B has always been a high needs child, ever since he was born. Of course being my first, I didn't realise that, and honestly, I felt like a failure because it was just *so hard* to take care of him. Of course now that I've had a second child, I know that B wasn't a typical child.  He was late to do many things that other children do, and had a hard time adjusting to change.  Things settled down a bit when we moved interstate when he was about 9 months old, and he seemed to be "catching up" to things other kids were doing.

Fast forward to when he was 18 months and I first realised something was "wrong" with his temperament.  I talked to everyone - both friends and professionals, who all assured me it was "just a phase." Unfortunately 4 years later, we're still dealing with a lot of the same things we did back then. I don't hold it against any of my friends, but I struggle with trusting professionals to accurately understand things, due to this.
B has always - always - loved other people. His favourite thing was to be around a lot of people and activity, even if we weren't interacting with them. The solution? I spent a LOT of time at the shopping centres for the first 8 months of his life!

When we moved, I didn't feel the need to be out of the house quite so much. I LOVED the house we lived in, loved the neighbourhood we lived in and the park nearby, so we were quite active.

Things got rough when he turned 2 and I fell pregnant with Z. Honestly, the next year is quite a blur and he and I came out on the other side of it virtual strangers.  It still makes me sad that so much time was lost with him.
When B was 3.5 he had a checkup and I was at my wits end. I desperately asked for help and was told to read Raising Your Spirited Child. It helped, and I am actually re-reading the book right now. I HIGHLY recommend it if you have a child that is MORE than other kids - more intense, sensitive, perceptive and/or energetic - among other things! It may just give you the tools to help both you and your child be happier, calmer and more successful at things in life.

Of course, there is a lot of trial and error with these sorts of things, which has carried through to today. He has since been evaluated by both a psychologist and an occupational therapist, which is how we arrived at our diagnosis.

More on that tomorrow, I think, as it is WAY past my bedtime - morning comes early around these parts!

Though most of you reading this right now will know my story from travelling this journey with me, I'll do a bit of a recap of things for future readers.

As you can guess by the title, I have two boys, who are "Twice exceptional" - gifted and dealing with some other disorder.  In our case it's Sensory Processing Disorder. Now, technically only my oldest, Ben (5) has been evaluated, but experience and observation have shown us that our youngest, Zach (2.5), is also dealing with a lot of the same issues. 

This blog will cover our experiences in finding balance in life. I have a full plate. My husband and I have our own business, which enables us both to be at home with our children, but also puts a strain on us financially.  My husband works about 15-18 hours of the day, while I taking care of the boys and the housework (not well, let me tell you)!  Added to that we have started homeschooling B, and it's really chaotic in our house of a day.

We are working on changing our routines, commitments and our expectations, in the hopes that we will all lead a happier, calmer, daily life.

A few things I'd like to get out of the way though: 

1) I am by no means a writer.  I write like I'm talking to someone - to you! I'm going to make mistakes, I guarantee it. Especially considering I only have time to write at about 10pm most nights.  I am open to correction, but please be gentle. 

2) I use smilies a lot.  Probably more than I should. Just a warning. ;)

3) I am not a photographer. If I share pictures, they will be candid shots, taken with my camera phone. Probably blurry because my kids never sit still long enough for the picture to snap. If the mister is feeling creative it might be one of his snaps.  I have been encouraging his interest in our DSLR as a way to get out of the house and have some down time. 

4) I will not allow nasty comments. If you can't be polite, move along.  I am writing this simply because I need an outlet for the experiences  I am going through, and because the few people I know in similar situations and I have trouble finding others dealing with this sort of thing. It's a place to get ideas, not insults. I really appreciate when people can have differing opinions without getting rude - I find I grow more when I am challenged to think about something in a different way.

Anyway, thanks for reading so far!