Lately, the Monster’s been on-and-off about being good using long, real sentences.
He can, when he wants, construct a good, normal request. For instance, this evening, he asked me, “Can you to turn on Sesame Street, please?” (Well, the ‘please’ was with coaxing, and ‘to turn on’ isn’t a great construction… but it’s head and shoulders from where he was last year.) Continue reading
Yesterday was family photo day.
Now, setting aside that I myself don’t like being photographed, it’s been a while since we’ve done the family photo thing, so when the wife found a deal through one of those “deal of the day” sites, I relented. Continue reading
There’s the rare morning where I’m solely in charge of getting the Monster ready for school and out the door.
The Monster’s morning routine’s not very complicated:
Now, granted, we do prepare number 3, do number 4, help him with number 5, and guide him through the rest. However, there’s usually two of us leading him, since the baby’s not usually in a “wake up ” mode until about a half hour before the Monster’s out the door. Continue reading
So after gymnastics today, I was tasked with taking the Monster to the urgent care facility near the gymnasium to get his foot looked at.
The Monster’s not too fond of going to the doctor, or folks playing with his feet. So imagine what it’s going to be like, having to take him to the doctor to have his feet looked at. Continue reading
This morning, while getting the Monster out of bed, the wife discovered that he had a splinter or something in the sole of one of his feet.
Obviously, he’d not said anything at all to us, and we’d not noticed because he’s not been acting funny. It was simply that she was being observant that we noticed anything at all. Continue reading
The Monster’s not really the adventurous eating type, and I know I’ve commented on that at various points on the blog. He was, of course, when he was a baby – like most babies, he ate just about anything you put in front of him – but as his Autism really came into force, his dietary habits have somewhat slimmed down.
One thing I’m still getting used to is how they can keep narrowing, even after that initial onset. Continue reading
The Monster, being in a regular public school, gets the same rewards and treatment as the other children that attend his school, even if he’s not aware of what those things are.
We got a notice today that, as part of being in this regular school and having perfect attendance for the prior quarter, that he’s getting a reward of being able to see a movie later this week. They’re showing Wreck It Ralph for the younger kids (pre-K to 4), and a separate film for the bigger kids, with a note sent home for us to sign if we don’t want him to see it. Continue reading
When you have a child with Autism, and then have additional children, paranoia becomes part of the game.
I don’t know if there’s really any other way to describe it to parents who have only neuro-typical children: the constant surveillance of all of your other children’s behaviors, looking for that one indicator that you have another child on the spectrum and that you should be getting intervention pronto. Continue reading
I hear a lot about how children with Autism “play” with toys.
Now, when I read about other kids – and indeed, when I watch the Monster with his toys – a lot of play involves making the wheels spin, or the like. It’s not what the toy was perhaps meant for, but it’s what entertains or fascinates them. Continue reading
The Monster’s in his second week now of additional therapy that we’re paying for, above and beyond what the school is giving him, since we’re not getting what we really want from the schools (more individual care) and we don’t think he’s getting enough.
So on Tuesdays, after school, the Monster comes home on the bus and is shuttled immediately off for another 30-45 minutes of combined SLP and OT at another provider. Continue reading