A Look Back & A Look Forward

I have a new cyber friend that sent me a request to post this list of questions, and I thought it was a neat idea, so here goes! (You can find a link to AutismCards' 360 page in my Friends list). I'll post my responses later. :)

"AutismCards" writes:

Here are a few questions to ponder about 2006. I got this idea from another site, but thought I would change some of the questions to make them more applicable to the "autism theme" of my blog. You can leave your answers here or copy & paste the questions with your answers to your own blog and post a link to it in the comment section. I'll have to think awhile to come up with my own answers, so I'll post them later!


1. Share a treasured memory from 2006 of something your child with autism did or said and why it was special to you.


2. What challenge or task did your child accomplish in the previous year that you thought you might never see?


3. What was one of the funniest things your child said or did in 2006.


4. Name one goal - small or large - that you would like for your child to achieve in 2007.


5. Who has made the biggest impact in your child's life in the past year & have you told them?

Ho, Ho, Ho!

Christmas was so nice!

Nathan did wonderfully with all of the relatives. Even with all of the late hours, hectic schedules, and extra visitors, he really pulled through great!

I was out shopping on the 23rd, since I couldn't get much done on the 22nd. I made it out the door at the crack of dawn, literally. I had a lot of luck in the first store I went to, so I was able to wind up my huge shopping list before 10 am! Yay! Fortunately for me, dh was able to watch Nathan for me, so I could shop at my own (lightening) pace. Thank goodness.

I had most of the food prepared for Saturday and Sunday, so that all we had to do was pop it in the oven for a reheat, and we were set to go. With some determination, I was able to make it possible for my in laws not to have to cook at all, or go out to a restaurant, the entire weekend! I even had a breakfast casserole for everybody for breakfast. (It was a brand new recipe for me, but I thought it turned out really yummy!) For Monday, all I had to worry about was the turkey, and that's not a lot of work. There was plenty of leftovers for lunches and snacks, too.

I had all of the gifts wrapped before running out the door to my sister's Blue Jean Christmas (which was a relief). That was a lot of fun. We arrived just in time for Nathan to jump out of the car and hop on the horse-drawn wagon ride. Cool. He did so well with it!! This is the first year he really enjoyed it! We dressed him warmly enough (we made that mistake one year, and he was a miserable, crying popsicle). But he got off that wagon all smiles! It was good to see.

He was good with his cousins, too, but the noise level was having its effect. By the time we were getting ready to head out, he was getting really wound up. The timing was good.

He calmed down quite a bit on the way to Grandma & Grandpa's house. He did pretty well with all of the Christmas Eve gift giving. Even though it ran past his bedtime. I was very proud of him!

Christmas morning was nice. He didn't get everything he wanted from Santa, but he didn't seem to mind. (Yikes, he didn't have a single thing on his wish list for under $100! He even asked for the Playstation 3 AND the Wii!! Since he got a lot of smaller things, he didn't even miss those. Poor Santa didn't have room on his sleigh, or in his wallet, for those goodies.) He was a pretty happy camper with what he did get, and never once mentioned the things that didn't wind up under the tree. I think he's just glad that he didn't get socks or underwear like mommy and daddy get, heh heh heh.

The entire holiday was very nice. It was peaceful, and pleasant, and full of family. I'm looking forward to ringing in the New Year tonight. 2006 was not a very good year for me, for our family. I'm very optimistic that 2007 will be better.

Happy New Year to you all! May 2007 be full of family, friends and joy. May your health be good, and your successes be many. God Bless!

Holiday Happenings

Yesterday was long. I got up early and went to breakfast with my co-workers. I had the day off, and so did Nathan, so I brought him with to go have a little Christmas cheer with my department. Nathan did pretty well! He was starting to get pretty hyper by the end of it, but that was really awfully good. With no meds, and all the stimulation that goes with a breakfast in a restaurant, I couldn't have expected things to go so well.

After breakfast, I dragged the poor little guy all over town, shopping. He wandered off every time I blinked, but he was in a really good mood through it all. Shopping took me about four times longer than it should have, with all of the retreats to go find him again, but at least he was pretty patient with it all.

Evening was another story. I can't blame him. He had been dragged out of bed before sunup, and then dragged though Power Christmas Shopping, before finally ending up with the family gathering to wish an uncle Happy Birthday. It was too much. He finally started to melt down. It was not a pretty sight.

We had planned on going to the Support Group's Christmas party, but there was no way I could bring him after that tantrum. The excitement of a party on top of everything would have been an invitation for an even bigger disaster. I know the group would have at least been understanding, but I just couldn't put Nathan through that. He needed a break.

This morning I was supposed to go back out shopping, but there was no way. Nathan is so excited, he is crackling with energy. I need to keep him calm for a while. (How do you do that, a couple days before Christmas??) Tomorrow the family starts to arrive. Yikes. I'll have to be sure to bring ear plugs, and see if I can give him some kind of break here and there.

There were a few surprises lately, though. One was the Christmas Party at his school. Wow, that was an eye opener. First I find out that he's been playing football during recess with some kids. How cool is that??? He is usually such a loner, that he would stand there off by himself. Now at least he is joining in (and scored a touchdown, to boot!) Excellent! Then I go to his party, and I watch him from the back of the room. He's off playing and socializing with some of the kids in his class! I've never seen that before! He didn't eat a bite of food, which is typical, but at least he was being friendly with some fellow classmates. That was HUGE. And in spite of the noise, and the excitement, he was fairly well controlled. He was dealing with the elevated stimulation pretty well. I'm not sure how they accomplished that. Even I could feel the excitement in the air, there. An average day at school is usually pushing him to his limits, so seeing him coping with the extremes was really neat. I was very proud of him.

This holiday season has me a bit worn out. I have been battling a flu for quite a while, where it never seems to hit full force, but drags me down. And with Nathan's tantrums getting harder to deal with (he hits HARD now, and I can't just pick him up and scoot him out of the room), I am feeling it. On the other hand, the melt downs are getting further apart, and his social skills are improving greatly! That gives me hope, and a boost to face the next challenge.

I'll be glad when the holiday season begins to wind down to a close. I love Christmas, but it sometimes feels like I'm walking a mine field with Nathan. I don't know if the stress is getting to me more than usual, or if the stress is just greater. At least I'm getting to do some cooking this season. I enjoy that, and it's been like therapy for me. It's fun to delve into a huge feast for a big group. I enjoy cooking when I have a lot of time to devote to it.

Well, I need to get back to wrapping. And cooking.