Autism awareness month links

(Scroll down for new posts)Welcome! Add links to your autism awareness posts here. You can leave as many as you want, just link directly to the specific posts and leave a comment with a note on your topic(s). Feel to grab the button code from the sidebar to the right. I'll leave this at the top as a sticky post.Thanks for all you're doing to spread awareness about autism!If you...

Read More >>

"No myths" Public Service Announcement

I stumbled onto this public service announcement on the internet recently and thought I'd share it here. I really like the positive message:This was done by the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN), the Dan Marino Foundation, and Kent Creative. For more information, visit http://www.nomyths.org/If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email or R...

Read More >>

Riding bikes!

I mentioned here that Cuddlebug and Bearhug have learned to ride their bikes, after much practicing they are really good at it now. Here are some pics (Cuddlebug is wearing a hat):They've had these bikes for about 3 years (they used to ride with training wheels or just "walk" their bikes), and as you may be able to tell, have outgrown them a bit. We recently got them some bigger...

Read More >>

Meltdowns vs. Tantrums

In my opinion, comparing an autistic/sensory meltdown with a typical tantrum is much like comparing an F5 tornado with a windy day. The differences lie in the intensity, duration, and motivation (or as Barbara more eloquently put it, it's a matter of degree). The motivation is important, because knowing what motivates a behavior is critical to knowing how to respond appropriately.I'll...

Read More >>

SEW & WW: Little Bitty

It's hard to believe that innocent little face is capable of pulling such a Jekyll and Hyde routine... :)Click here for more Special Exposure Wednesday, click here, here, and here for more Wordless Wednesday.If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email or R...

Read More >>

Dealing with aggression

I'm looking for your suggestions today. We've been dealing with some aggression issues with Bitty lately. I need your opinion on which of these I should choose to protect myself from his onslaughts:I'm thinking the stormtrooper armor is probably the way to go, it looks like it allows for more flexibility while still offering face protection. Hehe :)Seriously, though. I've said...

Read More >>

Silly Monkey Stories: Puppy tails

I stumbled onto this in my journal the other day and couldn't stop laughing. I'm glad I try to write these things down (although I know I've missed plenty over the years) because I had completely forgotten about this one.This was 4 years ago, when Bearhug was 3 1/2. He and Cuddlebug had just started speech therapy, and at the end of each therapy session the therapists would take...

Read More >>

Monday Mumbers #1

This is my first "Monday Mumbers" post. Visit Good Enough Mama for more Mumbers action.btw, I love the title of this because it reminds me of how Cuddlebug used to say "mumbers" instead of numbers. :) Bearhug called them "umbers." Whatever you call them, here are mine for today:14 number of times I felt like bashing my head against a wall this weekend0 number of times I actually...

Read More >>

Story corner #2: The Good Duck

Here's a story by Cuddlebug, written when he was 5 years old. I love its simplicity :). (That last part says "Illustrated" by Cuddlebug) There's a good duck. He's a good duck. That's a good duck. That's really a good duck. That's really, really a good duck. That's really, really, really a good duck. The end This was the back cover :)For more Magic Marker Monday, visit 5 Minutes...

Read More >>

No words

There are good days, and bad days, and every now and then there are days that just make me want to curl up in a fetal position and hide somewhere.Yesterday was one of those days.I don't really have the energy to recount all the details, so suffice it to say the day started out something like this:Then we thought it had blown over, and made our biggest mistake of the day, thinking...

Read More >>

Our story part 8: Little Bitty's arrival

I have to backtrack in the timeline a little bit here. A couple of months before Cuddlebug & Bearhug were diagnosed with autism, I became pregnant with Little Bitty. He was born about 2 months after they started therapy.Little Bitty was a very cheerful and easy-going baby. He wasn’t prone to overstimulation (at least, no more so than the average baby) so we could pretty...

Read More >>

SOOC Saturday: Peach buds

Looks like we may actually have some peaches growing on our tree this year!For more SOOC Saturday, visit Slurping Life.If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email or R...

Read More >>

Our story part 7: Bearhug’s rough start in preschool

When Bearhug and Cuddlebug started Pre-K, Cuddlebug handled the transition much easier since he had already been going to school there the previous spring. Bearhug, on the other hand, really had difficulty with his new routine.He had a meltdown every morning when we dropped him off. Since Cuddlebug had been going to school there for a few months already, he thought of it as “Cuddlebug’s...

Read More >>

Our story part 6: School evaluations

As I mentioned in an earlier part of our story, Bearhug & Cuddlebug were 3 years old when they were diagnosed, so they were too old to be eligible for early intervention. Instead, we were referred to the school district for special needs services.The school evaluations take about 3 hours, so we scheduled them for different days. As before, Cuddlebug went first. I think it...

Read More >>

Our story part 5: Thoughts on Bearhug & Cuddlebug’s diagnosis

I should pause here to share some of my thoughts on the diagnosis of our twins. While it was a bit unnerving to actually hear a professional say the words, it was an enormous relief to finally have an explanation. I wrote a little about it (metaphorically) here.It really was like having someone hand me a flashlight after I’d been wandering and stumbling in the dark for a very...

Read More >>

Bitty's testing me (funny)

We're about to head out for a while, but this was too funny not to share real quick first.Bitty was acting like he needed to use the restroom, so I asked him, "Is it potty time?""No""Are you sure?"[he ignores me]Not 10 seconds later, he was stripping down in the bathroom (because that's what he does) so I asked him again, "Do you need to go potty?"To which he answered, "Cor-RET!"LOL......

Read More >>

Our story part 4: Cuddlebug & Bearhug's Diagnosis

I scheduled two separate appointments with the pediatric neurologist. Cuddlebug was up first, as he seemed to have more significant delays. The doctor asked a ton of questions, and then started trying to talk to Cuddlebug. I was used to “translating” (or at least trying to) so it was hard for me to stay quiet and just let him interact with Cuddlebug. For a while Cuddlebug just...

Read More >>

Wow...

That's all I can say -- wow, this kid is wicked-smart.I took today off but ended up working remotely from home all morning, Bearhug is here too b/c he's home sick with a stomach bug :(.He asked me, "how many days have I been alive?"I had no idea and told him I'd look it up (why do the math in my head when there are online tools to tell us these kinds of things?). While I was doing...

Read More >>

Our story part 3: The final straw

During the time leading up to their third birthday, dh and I became more and more frustrated and confused by Cuddlebug and Bearhug’s behavior, increasingly unusual responses to things, and continued lack of communication. Every now and then things would get so bad that we’d have “the talk” again. The one where we tried to put our concerns into words, shared our confusion at “why...

Read More >>