Thank you!

I will be "going dark" until next year.....2012 :) Will be celebrating with friends and family and trying to be "in the moment" and enjoying our time together.

One favorite tradition we have is the girls get to open one present Christmas eve....and it's always a new pair of pajamas....so everyone looks fabulous in the pictures of Christmas day. I am the one behind the camera ha!

What traditions do you have in your family?

Please have wonderful holiday and thanks for reading and leaving comments on this newbie blog. Hopefully 2012 will be filled with health and happiness and peace for all.

Here's a joke for all of your kiddos on the spectrum....they will truly appreciate it!

What comes at the end of Christmas Day?

The letter "y" :)

Remember to enjoy your child!

Winter Break from School

Our girls LOVE to have their "jammie days". They get up, brush teeth (THAT part of cleanliness is mandatory:) and proceed to be, as my hubby says "lazy bums".

Sometimes it is good to just have a kick back day to recharge batteries and relax....eat some junk food, or have a meal where the menu is "OYO" (on your own). An OYO meal can be anything your kids want, except a piece of fruit or a veggie had to be part of the food eaten....slipping a little bit of nutrition.

When our girls were smaller, we had a special box in the pantry that held all their "approved" snacks....fruit cups, granola, snack crackers, graham crackers...you get the idea. We also had a drawer in the refrigerator that had food that was also parent approved. This made OYO meals a little more fun for them as they could be the "boss" and choose their menu, but knew it was still okay with mom and dad.

I think as parents, we too need our "jammie days". Sometimes you need to take a break from pushing soooo hard on therapies and proper social interaction and physical activity. Winter break from school may be just the time to hang out and enjoy our kids and catch up on our TV shows :)

So leave that Puritan guilt at the door, take a deep breath, ignore all the housework, laundry, chores and lists of obligations and relax.....after, of course, you have brushed your teeth!

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 12

Well we did it! Twelve Days in a Row! Hopefully you found some tidbit helpful in the last few days postings. Now I will try a twice weekly posting schedule -- whew!

You may have seen this quote before, but it bears repeating:

Three Wise Women
would've asked directions,
arrived on time,
helped deliver the baby,
cleaned the stable,
made a casserole,
brought practical gifts
and there would be Peace on Earth!

Thank you for reading!

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 11

So far on this almost completed 12 day journey of Christmas preparation tips I have focused on preparing the kids on the spectrum.

May I suggest another group to be prepared?

Extended family and friends....yep, those folks who may think if you spank your child the autism will go away. Thankfully we never ran into that problem and have over the top supportive parents, family and friends.

However, not everyone is as informed or knowledgeable as you are about your child and what they need, so in order to be fair to all involved....don't expect them to act differently if they don't know what to do (family and friends that is ;)

You might have to send an email or have a casual conversation ahead of a visit. Share with them that some sounds might upset your child. Maybe they don't like to be hugged or kissed. Is there a quiet room they can go into if they need a break? Your child may need some different food than everyone else and you will be happy to bring it along. Are there animals in the house? Will they be put up or at a kennel? Explain that although it is fun for everyone to be together, sometimes your child will need to be alone to play a video game or read a book, etc.

Our kids really enjoy repetitive tasks like stringing popcorn or beads....if the weather is accommodating, maybe a short walk or swing set visit would be a good break.

And most of all try to keep yourself calm....your child will pick up on your tense emotions. Try and keep the visit short and remember it is only a few hours and will be over soon enough.

Remember, the only thing normal in this house is the setting on the dryer! :)

What has worked well for you and your family?

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 10

During the holiday preparation period do take pictures of everything your child does and put make a photo book so they can share it with people and tell about what they have done.

Pictures of:

Decorating the outside of the house
The house at night with the Christmas decorations on
Decorating the Christmas tree
Decorating around the house
Wrapping presents
Decorating cookies or helping in the kitchen
Family members and friends visited
Family pets
Favorite gifts
Homes of family visited
Anything that interested your child over the holiday season

Nothing fancy....print the pictures off and glue them onto construction paper and staple the pages together. Write a few sentences at the bottom of the page and it will serve as a cue to your child when someone asks how their holiday was!

