Our Current Obsession. Again.

Do your kids go on favorite toy fasts and binges?  I was thinking about culling our Thomas and Friends train collection a couple months ago because our box was so full and they didn't get played with very much.  Then suddenly, they are the favorite toys once again!  Bryce used to carry those trains around with him everywhere.  He would roll them along a table ledge with this eyes right at wheel height, just watching the wheels turn over and over.  He also loved crashing them into each other.  He's grown up some in the way he plays with them, but we don't have elaborate track systems and imaginary play with the trains interacting with each other in our house.  Bryce LOVES to watch You Tube videos that other kids have made of their collections.  He also likes to watch the ones that have trains crashing into each other or falling off their tracks.  Over and over and over and over.  

A Glimpse of "Normal"

Tonight after dinner we went to the park to take a walk and play on the playground.  Normally when we go to the park, Bryce will wander around a bit and climb on a few of the play structures but he keeps to himself.  He often is "silly thinking" while doing this (that's the term Mrs. Linda came up with in regard to his verbal stimming).  The playground we went to tonight has a little see-saw which he loves to bounce on.  He and I were playing on it together when a little girl came up and stood there waiting for a turn.  Bryce was going to get off, but I told him to play with her and got off so she could ride with him.  I was pleasantly surprised to see him interact with her.  She talked to him and asked him questions and he answered correctly and carried on a conversation so well!  They moved on from the see-saw to playing "chase" all over the playground.  I can't tell you how grateful I am to a little girl named Ashmin for treating my son like any other child and accepting the extra work it is to be a friend to him.  It was a little glimpse of "normal" and such a refreshing way to end our day!

Enjoying our summer nights!

Bryce Burkholder: Matchmaker

So my little brother finally brought his "special girl" home to meet the family this week.  Prior to actually meeting her in person we thought she was just an imaginary friend that he photo-shopped into his Facebook pictures.  ;)

I tried to explain to Bryce who we were going to meet.  I told the boys her name was Anna, but they should call her Miss Anna.  This was fine the first night.  Then we saw them together again the next day at a restaurant and again this morning at church.  So tonight, Bryce asked Garret, "Do you have an Aunt?"  He was referring to Anna.   You know, like Uncle Garret and Aunt.....

We laughed and poor Anna was blushing.  I tried to explain that Uncles and Aunts go together when they are married.  But Uncle Garret isn't married.  At least not yet.  So we just call her Miss Anna.  He thought for a second and said, "Mister Garret?"

Poor kid.  He's so confused.  :) Then again, maybe not....

He's going to hate me for this someday...

Every Wednesday Bryce has PE at school.  They've been doing "Jazzercise" lately, and Mrs. Linda keeps telling me how good he is at keeping up with the moves.  For someone so awkward with his body, it's a little hard to believe.  So to prove it, she made a couple videos for me. I know that someday he's going to hate me for posting this online, but it's so cute-I can't help it :) 

Got one more :)

Spring Break Schedule

Because we have two weeks of Spring break and Bryce is now home all day, I instituted a schedule with several blocks of "No electronics allowed" throughout the day.  Otherwise, he would be plugged into something for two straight weeks.  He has no desire whatsoever to be involved in anything else.  You have to drag him outside and then you have to do something to engage him or he'll just wander around or find somewhere to sit and wait.  His lack of imagination can be so frustrating, but it's not his fault.  His brain just doesn't work that way.  However, he is a master imitator, so if you show him what to do, he'll usually go along with it.  The only problem with that scenario is it leaves me the designated entertainer all day long and I get nothing done.  It's like having a fussy newborn.  I suppose that's why it's so easy to let him play Wii or iPod, or use the computer.  At least on the computer he's playing educational games and school activities like Stretch Math.  But that doesn't stop me from feeling guilty about it.  He's just so happy when he's playing his games and miserable when he's forced to participate in regular family life with the rest of us! If we are out of house and doing something, it's much better.  He just knows it's not available so he resigns himself to being with us :) That's why I've tried to have something scheduled every day this week to get us out in the gorgeous weather and away from the machines.  Having a schedule has helped him quite a bit.  It's actually the uncertainty of not knowing when he'll be allowed to play next that bothers him.  As long as he knows when he can play again, he's been very good with the restrictions.  I've tried to schedule things during the approved play times as well, to stretch out the time between gaming.  This first week has been a success, I'd say.  Although, he's already asking, "Is Saturday Spring break?"  Meaning, do I have to follow the same rules? Hate to tell you kid, but I'm doing this from now on!  When school starts again I'll have definite times of no electronics during the afternoon.  And the same thing goes for Summer break.  We'll just have to keep planning things to keep him busy.  That, and the pool is a HUGE lifesaver in the summer time.  He would spend 8 hours in there if he could!  

