciate Parks And Recreation. Nobody except bil has gotten dh's Mouse Rat t shirt yet, clearly more work needs done to spread the good word.

I am hoping we can make a strong enough case for the deffered entry, it will involve writing down all the things MiniAsh struggles with, and not telling them any good stuff about him which I don't like - people are more than the sum of their faults and difficulties. Since they have closed all the additional support classes, everyone up this way is expected to be in a mainstream classroom (except for the "most vulnerable" apparently, they get shipped off to another school) which will not suit ds at all. Yesterday morning I moaned to another parent about it, and she told me that her son with suspected asc got refused his application. He's now struggling in primary school and has come home crying, believing he's stupid because he's behind his classmates. He's not thick at all, I've met him, and he's a total sweetie, but he just wasn't ready to start school. I'm hoping a diagnosis will help our case, but the thought of them refusing his application is making me very anxious. I really don't want to homeschool, but I have taught P1 before, and there would be support from the school in terms of resources. Dh is a sweetheart, he saw how stressed I was getting, so nipped to the local shop on the pretence of getting a snack, but came home with some champagne knowing it would cheer me up! it definitely helped de stress.

Lovely that your ds is enjoying the SALT, makes a huge difference if they like it. I think lots of kids like toys that do things as well, I've known loads who ask what a toy "does" before deciding if they like it or not! I'd probably prefer the fruit to the tea set too. Ds is really into little figures that he can act out stories, movies and TV shows with. I got a mini Zelda Wind Waker play set for Xmas (yes, I am a child in a grown up's body. It makes a cute ornament!), with a tiny Link toy - ds watched dh play the game the other day and set up treehouses, boats and castles so his Link could do the same thing as daddy's Link. Super extra cute! Getting him into gaming through toys wasn't planned, but it's making me very happy!

I just looked at the line up for Download and it's amazing! I'm so jealous. Have they said what they are doing since Lemmy has died, will Motörhead still play with a different frontman, or will they be replaced by another band? (How mad is it, all these famous men about the same age dying of cancer in such quick succession?) I've seen Korn live and they are awesome, such high energy. I know it's months away, but I really want to hear about it after you've been! Sensible thinking looking at sleeping bags, might I recommend a thermarest type mattress to sleep on? They are more expensive than roll up mats, but will be significantly more comfy. We used to do long distance walks before ds came along, and did some rough camping since we sometimes landed in the middle of nowhere - a lightweight blow up mattress made it much better.

Yesterday CD Projekt Red announced that the new area in Witcher will be similar in size to the other areas, and involve about 20 hours of gameplay. It is due out in the first quarter of this year, just can't wait! It looks so damn pretty.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

My DM watches it but doesn't try to talk to me about it, she has my DSis for that! I occasionally get talked at about the soaps, but mostly its Doctor Who and Game of Thrones when we talk TV.

Yeah, it's depressing seeing lists of the negatives! I did myself a bit of a 'for and against' list when we first suspected DS may have something going on, the 'for' list made for miserable reading! The 'against' list was quite reassuring, but obviously you're aiming to support your application, not show off how awesome he is Short term pain for long term gain, hopefully! Fingers crossed this is one of those times when a diagnosis actually comes in useful! Sounds like a ridiculous system. Vaguely related; hey're doing something similar at work with our inpatient LD service; they've decided that they can all just go and live in the community except for the most severely affected, and are closing loads of wards. I'm generally in favour of de-institutionalising as many people as possible, but I just don't think the level of community support required is going to be in place It seems it's the people in the middle that end up getting screwed over again.

But bless your DH and his champagne delivering! That's definitely good husbanding

Am not sure what's happening with Download, they haven't announced anything yet. Seen some calls to rename it LemmyLoad this year But yeah, very tragic start to the year! I was meant to see Korn at Ozfest a lot of years ago, but they pulled out last minute, so seeing them now feels like completing some unfinished business! I will update you afterwards! And I'll definitely check out those mattresses. Are they very light and compact? It's a bit of a hike from the cars to the campsite apparently and there's only going to be two of us!