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 9

Are we there yet? Traveling by plane is hard enough for adults.....wow, now we are taking our kiddos?

Building excitement by counting the days until the travel day using post it notes or days crossed off on a calendar can help them enjoy the journey (no pun intended :)

See about going to the airport ahead of time and walking around, taking in the sights, sounds and smells of the location. Take pictures around the airport to put in a book so they can look at them later as much as they want to.

You can check to see if your child can go through the security line before your travel date so they can see the procedure and not become alarmed on the day of travel. Our 12 year old daughter was actually pulled out of line to be searched (you know how those autistic kiddos resemble terrorists :) I thought my head was going to explode...we were not allowed to touch her or be near her (SHE was handling it just fine..."waiting her turn") My husband quietly flagged the security guard and explained our situation and then things hurried along and she was cleared. It was nothing any of us had done....she was the lucky random person pulled out that flight. We joked that we should now go buy a lottery ticket since we were so lucky!

Ask the flight attendant if you can be seated first, explaining it may take a little time to get settled. Most airlines are accommodating and understanding.

See if you can get seats near the restroom and bring noise cancelling headphones or ipod/mp3 player to help mask the loud plane noise.

Bring a comfortable blanket to keep with your child and a gameboy/nintendo ds...and plan on entertaining your child yourself if necessary.

And remember the flight attendant's advice "Please be sure to take all of your belongings. If you are going to leave something, please make sure it is valuable as it will be equally divided among the attendants. Please do not leave children or spouses" :)

What travel tips can you add?

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 8

Traveling over the holidays.....yes, Virginia, we all have to do it!

If you are traveling via car, you likely already have an idea of how your child will do. Bring lots of books, games or videos they can entertain themselves with. Bringing snacks and water is also a good idea as well as taking a break every hour to let them stretch their legs.

When our girls were smaller, we actually had a grab bag of small toys that were wrapped that they got to chose and open every XXX amount of miles/minutes in the car. It was something they looked forward to doing and then they were entertained for a little while.

Some kids can't stand road noise and noise cancelling headphones are their best friend along with a comfort blanket too.

If you don't have a huge long car trip planned....bring two cars. Trust me, you will be glad to be able to head home after a short visit....sometimes the lucky parent is the one who gets to go home with their child ~ ha!

Santa has the right idea...only visit people once a year ~ Victor Borge ;)

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 7

Well now, isn't this what it's all about? :) Not really, but in our kids' minds it certainly rates right up there with Peace on Earth and Goodwill to Men :)

Let your child practice wrapping empty boxes and then let them practice UNwrapping them. Practice what to say if you receive a duplicate present or something you already have. Practice how loud some paper can be when it is crinkled up. Do you save bows? Do you have a trash bag or a bow bag?


Also, for heaven's sake completely open up and unpackage your child's gift BEFORE you wrap it...nothing is more frustrating than waiting while your tired parent tries to open a completely sealed toy in plastic cement packaging.

Practice waiting your turn while others unwrap their gifts (and they may NOT want your help!) Practice sitting calmly while others play with their loud toys...find something to entertain yourself with while you wait. Remember to enjoy your child!


One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly. ~Andy Rooney

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 6

If we as adults feel overwhelmed by the Christmas/holiday season, can you imagine how our kids feel? Your house (normally their sanctuary) is completely decorated with different things and smells and you can't touch some items. The main word for this season is "prepare". Help your child become prepared for the upcoming days.

Sometimes it helps our kids to look at previous year's photographs to help them remember how the house will look and who some of the friends and family members will be coming to visit. Remind them who people are and offer some conversational tidbits they could talk about with those folks.

Also they need a quiet place to "regroup" if they become overwhelmed by noise or crowded family areas...plan where they could go in advance and what activities they can do to help self calm...listen to music, read a book , play a hand held game, hold a stuffed animal...whatever works.