One of our activities this week-the Public Library

"I have a new rule..."

I had to write this down before I completely forgot about it!  Today when I picked Bryce up from school, Mrs. Linda told me that he announced something to her as they were walking out for the day.  

"I have a new rule."

"Oh, yes?  What's that?"

"Mrs. Linda will not talk to me anymore.  I will work by myself."

"That's a great rule! As long as you are really working."

I'm not sure it's an exact quote.  I've already forgotten what she told me, and when I asked Bryce about it, he just said, "I will work by myself."  But the gist of it is this: he's noticing that he's missing out on things in class when he is pulled out to do work alone with Linda or his other therapists.  He doesn't want Linda to sit right next to him in class.  (Like any other kid, he'd rather avoid work altogether)  He's also asserting more and more independence.  All of this is great news, socially.  It brings up other issues, like losing some of his compliant attitude.  Normally that would be a "big trouble" kind of thing, but when you dealing with an autistic child, the very fact that he can verbalize how he's feeling is a HUGE step.  And as long as he keeps a good attitude and respect for adults while telling us how he feels, I'll allow it :) 

Disneyland!!!

We used to have passes to Disneyland but when Bryce started going to school full day it just didn't make sense for us to keep them.  Of course, the incredible rate hikes they've hit pass holders with the last two years didn't help either.  But when Bryce was preschool and Kindergarten aged, we went regularly.  He started asking when we were going to go back to Disneyland about a year ago.  I told him it was probably going to be a few years before we could go again because it was just so expensive.  So he starting saying, "What year can we go to Disneyland?  2nd grade, or 3rd grade?"  We didn't make any promises, but it helped to know that it was out there somewhere in the future and we would go again.  

A couple months ago, Henry got in on the action and started praying every night that he could save up his money so he could buy tickets and go to Disneyland.  And then this week, he got his prayers answered!  Grandma casually said, "I think it's about time to go to Disneyland again," and offered to buy the boys' tickets.  I just had to come up with money for mine and we could spend a great day at the happiest place on earth!  Poor Daddy, he had to work- maybe next time ;)

Henry was excited when he found out we were going to go to Disneyland, but Bryce was nearly beside himself!  He remembered all about it and couldn't wait to go.  It had been two years since we had been there, so Henry was too young to remember much.   But not Bryce!  He started naming all the rides he wanted to go on and what kind of food we should pack in the cooler bag for lunch and snacks.  

The cutest thing was when the morning finally came and we were waiting by the door for Grandma.  She peeked in and said, "Who's ready to go to Disneyland?"  Bryce was so excited and flustered he just kept sputtering and finally got out "Oh, Grandma...it's so nice...I'm so glad...it's really nice...to MEET you!"  Hahaha.  He meant to say "see" you, since that meant it was time to leave, but we got the idea.  Sweet boy- he had such a great day.  It was so nice to see him unplugged from all the electronic stuff he loves and interacting so well with us all day long.  It really was one of the best trips to Disneyland.  We can't wait for next year!

Oh, dear, I'm in Big Trouble!

