Definition of Autism

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for this definition I found of autism last night in the current book I am reading, How to be a Sister: A Love Story with a twist of Autism.  She expressed in words what I have felt so many times.  In truth, I have been sad about my children's diagnoses for a long time.  I love them for who they are, and love who they are, but it is so hard to know what is in their heads and to truly know them.  It is hard to look at their lives and see how much harder it is for them to navigate this world than it is for the rest of us.

The author, Eileen Garvia, expressed what so many of us who love someone affected with autism feel.
"For people who have autism, the disorder is a burden or a challenge, something to overcome, or perhaps not. A battle against the outer world, a system.  Autism is the lack, the missing elements of empathy and intuition that allow people to connect with others.  It's a different life colored by the expectations of other people that autism means magical ability or stupidity.  Autism is a trap or a safe haven.  It's a world of loneliness and isolation and a place of creativity.  It's a bull's-eye that makes a person a target for abuse or a yardstick of accomplishment through improvement.  Maybe it's a defining feature of a personality or just one characteristic of the many complexities that make up a person.  Every life is different."

Better window stoppers

Sunday was an interesting day.  I was walking down the hallway and felt a breeze.  Uh oh.  Where was Garrett????   I looked in Caiti's room, and the window stoppers that I previously posted about were off of her window, and it was wide open.  Not good!  So I ran across the street to see if he was at the park.  "Darn you!" to whoever thinks it's a good idea to lock the park at night.  That would have been Garrett's first stop.  Normally, I would have ran down to the swimming pool or McDonald's next, due to past experience.  Luckily, a nice lady in a truck saw my worried face as I was crossing the street back to my house and asked if the little boy running down the road (the opposite direction of where I would have gone) was my son?  Phew.

I hate that moment when I have to decide whether to lock the other two in the house and hurry and drive down to get Garrett or to hurry and get the other two dressed, strapped in the car and head out to get Garrett, hoping he hasn't gotten much further.  

Fortunately, I found Garrett.  He had run almost to the end of the street, down by the elementary school.  Seriously Garrett?  Who wants to go to school on a Sunday?

One of our ABA tutors arrived at our house and was working with Jason, so I took Garrett and Caiti on an unwanted trip to the hardware store.  I HATE taking kids by myself to the store.  Maybe I should just say, "I hate taking Caiti by myself to the store."  She will not keep her shoes on, so I end up having to put her in the shopping cart.  That is always fun because then she tries to stand up the whole time and does her mad Caiti growl.  I love the looks we get when people see me pushing the cart, Garrett's feet up on the metal bar, holding on to the handle and getting a fun ride, and Caiti freaking out in the cart.  Yes, I know she's loud...and yes, she is probably too old to be sitting in the cart.  Yes, I know it's dangerous to put your kids in the cart...unless they're the strapped in babies...but it's much more dangerous for them to bolt on you in the store.  There, I'm done with my rant.

I found a nice salesperson who helped us find a window stopper that you couldn't take off manually.  After all, Garrett figured those out in two seconds.  Maybe that is why his ABA tutors have taught him to answer, "I am!"  when they ask, "Who's the smartest?"  I think these window stoppers are pretty awesome.  You can only unscrew them with an allen wrench.  Phew.  I got mine at Lowes, but if you are ordering online, I could only find them here:  http://www.homedepot.com/Tools-Hardware-Hardware-Window-Hardware-Sash-Locks/h_d1/N-5yc1vZc2cf/R-100161960/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051

Carpet Shampooer...yet again

As an autism mom, there isn't a day that goes by that I'm not grateful for my carpet shampooer for one reason or another.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.
My husband went back home to visit his family over Memorial Day weekend, so I was home alone with my three cuties for three days.  I made a conscious decision to have a good attitude and try to do things with my kids so they wouldn't be bored and neither would I.
I saw the cutest idea on pinterest using fingerpaints.  I was inspired by this picture especially, using a footprint to make a tractor (http://theshobes.blogspot.com/2010/04/piggies-paws.html).  So cute.