I am actually more excited by the sound of the second DLC than the first, loving the idea of a new area to explore

[Ashvis]

I thought I'd posted this a few days ago, bloody doughnut that I am...

Game of Thrones and Doctor Who is great, what good taste she has! My mother has been planning to watch GOT for years but not done it yet. I'm gutted the next book has been delayed, I can't wait to read it. Still, only about 3 months till the next season! We go to a charity shop full of kids stuff where the manager is a huge geek - as soon as we went in she pointed out all the Dr Who stuff they had in. She rocks. She even made a Dalek birthday cake for her flat mate.

I spent some time this morning talking to a psychiatrist friend with an autistic 12 year old ds. His son is doing really well, chess and math genius pretty much - and he was very reassuring about the whole speech thing. His son's speech was very delayed. It sounds a bit stilted now, but he can converse like a pro. Apparently miniash's speech is similar to his son's at a comparable age so that helped a lot! They are having similar issues as well with school, they advised his son was kept at home for the last couple days of last term - not in any way inclusive! The diagnosis has been useful, we were able to start claiming disability living allowance which is very handy, without too much bother - we expected some meetings, but providing proof of diagnosis was enough! With the rate he receives, we should be able to look into carers allowance as well, I'm a fan of a useful diagnosis.

There's a social housing complex being built near a friend of ours, big complex for people with mental health issues. Right next to a bookies. Again, the people moving there are going from having more support, to less in the community and I'm guessing it's highly likely that a few of them may have an issue with gambling (if there are any with addictive personalities, I've seen people displace one addiction with another before, alcohol to gambling mostly). It's not in the most accessible part of town, or one of the nicest, and I just wonder what the hell people are thinking when they make these decisions. We've the Scottish Parliament elections later this year, I shall be looking very closely at what each party says about additional needs before I decide who I'm voting for!

Dh rocks! We'd my mum babysitting last night and, despite a slightly dodgy back, he insisted on taking me out. He looked like an excited puppy, really cute. First night out for us in months, may not have been a treat yo'self day, but certainly a treat yo'self night - I will take that as a start!

Seeing Korn will be awesome then! Doubt they have plans to play up here but worth checking out. The Foo Fighters did play here a few years ago and did an amazing gig. Lots of big groups just go to Glasgow and Edinburgh, and there is loads more to Scotland than that! The thermarest mattresses, and ones like them are lightweight and compact, I found them easier to carry than the big yoga mat type ones. Not cheap, but we bought ours about 8 years ago and they are still fine despite MiniAsh jumping about on them! We are planning on doing more long distance walks when ds is older, they will be using them then too.

I have restarted the dlc now, enjoying it even more, but yes, the second lot is looking amazing. I really hope it is out in the next couple months. It's so shiny! I want more details about it, more pictures, but more than that I want to play it soon.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

I know, I was hoping to get the book before the next series, will be weird reading it after seeing the TV version! My DM is very geeky She got me into ASOIAF whilst we were on holiday just before the TV series started. That sounds like a brilliant shop, nothing like that round here unfortunately!

Ha, DH is trying to convince himself on the 'Einstein didn't talk till he was 4' thing, will tell him about your psychiatrist friend, might encourage him! It must be reassuring when you see someone similar and it's working out ok. That's really good about the DLA too, must be helpful.

Yeah, they always stick them in the worst places. I guess it's a NIMBY thing There was meant to be a childrens home opening in a very posh part of our town but the neighbours kicked up so much fuss that the council had to abandon it. It's grim.

Ah lovely! We might be going out around valentines day...don't really celebrate it but its an excuse for a night out! Though we are totally skint, so might have to be McDonalds at this rate! Glad you had a nice night, it's good to have a break

Yeah, Newcastle is the closest big bands get to us usually. I've been to Glasgow and Edinburgh, and had a very cold New Year once in a cabin by Loch Lomond! I love Scotland, some amazing scenery. That's useful to know about the mattress, I'd have thought they'd have been heavier than a yoga mat one. I don't think I'd get much future use out of it, though you never know I guess.