Bryce had us all laughing tonight.  It's Jared's birthday tomorrow, so we had the family over tonight for a little party.  Baby Abe (cousin) was asleep in our bedroom.  I completely forgot about that fact when I told Bryce he could go play on the iPod.  A few minutes later I went down the hall and I heard Abe fussing.  I went to get Jamie, and as I did, Bryce came bolting out of the room saying, "Oh, dear, I'm in big trouble!"  He had gone in, turned on the light and grabbed the iPod when he realized there was a baby on the bed who was now awake and crying.  He dropped the iPod on the floor and left it there.  The look on his face as he realized what he'd done was hilarious.  Jamie came to the rescue and Bryce was still muttering under his breath as he went down the hall, "I'm in big trouble, I'm in big trouble."  I guess he remembers how upset I would get with him when he would barge into the room when Henry was sleeping.  This was an honest mistake, no worries :)

Cousin Abe

Also, today when we were driving home from school, Henry wanted to listen the song, "The Animal Fair."  We must have at least ten children's CD's in the van, and I had no idea which one that song was on.  But I figured Bryce would know!  I asked him, and he said, "Children's Songs Disc 2."  Then I asked him if he knew which track it was. (I knew he did- you can ask him what number any song is on any CD and he'll tell you after only listening to it once)  He replied after a brief pause, "Number 17."  Sure enough, he was right on the button.  Thank you, my living Table of Contents!  We joked that I should have him memorize all my phone contacts in case I ever lost them.  Who needs an address book when you have Bryce? 

Bryce's Valentine Compliments

I know, this post will seem like bragging on my son, and I guess it may just be that. :) I posted on my Pinterest blog about the great idea of doing Valentine's Day compliments for a class.  Click here to read that post.  I was so excited to get Bryce's when he came home because I couldn't wait to see what other kids thought about my son.  It's not like he comes home and tells me who is nice to him, or if someone has been mean.  He's largely clueless when it comes to social nuances.  So this was a peek into his daily life at school.  

You are smart.  You are a very good problem solver.  You always smile; your smile is always bright.  You're kind.  You are funny because you have a silly laugh.  You are kind to everyone; you are very helpful.  You are very kind because you never say bad things about people.  You are kind.  You are smart.  I like how you read.  You are fun.  You are smart; you are nice to Mrs. Linda.  I like playing with you.  You're cool.  You can answer so many questions; you are very nice.  You are a very hard worker, you never give up.  You are an amazing kid, you are that because you are smart.  You are really smart; you are a good friend.  You are very nice.  I think you are a very good soccer player; I like playing soccer with you.  

I had to laugh at the "nice to Mrs. Linda" comment.  He'd better be! He has no idea how good he has it!  :) Jared just groaned when he read "you are a very good soccer player" since he hates soccer.  I don't know if any other moms read their kids valentines, but I sure did!  I'm glad to hear my child is kind to others and smart to boot! 

Lessons from The Princess Bride

This was so good, I just had to reblog it.  Also, I didn't want to lose it somewhere :)

From Snagglebox.com Autism Resources

17 Things The Princess Bride Taught Me About Autism Parenting

Never interrupt me while I'm climbing the Cliffs of Insanity

1.  Affection doesn’t have to mean saying I love you

Reading a story to someone who’s sick in bed, saying “as you wish” or playing rhyming games that annoy your boss... there are many more ways to show love than just those three little words.

2.  Optimism can get you through the fire swamp

Just because you haven’t tackled a problem before doesn’t mean there’s no solution, even for POUS’s (Problems of Unusual Size).

3.  Having a target will help you stay focused

You don’t have the energy or resources to tackle every challenge that’s in front of you. Find your six-fingered man - prioritize your goals, work out which of those you can tackle and then pursue them with everything you’ve got.

4.  You rush a miracle man, you get rotten miracles

Be patient. Change and growth takes time, and there are no corners to be cut here. Every kid is working to their own schedule and developing at their own rate.

5.  Don’t believe the hype

There are people who make a lot of money from making you believe in the Dread Pirate Roberts. Snake oil salesmen bank on the fact that you will be too distracted by fear to focus on things like facts and common sense.

6.  Never start a land war in Asia

Well that’s just good advice.

7.  Success means using the right moves for the terrain

There is no definitive intervention for autism. The choices that other people make may not be the right ones for your family, and vice versa... and that’s okay. Don’t ever let anyone make you feel otherwise.

8.  There’s not a lot of money in revenge

Don’t spend your life feeling bitter, blaming yourself, hating autism or resenting parents of typically developing kids. It’s a fruitless and costly waste of energy that can be directed into more productive things.