I decided to try and make it for Jason's room to go with the transportation theme.  So Jason, Garrett and I all set out for the backyard, fingerpaints in hand.  Jason and Garrett had a grand time putting fingerpaints all over themselves...while I, unsuccessfully, tried to show them that they should put fingerpaints on the paper.  But that was okay. It was probably my fault, since the first thing we did when we were out there was slather green paint on Jason's foot for the tractor picture...hmmm...  Garrett's favorite part was getting sprayed off with the hose afterward.  When I shut the hose off, he politely requested, "More water please."  So I sent him inside to the shower...and not thinking, forgot to put the fingerpaints up.

how Jason's tractor turned out

The next morning I was relaxing in my bedroom, and in walked Garrett covered in blue paint from head to toe.  He reminded me of Mystique from x-men.  I wished I had a camera (both of mine were ruined by certain kids in my household who will remain nameless), and Kevin took his phone with him which is my backup camera source.

Not even two minutes later, in walked Jason covered from head to toe in red fingerpaint.  Mind you, both kids had stripped down beforehand.  Maybe I should be grateful for that.  Seeing Jason reminded me of his birthday party...

Both kids had showers.  So when they say "washable" on the front of the paints, it really is...off of skin.  But it's ridiculous to get out of clothes...and carpet.  So, back to my first sentence.  I'm grateful for my carpet shampooer because there was red and blue throughout my house, and my shampooer got most of that up, just leaving a very faded color that you can only see if you are looking for it.

"It's alright...it's okay."

Today I realized where Garrett got the phrase he likes to echo that bothers me.  He was sitting at the computer watching Madagascar on itunes.  Alex the Lion was shipwrecked in Madagascar, and had just had his inner lion come out.  He even tried to eat his best friend, Marty, the zebra.  The words, "What is wrong with me!" popped out of his mouth.  "Grrrr"to Alex the Lion for teaching Garrett that phrase.  As an autism mom, I'm grateful that, when I hear him say that, I can truthfully answer, "Nothing's wrong with you.  You're perfect."  Because, even though he is considered disabled, he is perfect in God's eyes.

 

I am also grateful that he gives me a little clue if he's feeling sad.  He comes up to me, and tells me, "It's alright honey.  It's okay."  Then he waits for me to say those words back to him.  So I can take his hint when he is echoing the words I've said so many times, and give him a hug and say, "It's alright honey.  It's okay."  Somehow that makes things so much better.

Mother's Day

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for my kids...not necessarily for mother's day.  I've always had a very hard time on Mother's Day because my kids don't really understand that you give your mommy a present, or make her a card.  They sort of can say "I love you," if I prompt them, and they cooperate.  When I go to church, they have all the little kids stand up front and sing cute songs to their mommies...so I sit there and bawl my eyes out, looking at the kids who are the same age as mine.  It's such a reminder of what life would have been like if they were born in different bodies.
So, this year, I decided to have a different attitude towards Mother's Day.  I asked my friend to take pics of the kids and photo edit the words "We Love You" onto the pics so that I can see it, even if they can't say it.  That was my favorite mother's day present ever.  I have also decided to start a Mother's Day journal, and every Mother's day write the gifts that my children give me every day, just by being in my life.  Maybe this way, I can feel joy in the real meaning of Mother's day and get over the pity party that I tend to have.
I love my kids, and I'm so blessed to be their mommy.

Yummy treats!

As an autism mom, I'm thankful for yummy treats...of course that can be a bad thing because sometimes yummy treats are what I think will make it all better...for days at a time.  Then I step on the scale...but that's beside the point.  Right?
Anyway, I made the yummiest little treat last night.  I bought chocolate chip cookie dough and a brownie mix.  (Of course I was inspired by pinterest for this little find).  First off I preheated the oven to 350.  Then I greased a muffin tin.  I put spoonfuls of cookie dough in the tins, spreading them out smooth.  Then I put spoonfuls of brownie batter on top of the cookie dough.  This is making my mouth water just typing it.  In the pinterest recipe, you put a peanut butter cup on top of the cookie dough before spooning in the brownie batter, but I forgot to buy those.  It was just as good this way.  Anyway, I cooked them for 18 min.  And then I ate a little piece of heaven.  Mmmm...
My friends were here to share in the goodness, and they told me these reminded them of Half Baked Ice Cream (Ben and Jerry's).  So, in addition, I am thankful that one of them is bringing me some of that tonight...so that I can compare.  So scientific.  I'm excited.

