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Fulltime Foster Carer - Harriet author of: A Less Ordinary Family

Fostering Blog | Lifting Alice

Thursday’s Fostering Blog

It’s getting to that busy time of year as get nearer to Christmas. Our two birth children break up from school at the end of the second week of December. To me this is crazy – having ten days at home before Christmas has even started, and then straight back to school after the New Year. As a result of them breaking up so early, all of the school Christmas activities are much earlier. So craziness has begun. Fortunately Alice has two extra days before she breaks up so I am looking forward to getting a couple of days with Annie and Lauren on their own.

I feel like I have become a taxi again with all the to-ing and fro-ing that is going on this week. As well as all the “normal” school runs, I have been asked to go and collect the older two from school, because they both have rehearsals in the evening for the school orchestra. They both play instruments and have joined the lower school orchestra. The concert is next week, so there are extra rehearsals this week. It juts means that if they had walked home, they would be home less than half and hour before they needed to return. Picking up them up will give them an extra half and hour at home. And then its an early dinner time is needed too, so that I can get them back to school for 5pm and then pick them up again to take them to their trampolining lesson. As Charlie is at a meeting this evening, the taxi service has fallen to me.

This also means that Alice has to be put in and out of the car several times in the evening. She is a paraplegic and is a full time wheelchair user. She is getting heavy, and it is becoming quite a strain getting her in and out of the car. As well as getting her in and out, I also have to get her wheelchair in and out each time. I have asked social services for another Occupational Therapy Assessment as I feel all this lifting is not sustainable.

After my third trip out, I realised I had totally forgotten to do Alice’s catheter. This is really not an error I like to make, because sure enough, she had leaked through her nappy and through her clothes onto the car seat. Such a small error ends up causing so much extra work. It is just one of those things. She has to sit on a towel for the final journey which she complained about all the way to trampolining class and back. Fortunately, I put the radio on and blocked out the moaning!! Luckily Charlie is around tomorrow for the last day of rehearsals, so I will stay home with Alice!!

A Less Ordinary Family Foster Care Blog

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