And it all comes tumbling down....

I knew things were going too well, that I was finally finding my feet and things were flowing smoothly. I finally got paid last month (after working for 3 months with no pay....) and James has been well throughout the term so far, so I am getting used to having more of the day to do things with Bea. We have regular respite coming in (funded until this month by our friends' donations, but now finally we've got our first payment through Direct Payments we can buy in more help) and we have a fantastic holiday coming up at The Thomas Centre. I'm actually starting to enjoy my job, and am really enjoying teaching the Imperial College medical students. James has settled well at school, the childminders and after school club, and Bea has settled at nursery well.

And then the bombshell............

At the moment, the children go to a childminder one day a week. There are actually two childminders working together, so there is always an extra pair of hands and extra support. This is essential when working with James if there are lots of other children around, as he does get a wee bit wild. So when we were chosing childcare this was really high on my list of priorities. Luckily the pair we found also had a lot of experience with children with disabilities. It felt like a huge weight off my shoulders when I rang and heard about their experience and set up. Unfortunately, they are not working together after Easter, and this is going to mean James can't be dropped off there - the bus drops him at 330 and there is another school pick up happening then. As he goes to and from school on council organised transport there is no other way of getting him to the childminder a bit later. So I'm back to the drawing board.

It's rather ironic, as I am on the steering group for Harrow's "Aiming High for Disabled Children" initiative. This is a government driven programme, facilitating the provision of short breaks for children with disabilities and their parents. It includes provision of things like after school clubs and chilcare facilities. So I'm sitting on the group, trying to take things forward and improve facilities for other families whilst my own childcare arrangements are in tatters. How ironic.....