Mesh Laundry Bin

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for my mesh laundry bin.  I don't use it for laundry, I use it to put all my kids outside toys in...and it works awesomely and doesn't collect water when it rains.

However, my kids are grateful for the mesh laundry bin because then they can dump all the toys and use it as a tunnel.  See, kids with autism see things differently...they make things funner!

Fingernail Polish

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for fingernail polish...not cause it makes me feel pretty...although when I actually take the time, it does.
As I have mentioned before, Caiti would rather be in her birthday suit than in uncomfortable clothes.  We follow her around redressing her all day.  However, I think in her own rebellious way, she has decided that if she can't be naked, then at least her toys can.  She even made me cut the glasses off of her Simon chipmunk (from Alvin & the Chipmunks).  So silly.  
Anyway, on a different note, Garrett is learning to tell boys/girls apart during his therapy.  They have done this with pictures, etc.  I love how he would get girls right most of the time but always call me a boy.  A little off topic, I know.  Anyway, his tutor asked if we had any figurines they could use in therapy for telling the difference because he does better with 3D objects than with 2D objects.
Here is where my grattitude for nail polish comes.  I have plenty of Barbies for the girls.  However, they are all naked, thanks to Caiti.  I know they are working on telling girls from boys, but not down to the nitty gritty details under the clothes.  ;)  Anyway, I saw a great idea on pinterest (of course) where you can use nail polish to paint spandex-type clothes on Barbies (see below picture).  It totally worked too.  So we won't be teaching Garrett the gender differences that he doesn't need to know, AND Caiti can't take these clothes off of her Barbies.  Yay!

Window Stoppers

Today was the second time one of my kids decided to take a trip outside via their window.  Sigh.  I'm glad Caiti is a loud little girl so I could hear her jabbering and know she was safe...not that I could figure out where she was, until I saw her open window (which I had opened earlier to air out her room) and glimpsed her playing in my neighbor's flowers.  Heart attack!! Anyway, as an autism mom, I'm grateful for my friend, Megan, who picked me up (after Garrett did the same thing but went to the park), took me to the hardware store and bought me these:

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202799811/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=window+security&storeId=10051

They are such a good invention!!!!  When I don't have the window intentionally open, there is no way my kids can get their windows open and go off on their own adventures.  :)  I can also put them on the top runner of my sliding glass door when it is rainy, etc., and I don't want my kids playing outside.  Just love these!

Abby Cadabby

As an autism mom, I'm thankful for Abby Cadabby.  She is one of Caiti's favorite friends, and when she has her around, she is so  happy and talkative to Abby in her Caiti language.  It makes my day every time I see her being so cute.  This morning, she woke up and walked out of her room holding Abby and saying "Tweet, Tweet..." which I can only assume she says because Abby flies and so do birdies.  Such a sweetie!  I'm lucky God blessed me to have Caiti's sweet spirit in my home.

Light it Up Blue

April is autism awareness month.  I loved this "picture of the day" from autism speaks.  They have a light it up blue campaign every April for autism awareness.  As an autism mom, I'm grateful for all the organizations/people out there that are working towards autism awareness.
It's crazy that I hadn't even heard of autism until my nephew Ford was diagnosed with Asperger's.  At the time, he was the only kid I knew on the spectrum.  When I met Kevin, I was introduced to his nephew, who has severe autism.  So I knew one person on each end of the spectrum, but didn't know what the middle looked like.  Now I have three kids with autism who are as different as can be from each other and are in between my two nephews.  As they say, if you've met one person with autism, you've met one person with autism.
I was shocked to read that autism is now present in 1 in 88 children.  That is why awareness is so important.  I found this chart on autism while browsing pinterest.  I think it's so helpful for parents who may be wondering if their child has autism or what it is that makes them different.