9.  Inconceivable doesn’t mean impossible

Your kids will achieve things beyond what you ever expected or imagined. Believe this and they’ll believe it too.

10.  You may already have a wheelbarrow

It’s easy to focus on liabilities, but don’t forget to take stock of your assets too. What skills do your kids already have that they can use to help navigate their challenges?

11.  Who says life is fair? Where is that written?

Let go of the expectation that you have more than your fair share of crap to deal with. There are no shares. You don’t have a big pile of crap, you have life. Go live it.

12.  Sometimes words don’t mean what you think they mean

If your kids are having trouble communicating, look beyond the words that they’re using. Thinking about the way the word is being said or the broader context can help you to recognize echolalia or find clues to the word’s intended meaning.

13.  Wiggling a finger is worth celebrating

Take time to enjoy even the smallest of accomplishments, for they were hard earned and are signs of bigger things to come.

14.  You always come back for the ones you love

Let your kids know that no matter how hard things get or how confusing life may be, you’re someone they can depend on to help them find the answers. After all, true love doesn’t happen every day.

15.  When there’s no time to explain, use a summary

Practice summing up their main challenges and needs so you can recite them quickly when you need to explain or get help in a hurry. “My son is autistic and finds loud noises frightening, is there somewhere quiet we can wait?”

16.  Mostly dead is slightly alive

Even when you’re too tired to breathe and the odds stacked against you seem enormous, you will survive to fight another day.

17.  It’s one hell of a story

Sure there’ll be laughs, adventure, pain and tears... but at the heart of it all, it’s about love.

Have fun storming the castle!

Bryce's Point System

I was recently inspired by an Aspie mom's (for those who don't speak "spectrum" Aspie is short for someone with Asperger's, a cousin of Autism) point system for her daughter.  We have had a basic chore chart for Bryce where he could earn stickers for doing his chores.  When he earned enough stickers he got a certain amount of money.  This worked well enough (when we remembered to do it) but he's not really into stickers to start with.  He IS, however, a huge fan of numbers and math.  So I created a much more involved chart listing all sorts of things for which he could earn points.  Every time he gets 100 points he earns one dollar.  Currently he is SUPER motivated as he wants Wipeout 3 for the Wii.  He earned over 100 points the first day.  He just kept going back to the list to see what he could do next to earn more points.  Hopefully the newness will wear off just a bit, or we'll go broke! I'm a little worried that he will lose motivation after he accomplishes this first goal, but for now it's working well.  The boys also want to go to Disneyland desperately, so we'll start saving for that next.  (Although that will take WAY longer than saving for a Wii game) I made things that are more difficult for him or more important for us a higher value.  Some things may seem odd (see: socks and sitting by Charlie) but he has obsessions and aversions we have to deal with, so this is one way to do that.  So far, so good- we'll see how it goes!

Bryce’s Points

Before School:

Make bed………………………………………………………………… 2 points

Put breakfast dishes in the sink……………………………………. 2 points

Pack school snack……………………………………………………………. 5 points

Get dressed………………………………………………………………….. 2 points

Tie shoes…………………………………………………………………… 10 points

Brush teeth…………………………………………………………………….. 2 points

Comb hair…………………………………………………………………. 2 points

No arguing with Mommy or Daddy before school…………………….. 8 points

At School:

Focus on work and listen to Mrs. Linda and Mrs. Montgomery

Great Day…………………………….........….. 10 points

Good Day………………………………………………. 5 points

OK Day………………………………………………….. 2 points

After School:

Play IXL, Stretch Math or Ticket to Read……………………. 10 points

Do homework without arguing or complaining……………………… 5 points

Play outside for 10 minutes…………………………………………. 10 points

Play with toys (not iPod, Wii or computer) for 20 minutes…… 25 points

Do a puzzle…………………………………………………….. 15 points

Read a book out loud to Mommy or Daddy…………………………. 15 points

Eat dinner without complaining (no saying, I don’t like this).. 5 points

Put your dishes in the sink…………………………………………… 2 points

Play a game with Henry (Chutes and Ladders, Old Maid)…. 5 points

Put pajamas on……………………………………… 2 points

Clean up room before bed (put away clothes, toys, shoes)… 5 points

Any Day:

Take off socks for 10 minutes………………………. 10 points

Go poop in the toilet all by yourself…………………….. 50 points

Play with toys………………………………………..30 points

Read a book………………………………………… 10 points

Scoop dog poop………………………………….. 5 points

Empty the trash………………………………….. 5 points

Practice piano………………………………… 10 points

Sit next to Charlie………………………………… 5 points

Study Master Club verses………………………. 5 points

Exercise………………………………………….. 10 points

Looking Back: How it all Started...

