2011 has been an adventurous and rewarding journey for my little STAR. It would be his last year in EIP and all focus were to ready him for the challenges in meeting each moment where it matters most, the psychology and the in take assessment are the 2 important KPIs for him which will determine where he journeys his next lap of learning. The SPED team that were working behind him and supporting him all the way had been great, I did share with them that though we are responsible for the effort that we expended on him to maximize his full learning potential, but ultimately my little STAR is responsible for his results. Whatever outcome it may be, we must respect & accept that it is his goal, we can then have inner peace after doing & giving our best support for him. We were indeed very thankful that he had done the SPED Team proud.
The whole family visited the 2nd outlet of Professor Brawn Cafe to have a small celebration for both the little STAR & his sister for having come this far and progress up their learning journey both in SPED & main stream respectively. 
Eating out together with family members continue to be another activities that we look forward at each given opportunity, the little STAR has a new liking on Japan Pepper lunch where he feels empowered to be able to cook and stir fry the lunch with salmon and eat by himself all at 1 go, of course we dare not to let him do the frying by himself, but will hold his hand to model after us and see the smoke and hear the sound in the process. 
December has been a great joy of celebration with Love, Thanks & Sharing, managed to take several shots to capture the atmosphere wherever he went.
Not forgetting the Elephants on parade, which embody the great values of hardwork, perseverence and strength. We must cultivate some awareness to conserve, protect & save them.
While the school holidays may have started, the little STAR learning continues for another 4 more weeks with the various therapists(speech/literacy/numeric/social group) before he slows down a little to have his break in the last 2 weeks, it is a joy to be able to see him continue to remain engage & generalize progressively on what he learns day to day.
It was not all about work only and without play, he also has his down time balance with some visit to shopping mall eating and playing at Time Zone, Book fest, playing at indoor play ground etc... and even met his classmate on few occassions. We had bought him a blue bag for his next lap in the new school. 
We had also made an exclusive visit with him to Sentosa and had great fun walking with him and going with his flow at times.
It was a bliss seeing him smiling and enjoying himself within the few places of interest we visited such as the beach, the bridge, the under water world and snack time at butterfly park.
It was a fruitful & memorable half day outing.
The little STAR has also grown closer to his sister lateley, he will imitate what she say and does, and they will enjoy playing together just like normal siblings do. I have to remind my little princess to be mindful of being a good and positive role model for his brother else the little STAR may learn and imitate the wrong behavior/speech.
We had some games of bowling on Christmas with my sister family. For all the children, it was their first time experience in playing the real bowling game and truely they enjoy just as much as my little STAR for this first timer. Very encouraging to see some positive outcome out of this healthy sport activites for the little STAR, it was another moment that counts.
The Christmas celebration ended with a family photo to be remember as another great moment we met. The children had grown up while we parents and grandparents age gracefully.
The little STAR is all ready and set for his new school term in academic year 2012, we will be putting him on school bus to elevate his independence and putting all effort to prepare & make him successful with this new routine of going to school with friends by bus. The recent school orientation had been a great success and I am confidence that he & the rest of the children will be in safe hands of their teachers. Brought back with me 2 key guiding principles: Normalization and Dignity. As a parents of a child with special needs, we must always remind ourselves to stay positive & be even more empowered to exercise Preventive measures, Teach the child & always be ready to Manage any challenges from the various manifestation out of their autistic traits to reinforce positive behavior and maximize success for them.
Take this blessing to wish all A Happy New Year 2012, a year filled with cheers, lots of Love, Joy & Peace.
Winners Statement:-
“Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.” ~ Albert Camus
