It's been a busy few months…….

We gathered at Blue Central to get on the mini bus to go to Pitlochry for a camping trip at Faskally camp site. The weather was unbelievably good it was hot sunny and sticky. Pitlochry was beautiful; the scenery is stunning with lots of hills, rivers and lochs. I was happy with the weather.

It was a good trip and we managed to do a lot things. We had a BBQ with burgers, sausages and chicken it was delicious. It was good to catch up with friends that I have not seen for ages.

We went to the onsite pub for dinner and spent time relaxing in the sun. On the way home we stopped at Kinross services for a Burger King.

I have made the most of the sunshine and sat on my step to watch the world go by; I love the sun and hot weather that comes with it.

I went for a lovely walk around Lochore Meadows and found a painted stone with one of my staff.

I have been inspired to start painting my own rocks, looking forward to hiding them for another to find.

May was full of birthday celebrations, Mum turned 80 and I turned 43.  We both celebrated in style, ‘ladies do lunch’ and of course there was Birthday Cake.

The day after my birthday was rather exciting, Dunfermline had an explosion! This prevented the buses travelling into bus station, chaos.

Had my first weekend away to Respite and went out for lunch at the Peacock restaurant.

My hair is still blue and I had lots of fun turning my bathtub into a blue lagoon! You can only imagine how long it took to restore the bath back to pristine white, ha-ha!

Stagecoach have brought in new buses, they are disabled friendly. The floor is lower and very spacious, clean and definitely ticks all the boxes. When I went to Edinburgh to explore the Fringe and we had the pleasure of riding in style on the new bus home. Edinburgh was an adventure in itself! Had a wander around Princess Street and people watched, it is very busy on the streets at Festival Time. Only we could get evacuated from The Standing Order at lunchtime, the fire alarm went off! Mum did not hear it to begin with and a kind member of staff made sure we got out safely. Thankfully we had already eaten our lunch and just left our drinks behind. I was very proud of my Mum, she coped very well with all the upheaval of getting out the building.

Had a great night out celebrating Scottish Autisms 50th celebrations. They definitely know how to throw a party. Mum sat and caught up with everyone whilst I was on the dancefloor. I was lucky to have the pleasure of a dance with our very own deputy chief executive Charlene Tait. I still cannot believe that Scottish Autism is 50 and I am so proud to have been part of it all.

Found out that my Newcastle trip is going ahead at the end of September which I am really looking forward to. I can’t wait to explore the shops and sights of Newcastle.  I am known to have a wee tipple while on holiday too!

I am off to see a Rod Stewart tribute act at the Alhambra Theatre in September; I will let you know if he is as good as the real McCoy. I am really excited about this and looking forward to hearing some of my favourite songs.

I have started along with a few other guys to make a film with 2 professionals on a Thursday at Blue Central Day Service, I will be attending the club for 7 weeks in total. It is very interesting; I have learnt how to put sound onto films and how they edit the film. So many interesting things to learn and I really wasn’t aware of just how much work goes into producing a film. I have learned a little bit about special effects, how to interview people, how the cameras work, how to use a clapper board (without taking off your fingers).

In August I was really impressed by Morrisons Supermarket in Cowdenbeath.  They have started a ‘quiet hour’, aimed at people with Autism.  I think this is fantastic, although if I had one suggestion, I would suggest why couldn’t they make it during the week instead of 9am on a Saturday when people I know, including me don’t shop at this time.

I really enjoy having discussions with my staff about things which interest me. I recently had a conversation with staff while I was doing my dishes about how it’s often written places that Autistic people are not ‘supposed’ to like the colour red. Red is one of my favourite colours. I wonder where they got this information from, what do you guys think!?

One more thing before I go; Asdan! I have started this which is a course aimed at people with learning disabilities.  It will give me more confidence, knowledge and I am so excited to complete this. I can’t wait to get a certificate!