Jason's shorts

As an autism mom, I'm grateful that I just bought Jason a bunch of shorts; funny thing is, the reason is so that I have some clothes that Caiti can't take off.  Who knew that his shorts would be my way to keep my daughter clothed during spring break.  This also makes me grateful that my little Jason is growing so fast, so that his size 5 shorts would snuggly fit my size 6/7 daughter.  ;)

Pizza

As an autism mom, I'm thankful for pizza. Here's why:  This weekend hasn't been a good one for me.  First off, my daughter is in a funk.  I literally have to wrestle with her to get her to do anything that involves wearing clothing or doing anything besides flooding the bathroom.  She's tantruming sooooo much right now.  I don't know what to do with my cute little girl.  Secondly, yesterday I found my iPad in the toilet. I think that pretty much means goodbye. I'm hoping the rice trick works, but I don't have high hopes cause the screen was already cracked, and I could totally see water all throughout it.  Perhaps the worst part of my weekend was when I went to check on Garrett (who I thought was napping), and his bedroom window was open, and there was no sign of Garrett. He figured out (and he's not even a rebellious teenager) that he could sneak out the window if he wanted to go have some fun.  Luckily, I knew he had been obsessing about our park across the street, so I didn't have to go far to find him.  So stressful. I ended up having to switch his and Caiti's bedrooms because Caiti's window leads to the backyard, so he's not going to run off if he climbs out of the window in that bedroom. That led to even more problems though.  Autism doesn't make it easy to handle change. Caiti has been screaming/kicking her bedroom door for 2 hours straight because she doesn't want to sleep in a new room.
So where does pizza come into all this:  My sister Michelle showed up this evening with a couple pizzas and a smile. That was the best part of my day. She knew just what I needed. I'm glad she followed whatever little prompting she was having and came to help brighten my day a little bit.

Autism Research

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for the numerous organizations dedicated to autism research.  Due to our family's strong family history of autism, Caiti who was 2 when we moved here, and Jason who was 6 months, took part in UCSD's study for Infant Development and Autism. It makes me proud that somehow we could use the situation we were handed in an effort to help the research community to find out a little more about autism.  My children were not a part of the study listed below, but I was very excited to see this article about recent findings also from UCSD:

UCSD finds genes possibly linked to autism

-Written by Gary Robbins

UC San Diego neuroscientist Eric Courchesne 

March 22, 2012 | Photo by Howard Lipin

UC San Diego has inched closer to the root causes of autism, identifying genes that appear to go haywire before a child is born, preventing the brain from developing normally.

Neuroscientist Eric Courchesne says he and his collaborators found evidence that many genes basically misfire, producing an overabundance of brain cells in the pre-frontal cortex that affect a child’s social, language and communications skills.

The problem begins during the second and third trimester of pregnancy, the period in which most brain cells are created.

“Essentially, the wiring pattern for the brain goes wrong and you don’t get normal development,” said Courchesne, director of the Autism Center of Excellence at the UCSD School of Medicine.

The findings, published Thursday in PLoS Genetics, could provide insight about how to treat and prevent autism.

Scientists say that part of the brain of young people with autism is significantly larger than those whose brains develop normally. UCSD Autism Center of Excellence

The new paper builds on a line of research that Courchesne has been following for years. In 2003, he showed that there is a link between the overgrowth of the brain and autism. Then last November, Courchesne reported that the brain of male boys with autism had 67 percent more cortical cells than they should have. Such cells are created before birth and play a fundamental role in social, communication and cognitive development.

The latest study indentifies at least some of the genes that are responsible for the problem, and helps to explain how and when the dysfunction occurs.

“This is telling us a lot about the beginnings of autism,” said Courchesne, who arrived at his conclusions by examining brain tissue samples from younger and older people who are autistic. He said, “We were looking for the residual signature of genes whose activity was not normal.”

Courchesne looked for these genetic “echoes” in people aged 2-14 years old, and in people 17-57.

“We looked at older people because it is well known that autism changes with age,” Courchesne said.

The researchers found evidence that, at least in some cases, the brain was attempting to rewire and remodel itself.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean that the rewiring is being done adequately or accurately. It could be getting things further and further wrong,” said Courchesne. “But many autistic children get better. It could be that some of the remodeling is successful. I am very excited about this.”

He said the findings from the adults “are telling us that the brain development problem hasn’t stopped. It is on-going. There may be signals or genetic changes that are attempting to deal with the original problem.

“That would seem to offer a potential target for pharmaceuticals to improve the remodeling.”

Daddy Will Be Home In This Many Days

As an autism mom of some cute kids who absolutely adore their daddy, I'm grateful for ways to help them know he's still around and will be back soon.  When Kevin is underway for a couple weeks or on deployment, it is so hard for these kids, but little things like this make it a lot easier.

