The start of goodness

An Internal reorg

I came to an uncomfortable realization that these past few months most of my thoughts are centered on work. 

It’s not just that my work day is long and intense (which it is).

But that I carry it in my mind everywhere.

                                                                 

Its how I define a good day or a bad day and my self-worth.

It only changes when we are in crisis ( like Crohn’s)

I am trying to change this
 Every day as I walk into the house.

I visualize  mentally put down the work day along with my laptop.

When we are fully engaged in R -OMG what a difference in him

He is just as autistic (as he always was).

It’s just that he is engaged and autistic, which is the other realization that DH and I have come to
that R is ...

Growing up Autistic

 After so much therapy( 6 years ) - he is growing up 100% autistic.

All the therapy has been totally worth it as its brought about engagement and communication  but R is still fully autistic

One of his bedtime poems is by Edgar Allan Poe

A lines makes me so sad is

“And all I loved, I loved alone”

It makes me  wonder if that is what the experience of being Autistic in a world of neurotypicals must be like.

Not having anyone who finds interesting what you find interesting.

Like even when DH and I watch TV - I get really mad, when he multitasks - because when something funny or stupid happens - I want to look across at him and I want him to acknowledge my eye roll.

( we are watching Grey's Anatomy right now and trust me,drippy Meredith Grey and her sappy love are giving us plenty of opportunity to roll eyes)

His interests are just so peculiar but we try to be interested in them  and build on all of them

For instance he is enamored of the conductors and their batons

DH orders a baton on ebay and I think R will pass out with excitement

But I make sing songs and make him conduct me

Another huge interest is going up and down elevators  and taking photos of the numbers.

so since 0 is missing in the floor, I take a photo of his hand that he shapes into a circle. So the series is complete

 
Or having a same size can of Fanta( which he will never drink) , next to the can of the Sprite( which he loves)

Or the pleasures of trying to create the scenes that he has seen in a show

But we try and see that we are with him in these things so exciting to him


Naughtiness & Spontaneity

Ever since school ended ( even though he works around 30 hours a week atleast between tutoring and therapy) , he has so much more energy.

Unfortunately some of this energy is getting used for evil  :-)

Twice this month he ran away at our fitness club

I usually designate a naughty chair and make him sit on it for 5 minutes or give him consequence like no elevators ( his current obsession)

 He weeps repentantly and is very very sorry but he somehow still cannot resist himself.

What is truly incredible and a great gift is that now he has started to plot his crimes

For instance he loves to buy apps and games from I tunes –

Since I refuse to buy the expi ones an – he makes me buy him a cheap app from ITunes ( like 99 cents) and then while the password is in there, he takes away the iPad and then buys the expi ones .
This weekend we brought $45 worth of apps

While this is truly terrible, we could not be more proud.

Same with his eye medicine. Since he has a lazy eye- the strong one needs a patch/atropine. He found and hid both

Once I explained that his weak eye would keep getting weaker and weaker unless he put on at least one of them – he went straight to his hiding place (downstairs dustbin, very bottom, he had added a lot of paper in the trash to “bury” the meds)

And he asks to do things

Like Bake cupcakes
Color and decorate same cupcakes ( these activities would have been impossible a couple of years  ago )

But there are still things we need to work on. We get to visit some dear friends who have darling children  and find that as soon as R is tired - he has a hard time interacting with peers

Spontaneous Speech

I love that R is going a little bit better in terms of chatting.

The other day I told him to write an email to Miss Gypsi

Here is what he wrote

• Knoxville
• Tennessee
• Bakery
• We go to McDonalds
• Oak Ridge
• Mother
• We go to target
• Cheese

This most peculiar email is of course quite explicit to Miss G and me as he is remembering all the things he did with her ( "Cheese" is a mystery, Mother is related to when he met Miss G's mother and made Easter eggs with her )




Homeschooling start

Summer ends at the end of this month - but every year and we need to officially start with homeschooling

We are busy trying to design the curriculum for R 3rd Grade Therapy classroom.

This is not as easy as you would think !

The start of goodness

 

Despite so many things to the contrary, I am starting to feel a certain contentedness in life.

 

Everything about me -the contentment in my life, the feelings in my heart, how I come across to people, my home and how I see my whole world

 

It all  starts with how I feel inside

 

And the contended grateful feelings are starting to come.

 

I am remembering to ask fewer questions about the troubles we are facing ( insomnia, crohns etc ) and thinking more about our gifts

 

The more grateful I am, the more grateful I become

 

Gratitude to Gratitude always gives birth

 

Sophocles