Still haven't bloody finished Witcher! Work is just insane at the minute, just getting in and totally vegging on my days off. I keep looking longingly at the job sites but all my options involve a pay cut and we can't afford it with paying for childcare too. I just keep thinking, a few more years, some stuff will be paid off, DS will hopefully be at school so less childcare costs, and I can have a career change! And hopefully more gaming time

[Ashvis]

Your mum sounds awesome, what a star. Such good taste in books!

NIMBY people are the worst - society will never improve unless everyone starts thinking about everyone else. A little compassion and empathy makes the world a much nicer place for everybody, and everyone feels better for it. I'll jump off my soap box now...

Newcastle is brilliant, I really love it I've some family in Northumberland and we visited there loads when I was a kid. Dh and I have been on heaps of walking holidays in the Lake Diatrict as well. MiniAsh does a lot of refusing to walk so haven't been traipsing about the country as much as we used to the last few years, but I really want to do the Penine Way, Hadrian's Wall and lots more Wainwrights as well. He does love a walk in the woods, so I'm hopeful in the future we can convert him into hillwalking, but it's a daydream at the moment I'm afraid! He's really into forest animals just now, that could be an in. Loch Lomond is beautiful, isn't it? I do love the countryside all over the UK though, it's a great place to live. Can you tell I miss weekends away?

If you're just likely to use it for one weekend, might not be worth getting a blow up lightweight mattress, especially if you already have a yoga mat type - but still worth a look. Might be a sale on, never know! We have used ours for overnight guests, and dh uses his when his back is dodgy - glad we are still getting some use out them, even if it's not halfway up a mountain!

We are delighted to have a psychiatrist friend with an older autistic boy, how awesomely lucky is that?! He's also the one who introduced me to Mr Ash, so he's all kinds of brilliant as far as we are concerned. We don't live anywhere close to each other, but hoping to have his whole family stay with us so we can have wine, take out and autism chat some time soon. A lot of the other autistic kids we know are more profoundly autistic so seeing someone high function is useful too. I did used to work with pretty high functioning autistic children, but they were mostly Asperger's kids which ds is not, and neither is friend's ds.

A night out around Valentine's Day sounds lovely - nowt wrong with a celebratory fast food meal. We are planning on having a Burger King take out this weekend 😄 Had one for my birthday last year too! Our anniversary is just a couple weeks after Valentine's Day so we don't usually do anything much, but any excuse for champagne in this house is fine! Today MiniAsh put his trousers on by himself for the first time and I briefly flirted with buying a bottle, but decided that was maybe a bit too ridiculous an excuse, even though I'm feeling immensely proud!

When do kids start nursery where you are? That might cut down child care costs too. We might not have been awarded dla when ds was younger, but if you haven't already, could be worth looking into the criteria, and if you do get any kind of diagnosis that would help too - the middle rate (which we were awarded) comes to £55 a week, really helps with still buying nappies, sensory toys and stuff - honestly, you put asn or disability in front of any product name and they double the price, it's crazy. We wouldn't have thought of it ourselves, but another parent at the ASN playgroup we go to advised us, and I'm very glad she did! Hope you can find something else to do for a job. Other than the games industry, what would you like to do?

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Ha, I think rent a permanent space on a soapbox!

I know, I miss having little holidays too! You sound a lot more active than we ever were though We love the Lake District, planning on lots of weekends away there when DS is a bit older. He loves walking, but gets tired easily so we end up carrying him back from wherever we are and he's bloody heavy! For now we're sticking with the comparative ease of centre parcs! I haven't got any type of mat yet, can't remember the last time I camped...possibly about 18 years ago...this could be a rough weekend! Think my friend was considering the 5 day pass but I don't think I could hack being away from DS for that long just yet.

