Thanksgiving With Autism



Tammy at AutismLearningFelt has an Autism Mom's Thursday today in which the topic is Thanksgiving with autism, & how that day may differ from those who do not have autistic children.

I decided to contribute, because our Thanksgiving would probably be considered different from most.

When I was growing up Thanksgiving meant decorations, a nicely set table, company, & special foods. These things always seemed to be very important, particularly the food.

I tried that for a while in the early days with my kiddos but have finally given up (thankfully).

I do not decorate in general, never mind special holiday decorations. The kiddos tend to grab things, & anything put out that isn't normally out, like a special occasion decoration, is very subject to grabby hands.

For years I tried to control that, & continually rearranged & replaced the decorations, but as of the past few years I stopped decorating at all. That has alleviated a lot of stress.

I still might try to do a special craft (if they're easy) with some of the kiddos, & hang them off the refrigerator or a door or something. They, too, have been grabbed, but at least they're not usually breakable. They might end up torn somehow, but usually survive rather well. :-)

I do not set tables. That doesn't mean a fancy holiday table, but tables in general. On a daily basis, one of the children puts out a few placemats, napkins, & utencils for each meal, avoiding Little Bear's spot as he will grab the setting & it will end up on the floor. Each plate is filled & then brought to the person at the table, so I do not set food on the table in servers.

Since I can't do that on a regular basis, holiday table setting is completely out. That typically means many more breakables, & just can't be done here. We also don't go to anyone else's home for holidays anymore because they do set nice tables & have regular foods, which brings me to the next difference between our Thanksgiving & a "normal" one: food.

Our food is very simple. My oldest has been gluten & dairy free for almost eight years, & aside from an occasional infraction continues to be on a special diet. Butterfly does not tolerate dairy, does better off gluten, & is highly allergic to tree nuts. My Little Bear is a story unto himself in that he hardly tolerates any foods. His severe eczema as a baby was controlled by some very strict food eliminations. He eats in an "SCD" sort of way; for a while it was strict but now it's somewhat modified. Unfortunately, he's still not able to tolerate many foods.

Everywhere we go we typically bring food. To go to someone else's home & pack foods is not necessarily convenient, but we've done it in past. A few years ago we gave up that too, for the most part, as the boys tend to grab food also, not understanding that certain foods are not good for them. At holiday meals most people walk around with food, leave it places, & drop crumbs.

Folks also tend to leave drinking cups around with liquids in them, which my boys will take & either spill or drink themselves.

The past few years we've spent Thanksgiving alone as a family, which has taken a lot of stress off me. I still try to make a dish or two everyone can eat that is a bit different from our typically very plain foods. Since there are picky eaters here as well that is usually done more for hubs & one or two of the other kiddos. My severe boys are happy with the turkey, although Little Bear doesn't seem to like any poultry anymore, so this year I'll probably have to plan to have something else for him or a leftover available.

So our Thanksgivings are pretty much like any other day, but maybe with a different vegetable dish or dessert available. I find that everyday with autism there is enough to be concerned about, rather then wasting much needed energy fussing & stressing over one particular day that will be over quickly anyway.

The day isn't bad, & is somewhat relaxed as there's no homeschool, just the usual tasks that always need doing, & hubs has off work. The past few years we've also always had someone fall ill on Thanksgiving, so my prayer this year is really that everyone just stay healthy.

I also try to keep the kiddos focused on the fact that the reason this day is a big fuss is not for all the reasons most make it to be. Rather, it's because a group of brave believers wanted to settle somewhere they could worship their God, who is also my God, in freedom & safety. It's horrifically ironic & sad that right here, where believers came for freedom to worship & serve Him, persecution for doing just that is becoming more & more prevalent.

It's also odd that those who don't even care about Him or that freedom continue to celebrate this day (as well as others)... but in remembrance of what?

Those early settlers & believers were very thankful to Him for providing freedom for them. I am too. But my prayers also include that this freedom be remembered & continued.

That's good enough for me. :-)

Thankful Thursday



I am very thankful to God for all the day trips we were able to take this Fall & all the activities we enjoyed together as a family!

I'm also thankful for the new practitioners & consultants on board for my severe sons, & do pray for wisdom that it all can make a positive difference for them.

I also thank God for His patience, & for not giving up on me, no matter what.

Baths Are Part Of Life

My little Ladybugs are quite timid in a lot of things, baths being one of them. Particularly Ladybug II. I even put bubbles in for her. It helps a bit, but for some reason she's always very tense & there's eventually a bit of a meltdown. I wish I could get her to relax & enjoy her bathtime!

We were watching a show where an infant was getting a bath, & my Ladybug II had her eyes fixed on the screen. Storyman & I were showing her how the baby was enjoying her bath (thankfully the baby on TV was smiling), but Ladybug II watched the baby with obvious concern.

Then Storyman says to Ladybug II in a nice way, "You're future is full of baths so you quite need to get used to it."

I couldn't help but laugh; I thought that was so funny, particularly the way he said it.

