Autism Awareness - With Us 365

April 2 is International Autism Awareness Day. It's the 9th year of observing the effects autism has for an individual, family, and our communities. The international agenda includes this topic, which is of interest to James and I this year: The Road to Independent Living: From Early Intervention through College. 

At school, home, and the after school program, a gradual shift from therapy and intervention toward life skills and independent living has begun. James is 12, it's only 6 more years until he is 18. I am so used to thinking of him as 6 years old. Time to shift the horizon.

James is getting life skills for living alone, phone etiquette, cooking, and laundry. I've started handing him money and talking through transactions, such as paying for pizza at Little Caesar's or the grocery store. I have started a program of writing letters to family and texting, using my phone.

He is rocking the hygiene chart the O/T helped set up for him. His math program was enhanced and he is now bringing home chapter books to read. He is doing all this new homework independently now. Often all I need to do is double-check what he has done.

 The Boys and Girls Club have started to help support discussions about hobbies and joining socially with others. James is able to complete homework during the time for that. He is using a calculator correctly. He has started to "get" their talks about work he can do and enjoy to support himself when he is older.

I am thankful James has services, and a good team working with us this year. While not much is known for sure about autism, it has been a constant companion to me, 365 days a year, since 2007, starting with uneasiness when James did not hit milestones at age 18 months in 2006. Where we are right now is so much better than I'd feared when we started out. We still have a long way to go.

Matisse Appreciation

James has been enjoying art as an elective this year. I used to like doing crafts with both kids when they were younger, including cut outs with construction paper to make cards and collages. It's nice to see him enjoy it as he grows older.

James brought home a portfolio of art work from this recent semester of school. He wanted to share this with me:

It's inspired by Matisse, who is also once of my first and perennial favorite artists. When I was in college, I painted a huge mural from an odalisque painting by Matisse. I never expected being able to share something like this with my son. It makes me feel very close to him.

Freedom to Pursue Curiosity

Our fascination with Alexa continues. James is using this voice interface to look up definitions, something we struggled with when using a book. Now, he puts his energy into reading all the definitions and choosing one to write down.

Instead of getting hung up on the fine motor skills that frustrate him when using a dictionary, James can work independently, and is curious about words and definitions. This sometimes leads to questions and discussions, which I think is great.

So Proud

James is receiving grades for the first time. I received a photo and text on my phone from his aide this week. Someone got a 3.6 GPA.

This is the boy who kept his speech therapist guessing for over six months whether he would ever talk. The child who some special educators assured me was intellectually incapable of learning or doing math. The guy once labeled trouble, disruptive, and literally put out in the hall and otherwise sidelined against his abilities and legal rights to suit school administrators until his family and support team stepped in to back him up.

His learning and communication are unique. He is unique. So proud he is still learning and growing.

Freedom of a Friday Night

We felt like celebrating the release from school for a week. Projects got finished at work. James had finished his homework packets and his school had their Stampede event that morning. He raised enough money to proudly wear his t-shirt. We made sure his good tennis shoes were on for the race. I wrote a note to please excuse him from running the event, asking that he be able to jog/walk it. I probably did not need to write the note, but it made James feel better.

After the afternoon pickup from Boys & Girls Club, which was suffused with a gleeful atmosphere, we enjoyed some time at the public library. James likes the library because he can play computer games and check out movies.

The nights are crisp and cold. We agreed that dinner out on the Town Green would be just the thing. So we walked over to KC's Diner and were seated by the fire pit on the patio. That and the waiter were as good as a floor show for James. He took it all in and sat the entire meal in his chair, which is something new for him.

We checked the Warriors game occasionally on the TV monitor, discussed the merits of ketchup and lettuce, and theorized the construction of the fire pit. Chicken strips, spinach salad and fried were consumed, and we were able to relax from weekday routine. The walk back to the car was cheerful and comfortable. James has been scripting the dining experience from the viewpoint of the waiter. It makes a nice change of pace from Spongebob, fractions, and spelling.

Fallready

So summer went like *that* (finger snap) and it is Fall. Already.

I have my autismom calendar of events that confirm the paper Gregorian version in the kitchen:

• The back to school frustration of not enough communication from the school. 
• Feeling like the I need Homeland Security Clearance to get his schedule. 
• Beginning of school year IEP request and meeting, in which I try to understand where James will be physically at which time for each IEP service and what has been changed without telling me since the last IEP team meeting. 
• School pictures, once again in a red polo shirt. There no other Picture Day shirts. 
• Newsletters via a different delivery system. 
• Requests for money from the school. 
• First days of school missed due to cold AND flu that are "going around". 
• First homework makeup packet request and turn in. 
• First meltdown over reading assignment. 
• First sneaking of Crocs instead of sneakers to school. 
• Verbal stimming begins over a new teacher's name. 
• I try to commit a new aide's name to memory. 
• We set up new routines for homework and find The One Pencil that is tolerable for completing assignments. 
• Been called by the new school because the out sick message got lost. 
• Been called to leave work and pick him up because he was distraught. 
• Three evil bouts with constipation (and calls from the school or aide). 
• One email skirmish on why he was sent out for making noise / misunderstanding of what happened.

I have some more homework to do before meeting again with his team. After that, I intend to enjoy Fall with James and build up some fortitude before the return from Winter break sets off a new flurry of excitement.