Article: "Top 10 terrific traits of people with autism"

After this morning's rant, it's time for a happy post :).I absolutely love this article and have seen many of these positive traits in my own sons. They choose their friends based on who is nice, not who is "cool," what they wear, or what they look like. When they tell me they love me, it just happens to be what they were thinking about at that moment in time (which is so cool IMO), not because they think it's what I want to hear (they aren't particularly interested in what I want to hear, lol)....

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News: "Autistic toddler kicked off airplane"

You may have seen this story in the news the other day - a mother and her 2-year-old toddler, who has autism, were removed from a plane.http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/local&id=6223045My first reaction when I heard about this, aside from feeling bad for this mother and her son, was that this is the reason we don't fly. With three autistic children, two of whom are very hyperactive and all three easily overstimulated, I'd be terrified to take them anywhere near an airport. The...

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Seven years ago today... (part 7 & final)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome). This is the 7th and final post in the series.Seven years ago today, after 22 days in the NICU, we were finally able to take our baby boys home! In a way, it was a little nervewracking. I'd gotten...

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What do they want to be when they grow up?

My sons have given me some interesting answers to this question over the years - at one point Bearhug gave me a rundown of all the jobs he was going to have. On Mondays, he'd be a 1st grade teacher, on Tuesdays, he'd be "cooker man" (aka chef), on Wednesdays, a 5th grade teacher, Thursdays he'd be a train driver and Fridays, an ice cream man. He and Cuddlebug were going to own an ice cream store together, and CB would hold down the fort during the rest of the week while BH was at his other jobs....

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Why my blog is called "3runningincircles"

In case you're curious... here's the reas...

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Cute picture!

Here's another picture I took of Cuddlebug and Bearhug yesterday, I love this one ...

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The case of the misplaced slippers

Cuddlebug and Bearhug were asked to clean up their rooms today, so while BH cleaned up the playroom, CB cleaned their bedroom. As I went into the bedroom to hang up their clothes, CB said to me, "Mama, did you put these slippers on the bed?" in a stern voice, pointing to his Thomas slippers. I responded that I hadn't, since I'd been busy doing laundry."Well," he said ominously,...

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DVD's, meltdowns, and bubbles, oh my

Little Bitty had a meltdown today over his DVD's, namely, not being able to find them. After months of his DVD obsession and several lost and broken DVD's we slowly dwindled his "stack" until we finally hid them one day and pretended to have no clue where they were. For the most part, he has moved on to other things but sometimes he still goes to the closet where he thinks they...

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Mystery solved

We wondered how Little Bitty managed to get so much food in his hair whenever he ate, and now we've figured it out... he's using his hair as a napkin.Guess it makes sense, he can't use his shirt since he doesn't like to wear one, lol. I've tried giving him an actual napkin (what a concept!) but he's not particularly interested. Why bother when your hair works just fi...

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Some things never change...

Bearhug and Cuddlebug got a new video game for their birthday, which they have had a great time playing and unlocking new race tracks and characters. But I've found it interesting to watch how they play. Most of the time, BH is the one playing and CB is watching. Sometimes they play two-player, but a lot of times CB prefers to watch than to play. I asked him about it, and he said he learns how to play by watching BH.I found it really interesting, because they have always been this way. I remember...

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Cuddlebug is such a sweetheart :)

CB is so sweet, he's always telling me how much he loves me ("I love you so much, yep, so much, that's the way I love you"). Even when he's mad at me, he says "Mama, I still love you, but I'm angry of you right now." That's quite a lot of maturity for a barely 7-yr-old, IMO. I always tell him I'll always love him too, all day, every day. (of cours...

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Mr. Naked-Pants

I know, "Naked-Pants" is a contradiction in terms, but oh well. Every time I turn around, Little Bitty is running around naked, and it's driving me crazy! He's never been a big fan of clothes, but now not only is he taking off his shirt all the time, he's figured out how to take his shorts off too, and of course the next step was the pull-ups.In a sense, I think this is a good sign, he takes his pull-up off every time he goes to the bathroom in it, so it means he recognizes when he's done his business...

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Planets and bedtime

Little Bitty has developed a keen interest in the planets recently... he has a Baby Galileo video that he likes to watch, and his brothers have an educational toy that gives facts and figures about the different planets, which he loves to listen to over and over. He probably has the mass of Jupiter and the temperature on Mars memorized by now, not to mention how many years it takes Neptune to orbit the sun and how much a 100 lb. person would weigh on Mercury!We just happen to have a bedroom decorated...

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PECS (Picture exchange communication system)

Feeling a little overwhelmed with this project... we have done homemade picture schedules for CB and BH when they were younger, and I made a whole set of picture cards (from photographs) for LB last year at the suggestion of his speech therapist. I included pictures of his favorite foods and drinks, toys, shoes (to use when going out), family members, books, potty, pull-ups, sippy, you name it. Pretty everything I could think of that he might want to say or that we might want to show him or ask...

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Anniversary coming up

Dh and I will celebrate our 15th anniversary soon. In a way, it's hard to believe it's been that long, but at the same time it feels like we've just always been together. :)It's been an interesting 15 years to say the least... we started out as married college students, living in a basement apartment (ok, that was after 2 months living in the roach motel, but I'm still trying to...