Your psychiatrist friend sounds awesome Unfortunately the only firsthand experience I have of autism is through work, and those particular patients had a whole host of other problems and were some of the most difficult people I've ever had to work with one tried to strangle me several times. Obviously I know they're not representative of ASC, but it's always a bit daunting to be confronted with the worst case scenario DH still doesn't think there's anything going on beyond the speech delay, but maybe I'm just more pessimistic! Had to leave soft play the other day because DS got randomly attached to a woman carrying a younger child; he started following her around and trying to pull her kid off her She looked a bit like his childminder so not sure if he got confused and a bit jealous! Then he randomly started hitting another kid so we figured we'd just abandon it at that point...cue massive tantrums...

I dunno, I could get behind champagne for trouser-putting-on! That's brilliant, well done MiniAsh! We often go for 'dates' on our lunchbreak (we work together) to Burger King; who says romance is dead?!

DS starts nursery in September, but not sure how much it'll save us, as we'll still need wraparound care for the two days a week we work (we obviously work more than that, but we do two days together to have some time off otherwise we'd be ships in the night!). The 30 hours free might save us some, but don't imagine that's coming in any time soon!

Job wise...something officey, less frontline. Research, maybe, or public health. I probably wouldn't get the same job security, though, but it might be worth it for fewer people trying to punch me. Briefly considered teaching (adult ed or lecturing) but all the teachers I've spoken to try to put me off! I'll look into the DLA, although at the minute we don't really have any extra costs, so probably couldn't justify it! If the speech therapists start recommending things we can't afford I might attempt an application...

[Ashvis]

When we first got together dh's weekends were largely spent watching football and playing video games - perfectly fine. I had a mini holiday with a friend where we went for a walk round Lake Buttermere and decided that's how we were going to spend weekends from then on. One walk in the country with dh and he was hooked. Within a year we did a 100 mile long distance walk and bagged a couple munros, much more than I ever thought I'd do. Love a big walk in the country - we've seen massive herds of rutting deer, red squirrels and even a wild cat before, but ds gets tired easily too and until we get a bigger buggy from wheelchair services he spends half our "walks" getting a piggyback from me. Good exercise I suppose, but not useful long term, the kid is tall and not getting any lighter! I really hope the refusal to walk ends soon but it could be a way off yet.

Oooh, strangled is not a good thing to have happen at work, that's awful. No wonder you want another job! And not representative of all asc people. MiniAsh does lash out when he's extremely upset, but he knows to target his dad or me because he knows we will forgive him easily. I've seen him considering potential targets. It's sad that a lot of asc adults probably didn't get their diagnosis fast enough, and there weren't as many strategies around - still not enough knowledge about the condition either. I'm more hopeful for kids these days as they will have significantly more support than they would have 20 years ago. Both dh and I have autistic cousins who made a right mess of things because they got late diagnoses and no help. That won't be the case for my ds, or yours if he gets a diagnosis. My dh needed a bit of convincing too, but we looked at a list of autistic traits and recognised a lot of Miniash's behaviour. Maybe worth reading more positive case studies, stuff by Temple Grandin, her website is great. I always get disheartened when I see so much negativity, or blogs by people caring for asc kids who make out their life is terrible. Celebrating positive things keeps us looking to the future with smiles on our faces. MiniAsh has done the same thing as yours at soft play too, latching onto someone who bears a resemblance to someone else. It's now happening with people if they have long "Rapunzel hair" too. I try to reassure his victims it's a compliment, honest, and steer away. Doesn't always work though! I'm assured this will stop at some point! He has stated running up to me saying "I want more kisses!" Makes up for any kind is stress we have!

I'd recommend steering clear of teaching too unless it's something you really want to do, I'm having serious doubts about returning to it - lots of stress and paperwork. The money isn't bad and the holidays are good, but there is so much prep work and all kinds of regulations. I love teaching but my last school was in a very deprived area - you name the type of abuse and I taught someone who suffered from it every year. I might see if our local ASN charity has any paid positions when ds is a little older, or see if there are adult education jobs going. I would probably enjoy teaching with the autism outreach program now, but I could see it being emotionally draining too. We need to apply for carers allowance now, and that should help a bit, but having changed profession before I would like to do something with my time that didn't involve any more studying. Definitely avoiding jobs where there's a threat of violence though!

