Tom's 17th Birthday Weekend

Does this look like a happy boy. Oops, should i say young man now? Tom has turned 17 at last.  At last?  That's right for this weekend (actually last) has been talked about and planned for almost 6 months.  He's been driving me mad and i just kept saying "lets talk about it when it gets a little closer, shall we".  I'm not sure if all Aspie's are like this but well, birthdays (or should i say HIS birthday, he forgets mine) seem to be more important than any other day on the calendar year.  Its all about him, which for an Aspie is a natural state of being. Add that to being an only child and well, you know its couldn't possibly all be contained within a single day.  So its now become the Birthday Weekend.

It started on Friday night (28th, his actually birthday) with dinner at the Golden Grill (Turkish) in Werribee with a group of 10.  Yes, you have heard me mention this place several times.  Tom fixates on locations and until the next one comes, this is where we eat out.  Have done now for several years and i am so so glad that their food is fresh, made on the premises and that they have gotten to know us.  I guess Tom feels comfortable (safe) and they the staff greet us like old friends.  Both Tom and Hubby order exactly the same thing every time and so its just so so easy for them and there is none of the anxiety of making a choice. The waitress just say "the normal"? I try to confuse the matter each time by being a little different.  My fav at the moment is their amazing fresh salad with two dips and a bowl of chips to share that get dunked into the dips.

There were three guests of Tom's (Dave, Josh & Brenden) while Hubby and i had the pleasure of hanging with their parents.  This is a real joy for me as each of them have been part of our lives for years and i truly care for their boys. They are "good boys" and all have that slightly left of centre humour that appeals to Tom.

Brenden - he goes way back to creche years and his Mum is my Bestie

Dave (left) from Tom's time at Heathdale Christian College and Josh (right) who was Tom's big buddy at Westbourne Grammar when Tom was a preppy.  

We came back to the house afterwards for his Birthday Cake.  It was a cookies and cream ice-cream cake organised by Hubby.

This was really good quality ice-cream and the chocolate slabs weren't bad either.  It was from Wendy's.

Josh was able to stay over for the weekend and since Hubby and I escaped the onslaught of teenage boys to attend a wedding in the country early the next morning, i appreciated the company for Tom on Saturday.  Marco (his cousin) arrived about 1pm and Dave arrived about 5pm and so when we returned there were 4 of them in the house.

Hubbies new study area certainly got a workout.  While most boys (including these) play on consoles there are many great games that are on PC and with a simple network in place they can all be on the same team.   There was much laughter that ended about 1 am in the morning.  Its gaming for nerds.  Josh is studying computer networking and Marco is studying every boy's dream, game design.

So, in case by now you are thinking that the entire weekend was spent gaming inside you would be wrong. Keeping in mind that Tom's aspie speciality is military where else would we go but Laserstrike.  Previously we have been to Healesville but this time we went to a new site in The Basin. This day was our birthday gift. I'd much rather an activity than more stuff.

Laserstike - The Basin

35 acres of bush for the boy to run around and get dirty in.

Those guns don't have paint balls that hurt and leave bruises but emit a laser that when aimed at a sensor on the oppositions head or gun registers a hit.  They can keep track of their own hits and kills on the gun itself. This all seems pretty grizzly doesn't it but they are OUTSIDE and they are ACTIVE and they are WORKING IN A TEAM and they LOVE IT.  Which all sounds like a win win win to me.

Their first session was a 9.30am which meant an early early start for tired teenagers.  Try getting four of them up at 7am and through a shower with instructions to drown themselves in deodorant was a tactical mission.  I have to drive these boys home afterwards and the thought of 4 stinky boys in the car was in the back of my mind.

The Basin is on the other side of the city (about an hr away) and so for a special birthday treat the L Plates were put on my V8.  I didn't take a photo and Tom drove really well with a very big smile.  The two older boys in the group still don't drive and so Tom felt pretty chuffed to be driving them.   They say girls talk. This lot never stopped talking the whole way there or the way home.

Tom

Marco

Jeremy lives in Berwick and so he met us there.  Another old school buddy (they met in Kinder) who we haven't seen for a few years.  So great to catch up with him and for me, his mother Liz.

Dave

I missed a photo of Josh in cammo gear because he recently had an ingrown toenail removed and it started bleeding so he cut his first session short (9.30-11.30) and didn't do the second (1 - 3).  My sister who moved from here into the area came to keep me company and while we were chatting at a picnic bench we looked across and found him fast asleep sitting up with his arms inside his T-Shirt.  Too Funny Josh.  He was obviously comfortable as he slept away until the others returned from their second session in the afternoon.

 

I'm glad its over but i think it lived up to Tom's expectations.   I only hope that i get a breather in between now and his planning the next one.  18th!!!  Its hard enough trying to get a 17 year old boy to do anything he is told so how hard will it be when he's 18.  He is already telling me "he's almost an adult".

Tom received some very generous gifts in the form of cash from family and friends.   He's hard to buy for and so many let him choose his own gift. He pooled it all together and bought some more outdoor items and so I'm pretty happy that it wasn't just blown on games.

We went out to a park yesterday and Tom gave it a go.  Its going to take plenty of practice to get to the level in this youtube but it was a lot of fun and i made him try to hit me to give him a target and to steer him away from traffic on the road next door.  There was a slight breeze and when it is up very high (and i mean high) is lost a bit of control.

Quadcopter

Lucky you can buy spares when the inevitable happens.  The helicopter only runs for short periods and so we need to get a spare battery to swap over.

Happy Birthday Tom, from Mum & Dad.

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