What things do you find helps your child?

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 5

"A lovely thing about Christmas is that it's compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together. - Garrison Keillor"

It must be pretty common that some topics are to be avoided in holiday conversations or comedy writers and cartoonists would be out of material and jobs.

So, help your child out by practicing conversations with others they see during the holidays. Perhaps write a social story about what to do when you greet someone.....and cue others in your family/friend circle if your child doesn't like to be hugged or touched.

Let your family and friends know ahead of time of some topics they can discuss with your child. What are they interested in, things going on in school, favorite books, etc.

Also let your child know if there are things that are "private" and NOT to be discussed with others outside the immediate family.

One of the things we do in our family is "in my mind". You can say anything "in your mind", but you do NOT say them out loud. If a cousin is driving your child crazy, he is allowed to think, "boy they are driving me nuts, I wish they would go away." However, you do NOT say that to your cousin. It allows them permission to validate their feelings and also teaches them manners of appropriate behavior when things are not going according to their plan. They can say, "I need to go to the bathroom" to get away from folks and get a quiet few minutes, instead of having a verbal meltdown. Or "I think I hear my mom calling me".

My husband says he has mastered this technique at his office :)

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 4

"Anyone who thinks conversation is dead ought to tell a child to go to bed."

Try to keep your child on a somewhat normal routine/schedule. Keeping bath and quiet times prior to bedtime in place may help lower the mental activity level of your kiddo.

It may be that hiring a babysitter to help out during some of the holiday activities allows everyone to enjoy themselves a little bit....parents don't have to worry so much about their child and the child has a known support person they trust.

Limiting sugar may also help decrease the "high" they experience during the day and make bedtime a little more settled.

Any ideas for helping bedtimes stay "smooth"?

Sweet dreams!

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 3

Blog Disclaimer: Now before I write this next post, please know this is NOT a picture from my holiday home in the past. NEVER has my dining table looked like this at the holidays :)

Not only do you have to see people you may not normally see at the holidays, but you also may have to sit in a different spot at the table or a different table altogether!

It may be you need to find a special place for your child to eat their meal.

If your child is on a special diet, make sure they have food they can eat available. Also now is probably not the best time time try new foods....keep it to the basics your child enjoys. Maybe even have some of their favorites...even if it is chicken fingers and french fries!

What are some of your child's favorite foods?

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 2

I don't know if I can do 12 days of these tips, but we are going to give it the good old American try! :)

Social Stories might be helpful to alleviate your child's anxiety about scheduled events coming up. Also create a calendar with the events posted so they can plan on when something will occur, not just worry "when is it going to happen".

Having your child shop and help pick out Christmas decorations may help them relax around the decorated tree and house and maybe help them understand what can be touched and what must be left alone.


What works for you?

12 Days of Christmas Preparation - Day 1

"You want me to sit on this noisy man's lap...he has a huge white beard that is scratchy and hides his face, funny clothes and a hat and weird elf helpers. AND you want me to smile for a picture? Are you kidding me??

I often think that this is the "in my mind" conversation my child is having as we excitedly head off to see Santa at the mall and get our picture taken.

Our girls were no different, squirming and fidgeting until they could escape. We learned to hit the mall on non-busy hours and get in and out as quickly as possible

We actually got a friend to dress up in the complete Santa suit and practiced different scripts of what could happen when we went to see Santa at the mall. It helped her to see the friend was in a Santa costume (like Halloween) and we explained that "Santa Helpers" were the folks at the mall, while the real Santa was at the North Pole.

We also let her play with the Santa costume and let her carry around a small Santa Claus stuffed doll so she became more comfortable with the idea of him.

One fun thing we did on Christmas Eve (after the kids were in bed) we put made baking soda boot prints on our carpet leading from the fireplace to the Christmas tree....told our girls the next day it was "magic snow" from Santa's boots. They loved it and it did clean up with the sweeper!

Now for some adult humor:

Santa is jolly because he knows where all the bad girls live! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Eye Contact

"Look at me!" "Where are my eyes?" "Look me in the eyes!"

