Catching up....

I want to get better about blogging all of this. I know there are plenty of other families out there with children with ASD and are new to this change in their world. I would like them to know that even though their child(ren) may act in different ways, we are all in this together.

So over the past few months we have really become involved in Cub Scouts. The other scouts are very accepting of David! This is also great because there is no competition like in sports. David has earned his Bobcat and Tiger Badges with the rest of his Den. I think the greatest thing is that his Den Leaders treat him like a NT (Neuro-Typical) child and they don't tiptoe around him like he is broken or an outcast. I love the environment for him because it is helping him grow socially.

As for me I have had my ups and downs over the past few months. I stopped blogging in October because I got broncitis really bad and was off and on sick until February. Now it is allergy season and my snoring has gotten worse so I am sleeping on the couch for now. The Citilopram and Klonipin are lifesavers since I don't deal well with chaos myself. I still cry after David has his meltdowns and usually go through a hopeless feeling. I hate when my son hurts inside and can't verbalize how he is feeling and it all comes out in a meltdown.

David's Therapy is going well! His Doctor is AMAZING! She helps with tactics I wouldn't have thought of like having a bin of squishy balls and toys that he can squeeze rather than digging his nails into my arm when he is having a meltdown. He has also gotten away from the biting for the most part. He bit me 2 days ago and that was the first since December. Having the concrete rule "We Do NOT Bite" has really seemed to sink in and we can move forward on other appropriate behaviors.

I think the hardest behavior to change right now is him saying the word "damn". When he gets mad it is "that damn this, and that damn everything". We have a damn table and apparently when he is really mad I am a damn mom. Doc is working with him on replacing with darn as are we. Luckily I haven't gotten a call from school about it, but we are worried about how friendships are going to last if he says it infront of other parents.

OT is going well also. He has learned to tie his shoes and he is able to focus better on his handwriting. Now that it is getting close to summer we really need to work on balance. He got a scooter for his birthday and can ride it a bit but has real balance issues and I haven't mentioned that he still has training wheels on his bicycle. It is hard to have him practice at the house since we only have a long gravel drive and a giant yard. We need to start making more trips to the neighborhood next to us for more practice.

Well, that's about all for now. Will try and start posting more often because I feel this is important for me.

~E