Lunch time dates sound lovely! Romance isn't restricted to fancy restaurants and flowers and champagne, it can be found sharing a sachet of ketchup I think!

Did you see Steven Moffat is leaving Doctor Who? No new season this year unfortunately, just a Christmas special, but Moffat's last season in Spring next year. Hope he doesn't necessarily want to bring in a new Doctor, I'm so looking forward to a Capaldi season with no Clara!

[CheradenineZakalwe]

That's very impressive! I had to google munro bagging, however I fear I can't walk more than a mile or so these days without having a sit down . I have no idea how I'm going to cope with standing up all day at a festival! I've always had back problems, might need to take a fold up stool or something...eek. Bought the tickets now though, so no going back! Hopefully MiniAsh will come round to the idea of long walks again soon, it would be a shame to miss out on a hobby you all got so much pleasure out of.

I'll have a look at that Temple Grandin stuff, thanks. The kisses thing is adorable DS seems to be making some progress speechwise; we've had fairly decent attempts to say 'open' and 'red' in context, he's trying to copy some letter sounds from a youtube video but who cares and his understanding seems to have come along a bit more too. It's all a bit random, and he keeps saying things once and then never repeating them, but it's really positive to see! Am glad he's not the only one to start stalking people at a young age, too

I'm looking into third sector stuff too, I know I said I wanted something officey but I'm also considering working with Refuge or Victim Support. I don't know how quickly I'd burn out though. Have had 10+ years of working in forensic mental health, wondering if maybe it's time for something a bit more...lighthearted? Less intense, anyway. Unfortunately the pay and holidays won't be as good wherever I end up, so that's something to factor in. Hmm, maybe not teaching then! I do enjoy mentoring students, but don't fancy staying up till the early hours doing lesson plans! I'm willing to study again...maybe when DS is in school...

Yes, I saw the Moffat news! Not sure how I feel about it. I wasn't too keen on the Chibnall written episodes, but he might be ok as showrunner. I know Moffat has a lot of critics, but I've enjoyed most of his series, so will be a bit sad to see him go, but also think fresh eyes might be nice. No, I will be gutted if Capaldi doesn't stick around for another series at least! Also not happy with no new series this year Very selfish of them

[Ashvis]

Oh, I'm massively unhealthy now! I'd love to go Munro bagging again but will have to get much fitter before that happens! I tend to comfort eat and dh had a habit of bringing home "treats" for me i.e., chocolate bars and fizzy juice. Both trying to be healthier now, which is great, but mountains are a long way off. At least we get the odd squirrel in the back garden, and a few deer like it there too so not missing the wildlife too much! I suspect it's because the back garden has been quite neglected this year, but at least the animals like it. There's a fox who prowls about locally too, it's super cute. Dh has back problems too, bane of his life. Our neighbours swear by Pilates so he's trying that just now to help. Very easily days yet though, but he's hopeful. Hope your back is ok for Download!

Temple Grandin is awesome - she's high functioning autistic herself and is a leading expert on all things autism. Reading her own case history was pretty fascinating. Brilliant to hear your ds is making such great progress with his speech, what a superstar! You must be delighted to see him doing so well. What is the YouTube video? MiniAsh is showing an interest in reading now and loves YouTube! Evantube, the engineering family, family fun pack, Lego friends videos - loves them! An alphabet sounds video might be right up his alley just now.

And I thought teaching in a deprived area was emotionally tough, forensic mental health sounds really hard going. I'm sure there are plenty of schools where there isn't such a high rate of needs, but I do like a challenge and to know I'm making a difference with work too. I'm impressed you're willing to study again, it's a big commitment when you're single, but with a family it's very brave! I've known a few who have done it, and they've really enjoyed the challenge, and delighted when they get their qualifications. Lighthearted work sounds good to me too, but I've a lot of things planned for when ds starts school too - I've a list of local big hills to climb, books to read, charities to volunteer with, tv to watch... Going to have to play the lottery, right?