How many times have we uttered those words? Now THAT'S something I wish I had a quarter for every time I said! :)

Now in defense of our kiddos, sometimes it is just too much sensory overload to look at someone's eyes, too complicated and it is too uncomfortable. AND we don't mean constantly STARE at someone in their eyes...yikes, that's unsettling!

A terrific book called Socially Curious and Curiously Social by Michelle Garcia Winner and Pamela Crooke explain it like this, "our eyes help us see what other people are looking at and this helps us figure out what other people may be thinking."

"The Four Steps of Communication include:

Step 1: Think about what other people think

Step 2: Establish physical presence

Step 3: Think about others with your eyes

Step 4: Use language to relate to others:

Think of it as being a detective and trying to figure out what other people are looking at and then make a good guess about their thoughts.

Wonder if this works with husbands? :)

IEP Update

This will be a short entry as I am still pretending it's Thanksgiving and visiting out of town relatives :)

Sometimes it is a good idea to check in with your child's teacher(s) for a quick update. You can normally send a quick email and just say you were touching base and see if there is anything they would like for you to address at home.

It is easier for the teacher to respond to an email than a phone call for a quick update. Now if they don't respond (and yes, we have had that situation too!) you can wait a few days and re-send your email with a opening line of "Wasn't sure I had the right email address, could you respond and let me know?" THEN if no response, it's up to you whether or not you call or let it go and assume all is good in that particular class (and yes, I do remember what they say about assume!)

Another option is to re-convene the IEP. You have the right to ask for the IEP committee to meet again during the school year. Now it may take a little longer to coordinate schedules, but it is always an option. Some parents include this in their annual IEP as a goal...."will reconvene the IEP 6 weeks after the start of school" to make sure things are going well and any problems or concerns are addressed when they are little, not when there is a crisis.

Just try and keep an open dialogue with your child's teacher and you will need absolutely none of the above advice :)

Albert Einstein once said,"It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer."

It does take a little more effort to "figure out" how to support out kiddos! :)

Too Funny!

As we were discussing where to go on spring break, my husband mentioned Las Vegas. We all chimed in about Hoover Dam, Red Rock Canyon, all the sights on the strip, the shows and restaurants we could visit.

Jokingly, I requested that we renew our wedding vows with an Elvis impersonater. (we've been married 27 years, yep, longer than dirt)

My daughter quickly chimed in, "But I thought wedding vows didn't expire!"

Enjoy your child! :)

Holiday Shopping

These next couple of tips come from the Hidden Curriculum One-A-Day Calendar.

Malls, stores and restaurants are generally more crowded around the holidays and on weekends. Prepare yourself for that or stay away, if possible.

Black Friday has nothing to do with death or disease. It is a retail sales term applied to Friday after Thanksgiving when retail stores generally go from "in the red" to "in the black" meaning they begin making a profit for the year.

It helps to make sure your child has an activity to entertain themselves while in the car or waiting on you while running errands. Praise the hand held Nintendo DS, Leapfrog, or iPod or other small devices...they are priceless for keeping anxiety down and helping the time pass for the kids. They also come with earbuds, so they don't disturb others in public.

Crossword puzzles, word searches, a favorite book in a series, cartoon books like Captain Underpants as well as crochet or knitting are other activities to help entertain. Sometimes we even fill small backpacks or tote bags with a couple different items (including a healthy snack!) so they can have some variety of activities.

Sharing the schedule of the day also helps...."First we are going to this store to look for 'X' and then we are heading to 'ABC'. We will probably get lunch at 'XYZ' but if it is too crowded then '123' is our second choice." We also remind our girls that they need to "put on their flexible hats" when we head out and that sometimes the day just doesn't turn out as we all planned....because that is life, and sometimes LIFE HAPPENS!

Ever Have One of Those Days?

School Projects

Two words that strike fear into the hearts of parents...."School Projects". Teachers please use your powers for good and help those of us in the netherworld of communication with our child.

