These Feet Were Made for Walking

Little Guy is happiest when we are outdoors. His day runs much smoother if we plan some "outside" time, so we've been making many trips to the park.

I thought it would be fun to capture a visit to the park from a different angle - his feet. Keep in mind all of these shots were taken from just ONE visit. He sure is a busy little man!

These feet were made for:walking

splashing

sliding

swinging

wading

climbing

balancing

stomping

dangling

exploring

and just relaxing!!


Side note: We won't even worry that by the end of our park adventure, Little Guy had stripped down to only his hat and diaper :)

Another Terrific Thursday

Oops, it happened again.

Another Wednesday slipped by without me "bragging up" my sons.

In my defense, we have been rather busy. Why do I always think summer is going to be less stressful and more laid back than the rest of the year?

Anyway, back to the subject at hand. I do have some wonderful - or in this case - terrific things to report.

First, Little Guy is doing much better at having fewer meltdowns. We are only averaging a handful a day, which is much easier to manage than the all day events we were experiencing before. Let's just hope it stays that way!! Little Guy also made some strides with his social development earlier this week. As I was visiting some relatives I haven't seen in some time, Little Guy interacted with their child for several minutes. This is great progress, especially considering he'd never seen this child before and is often guarded and withdrawn with strangers.

Second, Big Guy finally submitted his entire paperwork for his Eagle Scout application! Just in the nick of time, too; he reaches the age limit this week. We are so proud to see him accomplish this goal. And although he's been unable to reschedule last weekend's postponed date due to work conflicts, Big Guy has another date set up for this Saturday with a different girl. It's great to see him gain more confidence!

Hooray for a wonderful week ;)

An Exciting Development

It seems that autism and autism spectrum disorders are drastically on the rise. Research confirms this suspicion, as the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has put the rate of 1 per 166 children receiving a diagnosis of autism or ASD.

That's downright scary.

Some argue that this increased rate reflects improved diagnosis, while others believe that the rates themselves have risen rapidly. Personally, I think it's a mixture of the two.

As for what causes autism, opinions are even more varied. There is a strong suggestion of genetic influence; we've seen this in our own family as we have two children with an ASD diagnosis. There are other factors such as infectious illnesses, immunizations, stress, and toxic substances which people believe can influence a child's development either prenatally or postnatally and predispose them to show signs of autism.

Many of the newest studies suggest that there are multiple pathways, dependant on different genetic patterns and risk factors.

It is obvious that there are still many unknowns in this area, and leading autism researchers are combining their resources in an effort to learn more about what causes autism and its related disorders. The NIH Autism Center of Excellence Network and Autism Speaks recently announced the launch of what is believed to be the most comprehensive study of the earliest possible causes of autism. The network is called the Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation (EARLI) and it will follow 1,200 pregnant women who already have a child with autism.

The study will investigate how possible environmental risk factors influence the prenatal, neonatal, and postnatal development of children with genetic susceptibilities, as well as try to uncover the early biological indicators of autism.

I believe this is an exciting development in the search for what causes autism. Because it's only by understanding the cause that we'll ever come closer to finding a cure.

Magic Helmet

See this?

It's a MAGIC helmet.

I bet you're wondering what specific powers this headgear actually possesses.

If things become a little too noisy at sensory group, it gives Little Guy the POWER to block out the unwanted volume and continue his playing:


Hmmm....I wonder if it comes in adult sizes; it might come in handy for Mom to wear during one of his meltdowns.

Just kidding.

Now, to totally change subjects - Big Guy's date was postponed. It turns out his coworker's family had planned a surprise birthday BBQ for her father on the same day of the date. Big Guy's hoping that things will work out for later this week.

I'll keep you posted!

Social Stories

Tomorrow's the BIG day.

Or should I say big "date".

You might be wondering why Big Guy doesn't date more often. After all, he is a very attractive young man. And to show that I'm not being biased as his mother, I have proof:Just check out those gorgeous eyes!

It's not Big Guy's looks that holds him back when it comes to dating; it is his inability to read social cues. There have been many times where I've been with him in a public place and girls are flirting with him left and right. When I try to point it out to Big Guy, his inevitable answer is "Really - I didn't notice."

Clueless.

This lack of social awareness has also proved disastrous for a couple of his dates; one in particular stands out in my mind.