I'm trying to reserve judgement on the change of show runner, might be ok, but I'm definitely not happy about a lack of season this year. I read that and yelled "but I was watching that!" I hope it's a decent Christmas special since we are having to wait that long! I keep Thinking about how excited Capaldi was when he took the job, I'm hoping that enthusiasm is still there, and the new guy sees it - he's got to see how amazing a Doctor he is.

Still reading the Witcher book and it's getting even better. Several chapters in and only one sex scene still. I'm amazed. It's still better than I'd hoped (although, despite being desperate to read it, I'd low expectations of how well written it was), and still quite exciting.

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Ha, there are some benefits to leaving your garden to the wild! DH has big plans for our garden, want's to plant lots of stuff to attract bees and butterflies and birds. Just need to persuade the rats to stay away! There was a fox sat in the middle of our road one night last year, just watching us get out of our taxi...very brazen! Back pain is a major annoyance. Mine is just muscular, it was much worse when I was at uni and I was sat in lectures all day, but isn't as bad now I move around more. Plays up when I stand up too long though. I should maybe investigate pilates, if I can get my core strength up that might help...let me know how your DH gets on!

The Youtube video is called something like Baby Bigmouth Surprise Egg Learn to Spell... It's super annoying, and may be pitched a bit young for MiniAsh, but DS loves it. It combines the 'fun' of seeing stuff being opened with spelling out words...DS is very keen on seeing things being opened. He's currently obsessed with some Russian Dolls my DM got him.

I don't know, I still think I probably have it easier, work wise! At least I only have 8 patients, not a class full Some stuff definitely stays with you though, I sometimes look back at things that have gone on and think WTF, did I really experience that?! We used to get the equivalent of danger money, but they nixed that, so now we get the same as nurses who don't run a daily risk of being strangled. Hey ho. Ha, I think it's probably naivety thinking I can study with a family I don't know where I'm going to get the energy from...or the money, since I doubt work will pay for most of the stuff I'm considering! Split that lottery win with you..?

I echo the 'I was watching that!' feeling! I definitely don't feel like Capaldi is 'finished' doing what he's doing with the Doctor, am also hoping for no major changes. Though maybe we should start mailing pictures of Tamsin Greig to Chibnall just in case!

I am impressed by the chasteness of the Witcher book! I'm pleased it's better than you were expecting, it's nice when that happens I WILL FINISH WITCHER SOON...before I forget how to play it!

[Ashvis]

Lecture theatres are no good for anyone to sit in - and not the best way to learn either! Glad getting to move around helps, whatever works is good in my books. My dh finally got a hospital appointment through for his back (been badgering him about it for years). I suspect they will look sympathetic and encourage the Pilates, but it makes me feel better that we are doing something rather than sitting about complaining about it. No noticeable difference for him yet, but it's very early days still.

Will check out the video if I can wrestle the iPad off ds at some point. He doesn't care about what age something is meant to be aimed at, or gender - he just likes what he likes. I really like that about him! Russian dolls are great. I always wanted a set as a kid, so when a pupil gave me some for a Christmas present I was delighted! They are gorgeous (and have been kept out his way so far but might have to dig them out).

Studying with a family is totally possible when I was doing teacher training most of my friends were married with kids and they all graduated. All of them had supportive spouses, one had a wife who gave birth just before graduation! I may not have had a family at the time but I had two part time jobs and no supportive spouse - emotionally I wasn't pulled as much as the others, but they had more help and didn't have to go to two different jobs on top of the study. I probably had it a bit easier, but I'm not sure how much!