Please send an email home to us and explain the due dates of the projects and include the rubric, requirements and any other important details we may need to know to help our kiddo. I would welcome the "heads up" prior to my child finding out about it, in case there might be any sensory issues, or problems with organization and focus, or presentation anxiety.

You can even put in the IEP that your child be given extra time to have the project explained to them and they tell the teacher what they just heard in order to avoid confusion. Also perhaps if they have anxiety, it might be a good idea to have them go first when making a presentation or talking about their science fair project to the judge.

Any direction provided to our child by the teacher to steer them to an appropriate choice for a book report or science project would be greatly appreciated.....sometimes trying to make a chemical explosion may not be the best choice :) I am a huge fan of the "KISS" principle...."Keep It Simple Stupid" and school projects are no exception!

One of our daughter's projects this spring will be to "make a house" for the Social Studies architecture design project and you better believe we are "steering" our daughter to make a less involved choice than a Queen Anne style complete with gingerbread trim...I'm just saying! :)

Who has Aspergers?

Just in case some folks don't realize that our kids can accomplish things, perhaps because of their autism, here is a list of suspected "aspies" to have some fun with:

Thomas Jefferson..........Isaac Newton............

Alfred Hitchcock........Wolfgang Mozart.......

Charles Darwin.........Emily Dickinson........

and Albert Einstein

Come on, you have to admit, it's possible some of the most important inventions have been made by folks with a form of autism. You just know that the cavemen were sitting around chatting and socializing and there was one guy in the back of the cave clicking two stones together, over and over and over again......until......FIRE!

Enjoy Your Child :)

One of the best pieces of advice I received (while in the trenches of diagnosis) was to remember to "enjoy my child". Really?!!? I am buried under IEPs, therapies, coping with all the sound, texture and social issues my child has? Who has time for that? We do!!!

Our kids have terrific focus and attention to detail. Need help playing that video game? Guess who to ask! Having problems on the computer....call your child. They see things in such a unique way you have to laugh and appreciate their perspective.

I want to share a story from a good friend of mine whose child came home with a project...a cigar box. "What are you to do with this?" "I don't know, my teacher just gave me this box".

Well, the box was for a project to use your imagination and make something....mom found out once she contact the teacher...due in 2 days! Her son decided they would make the witch's house out of candy from Hansel and Gretel. Mom had to spend about $30 on supplies. This house was spectacular -- it used every kind of candy possible. Red fruit by the foot for the roof shingles, icing walls with candy sprinkles on the outside, a blue candy front door, green grass icing poked with a fork to make the blades of grass, crumbled up oreos for the mulch on the flower bed, a rainbow colored sidewalk made out of colored sugar lined with red licorice borders, a blue icing pond with little candy fishes in it -- it was magnificent!

At the end of this very laborious project, the child had to fill out a self evaluation form and rate his creativity and effort on a scale of 0-3 with 3 being outstanding. He rated himself mostly 3's with a couple of 2's. The final question on the form was "How could your project be improved?" He wrote his answer with conviction....."IT NEEDS MORE CANDY".
Remember to enjoy your child :)

Social Groups

Have you discovered any social groups your kiddo could float into? My daughter has suggested this topic for today :) She feels that social groups help kids with autism "branch out" and meet new friends. Some of her favorites are a knitting club that we started as an after school club, and another one is Art Club.

In Art Club they are painting a collage on one of the walls in the school basement....an ocean theme and everyone got to choose what to add...starfish, coral, goldfish, sharks, or my daughter's favorite, the moorish idol (you know you were wondering what this picture had to do with anything!!! :)

Another club we have enjoyed is the Cooking Club run by the Home Economics teacher. The kids get to bring the yummy food home they have learned to cook...we have enjoyed tacos, cookies, pretzels and candy.

Our high school offers a variety of clubs such as Nintendo Club, Harry Potter Club, Euchre Club, our Sit-N-Knit Club, in addition to the language clubs and volunteer clubs.