Borrowed Inspiration

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for borrowed inspiration.  I have been kind of a boring mom lately. My kids are going crazy...and hence doing annoying things like flooding the bathroom and dumping bags of carrots, etc.  Today, I made myself admit that they get into the most trouble when I'm not paying attention to them.  So I decided to make myself play with them...but I totally drew a blank. I know that can be a problem with any mom, but especially of mothers of children with a way of thinking and seeing things that is different than theirs.  I looked into a bunch of blogs with lists of things to do with your kids.  Here are just a few:
http://makedoandfriend.blogspot.com/2012/03/40-ways-to-do-sensory-play.html
http://counting-on-me.blogspot.com/2011/05/101-things-to-do-with-your-toddler.html?m=1
http://littlefamilyfun.blogspot.com/
http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/01/101-fun-easy-and-cheap-indoor-activites.html
http://www.redtedart.com/2011/09/01/boy-get-crafty/
http://cuegly.blogspot.com/2011/09/75-kid-activities.html
http://www.tipjunkie.com/crafts-boredom-busters/
http://www.digitalreflections.typepad.com/digital_reflections/2009/06/100-free-things-to-do-with-your-kids-this-summer.html

Then I wrote a bunch of appropriate activities for my kids down on popsicle sticks and made myself a "jar" out of decorated tupperware to keep them in.  Then when my kids are being especially antsy and bored... I can follow the advice on the front of the "jar" and get up off my butt and play with my kids.  :)

Unconventionality

As an autism mom, I'm thankful for the flexibility I have learned to have in accepting that things are rarely going to be normal at my house.  We are very good at being unconventional.
Here's an example; this morning I caught Jason writing on one of our kitchen chairs with a permanent marker.  I started to be annoyed...except that I thought it was soooo cute...among my feelings of,"How naughty!"
That, and the thought of how hard it is to actually remove the permanent marker, made me decide to just leave it.  So we labeled it with his name.  Then I had Caiti draw on a chair and wrote her name on it.  Same thing with Garrett.  So now we have unconventional chairs for my unconventional family.

St. Patrick's Day

As an autism mom, on St. Patrick's Day, I'm grateful for the green characters in my kids' lives.  The two favorites are Shrek, and Kermit.  :)

These are the go-to at my house when their mommy is ready to pull her hair out...or fall over from exhaustion.  Love these movies because actually, coincidentally, both Kermit and Shrek are entertaining to me, as an adult, as well my kids.  :)

Oh, and let's not forget who my kids think of when I make them try to say, "Happy St. Patrick's Day!"

Bubbles

As an autism mom, I'm so thankful for bubbles.  How fun are they?  My sister brought over her bubble machine, and my kids were happy and out of trouble for hours.  Yay!

Different Perspective

As an autism mom, I'm grateful for my kids, and how they help me see the world through different glasses.  :)

Photos

As an autism mom, I'm grateful that our pictures are, for the most part, highly entertaining.  I love the unposed way that my kids take their pics.  :)

The BEST family picture ever.

Garrett "helping" put up the Christmas tree.  :)

Cute Jason reading the daddy book when Daddy was deployed.

...and yesterday was our first attempt at a photo booth.  :)

Kim Stagliano's post: "The Crappy Life of an Autism Mom"

Kim Stagliano is another autism mother who has three children with autism.  I read her book, "All That I Can Handle: I'm No Mother Theresa," and reveled in it because she was so honest about everything.  She didn't make apologies for telling the truth about the struggles raising children with autism, but you could also sense her deep and intense love for her kids.  Anyway, since my last post was about potty issues, I felt like sharing her article, "The Crappy Life of the Autism Mom," published in the Huffington Post, because it's just so appropriate.  So many of us dealing with autism and potty training can relate.

Kim Stagliano

Author, 'All I Can Handle: I'm No Mother Teresa'

The Crappy Life of the Autism Mom

Posted: 01/03/07 05:05 PM ET

Well, that title should set off alarm bells in the Neurodiverse (ND) autism world.