I did teach one girl in P7 who was bigger than me, and I was fairly sure she could beat me up, but never felt physically threatened by any of my pupils! Sounds like you definitely still deserve danger money! And my classes could be lovely. When my dh ran a marathon the kids made him a good luck card and emailed him afterwards to ask him if his feet were smelly after such a big run! I got a round of applause when I told another class I was pregnant - there are lots of nice things about teaching! I did have some WTF moments, but not so life threatening, and more being upset about the lives my poor pupils had. If I win big on the lottery I'll happily share with nice people with scary jobs - definitely space for you at the front of the queue.

We went to a group for kids with multiple support needs the other day - know a few families who go along. One kid, few months older than MiniAsh, had been non verbal until a couple weeks ago and now she is saying a handful of words in context! Her mum couldn't stop beaming, it was super cute. And her dd has a lovely voice. Major break through for the family!

Ds has decided my Lego TARDIS is great to play with, but has taken to calling it a Dalek castle. Not sure the Doctor would approve. He has been saying geronimo a lot though. Will just have to binge watch Dr Who a bit this year to make up for the lack of new season. I'm still very put out about that! If you get an address for Chibnall I will happily start mailing pictures of Tasmin Greig, absolutely! Along with very complimentary messages about Capaldi. The independently angry eyebrows are amazing, the show will miss them when he does go.

Still no more sex in the Witcher book, I am utterly amazed. Probably this says something about the people who make the game, eh? I haven't played in the last week, we are all full of the cold and feeling miserable. It's lemsips all day long here. Fortunately MiniAsh slept till 7:30 today - 7:30! Totally fantastic. I want to finish the dlc before the next set comes out, so I can devote all my time to the shiny loveliness of the new area!

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Yeah, I think feeling like you're doing something helps sometimes. Hopefully the hospital appointment will be fruitful, do they know what causes his pain? I'm suffering with mine tonight, nearly cried in the car on the way home, was twisting into all sorts of positions trying to get comfy! Lucky DH was driving...

I don't think I could work two jobs and study, so am impressed! I just remember how long it used to take me to do an essay; my dissertation I started early and aimed for 100 words a day If I could be that organised again I guess that might be doable during nap times/nursery...although I'm sure my brain has turned to mush since having DS. I don't really buy into the whole 'baby brain' thing but I'm definitely not as sharp as I used to be! I blame the early starts, I'm sure I need to consistently lie in till at least 8am to function properly. Pipe dreams now...7.30 is amazing! DS had a random 4.30 start last week, then gradually got later and later and then this morning we had to wake him at 6.30 so we could go to work. Wonder if he would have slept till 8 again like last monday if we'd left him? I've had a cold too, but more of a 'head full of snot' than feeling really ill, luckily. Although I'm so sick of blowing my nose, it's so sore Hope you feel better soon

Aw that's really nice My patients have their lovely moments too. One of them made me a cushion for DS, which was really nice. They all have very traumatic backgrounds, which it helps to remember when they're acting out with you.

What a great breakthrough! DS has added 'stick' to his vocabulary. Well, he said it once (whilst holding a stick!) and was just mimicking DH, but am having it as another victory. Just need him to say stuff more than once now!

I think I'll have to rewatch Dr Who a lot too. Need to get Capaldi's series' on DVD. I keep catching episodes on TV and honestly can't remember a lot of them! Think his first season didn't leave as much of an impression as the newest one. Yes, I think the 'Dalek Castle' might get the angry eyebrows!

I'm off next week, so I'm determined to finish Witcher. Ha, I guess the game designers are just more sexist/gross than the author. I would think it's quite awkward to animate a sex scene though, it's weird to think of he effort that has to go into them!

[Ashvis]

Well, dh had his appointment. They actually x-rayed his foot for the first time and saw that the bones in his foot are not as symmetrical as they should be. The doctor said he should give up the idea of running again because it will mess up his foot and back again. Running and hill walking are the only two forms of exercise he was ever excited about so he's a bit gutted! Poor guy, he's hoped to run another marathon when ds was older and there are lots of local 10ks he wanted to do again. Apparently the doctor was all kinds of lovely and very good at his job, so dh is confident he's got the best advice but it was the last thing he wanted to hear. On the plus side he's already talking about other forms of exercise he can do that are low impact so that's a good thing. Poor guy though, I almost cried when he told me because it's a huge blow for him.

