2 to 6:30pm
Sachin woke up very late today. Once he got ready for work, I allowed him choose his activity, a precautionary step to prevent strain and thus seizures. He picked the coasters that he had partly completed earlier and I used that as an indication for his choice of activity. Once his things were ready on the table (glue, sticks, etc), he started working and while I was there in his work area, I pretended that I wasn’t paying any attention to him.

He continued working without any help or guidance. When he ran out of glue, he started making noises, telling me in his own way that he needed more glue(need to work more on independence).  I refilled his glue bowl and also gave him a cup of tea. He continued after a bit of wandering. It was very encouraging to see this autonomy and which promises greater independence in future .

 After a break, we went for only a short walk, trying to minimize the stress and strain on Sachin and also because it was getting dark.

When we returned, Sachin worked on his ipad.

12:30 to 5pm
Sachin carried on painting the gate today. He has been slow but is developing as a painter. He has also become more adaptable to various activities. More importantly, he has settled into a daily routine of working, exercise and recreation. The time he starts and finishes the day, depends on when he wakes up and obviously the exact time of the day is insignificant to him.

After a break, we went for a walk.

When we returned, Sachin worked on his jigsaw puzzle.

11:30 to 4pm
Sachin started today by making more coasters. He seems to enjoy making coasters, an indication based on his eagerness towards the task.  He has shown that he understands the function of the glue(joining surfaces) but still needs more development in terms of understanding the quantity required and how best to apply it. Maybe, we are getting ahead of ourselves but our goal is to help him develop in any field that he shows any interest or potential and so we should be mindful of the various possibilities. His alignment of the pieces has improved significantly when making coaster. However, I expect that It would not be as easy for him in some of the other more difficult tasks.

After a break, we went for a walk.

When we returned, Sachin used his Ipad for some recreational activity.

11 to 3:30 pm
Sachin continued painting the gate today. He is still applying the first coat except unintentionally.  Then I took him to Westfield Mount Druitt for a walk and also for a change. When we came back, Sachin worked on making coasters.

 

Today Sachin worked on making coasters. He has improved and now is making very nice ones. By staining and applying varnish, he can deliver a very good product.

 Later, we went for a walk and then he finished his day working on his jigsaw puzzle.

12 to 4:30pm
Today, Sachin did some gardening- mainly taking out weeds. He was not too keen but I had him continue anyway. Then after a break, we went for a walk.  Later, Sachin continued on the 300 pieces jigsaw puzzle.

 

12:30 to 5 pm
Today I gave Sachin a 300 pieces jigsaw puzzle to do. I was not feeling too well and so chose a task that would require less effort on my part. My wife was at work today so I had no replacement. I understand that there will be such days and so an option such as doing  jigsaw puzzles is good way to keep Sachin interested and occupied (A note to persons who manages Sachin in future). Sachin as always enjoyed doing the jigsaw puzzle and so had a good day. However, it is important not to overdo the puzzles task as he may lose interest.

1 to 5:30pm
Sachin continued painting the gate today and he showed some improvement as he was better on the edges. He continually needed directions as to what areas to paint. My wife joined in to paint (to model) and he seemed to follow her to an extent. However, sometimes he was more content to observe and let her do all the work and so needed encouragement continue. The traffic was also a cause of distraction but he would get back to his task moments later.

Later, the three of us went for a walk. Sachin was happy to have his mum join in.

Sachin finished the day using his ipad.

12 to 4:30pm
Sachin painted part of a gate today. It was a steel frame gate. As expected, he had difficulty painting the more difficult edges. I showed him how to get to those difficult areas but he chose to do the easier parts. We went for a walk in our neighbourhood for exercise and leisure.

When we came back, Sachin worked on making coasters.

Reflection

I keep reminding myself that it is going to take time for Sachin to develop these skills and so need to look at his achievements for morale.

1 to 5:30pm
Sachin had a mild seizure last night. It has been couple months since he had his last seizure.

He woke up late today and seemed a bit lethargic. First I tried to get him to paint. It was clear that he wasn’t in the mood to work. 

So I took him to the park for a walk and some leisure. His mood improved. I bought him some lunch and went back to the park to eat. We spent a while strolling and relaxing.

When we came home, Sachin went to his work area and took the paddle pop sticks out, thus indicating his choice. I poured some glue for him, like I do normally, and he continued making coasters.

When it started getting dark, I took him inside and gave him his Ipad to use.