Thank goodness it's nearly over!

2015 is drawing to a close and I am pretty glad that it is. Most of the year was spent just plodding along nicely with nothing of note….and then September came and it was so stressful from then on. I didn't sleep for nearly 3 months and I really don't know how I managed to come out the other side.

I was dreading the start of the new school year as Harry was feeling rather unsettled about entering Year 1 but thankfully he soon got over his fears. I'm such a worrier and I hate to think of my children being unhappy in a place they have to go to 5 days a week for 39 weeks a year. Molly also started high school in September and so far she seems to be thoroughly enjoying her time there. I think she's relishing the extra responsibilities and her confidence is shining through. Phew!

In the middle of September we got news that we really weren't expecting and it completely threw us. We were being evicted from our house. We had been relatively happy where we were living and I didn't want to move again so soon after the last move but sitting here 3 months later I am glad our hand was forced. We've found a cosy house that we're actually much happier in, despite a big lack of space, but it's a roof over our heads and we could have been a lot worse off.

When Harry first heard about the move his biggest worry was having to move schools and lose all of his friends. The social aspect of school is the biggest factor of Harry's enjoyment of his time there so it concerned me too so I promised I would do all I could to make sure he still went to his school so when we found a house just a mile away from our old house he was happy. Then came his Speech & Language (SALT)  assessment.

We've been pushing for SALT assessments and support for a number of years now as his speech is very immature. It is now starting to affect his education, which I only noticed when his teacher pointed it out during a parent's evening and then when I volunteered in class. It's heartbreaking to see how much he is struggling. The school have been doing all that they can but he only gets brief SALT visits once every 6 months or so and he's falling further and further behind. October's visit was different though. A new therapist arrived and agreed wholeheartedly with his teacher that his speech difficulties are very specific and complex and that occasional visits are just not enough for him. They have referred him to a Specialist Resource Base so that he can get specialist intense speech therapy. I breathed a sigh of relief thinking "Finally, we will be getting him the full support he needs" not realising what an SRB means. Once Harry has been accepted for a place he will be moved to a school 7 miles away 4 days out of 5 for up to four terms. He will be in a class of 10 children with similar issues and the teacher and teaching assistant are fully trained in dealing with these barriers.

It is widely believed that the time spent at the SRB will bring him up to speed ready for the start of his education at Junior School. We have heard many stories of children who have been to similar units and who have improved very quickly. I know how resilient my children can be but it worries me that he'll struggle again and he won't have such string connections with his friends when he only sees them once a week. My other big concern is how to get 3 children to three different schools (miles apart!) at the same time. Hubby is unable to help as we only have one car and he can't get time off work so it's going to be down to me. It's likely that Harry will move straight after the February half-term so it will come around quickly. Although it's going to be a stressful and exhausting time I have to keep in mind that this is what Harry needs. He needs help to keep focused at school and this support could be the making of him.

Hubby was diagnosed with sleep apnoea in November and now has to sleep with a CPAP oxygen mask every night. It has taken some getting used to but the lack of snoring is brilliant! He has been told that he needs to lose a large amount of weight to cure the apnoea and is being referred for bariatric surgery, which we assume will happen within the next year. Obviously it's very worrying but if it removes the sleep apnoea then it'll be worth having.

With all of this going on I am so glad that Charlie isn't in the panto this year. I really don't think I would have had time to be his chauffeur to and from rehearsals and performances! It was a fabulous experience for him last year but so draining for the rest of us. We are going to the panto storytelling session at the Millennium Library tomorrow morning followed by a trip to the theatre for the show tomorrow night so he'll still get chance to have a quick catch up with a couple of cast members from last year.

Once we get into a new routine with school runs I think 2016 could be a good year. I'll be leaving my midday supervisor job at the school next month as I'm going to devote more hours to looking after my lady in Norwich. It will be really strange not seeing Charlie every lunchtime and I'll miss the children but for various reasons it's time to move on. I'll still volunteer for listening to readers some afternoons but I'm looking forward to having some time back for myself during the week (and being able to eat my lunch at a decent time!)

I'm also thinking about the challenges I should set myself for 2016. I managed to read 34 books this year when my target was 30 and I also kept up with my 365 Q & A book for the second year running. I don't appear to have taken many photos this year so I might try Project 365 again or maybe post one a week. I desperately need to lose weight as my hip is really straining but I've always failed at the first hurdle with diets no matter how much pain I'm in! With hubby eating less after stomach surgery maybe I'll finally be kicked into touch….

Have you set yourself any challenges for 2016?