We had a success at a birthday party though! It was the same soft play place we had his own birthday party and for one of his favourite friends. It was really busy so I was a little worried about how he'd cope, and some of his nursery friends crowded around him when we arrived - he'd been off nursery with a cold for a couple days and they were excited to see him. It was all a bit much and he had a little cry, but one of the girls started stroking his hair and telling him he was a good boy which really helped him calm down. We didn't stay very long because he was still quite tired, but he had a great time. The hair stroker stuck with him the whole time, she was really lovely. Just delighted to see how much the other kids like him. And they were so quiet around him too, they know loud noises upset him and they were very mindful of that - I'm dead impressed with them all!

It's amazing what you can do when you've an important goal to achieve. One of my jobs was modelling for a life drawing class and it's the best job I ever had! I got to sit about doing nothing and got paid for it. Plenty time to think so half my paperwork for uni was done in my head before I ever put pen to paper. Post ds, my body is nowhere near as good as it was and not sure I'd have the confidence to do it now, but it was a terrific job while I was studying. My brain often feels like mush too and I also blame tiredness!

Little boys love sticks, don't they?! Ds went through a long period where finding a stick was the best thing ever. We still have one in the boot of our car dh found years ago and liked. Brilliant to hear how much speech your little man is using now, it's really exciting. We get a lot of echoing back what we have said but we count it as speech - it sometimes takes a while but he will use what he parroted in an appropriate way later on. Our speech therapist said it's a perfectly valid way of learning to talk.

I definitely want the latest season of Dr Who on DVD too, mainly cause it's taking up space on our sky box! It was such a good season, I liked his first one (I mean, it had a huge dinosaur, what's not to like?), but the latest was better. The Lego tardis is getting played with a fair bit, I'm very proud 😄

A week off, lots of Witcher time, does it get any better? I've gone back to an earlier save to redo the dlc, but I've been side tracked. I didn't do the Gwent quests, first fights or horse racing - and now I'm doing all of those. It's going to take forever but at least it's fun actually winning cards again! Hope you get lots of peace next week, and have other awesome plans too!

[CheradenineZakalwe]

Oh no, poor MrAsh! It must be pretty gutting to have to give up a hobby you love. Hopefully he'll find something else he enjoys. Watch out for him cooking calzones and making stop motion films!

Aw, MiniAsh's friends sound lovely! Great that it was a success, too We had a breakthrough getting DS to a toddler session in the church hall, which was the scene of the disastrous birthday party we went to before...up till now he's screamed bloody murder when we've even approached the building, but yesterday he went into the entrance ok, then sat himself on the floor and went on strike for a few minutes, then got up and held our hands and walked in It was such an improvement. He stayed and played for over an hour too. Not much interaction with other kids, but when one of them took his toy he at least tried to get it back, which is better than ignoring them! Our childminder was there and said she was secretly pleased that he's started 'expressing himself' grabbing toys back because although it's not something she would encourage, it is more developmentally appropriate. It is making me feel more that he's maybe 'just' developmentally delayed rather than on the spectrum, but I really don't know. He also spent 20 minutes spinning in circles the other day and still bloody ignores us half the time! Our speech therapist hasn't turned up for the last two sessions... I know they're overstretched, and if she's ill there's noone to cover, but it is frustrating.

Life modelling sounds brilliant! I would love that if I could sit still long enough...the thought of just sitting quietly sounds like bliss Might getting back into it help your confidence..? I'm imagining if I was a student at one of those classes, I genuinely don't think I would be judging any of the models, I would just be impressed by their confidence and grateful they were willing to pose! Am sure they need more 'interesting' bodies to draw too...

I can't wait till DS is old enough to have proper lego Although you've just reminded me, I have a sonic screwdriver kicking about somewhere that DS would love!