It’s easy to forget about the emotional delays

We had a morning full of preteen drama and little brother button pushing. This isn't uncommon when it comes to brothers. Brothers were created to get on each other's nerves. That's where the normalcy stops and the Autism/anxiety/emotional delays complicate things. While these guys pick on each other like typical brothers, their reactions to being picked on are rather extreme. The boys are brilliant kids and for the most part, not very socially awkward. At the same time however, they are some significant emotional delays that make dealing with stressful or emotionally charged situations, very difficult for them. They tend to take things very personally and don't get sarcasm, even though they can be sarcastic themselves. Emmett might be trying to pay Elliott a compliment but Elliott takes it wrong…

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Undone in a matter of minutes

The boys came home from their grandparent's house and immediately began bickering. That bickering soon turned to fighting and led to Emmett freaking out for over an hour. I don't know why this evening has been so particularly difficult but they had a great visit with their Grandparents. It could simply have been a long day or maybe it's the holiday creeping closer and closer. Perhaps it's nothing out of the ordinary and they're just fighting because that seems to be what they do best anymore. It's funny how six hours or so of rest, can be undone in minutes.

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What we do when the boys aren’t home

The boys are gone and rather than be super productive, Lizze and I have decided in a slightly different course. We don't get time to ourselves very often and when we do, we are usually so tired that we don't feel like doing much of anything. Lizze and I have been binge watching The Punisher. It's awesome but not family friendly in the slightest. We only have four episodes left and we should be able to squeeze them in before the kids return. If I squint really hard, it feels like completing the season will be an accomplishment.. ☺

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Looks like we’re getting a break

The boys will be spending the day with their Grandparents. We really appreciate the break as Lizze and I are both exhausted. The boys, especially Elliott, have been very challenging as of late. Smaller breaks like this do everyone some good. If you're reading this and you have a special needs family in your life, one of the best ways you can help is by giving them a break. It's not always possible but if it is, you could make a big difference in their lives while gaining valuable insights at the same time.. Think about it... ☺

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I’m exhausted

I wanted to drop you all a quick line and briefly explain my absence for the last day or so. First of all, we're all doing okay. The kids finished out the school week on a good note and there hasn't been any major drama since the last time I wrote. The reason I haven't written in the last day or two is simple, I'm exhausted. I've been burning the candle at both ends and it's catching up to me. I've actually been sleeping better because I've finally found a allergy medication that works and I'm able to breathe through my nose at night. There's just so much going on and it's pulling me in a hundred different directions. Some of these directions are really good and others are just…

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Unboxing and Review of U-Lace No-Tie-Shoelaces

It's not very often that I become aware of a product or service that I absolutely love. In the past, it's really only been Vivint Home and Project Lifesaver. Having said that, I was recently introduced to a company called U-Lace. They may sound familiar and that's because you probably saw them on Shark Tank. As for myself, I missed that episode and so I'm learning about them now. Before I get into my brief review, I want to show you the unboxing video for U-Lace, so you can see for yourself what they're all about. :-) https://youtu.be/vfbX5UnGvSw As the above video demonstrated, U-Lace helps people gain independence by transforming tie shoes into slip-ons. This can be of enormous benefit to people with Autism, fine motor issues, arthritis or even cognitive…

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It was amazing

The family and I did something spontaneous last night. I spoke about the initial fallout from me trying to surprise the boys with tickets to see the new Justice League movie. We actually ended up going and I'm pleased to share that Emmett is just in awe of the movie. His exact words were, "it was amazing". Gavin loved it and Elliott enjoyed himself as well. I loved it and can't wait for the rest to come out. Lizze really enjoyed it for the most part but fell asleep towards the end. We had a great evening as a family and while we got off to a rough start, everyone had a good time. That means a great deal to me. ☺ In a couple of the pictures, you can…

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An #Autism parent for almost 17 years and I’m still learning

After a few bumps in the road, the boys are in a pretty good place. Things got a bit out of hand when I tried to surprise the boys with going to a movie tonight. I thought it was going to be something everyone would be excited about but I wasn't even kinda right. I'm about 17 years into this journey and I'm still learning new things everyday. As soon as I told Emmett that we were going to go see the new Justice League movie, he freaked out, and not in a good way. Elliott wasn't too excited either but he didn't have the extreme reaction Emmett did. It hadn't occurred to be that Emmett might not do well with being surprised. I was caught up in trying to…

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