Well shit, I just had to open my big mouth

Last night was a long night and I only have myself to blame.  I recently shared how Emmett was falling asleep in his own bed and we thought we'd finally worked through our bedtime troubles. Unfortunately, it seems that in my excitement over our perceived victory, I jinxed us.  I spent the night on the couch once again because Emmett wasn't able to sleep. Lizze was still sick and so Emmett and I ended up camping out in the living room.  It was a long night but I did get to sleep today, courtesy of my awesome wife.   Perhaps next time I'll not claim a victory so early...  ☺ 

0 Comments

A heartbreaking conversation with my son (audio) 

It's been a little while since I talked about how Gavin was doing. I will very, very cautiously say that things might be improving a tiny bit for Gavin and here's why.  It seems that we have gotten the bladder control issues under control. I don't know that I've actually heard him say anything about it in at least a week or so. He still tends to have problems during his Infusions but that's about it.   The medication he's taking to relax his bladder seems to be doing the trick. Of course, it could also be that he's been back down to only 600 mg of Clozapine per day for a few weeks now. I think that helped.  On the backside of all this, he's still struggling with psychosis…

4 Comments

How we finally got our child with #Autism to fall asleep in his own bed

Here's a little story about an eight year old with Autism, who was unable to fall asleep in his own bed at night.  This little boys name is Emmett and this has been a long standing issue.  He's had some really bad nightmares while in his bed. Based on a very common trait with people on the spectrum called generalization, Emmett now believes that he will always have nightmares when he falls asleep.   We've tried all kinds of things: New beds New mattresses  Night lights  Flashlights Things that project very peaceful light shows onto the ceiling Magic spray Leaving a calming show on repeat on their TV Diffusers with essential oils  Music Door open and door closed These are just a few things off the top of my head…

8 Comments

Just a general update

It's a bitterly cold day here in Canton, Ohio. We've had a dusting of snow over the last few days but nothing significant. It's perfect weather to get everyone sick and now it's Lizze's turn.  The boys and I were sick for about a week and have recovered for the most part. Elliott is still dealing with a cough but otherwise okay.  I've been really tired recently, more so than usual but I've also been dealing with insomnia as well.  Lizze is really under the weather still. She was the last one of us to get hit by whatever this respiratory bug is.  Thankfully, Gavin's remained healthy this entire time and I assume we owe that to his IVIG Infusions during the week. The worst he's felt is a stuffy…

0 Comments

This poor kid can’t catch a break

It's been a long day and an even longer night. Once again I'm on the couch in the living room because Elliott is not feeling good.   This poor kid just can't catch a break.  He's got a pretty nasty cough and his tummy is upset. This rendered his ability to fall asleep null. A change of environment sometimes helps the boys when they're sick.  I've got the eucalyptus oil in the difuser and it's pumping some moist into the air, next to where Elliott is currently passed out on his couch. The eucalyptus essential oils are amazing and it's one of my favorite. As for why I'm still awake, the answer is insomnia and it sucks.  The fact that Elliott is breathing better, no longer coughing and sleeping peacefully…

0 Comments

An update on the bullying situation 

I wanted to shoot an update through the channels and let everyone know how we're doing with the bullying situation that's recently come to light.   I'm really happy to be able to say that since our meeting this week at the school, the changes made have had a very positive impact. The biggest change that has been made is the proximity of where this classroom bully now sits in regards to where Elliott sits.   A little distance seems to be really helping.   Elliott has reported that things have gotten better for him. He hasn't been assaulted by this kid for most of the last school week and that's a big change for the better.  He was getting stabbed/scratched/hit with pencils on what seemed like a regular basis.…

0 Comments

What the hell just happened? 

I have no idea when you'll be reading this because I have no idea when my server will be restored. Bluehost has had a massive outage and my server has been down for the longest period of time since I started blogging over eight years ago.  I've been sorta lost cause I always write before going to bed and tonight my routine has been thrown off. Anyway, I hope this outage gets resolved ASAP.  

0 Comments

Meltdowns and the patience required to survive them as parents

We had one of those mornings where every single ounce of energy is spent just trying to get the boys off to school.  The morning began with Elliott refusing a bath. He woke up this morning and his hair needed to be washed. He must have been sweating last night cause his hair was greasy and needed washed before school.  He battled us pretty hardcore over this but did eventually comply.  We've told him that if he doesn't keep up with his long hair, it's going to get cut much shorter.  What we experienced next made Elliott's struggles this morning seem like walk in the park. Of course, I'm referring to Emmett and his shoes.  Emmett was really, really struggling this morning because he wouldn't tolerate anything on his feet.…

10 Comments