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Seven years ago today... (part 6)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today, Bearhug and Cuddlebug were finally able to co-bed in the same crib together in the NICU. They seemed much happier to finally be together again. They both still had their feeding...

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Digga digga... digga digGAH

It's been a digga digga morning... my twins are very verbal so this isn't the bulk of their vocabulary like it was when they were younger, but I think it's cute that when they're playing I can still hear them either saying or sometimes singing "digga digga digga... digga digGAH..."As for my little one, he does this too, although he's not very verbal yet so we hear a lot of digga's from him. I like his happy digga's, but it makes me sad when he's upset and the only way he can express himself is with...

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Wow... I'd forgotten

I've been going through all our home videos and transferring them from the tapes to our computer so I can edit them and make videos to share. I've been watching the ones of Cuddlebug and Bearhug when they were about 18 mos old... this was long before we knew they autism. I can hear myself on the tape saying "'Cuddlebug'... 'Cuddlebug'! look over here... 'Cuddlebug'!" and he's completely oblivious. I'd forgotten just how nonresponsive he and his brother could be. At the time we didn't realize how...

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Seven years ago today... (part 5)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today, after 8 long days of waiting for him to be stable enough, I was finally able to hold my Bearhug for the first time! He was so precious and I was so happy to be able to finally cuddle with him. He had some issues with his heart that we were watching, at that point the dr's didn't know if he'd need...

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Stubborn!!!

stub·born–adjective1. unreasonably obstinate; obstinately unmoving.2. fixed or set in purpose or opinion; resolute.3. obstinately maintained, as a course of action.4. difficult to manage.See also... LITTLE BITTYIt's not like I don't know where he gets it from (me, lol), but my little guy can be sooo stubborn! I know this will be a good trait in some ways as he gets older, otherwise...

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What has autism done for you?

Someone posted this question and it got me thinking... here is my response:Autism has taught me to notice the beauty all around me in the worldIt has taught me to look for the best in peopleIt has helped me to become better at perceiving the world from different perspectivesIt has taught me to appreciate every accomplishment, no matter how "small"It has helped me understand what is truly important in lifeIt has taught me patience beyond what I thought I'd be capable ofIt has taught me to laugh,...

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A letter to Bearhug and Cuddlebug

Dear CB & BH,My precious babies, time goes by so quickly! I look at you now, such big boys, and it's hard to imagine how tiny you once were. I feel so blessed to be your mom.My life was forever changed when the two of you came into it! From the days of talking to you and playing music in my car when I was pregnant with you, to trying to figure out how to feed both of you fast enough to keep you happy while still having some cuddle time for each of you, to chasing you when you ran off in two...

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Happy Birthday Cuddlebug & Bearhug!!

This week was Bearhug & Cuddlebug's 7th birthday! We planned a party a local jumpy place for late afternoon, but had agreed to let them open their presents that morning (can you imagine trying to make them wait all day?). They took us at our word and tried to get us up at 6:30am, yikes! Should have seen that one coming...We managed to hold them off for a while but then it was present time. They opened everything up, with Little Bitty following along and checking out the things they'd already...

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Seven years ago today... (part 4)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today, I made my way to the NICU again to visit my babies, who were 2 days old. I asked when I'd be able to hold them, and they said I could go ahead and hold Cuddlebug for a few minutes. I cried, I was so happy. The nurse helped me gently lift him out of the isolette, and showed me how to keep the monitor...

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Seven years ago today... (part 3)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today, I woke up in the morning alone in my room. Dh spent most of his the day in the NICU with the boys. A nurse brought me a card with some polaroid pics of the boys. Because of the meds they had me on (due to pre-eclampsia) I had to stay in bed for 24 hrs after delivery, so I couldn't go see them...

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Seven years ago today... (part 2)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today... I was wheeled from my hospital room to the perinatal specialist for another sonogram, and got back just in time for dinner. Only I was so lethargic I literally sat there staring...

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Video of the day - an Engineer's Guide to Cats

Two professional engineers illustrate the proper care and practical benefits of cats. If you know any cats, or engineers (and even if you don't) this is hilarious."Tuna is pretty much like... cocaine for kitties." ...

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Family Fishing Event 2008

Last weekend we went to a family fishing event for autism families. It's held every year, this was our 3rd time going and we had a great time as always! Cuddlebug caught his first fish!Little Bitty tried fishing too (dh helped), and he also got to see a turtle up close. The turtle swam up to see what all the commotion was about when he splashed in the water.Bearhug spent most of...

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Video of the day - Super Karate Monkey Death Car

No, I'm not going to post a video every day, but I will be posting here and there some videos I think are interesting, funny, or just plain cool.Today's video of the day: Super Karate Monkey Death Car from Newsradio. This show was so funny, and this is my all-time favorite episode, I crack up laughing every time I watch it :)."Jimmy has fancy plans... and pants to match." ...

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Seven years ago today... (part 1)

For the month of June, I decided to write a series of posts about my twins' first month of life to help raise awareness about prematurity and TTTS (twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome).Seven years ago today, I was 33 weeks pg with my twins. I had a regular ob and a neonatal specialist, and I went in to the specialist that morning for a level 2 sonogram to check how the boys were doing. They took my blood pressure and it was something like 160/110. They sent me straight over to the labor and delivery...

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