Loving Every Bit of This....

I am sitting here at the dinner table watching Mike chase Nick around the house. Nick is laughing and screeching with glee as daddy chases him, grabs him, and hugs him. Nick is blowing off some steam after 6 hours of ABA. He is making much faster progress with the increase in hours. He is also starting to pull a bit of mischief with his therapists. When Ana wanted him to draw on the paper, he took the crayon and slyly chucked it under the table-all the while looking at her and smiling. We have just enough time for dinner, bed, and we do it all over again tomorrow. It has taken a little time to get used to having a house full of people 5 days a week. At first I had no idea of what I was supposed to do while they worked with Nick. I have sat in a couple of times to help and to see how things were going, and talked with each of them when Nick had a "Break". Now I have gotten to like having them here. I talked with all of them yesterday (we had all 3 over at once for a sort of pow-wow) regarding potty training. We discussed adding some more things to work on since he was finishing his other programs pretty quickly now. Today he had a good day. He is working on letter sounds, basic writing skills, requesting what he wants, counting, and ABC's. We are going to add some self help skills such as dressing himself and brushing his teeth. Dinner time is now pretty much stim filled-as he is overloaded from 5-6 hours of working. It is sometimes difficult to hear him lash out while working-but I know it is going to be good for him, and he is only doing it because he is being kept from retreating into his world for the time being. It is so rewarding when I hear him count and speak up for something, or being able to follow directions and making more social eye contact. That is when I know it is working!

Today was also a milestone for Michael. I took him down to get his very own ID card. He also cashed his first check using his new ID card. I am loving every single day of being home with them. A few days ago Michael and I went to see the movie Ice Age 3-D. We also want to see the new Transformers movie. We are planning to go camping next week up near Leavenworth. Should be fun for the boys to get away for a little bit. I am looking forward to it as well.

Busy Saturday....

I heard through one of Nick's therapists on Friday that there was an autism walk yesterday. She said that they would have a booth there, jump castles, and some free small toys for the kids. Sounded like some fun could be had. I asked Michael if he wanted to go, and he said yes. I was looking forward to getting in some much needed bonding time with both of them.

Everything was going along great. We got up at 7:45 and both boys devoured two waffles each. We got dressed and did all the necessary primping. We were out the door and on our way to get some gas and some snacks/drinks during our walk. I should have known the following would happen. I stopped the car, turned it off, and got out of my seatbelt. Nick quickly did the same, and I had to tell him to stay in the car. This did not go over well. Then Michael told him NO for some reason, and screaming chaos ensued. I told Nick it was ok, and that he could get out when we went to the store. He seemed a bit happier in the store. Feeling good about myself for handling that, I was lulled into a false sense of greatness.

We found our way to the Walk and got everyone and everything out of the car. This was the first year I did not bring a stroller for Nick. I figured he is big enough to walk; and his feet drag on the ground in strollers anyway. Here is what absolutely DID NOT happen, as my *perfect* child is most certainly NOT capable of this.
Nick surely DID NOT have a meltdown of epic proportions upon trying to register. He most certainly DID NOT throw himself to the ground and scream bloody murder. And of course he DID NOT continue his meltdown all the way back to the car. Me being the *perfect* parent that I am, positively DID NOT take him to Fred Meyer in search of any stroller I could find. Upon our quest through the aisles, I DID NOT *bribe* him into calming down by handing him a stretchy,squishy toy for him to twirl. I also DID NOT happen to find the only store I have ever known that had NO strollers. We also DID NOT buy that over-priced emergency stimmy toy before we left. Of course not. After all, those parenting "experts" would agree that is not the thing to do.

By the time we got back to the Walk, people were already walking, so we just joined in at the back. It was a nice walk through all sorts of trails. Nick was having such a great time humming, running, stomping, and singing "Dewy,Dewy,Dock!" the whole way. He loved waving his hands through the bushes as we walked, and at one point nearly became part of the shrubbery as he stomped and pranced his way down the trails. He seems the happiest surrounded by nature.