While looking through another "special" mom's blog about her sweet daughter, I saw some pictures and read some comments that brought back a rush of memories.  When I started this blog, were were a couple years past the "beginning" of this journey, but I did write several Facebook notes as we were struggling through getting a diagnosis.  So this post may be a little long, as I'm copying each one of those here, to keep them all in chronological order.  It's a little painful to look back on those times and remember the hope that it was nothing big-that the doctors wouldn't find anything and he would just "grow out of it" as so many people said for so long.  But it's part of who Bryce is today, and I wouldn't change a thing.  

(Due to the copy/paste from Facebook, the layout of this blog post is atrocious! I apologize in advance-just do your best to slog through it) 

The Enduring Saga of Bryce and his speech issues

by Nicole AndJared Burkholder on Tuesday, March 18, 2008 at 7:59pm ·

Ok, so I've never written on one of these things, but I figure it's like a blog, so here goes. I took Bryce to the neurologist today. His Pediatrician recommended it, just to be sure we weren't missing anything in the whole "why doesn't Bryce talk yet" department. Sooooo, after answering the same questions I've answered a million times, the Dr. said what I already know...he's a tough case, doesn't fit the typical guidelines for Autism, there are some serious concerns still, etc. He really didn't tell my anything new, but he did say that he would recommend him for speech therapy (which my insurance has already turned down once). AND, now he has to have an MRI (which there's NO WAY on earth that he will hold still for, so he'll have to be sedated, bringing up more insurance issues), and sleep deprived EEG (so we get to wake up in the middle of the night and haul Bryce down to Corona, so they can hook him to a machine and look at his brain waves) and on Friday I get the pleasant job of holding him down while some lab tech tries to draw blood!!! YUCK! After all this, we have to go back to the neurologist for another visit. Yay. I just hope this isn't a big fat waste of time and money. But like the Dr. said, he'd love to be proven wrong, and we will give Bryce the benefit of the doubt for now. However, if we don't raise any concerns, he won't qualify for any help that he needs. And, we could never know for sure what's wrong-we just have to keep doing what we can and hope and pray that things work out in the end.

Taking blood from a three year old should be an Olympic event

by Nicole AndJared Burkholder on Thursday, March 27, 2008 at 5:55pm

 ·

Soooo, I had to take Bryce to get his blood drawn last Friday. THAT was an experience, I must say. Poor guy, he was not happy. The scary part for him was being held down. I had my legs wrapped around his, my right hand holding his left hand, which was crossed over his body, and my left arm holding his body against mine. He started crying once we had him held down. Then they took what seemed like an eternity to decide where to stick him (while I'm holding a VERY strong boy down and trying not to puke myself). Finally she got the needle in-I don't think he even noticed at that point. He was just sobbing this sad little cry. They took four vials, so it took awhile just to finish. I think everyone waiting in the room with us was a funny shade of green and yellow when we were done. BUT, he bounced back quickly and was over it once I took the tape off his arm and got him into the car seat. What a brave boy!

Now, we have to go to Loma Linda for an MRI. That should be scheduled next week sometime. He has to be sedated for that one. (I'm sure that won't be too bad, unless they use an IV for the medicine. If that's the case, see the above paragraph.)

Then, on April 14th, we have to somehow keep him up until midnight the night before, and then wake up at 3AM and keep him awake until 5:30AM, at which point they want me to magically hit the button and get him to sleep, so they can do an EEG on him while he's sleeping. Do these people have kids??? I'm not looking forward to that day either. All of this had better show something, or we just had a big, tiring, painful waste of time!