If a structured "social group" is not available, try to explore some of the offerings of the school after hours or perhaps start your own club!

Idioms are NOT for Idiots :)

You are almost late to class and the teacher says you made it by the skin of your teeth, it means you made it just in time. She is NOT saying anything about your teeth (from 2009 Hidden Curriculum One-A-Day Calendar).

We had to work on idioms for quite a while in elementary school. Finally made a game of trying to act them out and also to see if we could "fool Mom". There are several fun illustrated books for kids with idioms too. Here are a few to get you started!

Get a grip
It's not the end of the world
Don't get bent out of shape
It's a piece of cake
Bite off more than you can chew
Knocked the wind out of me
Nothing to sneeze at
So hungry I could eat a horse
It's Greek to me
I'm just beside myself

So get busy, start sprinkling your day with idioms and have a ball! What other ones can you think of?

Holiday Ideas!

Yep, I said in the earlier entry I would try not to keep encouraging you to spend money....oops!

With the holidays and gift giving right around the corner, here are some ideas of toys and games for kiddos on the spectrum.

Computer/DS/Wii/Xbox games go without saying, so here are a few other ideas. I will try and post a few more over the next few blog entries.

Take a look at http://www.fatbraintoys.com/toys/special_needs/autism/index.cfm which has some unusual sensory toys.

Also check out http://www.got-autism.com/Asperger-Syndrome/Therapeutic-Games-c165/

We haven't tried any of these, but they look like they address a variety of social situations.

One game our girls also like was Apples to Apples (matching adjectives and nouns and involves a "judge"), as well as Battleship (you have to deal with immediate frustration of not "hitting" the targeted boat :) They also loved to play dress up and we could find some fun things at our local Goodwill store.

Stringing beads, playdoh, cookbooks with utensils (to encourage eating of different foods that your child makes!) jigsaw puzzles, books with flaps or textures, Guess Who board game, Snap card game, Connect Four are a few things we have explored over the years.

Please share any ideas or toys you have found especially fun for your kids...it will help us all with our shopping!

Food and the Holidays

Well, looking at my early entries to this blog, it appears I am a shill for selling stuff to parents and educators....sorry about that. It's just that I was sooo excited with these items and they really helped our daughter, I felt I had to share.

Now, how about a little life experience sharing (and nothing to buy! :)

Here is a calendar entry we especially liked "Don't be surprised if your favorite food at home tastes different when you eat it at someone else's house or in a restaurant. Sometimes it's good to try new foods."

With holiday and family gatherings getting closer, sometimes our kiddos have a very restricted diet. With picky eaters we used a two-pronged approach. Instead of putting a ton of food on a plate, we used a small cupcake baking tin (with about 6 cupcake places). The amount of food could be small and it didn't touch the other food....again, sometimes a big deal. We used this when our girls were smaller and just took the cupcake baking sheet with us to family homes.

Getting back to manners (instead of insisting on cleaning your plate) we also followed a policy of a "courtesy bite". You don't have to eat all the food placed in front of you, but you did have to take one bite. It was polite to show respect for the person providing the food and you might learn to like something you previously hated. This "courtesy bite" relieved many dining battles, because both you and the child know that once the bite is taken....another one isn't mandatory.

Our daughter would actually dry heave when she SAW whipped cream...let alone taste it. We implemented the courtesy bite policy (along with a container for her to throw up in...which she knew she was responsible for cleaning up). Eventually, over many, many tries, she learned to enjoy whipped cream and now wants to shoot it in her mouth from the can....just like her Dad. Makes a mother proud....but you better believe I am not complaining!

What things have worked with your picky eater?

Hidden Curriculum Calendar

One of the things I love are page a day calendars. This time of year so many calendars have reminders to "reorder soon!" for the new year. Please consider checking out this calendar by Judy Endow for your older kids.

Entries range from "it is perfectly okay to rank your friends from best to worst, but not okay to share it with others" to "the purpose of dryer sheets is to take static out of your clothes. Using them is optional."

