u/tryingtolive888

I have an 8 year old level 2 AuDHD. We’re going on two 5 hour flights and then there’s like several VERY long drives in between. We of course are doing screens but if we get too much it’s not good. He reads a little and well but it’s gotta be the most interesting thing to him. Like bugs, volcanoes, poop jokes, battles… we have travel board games and card games. We have search and find books. We have fidgets. A dry erase activity book. A few toys. I’m gonna go with so many snacks and mints and gum. I have so many would you rather things ready and jokes.

We’ve flown before but it’s been years.

Please any advice on how to do this. Recommendations on things to bring or activities or fidgets or books or whatever. I can do a lot but we’re trying to find things he can do for brief periods on his own as a lot of what I’ve mentioned is for more than just him. Also trying to avoid slimes and putty due to planes and hotels and relatives homes.

Also we are very obviously getting out of long drives along trails and picnic areas to be active along the way.

My son has had the same teacher in a split class for two years. They are an absolute joy of a teacher. I am so sad our time with her is done. He adores her. She’s been with us when he was struggling through an autism assessment and really helped us grow. My son went from refusing work and we had discussions every day and worked as a team to get him now doing work and getting passing grades.

I’ve gotten her lots of gifts over the years like personalized bracelets and chocolates and class supplies and I volunteer as much as I can.

I was considering getting her a label maker that has no subscription and an app to design whatever you want with multiple rolls of different label options. Would you like that? I know it’s not super personal. My son and I will be writing her a letter. She’s already cried with me over not having him next year. But would you like that? A label maker with supplies to go with it and personalized letters.

Please give me suggestions if you think I can do better!

Thank you for any help.

I am new to books. I want dark witchy occult history books. I like hearing about how things are done like making old medicines and how things are made and fashioned. Thriller and mystery is great as well.

I started with outlander because I loved the show and loved the books more. I don’t care about sex. I don’t mind it but I’m not here for that.

Then I got into the Discovery of Witches books and loved them more than outlander and could just live in them.

Other honourable mentions from the last year of reads are

VE Schwab’s Darker Shades of Magic series (didn’t like the invisible life addie larue but did like the viscous first book)

Leigh Bardugo Ninth House and Hell Bent. I’m waiting for the third now.

Six of Crows was okay but I want older people in books as I’m an old lady.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

I just tried Practical Magic. It was okay but not fast paced enough.

Please help. I’m disabled and have so many appointments coming up. I need books or I’ll go insane waiting for my doctors to be ready for me.

My child’s birthday is coming up. Every year my parents make a big deal that they need to give their gifts BEFORE the birthday or holiday. So like Christmas, Easter(which I don’t get why we need Easter gifts we’re not religious), Birthday.

It’s kind of weird to me as my parents always told me holidays are fine to be celebrated late. They told me I should work all throughout my youth and we would celebrate when I wasn’t working.

It’s gotten to the point where my parents will wait until a few weeks before and demand to come. We’re a family where both parents work. We have an older house that always needs work. We always prioritize our garden and growing veg so this is a huge time for us to be getting everything ready for a birthday party at our house along with yard and garden prep to be planting after our last frost date. This is common knowledge as we’ve lived like this for years at every house we’ve been in. Our child is also growing up and has friends and he’s coming and going which means we have kids here in our chaos and my child goes elsewhere. There’s kind of something always going on so people need to come to us early. My mom in the past has tried to come with 24 hours notice either Christmas gifts from 4 hours away knowing we’ve had plans for months (literal months) and threatened to show up at my work if I’m not available to her. I work healthcare and when I’m not it there’s an older crew that really doesn’t need drama.

With that backstory. My child’s birthday is in under 3 weeks. We have two free weekends before my house is overrun by kids. So along with getting the yard ready I also have to get a party ready and my husband works one of those days. We really only have 4 free days to really get things together. I have all the party stuff but there’s putting things together and then days of yard work so we’re ready to hopefully plant the weekend after the party depending on weather.

My mom and dad called last night. They asked to come in two weeks. I said no. Which is hard for me. I usually accommodate them even though it’s hell and my husband gets upset because it’s always bad timing and puts more pressure on us and throws off our schedule. I feel bad asking them to come at an easier time because they act out. So this was big for me. I said no we have a lot but the weekend after the party they can come. My mom said this with my child being there on speaker “no we won’t be around I’m just trying to get him his gift” I said “oh well you can come the weekend after it’s fine. Late gifts are fine” my son even said “yeah it’s ok” my dad said “well you might just be giftless then” and I’m just so tired. That’s so rude to say to an almost 8 year old. They know we’re always busy in spring. She’s been asking what he’s doing for his birthday for months. She knows when his birthday is every year as well. Why not just ask me a month ago so we can plan for it? She won’t come to the party but even if she did my son doesn’t want her there. His best friend stopped in once while they were here. My mom has this thing where when she’s with him she feels that’s her time so she’s asked not to invite my aunt or go places with his friends because she doesn’t get “her time”. So she felt his friend was stepping on her time. She didn’t even look at them or say hi. She ignored the other kid completely. So he’s embarrassed now and won’t have her there.

I’m so tired. They’re so upset and they always try to have my son think I’m the bad guy. Like telling him I’m the reason he’ll have no gifts and not “oh it’s okay we’ll have a late birthday day” it’s “your mom is difficult so no gifts” or last year I didn’t want my child to have to have 4 phone calls in the hour he’s awake before school on his birthday so I told people if we were busy we’d call back. So my mom and dad. Brother and his wife. And grandma all didn’t call him. My mom called right before school. “No one called you because your mom said you’d be busy so she’s why no one has said happy birthday to you”

I’m so tired that they’re this overwhelming all of the time.