A step in the right direction

I had a great chat with Superman's EA today. She's so great. I like how she takes her own initiative and plays around with different ideas to see what works and what doesn't. She started a communication book with him to help him identify his emotions and also to lay out his day so he can cross off all of his accomplishments. It makes it so much easier for him to see everything he's done in a day and to see how well he's doing.

This is such a great step forward. We really have to work on the biting issue though. I don't have any problems with it at home, but his EA is having issues with it at school, especially when he's overwhelmed.

It's common among Autistic kids but it's something that has to be figured out. If you can tap into the source of anxiety and help give them words to their emotions (something Autistic kids really struggle with) then you give them a tool for life. There is so much that we, as fully functioning adults/kids, take for granted that is a struggle for little ones like Superman.

So much to report!

I'm doing so great on keeping this updated! I have lots of news to report. The most exciting is that Superman finally got his diagnosis. Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), specifically Aspergers which goes along with his Sensory Integration Dysfunction (SID).

I think some people in our life are surprised at how happy we are with the news. They wonder why we're happy about a "label" and it usually comes from people who have not walked in the shoes of a parent of a special needs child. While they are certainly well intentioned and genuinely want to know why this would be such good news, it is nearly impossibly to put into words, or help them understand what it is truly like to live a day of our lives. Some days are amazing, some make you want to stick a fork in your eye.

On Thursday I have a feedback meeting at the hospital to get the written report from the Dr. who made the diagnosis. I called the Geneva Centre which is a leading authority on all things related to Autism and have started the ball rolling with them for social skills classes, parent information nights, workshops etc.

They are hosting an International Autism Symposium in Toronto which I will be attending. It is *the* place to go for info, treatments, medical breakthroughs, coping strategies etc on ASD. If anyone wants more info: http://www2.autism.net/symposium/index_e.aspx?ArticleID=45

Unfortunately, everything has a waiting list these days. So although we've been through the intake dept at Geneva, we still have to wait until the end of July to go to the Parent Orientation and even longer for Superman to get into classes of his own.

And I certainly can't leave out little miss ladybug! She turned 1 last month and she's cruising, babbling up a storm and can say about 10 words. She attempts to blow on her food if its too hot (although a lot of spit tends to go with it) ;) and she LOVES to laugh. She knows when she's funny and loves it when she can make someone smile. She has such a sweet, sweet soul. You can't help but love her when you're with her.

DH is working crazy long hours. He has new program running for a new client and it's sucking the life out of him. It should end by mid July until he gets another contract and another progam has to go live.

We're taking the kids away next weekend which will be blast. They really, really miss having time with their Dad.

So that's it for now. Time to get some sleep while I can. Many blessings to each of you. xxoo