There is also a Hidden Curriculum calendar for younger kids as well. Those entries include "flavored lip balms for moisturizing your lips are not meant to be eaten" and "your teacher may express an opinion that is different from what your parents think. That's okay. An opinion is someone's point of view, and not everyone will agree with you or your parents."

I know some neuro typical folks who could use these calendars! :)

Anyway, we would sit this calendar near our dinner table and it became the conversation starter for some of our meals....we could share how adults also have to figure out social situations and one of the best fall back plans is MANNERS. If you have good manners, it can help you extract yourself from unfamiliar social situations.

When you let manners be your guide, then as parents/educators we are not constantly nagging about our rules....simply that good manners need to be followed.

"Good manners sometimes means simply putting up with other people's bad manners." (H. Jackson Brown, author of Life's Little Instruction Book)

So thanks for reading this post/blog and have a great day! ;)

Middle School: The Stuff Nobody Tells You About

This is a great and easy read. Please consider getting this for yourself, your child, or your child's school if your child is heading to or is currently in middle school. Haley Moss is a teen with high functioning autism and shares her experiences in middle school.

She gives her impressions and advice and then the chapter is followed by an adult's perspective and advice.

Middle school is scary when you don't know what to expect. Knowledge is power and can help jump start the conversation with your child (and resource teacher!)

This book helped my typical daughter as well....really....Go Get This Book!

Revitapops -- Help with Focus?

Let me just say at the beginning, this posting is strictly anecdotal....we are getting no money or perks for talking about Revitapops.

These suckers cost about $35 for a bag of 30 from Amazon.com. They are supposed to help with focus and attention ...you suck on them when you do homework or some task needing your attention... and you let them dissolve...no biting!

Now that being said....when I asked our daughter on the spectrum how she felt after she used one, she said "it made my mind quiet down and I could pay attention better". My typical daughter felt it made her feel calmer. Hubby? "I don't notice anything." Me? Haven't tried it. Yep, that's right, talking about something I know nothing about...but really isn't that all advice truly is? :)

Anyway, just thought it was worth sharing, keeping in mind we are all an experiment of one!

Halloween

Well, it's here AGAIN....the time of year when folks put scary things over their faces and make really scary noises.....the perfect time for kids on the spectrum. (too bad there isn't a sarcasm font!)

Now is the time to practice, practice, practice. Dress up, ring the doorbell and say "trick or treat" and THEN say "thank you" when you get candy. The 5 pieces of candy rule worked for us too....they got a ton of junk, but could only eat 5 pieces that evening and had to save the rest for snacks later (or for daddy's work staff :) It was amazing how small our pile of candy looked in the morning :)

Walk around your neighborhood at night with a flashlight and let them see how different the familiar can look. Our daughter used to be sooo upset when in the car at night because she kept saying, "I don't recognize anything" and she had no frame of reference (even in our neighborhood!) She really felt lost and at loose ends.

My best halloween costume EVER (and yes, I am going to share it!) is a jellyfish! You get a rounded clear plastic umbrella and tape irridescent streamers along the edge...voila! You have a very unique constume and if it rains....you stay dry! We got a ton of compliments and no one had one had a costume like us! Trick or Treat!

Take a Peek at the Right Side Bar!

I have listed on the right side of this blog several websites that have been very helpful to us on our journey. Wrights Law is simply fabulous and has so much information for parents and educators (on both sides of the IEP table) it is almost sensory overload.

Lose the Training Wheels was created by geniuses who helped our daughter in 4th grade finally learn how to ride a bike....in one day! This allowed her to be active like her peers and bike riding dad and sister.

If you cannot find a social group in your area, please look into Model Me Kids videos. They use actual kids from grade school to junior high age and help model how to act in a club, as a member of a team, examples of how to compromise, how to tell someone if you are being bullied, how to act in the school cafeteria......just a myriad of situations. At the end of school, a teacher asked our daughter what she was going to do over summer vacation...."going to Mom's Social Skills Boot Camp"....and yep we did!