Ladybug II doesn't seem convinced yet... ;-)

The Zoo

I had hoped to get the kiddos back to the zoo before winter weather starts. We tried for a Sat but it was very rainy. It cleared up a bit so we went Sunday instead. It was still dreary most of the day & a bit wet in places from the previous day. But the zoo was almost empty which was great. Although there's not as much going on as during peak seasons, there was no waiting to see any exhibits & we walked around easily. The temperature was also very comfortable.

The monkey house is always fun. We were up at the glass where there was a gorilla. He turned his, um, bum, to us, then slowly turned around. Then he suddenly stood straight up & beat his chest at us; I believe he made a noise but we really couldn't hear it from behind the glass. There weren't many of us but I suppose he felt protective over his area.

Under the blanket was a new mommy orangutan. A zookeeper was explaining but I could only hear a bit. I did get that it was her first child & a girl. The baby will cling to her mother's body for a good 6 months without letting go (I think human children should come with that ability; so much for daycares then... hehe). The smaller creature climbing up the ladder was a gibbon.


The gibbons also enjoy eating pumpkins.


We all got a kick out of this pretty leopard, grooming him/herself like a domestic kitty...


We got a great closeup look at the tigers as they walked right by the glass. That's another great thing about going off season while it's cooler outside... the animals are typically more active.



I think squirrel monkeys are very cute. It was handy having our own budding naturalist with us (Storyman), who explained that after they eat they spend a lot of time sitting around while digesting.


The otters were playful as usual.


The penguins are really cute (the fish stink was really strong there). Check out their little huts in the back. It's like a whole penguin neighborhood!


We went into the "small mammal" house to see what was there. The bats were cute but creepy. That whole area really stank! We could barely stand it in there.

I did linger long enough to get a picture of the meerkats. I think they are SO cute!


This aardvark... not so much. Looks like a huge rat to me (eeew; no offense "aardy"- s/he was actually quite friendly).


These giraffes were passing by each other & for a moment looked like an "X".


Definitely not the most fascinating species at the zoo, but (for some reason) I had to take a picture of this squirrel eating out of the garbage.


Another great bonus to going off season - we got a parking spot in a lot very close to the zoo! I think it was the first time we didn't have to walk a mile to get there after parking. :)

Shoeboxes

Samaritan's Purse has their shoebox program in full swing right now. It can be done all year round actually, but during this season they have drop off locations whereas during the rest of the year they need to be mailed.

We haven't done this for several years, but since I've been able to get out a bit easier I took the kiddos out to choose their shoebox items. Storyman filled a boy box & Butterfly a girl box, each for someone within their age groups.

Here is Storyman's stuff, ready for packing:


Butterfly's stuff, ready for packing:


It's optional whether you wrap the boxes or not, as long as the top is wrapped separately. They also have an "EZ Give" option where you can give the donation online & they will track your boxes for you. It will be fun to actually know where our boxes went!

There are a couple of drop off locations nearby. They are ready to go...


Collection week is November 16-23.

Homeschooling & Stuff

Very creative title eh? (That's about as creative as I get these days).

I've been working with Storyman & Butterfly on wrapping up their current levels with their CLE programs. I just ordered a bunch of new material for Butterfly, & already have on hand most of what Storyman will need. It will be good to move along.

We've been really happy with this program since I "found" it late last year, & I'm generally pleased with how it's working for us. It's getting the job done well, being challenging yet not frustrating, & quite flexible. It's also teaching them (mostly Storyman at this point) to be an independent learner. This is helpful to me & is very good for him (& will be for Butterfly too, as she progresses).

I feel the HANDLE program has been going well for both Little Bear & Big Guy. They like most of it, & much of it if not fun can be made to be fun (or at least somewhat :-)). I haven't seen any huge gains but Little Bear has had a bit of a spark that I like seeing. I can't put my finger on it, but small things matter.

I'm working on videos for our consultant so she can update us for this month. We have a few more months until the 6 months are up, then we'll see what to do from there. I'd really like to continue it with our present consultant or a new one. She won't be traveling back to our area. There's someone else I like because she does more than HANDLE so we'd be able to use her for more than one modality... but, we'd have to travel to her. That's a huge obstacle so we'll see.

I also have another consultant lined up for possible homeschool help with the boys starting in January. She is also long distance but can work via video/phone/email; she'd evaluate their individual situations & guide me through some activities with them. I'm seriously considering what to use for fascilitated communication for Big Guy (it has to be affordable & suit his needs). If I can decide on something that works for him maybe it can work for Little Bear as well.

I'll be changing natural health consultants for the boys. We've had 1-1/2 years with them with no improvements at all. Granted many have said it takes time, & could be years. However, they are very expensive, & the folks I use for the other kiddos work similarly for much less. They are supposed to actually work more "in depth", but we'll see on that too. That phone consult to get them started will be this week.

I have so many books I'd like to get to reading... I don't mean "for entertainment" type books. I mean autism, Christian living, etc. type books. I also like to listen to sermons online. I get little time to read & my brain forgets once it's put down somewhere. I'll start a book, not get back to it for a while, & forget about it entirely. Then when I find it & try to pick it up again I typically can't remember anything about it. I listen to sermons online at night & fall asleep in the middle of them. Pathetic, I know.