Autism is like a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans (from the Harry Potter books.) Some autistics got the raspberry cream or root beer flavor. They can speak eloquently, write blogs, move out on their own, marry, have children and manage their autistic traits. Others with autism, like my three girls, got the ear wax/vomit/dog poop flavor. They need help 24/7 to navigate the world. When I talk about autism, I mean the version that my three girls got. I'm not talking about the sort of autism that encompasses quirky kids with some social deficits who are otherwise brilliant.

The ND community tells me and tens of thousands of other parents that we are disrespecting our kids by trying to help them. The ND blogs berate us as wanting to change our kids because we don't accept them. Here's a "taste" of what autism looks like in the Stagliano household. Would you want something better for your kids?

Twice last month, we had a "crapisode." What is a crapisode? (This is where you might want to stop eating and put down your beverage.) My 10 year old (#2, appropriately for the purposes of this entry) pooped in the toilet. That is reason to cheer, believe me. Toilet training is a major issue in my section of the autism community. Our kids can wear diapers into their teens and beyond. So Miss G pooped. Hooray! But Miss G forgets to flush. And she rarely closes the lid. Not hooray.

Miss Peanut, my 6 year old, seems to believe that being a Virgo means she simply MUST swim in any puddle larger than spit. The toilet is like an Olympic sized pool to her. So Peanut goes into the toilet after Miss G has had her, ah, success. Peanut flings kaka everywhere and gets it all over herself, the floor, the walls, the tub, the baseboards and the window. Wes Craven could not film anything scarier than what I saw that school morning, 35 minutes before the bus was due to arrive. That's a "crapisode." It happens in the blink of an eye while I'm washing dishes or doing laundry. I'm alerted by a splashing sound that drops a brick into my stomach. Miss G doesn't understand to flush and close the lid. Miss Peanut doesn't realize that a face full of feces is rarely considered a way to amuse oneself outside of the fetish community.

I will never stop trying to help my girls recover from their autism. I can not tell you what recovery means. It varies by kid and according to God's grace. If recovery means only that Peanut understands she should sit on the toilet, not play in the toilet, I'll take it.

Recovering your kids doesn't mean denying their value as people. To the contrary, it means we are willing to devote our lives, our savings, our sanity to their improved health, development and well being.

Maybe we need an expanded vocabulary. The ND's can keep the word autism and my kids get a new label. Fine by me. Just don't tell me to give up on my girls and accept their version of autism (remember the Bertie Bott's beans) as simply a different type of personality. Because THAT'S a load of crap.

Potty

So, after spending 30 minutes hosing (or showering...whichever way you want to look at it) off my daughter and cleaning up a bunch of crap (literally) underneath our swing set, I'm just going to have to say that I'm grateful for the times that my kids are successful in the potty area.  That way I won't scream, or throw myself a pity party...or vomit cause some aspects of life are just pretty disgusting here at my house.
I am grateful for the many resources out there for potty training.  An example of one resource I really like is the social story that I got the above picture from.  I know it's a faux pas to put pics of kids pooping or peeing on the internet, so it's hard to explain to a kid who is visual and not good with language where their poop goes.  I found that social story at http://sam26847.tripod.com/id23.html, and it's my favorite one out there.

I was all proud of myself when I thought up a game for Caiti where I had three pictures:  One of the potty, one underneath the swings, and one in her bedroom.  It was called "Where Do I Go Potty?" I attached little velcro pieces to the different places and then cut out a pic of poop and put velcro on the back.  The funny thing is...on paper, she totally knows poop goes in the potty.  She got it right every time she tried. It is just getting her to do it in real life that is the hard part.
I just got a pretty good ap on the iPad, it's also on the android, called See Me Go Potty.  Here's a link for the information.  http://www.avakid.com/products.html

It's a great potty training ap.   Anyway, I like that it has an Avatar that you can make look like your kid, and that it shows an animated version of an accident or of going to the potty along with a nice little script that I expect Garrett will memorize and repeat spontaneously.  It would make me really happy if he memorized the words and then actually did what he was saying..."I walk, walk, walk to the potty." Then I wouldn't have to have the responsibility of taking my kids potty on a schedule.
So, to repeat my first sentence...I'm grateful for the times they go in the toilet, and not in their pants or on the ground.  I like the days when I don't feel like I live in a giant toilet.  Here's to hoping things will progress.  As always...patience is the key...right?

