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Ordinary Alice Days

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

Ordinary Alice Days

Fostering Alice Blog

Thursday.

Fortunately Alice seems to have shaken off the doldrums and we are enjoying a few days pottering during this half term. This is one of the first years we haven’t been away for spring bank holiday.

Charlie doesn’t have annual leave this week and is working from home – so I have done my best to do some low maintenance local trips out with the girls. Today we went to a local National Trust Property. It is one we have been to lots of times so all the girls are familiar with it. What is great is that it is totally accessible for Alice to get around which means she feels that she has a bit of independence and can wheel herself round. It is pretty frustrating for her when she can see Annie and Lauren head off around the grounds and she is stuck being pushed by Charlie or I.

Today she can wheel herself and feels a certain degree of freedom as she whizzes off into the distance.

To be honest it’s great for me too. I know that she can go off ahead, which gives me a little space from her, knowing that she is in the safety of the enclosed grounds of the property. She knows her way round, and I know all the places she might try to hide in – to be honest it’s pretty difficult to actually be fully hidden when you are in a wheelchair – but I have’t told her that – so she is blissfully unaware we can see her when she thinks she is out of sight!

These days are pretty rare – everyone happy enjoying each others company, no grumpiness, no arguments, everyone grateful when offered an ice-cream, no-one moaned when I said we were having a picnic and not eating lunch in the restaurant! We did however, stop by the restaurant on the way out for a quick hot chocolate.

Often when recalling things from the week, we focus on the things that we have struggled with, the things that didn’t go quite so well, or the things we wished we could have done differently. Or we look at the other extremes and look for the things we can celebrate, the things that went really well. I wonder whether it is because we have to document so much of our week when fostering – this is a good thing – it protects us and our foster child. However, I think sometimes I miss the days that are just normal, average and run of the mill.

I think we should celebrate and look forward the ordinary days – like today!

A Less Ordinary Fostering Family Blog.

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