Let's talk about friendships.

I worry about my kids not making friends, not having a best friend, a buddy, an alabi, I don't want them to be lonely at school.

I hope they are included for birthdays, I hope they get invited to playdates.

Lacey is great with friendships, she loves her friends, she cherishes memories and she always wants to check on them. She hugs them, hi fives them and cheers them on.

Lola is more of a tag along, she loves including herself with laceys friends and she will make friends at any playground we go to, she loves boys- too much.

I am a pretty shit friend🙋‍♀️, I am a walking disaster, I'm inconsistent and unreliable, I'm self absorbed you may say, I have to be right now..

With Rory beginning school this year, my heart prays he will have a friend. I would so love if he lit up when he saw his buddy, if he wanted to sit with someone on the mat or if he held hands with one of the kids at recess. He has been around kids at pre kindy all year, the same boys mostly and 1 or 2 girls attended sometimes.

Rory, like me, has'nt got the friend thing going on. He sees these kids every week and he tolerates them. I won't go so far as saying he enjoys them, he tolerates them.

One of the boys, So hopeful and loving each week , he would excitidly say hi to Rory, Rory would not acknowledge him.

Another boy, loved to dance and whilst Rory would watch him at times, he wouldn't smile.

The girls that came would offer him toys and he would not so nicely decline.

Unlike me, he has a legit reason for his social awkwardness, he has autism. Its difficult for him to let himself make friends.

Thankfully, so do all the kids in his class, they all have special needs, they all have their own challenges.

My main purpose of this blog, is in hopes that the parents reading this, will educate their kids about disabilities . Not just ones that can be seen.

We have an opportunity to educate our kids now, these kids influence the future for kids like my Rory. Be kind.

When I tell Lacey, have a great day, enjoy playing with your friends, its as simple as that, I may need to remind her, that she needs to share and take turns.

For Rory I will say have a great day, I hope you try and play with your friends.

I'm hopeful, I'm hopeful he will buddy up with someone, maybe another child who is non verbal, who's friendship doesn't need words.

I'm hopeful, because he will be a great friend, he may not seem like it at first, he may seem uninterested -but my boy, just like yours, is a kid too and he just wants to have fun x

lucywattslifeandautism.com

#autism #autismschool #educateondisabilities #autismmumma #bekind #friendships #specialneeds