Unique Peek At Language Skills

James scripts. Sometimes it's a conversation that incorporates YouTube videos and memories from 6 years back. His inner dialogue can come right out his mouth for multiple people - kind of like my brother and I each re-enacting entire Monty Python skits at the breakfast table, but much more mysterious and Dada-esque.

And lately, James has started mixing Spanish into his scripting. Appropriate use of words too.

It started when he was walking from the car to the apartment, and someone let their dog run around the property behind our parking space. It made James very nervous, to hear it racing around, barking. I heard about the darned perro running around afuera.

He will also try and drop numbers in Spanish into a conversation. He is fascinated with the teen numbers. Even though he asks me every time, he knows the proper name for the proper number.

Every now and then I will drop a few phrases in French. He likes to practice Bon Jour and Mercie.

I love this guy.

Colour Spectrum

James started stimming again about school tomorrow: "There's no school tomorrow?"

We'll get this about 20 times today. I decided to change things up a bit.

Wish they still sold this t-shirt!

-- Take 1 --
Me: "James, what's school look like?"
He: *Look of "that is a dumb question"*

-- Take 2 --
Me: "James, what colour is school?"
He: "Yellow."
Me: "What colour is your classroom?"
He: "Blue."

-- Tangent --
Me: "What colour am I?"
He: appraising look ... "Silver."
Me: "What colour are you?"
He: "Shiny."

Love it!

What Am I?

Hint: It's a place ... and a state of mind.

Answers tomorrow.

Swim Debate

This might be the year we enroll James in group swim lessons. Even though he refuses to get his head wet and is not thrilled with being splashed he needs to have some water skills, loving the pool, river wading, and ocean surf as he does. In the past, I knew that James would not pay attention in class, and be more of a disturbance than a learner/participant.

Looking at him this summer, I can tell his abilities and needs have changed. He's tall enough and bulky enough to not get knocked off his feet, cutting down on his anxiety. He has 2 years of full inclusion under his belt, and we know he's positively motivated by his peers to do the same activities. He's had over 3 years of poolside cheerleader for big sister's swim classes.

I spoke with one of the program leads, and after watching him and sharing she worked with full inclusion students in a neighbouring school district, she agreed this might be a good year to try this. Now to get the funds for the class ...

Randomness & an RIP

I remember being an Art Major in 1986, looking at a Macintosh and wondering "how do I use this?" I was certain I would never use a computer. I didn't want to. Flash forward 10 years and I am looking at a colourful, inviting desktop and wondering "where's the C:/ drive?" Laughing like crazy when someone shows me how to make the Big Electric Cat belch.

Skip ahead six more years and I'm posting an update to our website as I headed out the door to deliver our first child, and timing contractions two years after that for my second on the internet, at some stopwatch site I'd Googled.

I've been working mostly on Macs since 1996 and they have widened my horizons. When his grandmother first got an iMac, James found PhotoBooth and all the special features,taking pictures  almost immediately. He was 5. I use iTunes for music, watching movie trailers with my husband as a mini date night, and can easily create custom CD mixes for my daughter, who needs her special songs to lull her to sleep. Hello Skype for all our long-distance relatives!

We've seen every Pixar movie made, and love them all.

What would our world have been like, without Steve Jobs?

Rest in Peace, Steve. You have lived a real life and changed the world. And made many of us proud to "Think Different," even before some of us heard about Special Needs for our children.

Apple's home page on October 5, 2011