My Boy: Part 53

Forget what you hear about Autism Every child on the spectrum is different. Forget the autism myths. Ask questions. Open doors. It is not a disability but a super ability. It does not have a certain "look". If you saw my son, would you know?



JJ has been super excited and very happy because his little cousin from Ecuador has been here to visit. They have been playing and having fun. They have been learning so much from one another. It is so sweet. They love each other and are more like brother and sister. JJteaches her English and she talks to Jorge Juan in Spanish. He is developing and socializing, which is awesome. He has company. I feel awesome because he always asks me and my husband for a brother and sister. Always. And..by always I mean every day.



He is very affectionate and loving. We have him out of school for this week and he has still been learning and exploring so much. He has his school work packet from his teachers. Can't wait to share with you all what we have been up to this past week. Lots of great things. We are blessed. Autism will never stop JJ..never.



I want to take this time to thank all of you who read and follow my blog. It really means a lot. Not only do I want to share Jorge Juan's autism journey but I want to spread awareness and give hope to everyone out there who has a child or children who are on the autism spectrum. As always, faith and patience. Love and hope. It gets better. It is about the journey not just the destination. Those days days make us stronger and appreciate the good days more. Never give up. Ever.
Any questions or comments? Please feel free to contact me.
Take care,
Dany Loor B.S. Child Studies , M.Ed.

founder Loorducation

My Boy: Part 48

Jorge Juan had a blast at school with his belated Valentine's Day party. He came home with a homemade bag filled with cards and candies. It was really cute. The other night, out of the blue, he wakes up and starts crying that he wants his bag. He has not done this type of thing for a very long time. He use to wake up and cry for a specific toy if he could not find it in his bed. He used to fall asleep with small toys in his hands every night. The good thing is that he did not cry  long and I told him that he can have his bag the next day. This was easy. I remember the nights where he would just not settle for anything, any toy would not do. It had to be the exact one or nothing. He has really come a long way from that.

He has been enjoying his homework and really working hard on projects and staying focused and busy. He is always on the go and eager to learn new things. He asks hundreds of questions each day. He wants to know each detail and specifically step by step. I would not have it any other way. Thank God that he is able to speak and vocalize his needs.

I am very happy with his progress. He is blooming. I am always thinking of different activities and hands on lessons for him to do. He loves tinkering with tape, glue, scissors, paper, clips and all that good stuff. Luckily, I do too and we have all the school, arts and crafts supplies that can entertain us for a very long time.

It is all about play based learning. Hands on learning, involving all the senses is imperative. I truly believe in a constructivist philosophy of education. By the way, that is what I am working on for my Capstone Project to obtain my Masters of Education degree.

Back to Jorge Juan..He is a little five year old boy who loves to play and adores other o children. He loves to read and enjoy all activities that any other child would and does. He does not know he is different but he knows that autism is his super power.

 

My Boy: Part 46

Jorge Juan loves doing his homework lately. He is really into it. It is math. He has always loved numbers and been very good at counting. He uses foam blocks and dominos to count. I am really impressed at a wonderful job that he is doing and the improvements that he is making. He is comfortable holding a pencil with the correct tripod grip. His writing, in general, is more controlled and very neat and understandable. He is having fun and enjoying the learning process with less frustration and meltdowns. He is excited when he is doing hand son projects and sensory activities. The point for me is to make a strong connection between fun and learning. I want Jorge Juan to grow up loving to learn. I have been blessed that he really loves school and loves books. I read to him when he was in the womb. I would always go to the library and pick up books to read to him. I really believe in this.From before he could speak as a baby and toddler, he loved to read and look at words from a book. Also, when I was pregnant with Jorge Juan, I did Sudoku puzzles, so many of those Sudoku puzzles every day, in a book and on Nintendo DS. This is also a part why I believe he is good with numbers and enjoys math. I believe that him being on the Autism Spectrum is  a huge blessing. It took a lot to get use to but I would not ever change him for the world. My husband and I are blessed as parents and very proud of the achievements that he has made in his 5 years of life. He started his first year of Pre K without speaking and in diapers. He was in diapers for the whole year of first year Pre K. He went to pull ups and eventually out of diapers towards the middle to end of second year Pre K. The toilet training was a battle in which we overcame. Never give up.

He is loving, caring and empathetic. He is curious and loves to be creative. He loves God. he loves babies, animals and people. He is healthy. He is learning. He can see, walk, talk...why would i ever want to change that? Autism is just a label, that is all. Never give up. If you go back and read the start of Jorge Juan's journey, you will see what he has been through, overcame and made it out the other side. It can happen. Never give up.

 

My Boy: Part 44

Jorge is at Occupational Therapy today. I decided to take him back because he still foes not have a dominant hand. He uses both. He's comfortable with both but it seems as though he has more control with his left hand. His writing is neater. So I thought he would benefit from the one on one help from his therapist. He enjoys it and it gets him out of the house to play and socialize with other children while we are waiting.He has been reading and writing and really enjoying cutting too. His grips have gotten so good.






He likes to do arts and crafts. He's super excited about the Martin Luther King Jr. Project that we are going to create for school. He'll get to use glue, stickers and more art supplies to make it unique. He looks forward to creating which makes me proud. We always have arts and crafts on hand.






Who is this child that doctors diagnosed with autism? The signs are just diminishing and barely viable at times. He has come a long way. It wasn't always like this. Do not ever lose hope. Ever. I'll never give up on Jorge Juan
He amazes us everyday. He has been taking Omega 3 chewables and recently just starting taking liquid fish oil. This stuff really is beneficial.it works. Once he's been taking it long enough I will share mate results. Thanks for reading.






Teach your child to never say "I can't"...encourage them to always try and never give up.

My Boy: Part 37

Happy New Year from Jorge Juan!!! He is very exciting. He tells everyone, Happy Old Year because he knows it makes them laugh. He was a really good boy for the holiday. We went to family's house very late last night and he cooperated very well. He did not take a nap all day and was up until 3 am. We got home around 4am and he stayed sleeping through the taking off coat, hat, etc. He woke up very happy. He has been playing with his new toys and watching some TV today. He also took care of his guinea pigs whom he loves so much. He is very sweet and each day he learns more manners and things that really matter. Pleases and thank yous all day. He always prays and is very thankful that God has given him a great family, pets, friends and all that good stuff. He is really over powering this Autism. He took many pictures of himself yesterday. He loves to make all different faces and take pics of them then he likes to go back and check them out. He really misses school and is super excited to return tomorrow. He is doing very well and I know this year is going to be even better for him and many other children who are on the spectrum. It is all about faith, hope and love. I know Jorge will achieve many things. He has already overcome so much. I hope that he inspires others. He knows it is 2014 and is becoming more aware of his surroundings. He asks any inquisitive questions and tries really hard with discipline and self control.

For a five year old boy, he is wise beyond his years and I am so proud to be his mommy.

All questions and comments are welcome.

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Cheers-

Dany, B.S. Child Studies, MEd candidate 2014