The staff at Ole and Lena's Sweet Revenge (in Pine River) didn't bat an eyelash when I brought Nadia (my service dog) in. This was also my first outing bringing Nadia along and what a difference she made! I'm so glad that she can come along with me now. She's trained to interrupt my anxiety attacks before they become full-blown panic attacks. She picks up on when I'm starting to get stressed and will put her head in my lap (if I'm sitting) or nudge between my hand and my hip (if I'm standing). Today is proof that she really does make a huge difference. This was my first outing with non-family people that I didn't have an anxiety attack or have to leave early.
I have also teamed up with the local home school group and have signed #1 and #2 up for a field trip to the post office later this week and to the city landfill next week. It's fun to be able to do more with the kids, since their schedules and work can be done wherever there is an internet connection and a computer,laptop, or tablet device.
I forgot if I mentioned it in the blog before, but we decided to go with Connections Academy. The kids still have a meltdown sometimes, but frustrations and distractions aside, they are doing well with the new set up. Both are above 80% for over-all grades after two weeks of school. I've implemented a sticker reward system. For every 100% assignment they get a sticker to put on the notebook for that class. It helps that they are highly competitive with one another and are both trying to get a better over-all grade than the other - checking their status every night after assignments are tallied.