Read more about the article Happy 13th Birthday Emmett
Emmett John / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

Happy 13th Birthday Emmett

I've been working on this one for a few days. I know that's really sad but life is good and I've been very present in it lately. Sometimes that takes me away from writing and that's okay. ☺ Mr. Emmett turned thirteen years old this weekend. He's had a really good birthday, albeit a bit untraditional, I believe he's happy and that's all that matters to me. We've been celebrating over the last couple of days. He opened his present two days early because he just couldn't wait and that's okay. We did a special birthday lunch and dinner. I mean, you only turn thirteen once. You only turn any age once but thirteen is the first big one. Anyway, we're holding off on the cake because he was concerned…

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June 28, 2021
Read more about the article I pushed the limits of my comfort level a bit but I think we did good
After Divorce / Elliott / Happy Birthday / Parenting

I pushed the limits of my comfort level a bit but I think we did good

Elliott's birthday was largely successful. I think it was anyway. After the boys finished class for the day, I got them over to see Lizze and we hung out in the driveway for about twenty minutes. Everyone was double masked and socially distanced. The boys were able to get hugs from their mom that's always a big thing for them. Like I said yesterday, this wasn't ideal and I felt a little uncomfortable but I also think we were both safe and smart about it. Sometimes, the emotional wellbeing of the kids involves limited and calculated risk. I ordered pizza prior to our arrival and timed it such that we would pick it up on the way home. It kept us on a schedule and it's what Elliott wanted for…

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March 5, 2021
Read more about the article First things first, Happy Birthday Elliott
Elliott / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

First things first, Happy Birthday Elliott

I want to start out by saying Happy Birthday to Elliott. He turned 14 today and I couldn't possibly be prouder of the young man he's becoming. The plan for today is get the boys to school and go walking. I have a meeting at 11am and that should last about an hour. I have to pick Emmett up early and get him to Akron Children's Hospital for a follow-up. Lizze and her mom will be picking up the other 2 kids because it's Wednesday and they have a visit this afternoon. I will drop Emmett off on our way home. They're celebrating Elliott's birthday, so I'll celebrate it later this week. It sucks that we have to do things this way but it's okay. I have Elliott everyday and…

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March 4, 2020
Read more about the article A Birthday We Almost Didn’t Get To Celebrate
Gavin / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

A Birthday We Almost Didn’t Get To Celebrate

Today is a big day in The Autism Dad household because Gavin turns 20 years old. This would be a milestone birthday on its own but for us, it's more than that. For the last decade or so, Gavin's health has become very fragile. I recently wrote all about that and you can click here to catch up. Long story short, there were times over last decade, where there was very real concern that Gavin wouldn't see his next birthday. There were times where Gavin was experiencing an autonomic crisis and it was so bad and latest so long that we were told to prepare for the worst. These are old photos but they are taken during an autonomic crisis. I'm grateful for every year we have with him and…

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January 18, 2020
Read more about the article It’s a special day today
Happy Birthday / Lizze / My thoughts

It’s a special day today

Today's a special day in our house because it's Lizze's birthday. I won't mention her age, aside from saying that she's younger than me.. ☺ Lizze is difficult to plan a birthday for so we're gonna wing it. We did the movie yesterday and we'll probably do something small at home. We don't make big deals out of our birthdays, as we reserve our resources for the kids. Maybe we'll do take out for dinner and have a movie night with one or more of her favorite movies. She's a huge fan of the Now You See Me series and the new Jumanji. Those movies never get old for her. While we don't go overboard for our birthdays, we also don't take them for granted either. When Lizze and I…

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July 18, 2018
Read more about the article My youngest just hit double digits
Emmett John / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

My youngest just hit double digits

Our day was fairly nonstop and I didn't get a chance to post this eariler. Better late than never. Emmett turned 10 years old today and he had a great birthday. We try to plan far enough in advance that we can pull things off. Anyway, Emmett is obsessed with Nerf Guns and he got what he calls the ultimate Nerf Gun today. Apparently, we did good. We had a busy but mostly low key day. We decided to celebrate his birthday in the early afternoon. It was pretty simple but it made him happy and that always feels good. We had ice cream cake before he opened his birthday presents. There were a few appointments this afternoon but we were done about dinner time. I cooked a couple pizzas…

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June 27, 2018
Read more about the article Happy Birthday 12th Elliott
Elliott / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

Happy Birthday 12th Elliott

It was twelve years ago today, that I experienced the most amazing and most terrifying moments of my life, at least up to that point. Mr. Elliott was born on March 4, 2008 after a very difficult pregnancy. Lizze was nothing less than a hero for how hard she fought to bring him into this world. I remember the moment he took his very first breath, as well as the moment I heard his lung burst. What followed was the scariest seven days in my life. Elliott fought though bilateral pneumothorax and bacterial pneumonia, to become one of the strongest, sweetest and most compassionate people I've ever known. We have our struggles but I love him to the moon and back. I wouldn't trade him for anything in the world…

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March 4, 2018
Read more about the article It all started 18 years ago, at 10:52 AM
Gavin / Happy Birthday / My thoughts

It all started 18 years ago, at 10:52 AM

There are days that arrive and bring with them a profound sense of consternation. For me personally, today was one of those rare days in my life. There are many reasons why today has so much meaning but I want to focus on the single, most important one. On January 18, 2000 at 10:52 AM, Gavin was born into this world. While I wasn't present at that point in time, Gavin wouldn't enter my life for another year or so. Gavin has faced so many obstacles in his young life. Some of these obstacles were familial in nature while others were physical and emotional in nature. This young man has been through more in his short life, than most people would in two lifetimes. As a family, we've been through…

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January 18, 2018