First-Then

As an autism mom, and I'm sure so many autism parents can relate, I'm thankful for "First, Then" statements.  It is pretty cool that I can use these statements to help my kids understand that eventually they will get what they want or that they don't have to be stuck doing something they don't want to do.  I've used it as a motivator to get them to do their chores, to go potty. Every morning I get Garrett gets motivated for school by stating, "First school, then daddy."

Speaking of daddy, I had the CUTEST, SWEETEST little experience yesterday with Jason where I used a "first-then" statement.  Yesterday was President's Day, so all the kids and Kevin were home.  We had a pretty good day.  Jason was Kevin's shadow all day, and I think Kevin loved it.  He totally wore Kevin out though, asking for rides, etc., all day.  So, in order to give Kevin a break I had Jason come take a nap with me.  He was so upset, crying for several minutes, and I didn't know how to calm him down and get him to go to sleep.  Then I heard him say, "Dee dee."  I knew he wanted to be with his daddy, so I said, "First Nigh Night, then daddy."  He sort of stopped mid cry, and looked at me with his big, teary eyes, and repeated, "Dee dee?"  So I just kept telling him "First Nigh Night, then daddy," and he calmed right down and was asleep in a matter of seconds.  It was so sweet to get him to understand that he could still see his buddy if he took his nap first.  :)

Mod Podge

As an autism mom, I'm thankful for Mod-Podge (a.k.a. decoupage), and here is why:  As a part of Caiti's therapy, she is supposed to get herself dressed in the morning before school.  She has a picture schedule to follow, and at times, we have velcroed pics of different items of clothing on the drawers to help her know what is in them.  This doesn't work too well at my house though because Jason thinks it is way too fun to take the pics off of the velcro and put them somewhere else.  I figured out that I could redo my daughter's dresser in a more functional way that didn't involve little pictures and velcro, just using some fun paper and some Mod Podge.

Mod Podge Dresser Tutorial:

Supplies you will need:

Of course you will need a dresser.  You will also need Mod Podge (or you can make homemade Mod Podge by mixing equal parts Elmer's glue and water), Mod Podge Sealant spray (if you so desire), Scrapbooking Paper, Alpha Punchouts (if you are lazy or have bad handwriting like me...they come in the scrapbooking section and have various fonts of letters you can just punch out and glue on to your projects), scissors, a pen or pencil, a screw driver and whatever embellishments you choose to use.

Step 1:

Remove drawer from dresser.  Using a screwdriver, unscrew the drawer handle and place the handle and screws aside for later.

Step 2:

Measure out the part of the drawer you want to cover.  I used two scrapbook papers per drawer.  Cut the paper to size, spread Mod Podge on the drawer front and carefully place the paper on top of the Mod Podge, making sure to smooth out any bubbling (one website suggested using a credit card edge to smooth out the bubbling).  Once the paper is in place, take the handle screws and carefully poke them through their holes from the inside.  This should leave a small imprint where the holes should be. Then take the screws and forced them through the paper on the outside where the imprints were left to make the holes for the handle.
Step 3:

I decided to add some embellishments to my drawer handles.  I bought felt buttons in different colors and shapes.  They already had holes in the middle, but if they hadn't, I would have just folded them in half, and cut two slits (like an X) and placed them on the drawer handle (as shown above).  I then reattached the handle to the drawer, using the screw driver.

Step 4:

Using a pen, draw a picture of what you want to go into the drawer you are working on.  Cut the picture out, and either cut out letters or use punch-out letters to spell out what will be in the drawer.

Step 5:

Add another layer of Mod Podge, so that the drawer surface will be sticky.  Then place the cutout letters and drawing where you want them to go on the drawer.  Afterward, apply a couple more coatings of the Mod Podge, being especially generous over the letters and the picture.  Don't worry about the white color of the Mod Podge.  It won't look like that when you are done.

Step 6:

Allow the drawers to dry.   You will know they are dry when the Mod Podge is clear.  Once they are dry, follow the directions on the sealant can.  Spray the drawers and allow them to dry before returning them to the dresser.

Finished Product:

here are my sons' dressers.  Can't decide which I like best, but I'm happy with the results.  :)