My day began at 3am and I am so sleeppppppppppppp;/.///kkkkknm

by Nicole AndJared Burkholder on Monday, April 21, 2008 at 10:17pm 

Well, we took Bryce to his EEG today. That was an adventure! We had to keep him up until midnight Sunday night, so we went over to Grandma and Grandpa's house after church until 10:30pm or so. Then we went to Winco to get some groceries (I think people there were wondering what kind of parents we were to have our son out that late). We were home around 11:30pm and I put him to bed. We then desperately tried to get to sleep as quickly as we could, while sucking ever last bit of rest from our brief "nap." At 3AM the alarm went off and my body said whaaaaa??? Poor Bryce was so confused when I went into his room to wake him up. He kept pulling his blanket back up over his head and trying to ignore me. We finally got him up and convinced it was a normal morning (shower, dress, eat breakfast and watch cartoons). At 4:15 we left the house to head to Corona. I was nervous when no one was there to let us into the Dr.'s office, but a lady showed up around 5:10 and let us in. I had to get Bryce settled down and back to sleep as quickly as possible. And would they have a nice comfortable bed to sleep in? NOOOO, that would make people's life too easy! He just had to lay on a regular examination table! That hard, plastic stuff with no covering at all. Poor kid. Luckily he was delirious with exhaustion and put up with it. I got him to sleep after 20 minutes or so and called the nurse in to begin the test. She had to get like 30 wires connected all over his head without waking him up! She kept saying things like,"he must be a light sleeper" and "does he always move like this?" Wouldn't you, if someone was sticking paste on your head and shoving things all over you? I had a tough job just to keep him asleep/drowsy enough not to notice that his head was a technological form of Medusa. Well, we finally conquered and got him hooked up and ready to go. Of course, he slept very soundly once we stopped poking him. So the rest of the test went well. We drove home and went BACK to bed at 7:30AM (I am usually just getting OUT of bed at that time). Got a couple more hours of sleep in before having to get to work for the day. Wow! I'm ready for bed! That's all for nowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww;af

Major Medical Tests are not Designed with Children in Mind!

by Nicole AndJared Burkholder on Thursday, July 10, 2008 at 1:55pm 

We finally had Bryce's MRI done today. His neurologist wanted one to help rule out Autism and check to see if there are any abnormalities. As all of his other tests have come back negative, we are not expecting anything to show up on this either. But it was just good to have it done and have the films on hand for any future problems. We should find out the results in a couple days. It was more traumatic for me than Bryce, I think! He had to be given and IV, in case the sedative didn't work well enough, and because his MRI was with contrast, which is where they inject something that lights up abnormal parts of the brain and maked things easier to see. The IV was the worst! He started screaming as soon as they put the rubber band around his arm. :( He kept saying, "Are you alright?" "All done!" "Thank you, all done!" That did for me. I was bawling like a baby and trying to keep him from seeing me cry so he would believe me when I said it was ok! :) They finally went with the foot for the IV, which was easier to hold him still and keep him from pulling it right out. After they were done (props to the Tech-once they decided on the spot, the needle was in and out really quickly) I was able to sit and rock Bryce for awhile to calm him down. Then we had to get him to drink this nasty smelling stuff that would put him to sleep. Most of it ended up in my hands and all over his shirt, but I guess it's pretty strong, because 15 minutes later he was asleep! After that, things were easy. I left him with the Nurse and she wheeled him into the MRI room. I don't know what happened after that-the scan took about 50 minutes (which is why he had to be sedated). They came back when he was done and we went with him to recovery. He was already awake when we got there, but still a little dopey. It didn't take long at all for him to come around and he checked out with good O2 levels and BP. We are home now, trying to keep an active boy quiet and still for the day! Thanks for your prayers!

