Read more about the article We need to have a talk
Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

We need to have a talk

So apparently I was on TV again over the last few days. I didn't know anything about it. My brother messaged me last night to say that he was going through the guide on his TV and he heard my voice in the background. He clicked over and BAM there I was. I guess is was a supercut from several of the interviews I'd given ABC News in 2020. I don't know because I haven't seen it. I had been hearing from people over the last few days that they'd seen me on TV as well. These are people I've never met before and they felt compelled to reach out after hearing me speak. Everyone was very nice and I love hearing from my readers/followers/listeners. What was a bit worrisome…

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January 3, 2021
Read more about the article How I’m choosing to handle parenting during and after my divorce
Divorce / Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

How I’m choosing to handle parenting during and after my divorce

If you're new to this blog, you should know that I use this a sort of a personal journal. Many times, I'm writing about things that I'm experiencing in real time and you go through that process with me. This is one of those times. I woke up this morning and I'm finding myself very easily annoyed. Gavin is definitely pushing my buttons, whether he means to or not. For the record, I don't think he does. His brothers aren't too far behind either. I've been on edge and irritated today and I wasn't sure why until I started writing about this. I remember why and since the kids are already aware, I feel comfortable talking about it. This week, I meet with Lizze and my attorney. We will be…

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December 28, 2020
Read more about the article Can you guess why it’s so hard for me to sleep?
My thoughts

Can you guess why it’s so hard for me to sleep?

I've been talking about how tough it's been to sleep at night when Emmett is dealing with separation anxiety. The last few days he's been doing really well in regards to sleeping in his own bed. Last night was a bit of a struggle. He ultimately made it into his own bed but he had to fall asleep in my room first. If you ask him why he needs to sleep in my room, he'll say something along the lines of he feels more comfortable. Sometimes it's because he has a string of nightmares that really upset him. Yet on other occasions, he's said that he's afraid that if he's not glued to me at night, he's going to wake up in the morning and I'll have left in the…

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December 27, 2020
Read more about the article Why the holidays are tough for us
My thoughts

Why the holidays are tough for us

One of the challenges for me as a Dad going through a divorce, is managing the holidays. I don't mean fighting over who gets to see who because thankfully we don't have that problem. I'm referring to things like simply navigating the day. Before all of this happened, we had our holiday traditions and everyone had a role to play. When people are missing, the role goes unfilled and it sometimes changes everything. We were in a remote location with no other people around. We took out masks off for the picture. This was earlier this in the Fall. Even if the traditional activities are still possible, there can be emotional baggage associated with them, especially for the kids. This is our second Christmas on our own and we're still…

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December 24, 2020
Read more about the article Avoiding conflict by encouraging my kids to communicate with each other
My thoughts

Avoiding conflict by encouraging my kids to communicate with each other

I spent a large part of today breaking up fights between the kids. They seem to be at each other's throats. I was just recording a speech for an upcoming summit yesterday and I mentioned something about this. I was pointing out that not everything I'm dealing with in my house is related to autism, at least not directly. There's a large portion of the daily challenge that's autism related but there's other portions that are simply typical kid behavior. The boys fighting is something that brothers do. That's pretty normal for brothers to fight and I totally get that having 3 brothers of my own. Autism tends to make things a bit more intense because of triggers and a difficulty reading body language. This is especially true when it…

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December 16, 2020
Read more about the article Just one of the unique challenges that #specialneeds parents face
My thoughts

Just one of the unique challenges that #specialneeds parents face

Gavin had a little mini emergency tonight. He had us worried for a little while but seems to be fine now. In the middle of dinner, he got a really bad migraine, I gave him Motrin and told him to go lay down. It's really hard to tell what's going on with him because he is unable to answer any questions that could help me know how to better help him. I asked him if light or sound makes his pain worse and couldn't answer that. I asked him to be more specific about where the pain is and he couldn't really do that either. This was taken pre-covid Lizze was brought in via phone to help because she lives with migraines on the daily and she might have more…

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December 14, 2020
Read more about the article I’m really nervous about this
My thoughts

I’m really nervous about this

By the time you read this, we will likely be on the other side of this particular situation. In the morning, we have someone coming to service our furnace. Something is very wrong with it and it needs to get done or we won't have any heat. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal but since COVID, nothing is not a big deal anymore. I reached out to some medical experts I know to figure out the safest approach to having this done. After chatting for a little bit, it was concluded that assuming they actually wear a mask like I was promised they would, and we stay as far away as we can, while wearing our own masks, the risk should be low. The current plan is to have…

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December 10, 2020
Read more about the article Fingers crossed that I sleep tonight
My thoughts

Fingers crossed that I sleep tonight

You know what? It's actually been a pretty good day. Obviously, it wasn't perfect or stress free but I don't think those days even exist. I feel like we made some progress around the house and for the most part, the kids got along with each other. I'm always grateful for that and it helps to maintain a positive tone for the day. It's amazing how something so simple can change the demeanor in the house. I didn't get a whole lot of work done but I've written twice and that hasn't happened in forever. That's big for me and it's progress. This week I need to focus on finishing up episode 39 and before Wednesday. That should be relatively easy, assuming the boys let me have the time needed…

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November 22, 2020