Thursday, April 2, 2015

Maintaining Normal...ish

Wow, it's been a very busy year. I can hardly believe that it's been over a year since I posted on here. Lots of changes have happened in our house. I've changed jobs and by default changed the city we will be moving to after Harlee graduates this May and starts at MTSU school of Music in the fall, the eldest is busy working and finding out about life and love, and we found out that little man is on the Autism spectrum in November. 

In our house the word Autism has  become a code word for all things frustratably unexplainable about little man. His need for structure, his literal interpretations, his dislike of change, sensory defensiveness, and more. Sometimes it feels like we are standing on the edge looking down into this huge chasm of a diagnosis. There are times when we feel unequal to the task of raising this wonderful child. 

And he is wonderful. Don't let my description above throw you off. He is high functioning. Unlike many children with Autism he will try just about any new food that you bring up. He may not eat more than a bite of it, but he will try it. He is the cuddliest 11 year old I know of and he is probably the politest kid you will ever meet. The hardest thing for me is to know that others don't see what a cool kid he is. I've been around cars my entire life and I still can't tell you what they are by the shape of the headlights or tail lights, but he can. He can ride for hours in the tractor with dad or he's content just being with dad in the shop. This kid also LOVES to cook. He will pester me for hours about helping me in the kitchen and learning to cook new dishes. 

All this is to give a heads up to the public. Today is Autism awareness day. Learn about Autism spectrum disorders. Look it up, check out Autism speaks, ask a parent of an Autistic child about what it entails on a day to day basis to simply survive some days. Be kind. Be supportive. Allow yourself to be educated about living in the moment.