Bryce's Diagnosis

by Nicole AndJared Burkholder on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 at 1:17pm 

Well, several years of struggle and wondering have sort of come to a head this week. We took Bryce back to the neurologist last Tuesday for a one year follow up of his last visit. During that visit, he decided to officially diagnose Bryce with Autism Spectrum Disorder. He says that Bryce has a Mild to Moderate case of autism. This wasn't really a surprise, since everything else has pretty much been ruled out, but it's still hard to hear. The thing that really pulled it all together was a meeting that I had with his teacher yesterday. She told me last year that she was ready to change everything in his next IEP to show that he was exhibiting obvious signs of autism the older he got. Things especially got worse at school after the baby was born. She started to broach the subject with me at the meeting, when I interrupted and said that we were just going to tell her that we had a diagnosis from the neurologist as well. Talking to her about his behavior in class and seeing the progress as well as the red flags was helpful. It pretty much solidifies the diagnosis in my mind, so I don't feel like we're missing something and just "settling" for a diagnosis. Anyway, the good news is, since he's now diagnosed, he qualifies for more services from the school district! The BEST news is, his teacher has been fighting for an ABA program in the school. ABA is Applied Behavioral Analysis, and it's an early intervention technique for spectrum kids that teaches skills they need in life, but in small easy steps. Not all autistic kids are helped by this, but his teacher and I both think that Bryce would thrive under this instruction. It's also every day, instead of a couple times a week. PLEASE pray that the district gets the program going quickly. Bryce's next IEP meeting is due October 30th, and we will discuss his new services then. THIS WILL REALLY HELP AND WE NEED IT!!!! :) Another thing we are doing is applying for SSI child disability, which would help pay for additional speech therapy and other services at home. That takes up to 6 months to get approval, so we'll just have to wait and pray, but it would help in the financial are immensely. We just can't afford the help that Bryce needs, so we are at the mercy of the school district. (Which also means he has to be a student in the public school system-something I NEVER wanted for my family) If we can get some funding, we may be able to still get him in Christian school or homeschool later. SOooooooooooo, that's the latest. Please pray with us about this-it's our daily burden that we carry. We are glad to know what's wrong, but sad to know that there's something wrong with our "baby", you know? But he makes progress daily and is a joy to our family-I wouldn't have him any other way. Thanks for your prayers!!!

Bryce-isms

Last night, Bryce was taking a shower before bed when I heard him calling, "Um, excuse me, Mom?" (that's how he starts every direct address-not sure where he picked up the habit, but it's rubbed off my other two and now people think I have exceptionally polite children) :) I went to see what he needed and he said, "Something's really smelly in here!"  Of course, my first thought was that he'd gone to the bathroom in the shower or something.  Eww.  So I pulled back the shower curtain and he said, "See, something smells in here!"  The shower was full of steam. I just laughed and laughed. Did I mention he's very visual?  I think he's been watching too many cartoons!  I explained that it was steam from the hot water, not a smell.  We can't really see smells.  He then said, "Oh, and the water is too hot."  No kidding ;)

After his shower, he was getting dressed (socks first, of course) and he turns to me and says, "Will you wax me?"  What?!?  He held out his hand, which had a band-aid on it, and said again, "Will you wax me?"  He wanted me to rip off the band-aid for him.  I obliged and then he yelled and pretended that it hurt.  I asked him where he learned the word "wax" and what it meant.  He just said, "AFV" (America's Funniest Home Videos) with this matter of fact voice, like, Duh! I didn't know where to begin with correcting that one, so for now, we'll just stick to "waxing" when it's time to remove old band-aids. :)

Guess who got Student of the Month today? 

Spelling Word Sentences

Bryce thoroughly enjoying his game of air hockey with Henry
 at the bowling alley yesterday

I just love the first day of the week, when we start on a new spelling list.  I know, that may sound crazy, but really, I love it- probably because Bryce is a whiz at spelling so it's not really work at all.  And the first day is special because Bryce will use the words in a sentence.  (Something he started doing on his own, by the way. I always just ask him to read the words to me but he wants to do the sentences, too.  But only on the first day)

Today's list was a goldmine of great sentence cues.  Here are a few of them:

• thank- "I thank the Lord..." and then he trailed off and I'm not sure how he finished the sentence, but I thought it was sweet
• sing- "I HATE SINGING!" -I just laughed and laughed.  He was so adamant about it, and it's totally true.  His class is practicing a bunch of songs for a patriotic program at school and he's really not happy about being forced to participate. 
• strong- "I need to be healthy so I can be STRONG!" complete with flexing arms
• stink- "Charlie goes stink in his pants." Which, actually, is true right this moment.  So I'm going to have to cut this short. Unless someone wants to come take care of it for me?  What? No takers? *sigh* Fine.  Motherhood calls!