I'd love to put two words together for a somewhat thoughtful &/or entertaining post yet it's tough to squeeze out an update or trip entry these days. I do have a couple of those I hope to post this week.

Onward with life on the spectrum...

Poor Neglected Blog

Been so wrapped up in life just haven't had time to blog about it... trying to work on some posts today.

Whiteboard Pics

The kiddos enjoy the whiteboard. I don't (smelly Expos), but I let them draw on it now & then.

These were cute...

Storyman's picture of someone blowing on a fuzzy dandelion



Butterfly's black sheep (this one had a long neck for some reason, but it's still really cute :-))


Separate Ourselves

I had wanted to put together a new post for this year reg. halloween, but just didn't get to it. I'm actually feeling relieved I've spent next to no time or effort thinking about it though. What a blessing to not focus on the evil things of this world!

I'll redirect those interested to my post of a few years back which I moved here from my first blog which I no longer keep.

I think it has a lot of good information & I hope you will read it at this link here.

As for us, it seems like a great day to go to the zoo!

Apple Recipes

Even though apple season is probably about over, we're still enjoying our take-home from our recent apple picking trip this month. I'm not big on baking, except for some special allergy free type stuff for the kiddos, but I stumbled across a nice website dedicated to recipes involving apples.

You can check it out here if you're looking for some ideas.

I made the "Heavenly Apple Bread", minus the icing. It came out great!

Friday Funny - "Playground Mishaps"

Tim Hawkins - Playground Mishaps

Thea

Thea is our cat. We adopted her when she was around 8 months old. I remember it clearly. I checked the newspaper & found an ad looking for a home for her. She had been rescued from the city streets & brought to the suburbs to start a new life.

My oldest son was barely two at the time. I answered the ad & took him with me to "meet" this homeless kitty they were calling "Bess". Standing near the front door of the house, her rescuer opened a door to the right & out popped this very tiny dilute calico. She sat down & looked right up at me as if to say "Okay when are we going home?"

And so we did...:-)

I approximated her birthday month according to her age at the time of adoption to be sometime in October. That would put her at 14 years old this month!

She's still as tiny as can be, & very friendly. She's welcomed many a baby home, both happily & not so happily, although always gentle & accepting. She's always been extremely attached to me; I must be her primary "human".

I think she owns me!

Thea has two very nice feline friends here in Otis & Clarabel, but she continues to play the kitty matriarch in this home.

She's a sweet, gentle, friendly, lovely cat, & thereby deserves this blog post for her birthday month (even if it is about over... okay I'm a little late on about everything right now; sorry Thea!).

I really do hope we will have many more years to enjoy with her.

Happy Birthday Thea!!

It's An Infestation!

Of ladybugs????

It hasn't really been that bad, but it's been the wierdest thing, to see SO many ladybugs all over our screens & around the outside of the house. A few have even made their way inside. Storyman has been gently taking them back outside :-).

Hubb said there were just tons of them all over the building at work.

I was a bit relieved to read a friend's twitter that said she was having the same issue, even worse, & she's not from anywhere near me!

She cited this article...

We have had some warmer weather this week, but it's supposed to cool down considerably as of tomorrow, so I suppose we won't be seeing much of our little friends anymore.

I guess if one must have a few bugs around, ladybugs are really not so bad. :-)

Here's a fun children's information page about ladybugs!

Hay Maze

We went to another farm that had a hay maze. The kiddos had way more fun in the hay maze then they had previously had in a large corn maze!

They were able to jump around & run on the hay.

My husband took Big Guy & Little Bear through...

But later on Storyman helped keep watch on Big Guy as they enjoyed the maze together. All the kiddos spent a lot of time in this maze; they absolutely loved it. It wasn't too crowded either, so it was easy to watch over everyone & let them run about more.

I even took the babies in; my timid little Ladybug II actually took the lead :-).

They, like Little Bear, enjoyed picking at the hay.

Everyone was able to enjoy some animals afterward.

There were some cute ducklings...

And these interesting Easter Egg Chickens...


...who lay different color eggs (hence the name :-)).

These "Silky Bantams" were so cute.

Butterfly was thrilled to be able to pet & feed some goats too!

Fuzzy Caterpillars

A couple of weeks ago, we found something that looked like this creature:


It was actually kinda cute in person.

I found it sitting on the top of the wheel of my van, of all places. I saw it clearly but the van is big & so is the wheel, so it stood out. If it was on a smaller car's wheel it may have been missed & thereby smushed easily.

But instead I notified Storyman, who is my resident "bug guy". He happily picked it up & I directed him toward the nearest tree. The caterpillar made it's way onto a branch, but we haven't seen it since.

I looked it up & it seems to have been an American Dagger Moth. They supposedly can be irritating to human skin, but Storyman wasn't affected at all.

We also found a white fuzzy one which has made it's home on a leaf on the same tree for a long time now. I can't seem to track down what it might be; some kind of moth most likely.