There's so much we take for granted

"We" being the collective "we"...

Last night Tom Nook (Superman's favourite item in the entire world..he's a stuffed animal and he's never far from his side) had been MIA for 8.5 hours (but who was counting). So bedtime rolls around and Superman was getting anxious about not having Tom, but it was simmering. Then at the last moment I remembered one little cranny of the house we hadn't search and low and behold he was there. *phew*

When I told Superman that I had found him, his eyes lit up and he got a little weepy. And this is what gets me. He said "Mommy, I have a funny feeling in my tummy when I see him but I don't know why. What does it mean?"

Wow.

Right there is autism.

The inability to know something that comes so naturally to everyone else. Superman knows happy, sad, scared, confused, frustrated and angry. He knows the clear black and white emotions. But he doesn't know the in between ones.

So I had to explain to him that the anxiety was "worry" and the funny feeling when we found him was "relief" and realizing how much he missed him. And then he said "I'll have to try and remember that but it's hard. I forget what feelings are."

Moments like that just make me want to cry.

Ladybug...where are you going?

Ladybug hops into her little ride on car...

- Bye Bye Mama *blows kisses*

Are you going for a ride?

- Yes

Are you going to school? (I figure it's a logical choice since we always talk about riding to school to get Superman)

- No

Are you going to see Grandma?

- No

Then where are you going?

- SALE!!!

Oh. You're going shopping. hehehe

Onwards and Upwards

I had a fabulous meeting at Superman's school on Tuesday. It was short and sweet (it's usually long and involved) so that was a nice change. The plan is that after March Break ends and we return to school, Superman will start attending from 11:30am-3:30pm. Right now he starts his day at 1pm. So that's a big step in the right direction. The staff is seeing the same positive changes in Superman that we're seeing at home and it's going to open a lot of doors for him.

I haven't talked about Ladybug in awhile. She's about as girly girl as it gets. She just got over a case of the flu and one morning when she woke up, after spending a restless night battling a fever of 103, she INSISTED that I let her wear her black mary janes (while still clothed in PJ's I might add) and she also wanted her hair in a ponytail. I guess there was a public to impress that I wasn't aware of.

Her son still rises and sets on her big brother and several times a day I find the two of them giggling like crazy people as they play.

So that's news from our little corner. Hope all is well with you. xxoo

Starting A New Chapter

Superman just wrapped up his sessions with the new Developmental Pediatrician. We loved him! He was so intuitive, gentle, funny, and easy to talk to. I knew the moment I found out he brings his dog to work that I would love him. ;) We both felt comfortable with him and it made the trust factor come very easily.

Our first appt was medical history. The second appt was an educational assessment. The third appt was a physical and to go over the results from all of the appts.

Our end decision was to take the Doctor's advice and try Superman on Zoloft. He said to start him on 12.5 mg to allow his brain some time to adjust to the hormonal changes and since the dose would be so low, we should be able to avoid the common side effect of aggitation that can happen when people start the drug.

So he's had 7 doses so far and it's been an amazing transformation to see. He's calm, regulated, transistions well. All the things that used to cause him so much angst seem to be under his control. He's still his happy chatty self but on a less anxious level.

I talked to him about the medication. Told him what it was, what it was for and how he felt about it. I figure even though HB and I have the final say on whether or not he needs it, it's his body and we need to respect the fact that he should be able to give his input and ask questions. He says it feels good that his body isn't pitching fits when he's trying to figure things out. What a joy it is to hear that!

We've been able to do so much with him that we couldn't do before. He can transistion from his favourite activity to a less desirable one without a meltdown. We took him shopping to 4 furniture stores without an issue (stores are very overstimulating to him). It's just been incredible! I keep thinking...wow...so this is what it's like to have a regulated 8 year old! We love it!

Tonight we put Katie to bed and played Ant Bully on his GameCube for half an hour. Then we turned it off. Went to the kitchen and baked cookies. Sat on the couch drinking apple cider, eating cookies and watching the Discovery Channel, all snuggled up under a blanket. It was such a great moment!

Today his EA was absent so he was with someone different. He's had her before but they're chemistry isn't as close so his energy is usually high when he's with her. This is the first time he's been with her since starting the med and she said it was a perfect day. No issues whatsoever.

Tomorrow is our meeting at the school to discuss a gameplan to get him back in school for longer hours. He's still only attending from 1-3:30pm but now that he's regulated we can move forward.

Finally.

Everything has been so worth it to get to this point.