About a year ago, Big Guy asked a certain girl out at school by passing her a note in a book. I know - a little geeky, but she said "yes" anyway. Neither one had their driver's license, so Big Guy suggested they meet at the movie theater.

Okay so far.

However, things spiraled downhill quickly from there. Upon questioning Big Guy afterwards, I learned that he didn't offer to buy her ticket, failed to ask her if she wanted any snacks, barged through the theater door in front of her while letting the door slam nearly in her face, and left the theater before her ride had come to pick her up.

Not the best way to impress a girl.

So to prevent something like that from happening again, we've tried to come up with a "social story" for him to use this time around. Social stories are a little like scripts; they outline social scenarios for autistic spectrum persons and give them a chance to come up with a strategy or plan to use ahead of time. Big Guy has enlisted Sis to help him, and she's been a big help.

I'm feeling more optimistic about things this time around....but I'll be crossing my fingers for Big Guy tomorrow, just in case :)

Wonderful Wednesday

For those of you who might be new to this blog, "Wonderful Wednesday" is a way for me to celebrate some of the accomplishments and milestones my two sons with Asperger's Syndrome have shown throughout the week.

It has actually been "Terrific Thursday" a couple of times due to one person's procrastination....but we won't go there for now.

Ahem.

Anyway, we've had some exciting new developments the past few days.

Big Guy is going on a date Friday evening!!! Although almost 18 years old, I can count on one hand the times he's asked a girl out. This particular girl is a co-worker, and Big Guy asked her during his shift at work. He was so excited she said yes that he immediately sent the family a text about it.

Too cute!

(Side note: It's a good thing Big Guy doesn't read this blog...he'd be furious if he knew I'd called him "cute")

On to Little Guy. In my last post, I talked about this:
Yes, that would be me trying to contain Little Guy during one of the many tantrums he threw over the weekend.

I've doubled my efforts in trying to help Little Guy regain his regulatory skills, and we actually saw a very promising event happen last evening. During the middle of an episode, Little Guy suddenly changed his demeanor and calmly started to cooperate with what I'd asked him to do.

Hallelujah! Perhaps my hard work is starting to pay off.

I'm still crossing my fingers for now (we've already had a beauty of a meltdown this morning), but hey - if it happened once, it can happen again :)

Calling in the Troops

As I mentioned in a recent post, things have been kind of rough with Little Guy the past several days.

Okay, I'll 'fess up. Things have been downright ROTTEN the past week.

Little Guy has always had a hard time transitioning from activity to activity, but lately it's escalated to having a major meltdown nearly every time we switch to something new or different. We're talking at least a dozen tantrums a day - the screaming, flailing, arched back, incoherent kind.

And Mom is getting tired.

I've tried to isolate different triggers for Little Guy's decreased regulation. He was sick last week, but he's now feeling much better yet still behaving terribly. It could also be the disruption of schedule; I've had a harder time than usual coming up with a summer schedule. I finally buckled down over the weekend and came up with a schedule for the older kids and am in the process of creating one for Little Guy. His is taking much longer because I'm compiling pictures of the different daily activities we'll be doing. Little Guy is very visual; I'm hoping by describing what his day will be like through pictures, it will help him handle the transitions with fewer tantrums.

In the meantime, I've activated the troops:


"Sis" is great at reading Little Guy's cues, and is the best at calming him....next to Mom :)


"Middle Guy" likes to romp and rough house, and is great at helping Little Guy expend some of his extra energy.

Part of my middle children's new daily routine will be to spend time with their youngest sibling. Don't get me wrong - they already spend time with Little Guy, but I'm enlisting their help with some of his structured activities. This will give Little Guy a chance to build trust with other caregivers, and Mom a chance to have a little break.

In the meantime, I'm just praying that we can work through this behavior sooner rather than later!

Literally Speaking

For those of you acquainted with Asperger's Syndrome, you'll remember that these persons tend to be quite literal.

Big Guy actually is quite good at grasping certain abstract concepts as they relate to literature, but in real life this skill isn't quite as developed.

Here's an excellent example. Earlier this week, I had the minivan. Something unexpected came up, and Big Guy had to transport Little Guy in his car. I had the regular car seat with me, but we have a spare booster car seat to use for emergencies. I told Big Guy over the phone to use this booster for Little Guy.

