Stressed out from…school?

I think I mentioned earlier this week that I was worried about another year of fighting to get ds to go to school…to get up and leave the house on time, fully dressed (which means shoes)…and listening to him each night as he shares stories of how he is wronged at school or what frustrates [...]

First Day of School

It’s too early to say if it was a success — unless I define success by the fact he went to school, stayed the day without a call and I picked him up on at the same time as everyone else. It’s also possibly too early to say that I am worried about the rest [...]

Hair Dye and Bongos

I sit here in my quiet bedroom…that alone is an anomaly. Quiet time? In my room? Write this day down in red on the calendar. Now, I didn’t say the rest of the house is quiet, but my room is…for now. Our respite nurse is in the other room, keeping an eye on the little [...]

Speech Does Not Equal Communication

The last few days, we’re noticing more and more situations where ds is unwilling to listen to the reason, any reason. We try to tell him something brief and clear, such as “You need to get into the bath now” (after his 10-minute warning) and he blows up, yelling, spinning into a full-blown meltdown, ending [...]

You’re a Jerk, Mom

Well.
That’s the response I just got telling ds to watch where he kicks his foot as he’s laying on the couch to prevent him from putting his foot through a huge plate glass window.
Not only am I a jerk, I’m ‘mean,’ and I’m ’stupid.’ All because I don’t want him to hurt himself or end [...]

Information Overload

If you’ve ever been to a seminar or a conference, a truly good one, you’ll know what I mean. You learn so much, it’s hard to absorb it all, process it, and do enough with the information. That’s how I’m feeling now. I attended the Back to School: Autism/Asperger’s Conference last weekend in Pasadena, California. [...]

Once Bitten, Always Shy?

My son’s big on routine. Sameness. Repetition. Familiarity. It all holds true with his diet, too. I’ve mentioned in a prior blog entry how food is a huge issue for us. He has a limited set of foods he’ll eat, and those foods need to be prepared the same way, too. (Only pancakes for breakfast, cut [...]

Pro-safe-vaccine, not anti-vaccine: There is a difference.

I read a lot about vaccines and autism. It’s unavoidable anymore. Because it’s my job as a mom of a child with autism to stay on top of research, trends in autism, autism politics and the autism community. (It’s not a choice in my eyes; everyone can do what I do, it’s a matter of [...]

This weekend’s autism conference

Every year, I try to attend at least one or two conferences/seminars focused on autism. This year, since the DAN conference is in San Diego, I’ve decided to attend the Back to School: Autism/Asperger’s Conference in Pasadena, California, this coming weekend, August 9-10. (I love the DAN conference, but two nights in a hotel on [...]