Another Christmas, Come and Gone...

Things kept happening over Christmas break and I found myself saying, I need to remember to blog about that.  Sadly, I'm sitting here finally getting to Bryce's blog (it's all I can do to keep up with my Pinterest blog everyday, so this one is when I have the time/energy to get to it) and I've forgotten most of what I wanted to write down.  But as I think of things, I'll just toss them out there.  I apologize in advance to any and all English teachers for my lack of structure, decent paragraphs, thesis statement and concluding thoughts. :)

Christmas decorations: 

If you know Bryce at all, you know he has an astounding memory.  As soon as Thanksgiving was over, the houses in the neighborhood began to deck the halls, and Bryce was delighted.  We would drive through the streets around our house and he would point out any new "blow ups" as he calls them.  You know, those tacky yard decorations that people inflate at night?  I hate those things, but the boys love them, so we go searching for new ones every time we are out.  Bryce remembered EVERY HOUSE from last Christmas.  He would ask, "Where's the Santa and the reindeer with the hat?" or "The snowman in the snow globe isn't on the roof."  I had to explain that not every house was going to be the same as LAST YEAR.  Sometimes people move away.  For example, our neighbors to the left moved away and a new family moved in.  So the decorations were different.  This bothered him for a few days, but he was satisfied enough with the fact that the neighbors down the street got a new "blow up."  Every time we came home he ran down the sidewalk to check it out.  I just couldn't believe he remembered which yard decorations went with which house!

Uncle Nathan's torture:

Bryce has several obsessions.  One of them is the phrase, "Oh no!"  If anyone says that, it MUST be followed with "What are we going to do?"  He will pester you until you say it.  It stops his world and you can't get anything out of him until someone says it.  Usually it has to be the person who said Oh no.  For example, I can't say What are we going to do? if Jared says Oh no!  Uncle Nathan, being the typical "annoy the nephews" kind of uncle, decided one day to keep saying Oh no! in all sorts of ways in his sentences.  And he refused to say "what are we going to do?"  This drove Bryce batty.  He finally gave up and just ignored Nathan.  Of course, Nathan then took credit for "fixing" Bryce.  However, when we were in the car headed home, Bryce asked me to say "What are we going to do?"  So I humored him, thinking maybe Henry said Oh no and I just didn't hear it.  Bryce then proceeded to ask me to say it again, back to back, six more times.  He had been keeping track in his head of how many times Nathan said Oh no.  It was finally his chance to make things balanced and right in his world again.  Needless to say, Uncle Nathan has been banned from every uttering the words "Oh no" again!

Uncle Lance:

Lance is Jared's older brother.  He and his family came to visit us one day over the break.  We had a wonderful time with them, as they have three boys as well.  The cousins had a blast together, and Lance really seemed to enjoy Bryce.  He and Bryce sat next to one another while we had breakfast at Jared's Denny's the morning they were heading home.  Lance kept teasing Bryce about his pancakes. He said, "They are all out of syrup, so you're going to get hot sauce for your pancakes instead, OK?"  Bryce just laughed and said, "No! That's silly! You don't put hot sauce on your pancakes!" (Once again, I wish you could read inflection- his little voice just goes up and down with exaggerated emotion, especially when you're talking about absurdities.)  Later, Lance told him that the butter was gone, so he was going to use sour cream instead.  Again, Bryce just laughed and thought Uncle Lance was so silly.  This is really huge progress for someone who is autistic.  A year ago, Bryce would have cried because he would really believe that someone was going to ruin his breakfast.  Now, he sees the absurd and teasing part of things and is learning to enjoy humor.  So thanks, Uncle Lance, for including Bryce in the conversation and making him enjoy your visit!  Little things like that don't go overlooked! 

That's all I can think of for now, although I'm sure there was more I should be recording for posterity.  All in all, it was a great Christmas break (but we are happy to be back in the structured environment of school!).

The cousins, Christmas 2012

Cousins, Christmas 2011