Everything went fine - or so I thought. Imagine my surprise when I went out to Big Guy's car later that day and found THIS in the backseat:


That's right; Little Guy's booster seat for eating.

This definitely would provide no protection in the case of an accident.

I guess I said the word "booster" without specifying which booster seat to use, just assuming that Big Guy would grab the appropriate one as he was using it in the car.
I just feel lucky that the boys weren't involved in an accident.

And next time, even if I feel the situation is glaringly obvious, I'll make sure to be 100% specific when giving directions to this Aspie son of mine!

Terrific Thursday

Again, I slacked on posting my "Wonderful Wednesday" entry, which means you get a dose of "Terrific Thursday".

This week has actually been a very trying one with Little Guy, who has regressed in a few areas and is acting somewhat oppositional. I have to admit, I had a tough time coming up with positive information to share. I'm so glad I did, though - it's helped me remember that there is always something good to be found, no matter the situation :)

On that note, I'll begin with Little Guy. He's always been a good talker, but the past week has seen an even bigger increase in his verbal skills. An example of this is when one of his toys went missing this week. Normally, Little Guy would have said something like "Mama, truck's all gone. Let's find it?" This is the new version I heard: "Mom, my truck is missing and I can't find it. Please help me?"

Pretty impressive for a boy that just turned two-and-a-half.

Big Guy has made some strides towards earning his Eagle in Boy Scouts. He actually made some necessary phone calls this week without prompting, demonstrating a desire to become more responsible for completing this goal. With his 18th birthday coming up at the end of the month (the deadline for obtaining the Eagle rank), I'm hoping he'll continue to stay focused and driven. Earning this rank would be a great accomplishment for him!

Rewind Button

This is Little Guy's favorite position while watching TV.

I try not to let him watch too much at a time - just a few short intervals spread throughout the day. However, this has been a little more difficult as we've been spending more time indoors due to the increasing heat of summer. But something strange happened a few nights ago, making me wonder if I need to be even more careful with Little Guy's TV viewing.

I had put Little Guy down for bed a little early, as he had not had a nap that day. He seemed tired, but a half hour later he was still talking to himself. This turned into wall kicking, so I decided I'd better peek in and see what the trouble was. I repositioned Little Guy in his crib, handed him his bear, and tucked his blanket around him. This failed to do the trick; he continued to noisily stay awake. An hour after I'd initially put Little Guy to bed, I decided that a little intervention was needed to help him calm down. I carried him to his rocking chair and prepared to sing to him, but he interrupted me in a loud, excited voice by reciting three sentences, ending with a strange facial expression. I was trying to figure out what he was telling me when he repeated the sentences verbatim, complete with tone and facial expression. THIS HAPPENED FOR TEN STRAIGHT MINUTES while I was holding him, and had probably been happening before I entered his bedroom. I tried to engage him by asking questions, but nothing seemed to register.

I have to admit, I was a little scared by this development. I finally started singing over the talking, and Little Guy eventually began to repeat this bizarre behavior less and less. I'm not sure when it hit me, but at some point I realized that he was giving me a play by play of a video segment he'd seen earlier that day. Little Guy has mild echolalia, but this was different; he wasn't repeating the audio aspects of the video. Rather, he was describing the visual aspects of a certain scene. It was like someone hitting the rewind button to watch a particular part of a movie over and over again.

I haven't let him watch that show again for fear of that behavior resurfacing; he's watched some other programs and seemed to be fine. I haven't had a chance to speak with his therapists about this development yet. I'm very interested to hear what they think.

Food, Glorious Food

Little Guy has many sensory issues, especially with food. His favorite (and only) meal of choice would be applesauce, yogurt, and chicken nuggets.

Three times a day, seven days a week.

We've been working with an occupational therapist to help Little Guy expand his eating selection. Things are moving along slowly, but we have seen some progress.

Like biting off pieces of raw carrot and spitting them into his bowl. Before now, I would have reprimanded him for playing with his food and making a mess, but I've learned that "playing" with their meal is the way kids with sensory issues explore the characteristics of different foods, making them seem less threatening. And putting the carrot in his mouth shows that Little Guy is learning to tolerate the idea of eating it, even though he wasn't quite ready to chew and swallow it.

I'm reminded of "The Addams Family" when Morticia reprimands her daughter Wednesday at dinner, telling her to "play with your food".

Maybe Wednesday was struggling with sensory issues, too :)