Read more about the article Fixing what’s broken within the #Autism community
Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

Fixing what’s broken within the #Autism community

One of the things that I've seen as an obstacle within the Autism community, is our ability to work together regardless of our differing beliefs. I've spoken about the major rifts that have formed and how those rifts are preventing unity.  If you've been blessed enough to not run into one of these rifts, count yourself lucky because it's not always a pleasant experience, especially for the newly initiated parents within the community who have no idea what they're walking into.  Likewise, if you haven't experienced this first hand, don't discount the validity of these words because many others have experienced these things.   These rifts have led to factions or individual groups that sorta break off and do their own thing. What leads to these secessions is often a…

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January 11, 2017
Read more about the article Feeling grateful 
My thoughts

Feeling grateful 

Last night Elliott fell asleep with no problems. Emmett on the other hand had a rough time again. I don't think he fell asleep until 10:30-ish. That's an improvement over what it's been lately but it still presents its challenges. We had a slow start to the morning and a hard time waking the kids up. Truthfully, we had a hard time getting up as well but someone has to captain the ship. Having said that, once they were awake, Elliott and Emmett got ready for school without incident. In fact, Emmett put his socks and crocs on without hesitation this morning. I don't know what's different but he just woke up in a place where his shoes and socks were okay. This does happen on occasion but not very…

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January 11, 2017
Read more about the article #Autism: The Unpleasant Truth
Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

#Autism: The Unpleasant Truth

I've been connecting with so many new Autism or Special Needs parents lately. While this is such a cool thing for me because connecting with others in a similar circumstance is a positive thing. At the same time, it's heartbreaking because there are so many people out there who are isolated, scared, overwhelmed and feeling hopeless. What's become clear is that, based on my personal experience, as well as interactions with parents from all over the globe, there isn't enough support, services, understanding or even compassion. Frankly, it's not even almost enough. Somethings wrong when the fastest growing childhood developmental disability in the world doesn't have some national/international infrastructure that directly helps families seek out and obtain early intervention services. There's something wrong when parents burn out because raising a…

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January 11, 2017
Read more about the article We just received the @nest PRO learning thermostat today
My thoughts

We just received the @nest PRO learning thermostat today

Vivint was out today and they installed the nest PRO thermostat in our house. Supposedly, this will help us save 10 - 15% on our heating and cooling bill. That savings can go right to our grocery budget.  I'm pretty excited because I just love new technology and I love saving money.  The nest integrates with the Vivint Smart Home system we have, as well as with our Amazon Echo. I can simply tell Alexa to set living room temp to whatever I want and she'll do it.   I can also control the nest from the nest app, as well as the Vivint app.  I haven't had a huge amount of time to work with it just yet but as I do, I'll share my experience. I had talked about this a…

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January 10, 2017
Read more about the article OMG… He won’t stop talking O_o
Bipolar Disorder / Gavin / Manic / My thoughts

OMG… He won’t stop talking O_o

I'm so tired and Gavin just won't stop talking. Look, I'm so grateful that all my kids are verbal and I know how hard it can be when they aren't because Emmett was nonverbal until he was almost four or five years old. We were told he would never talk, so to at least some degree, I get it. Gavin is one of those bipolar kids that talk incessantly when they are manic. My God, this kid hasn't stopped talking today. He'll disappear to his room for a bit and I get a reprieve but when he comes back, and he always comes back, he's got all this stuff pinned up and then unleashes a flurry of scattered thoughts at me. He's in the kitchen right now making a sandwich.…

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January 10, 2017
Read more about the article You won’t be surprised to hear this
My thoughts

You won’t be surprised to hear this

I know you're going to be shocked but I'm exhausted this morning.  Poor Elliott was up all night with a really bad headache. Mr. Elliott woke me up about 1:30 am because his head hurt so bad that he was crying. Rather than risk waking up Emmett, I brought him downstairs, got him some Morin and made him comfortable on the couch. It took some time to get him back to sleep up it did finally happen. I'm so glad he was able to fall asleep and I was able to comfort him. The downside is that I lost a tremendous amount of sleep as a result. The boys got off to school without much problem. Now I can try and grab a nap because if I don't, I can't…

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January 10, 2017
Read more about the article It’s easy to underestimate the impact a meltdown can have on a parent
Meltdowns / My thoughts

It’s easy to underestimate the impact a meltdown can have on a parent

This morning took so much out of me that for the first time in awhile, I crashed after dropping the boys off at school. I did get some writing done prior but I was just no longer able to function and needed sleep. I feel much better now, although I'm still tired. It's pretty easy to underestimate how much a morning full of meltdowns can impact a parent. The amount of emotional and physical energy expended is immeasurable. On the positive side of things, once Emmett works through the sensory issues in the morning, he seems to recover much faster than I do and has a good day at school. Truthfully, if given the choice, this is how I would want it to go. Experiencing a sensory issue like Emmett…

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January 9, 2017
Read more about the article It’s not his fault and yet he blames himself
Gavin / My thoughts

It’s not his fault and yet he blames himself

Yesterday was a rougher day for Gavin. I should clarify. He was well behaved as usual, but he was physically struggling a bit. Aside from the incessant talking, which only bothers those he's talking to, it was almost like his body was failing him. Let me explain.  There were several times where Gavin legs just sorta gave out on him and he either fell or almost fell.  Unfortunately, this seemed to only occur while he was walking up the stairs, which made this even more dangerous.  Gavin was very frustrated with himself but there wasn't anything he could do about it. It wasn't something he had any control over but he still felt like he was doing something wrong.  It really sucks because life is hard enough for him without blaming…

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January 9, 2017