Time Has Wings

Time flies and that is for sure. We must savor each moment.

One minute he was a little itty bitty baby and now he is 10 years old. Where has the time gone?

Can someone clip its wings?

He started school at the age of 3 just after he was diagnosed with autism. He did not talk as of yet and he was still in pull ups. Now 7 years later he is in fifth grade and is a non stop yapper! I would not have it any other way. But boy was I worried about sending him to Pre K knowing he could not speak. Need I mention he hated shoes. So having to have shoes on for that time was something else. The very first day my husband and I stood outside the classroom door and two minutes later he was taking his shoes off. So what did we do? We left. They will help him. They got it. I had to let it go as hard as it was. What would they think of him?

We were so blessed. His teachers were so amazing and they loved him very much. They helped feed him and change him and although he was unable to speak I knew he was happy.

He started talking at almost 4 years of age. He started feeding himself a while after that. He was totally potty trained at 4 which was a huge success.

Lots of speech therapy in school and out side of school.Occupational therapy as well. Lots of trips to the ENT and neurologist too. Tubes in ears and let me tell you after they were out the speech was flowing. It was delayed because he was not hearing out of one ear and barely hearing out of the other. That surgery was well worth it. A blessing in disguise.

As I recall calling his name then yelling his name and getting absolutely no response what so ever. I was so frustrated that I shouted out "Are you deaf?" and still he did not look at me. He was fixated on the TV.

To have that time again when he was little oh how I would love it. AndI would not change a thing. Not one.

And time has flown over the years and those days are behind us but the memories still remain. And there are in place for all time. I love my boy and glad he is mine.

Paint Me a Picture

One day after school, I had a table set up for JJ. It was covered in newspapers. There were all types of papers to paint on set up. I put out all colors of paint and different styles of paint brushes. It was quite the invitation to paint. As soon as he got off of the bus, he flew to the table. He was very eager to start creating. He expressed how happy and excited he was. He really enjoyed it. This was something that he needed. It was very beneficial. That night he was calm and did a great job with homework.

Take time to paint.

My Boy: Part 90

AUTISM- What is it?  No, really..what IS it? Why does is vary so? Where did it come from?  Why is it here?  When will it leave? Will it ever leave?  Who does it affect?  How does it affect and/or interfere with everyday life?  Is it a life sentence?  Do you know someone who has autism? Can autism be "cured" or treated? Is autistic a term you use? What are the autism terms and labels?

I can only answer a few of those questions and from my point of view only. As you know, my son JJ, has autism. Yes, he is an ASD child. He is on the autism spectrum. He was first diagnosed with PDD at the age of 3. He is now 6. I do not tend to labels so there is no need for me to always state that my son is high functioning autistic. I just say, when necessary, that my son is on the autism spectrum and just plainly that he is autistic. I mean, does it matter? Really? I have a son. I do not introduce him as my autistic son. Questions? I welcome them. Comments, yes, those too. Productive ones I keep and destructive ones get thrown out. autism has been a part of our lives for a little over three years now, well more than that but we did not know. And, does that matter? Before my son and studying for my undergraduate degree, I did not know what autism was? Yes, was..It is always changing, right? Yes..I remember seeing billboards about autism 1 in 125..then 1 in 88 and son on. What is this autism> One thing I can tell you is that autism is not the end of the world but the beginning of a whole new one. Yes, my son has autism. Autism does not have him. It is his super power. We are focusing on him using it to his advantage. It will not hinder him but we will make sure it does better him. It is not a disease. My son is NOT disabled, he is different abled. His brain is wired differently. He is unique. He is in his own world and I love entering i with love, compassion and patience. I learn from him everyday. It may not be easy at times but it sure is worth it.

JJ is AUSOME. He is a child. He loves to play, watch TV, read and all that good stuff. He loves school. He loves snacks. He can be crabby. He can be stubborn. But he is worth it. He matters. Social skills are an everyday learning experience for all of us. He just needs a little extra help in the right direction.



Now, would you know if you saw him?

My Boy: Part 81

ESY ended more than a week ago but JJ still has been busy reading, writing, and of course, playing and experimenting. He did develop the humming sound again. It started about four days ago. It sounds like a long hmmmm, hmmmmmmmm, several times repeated over again. He used to do this type of stimming before he was able to speak. When he was non verbal, JJ would stim by running back and forth from the living room to the front door, humming really loudly and flapping his hands. Once he began to speak, at the age of almost 4, the verbal stim drifted away. So my husband and I were surprised to hear it again after all of this time, basically out of the blue. Instead of telling him to stop doing it, we asked him why he does it. Now, years ago before we knew he has autism and before we knew what was going on and how to make sense of it all, I would have told him to stop that. I have learned to have patience. As we all know sometimes it may run out but I thank God for learning every day and becoming stronger. It can be nerve wrecking but I try..I try to understand why so I ask him and he tells me it makes him happy. Now how are we supposed to tell a child to stop doing something that makes him happy (of course not self harming or harming others)?


So we took him to the neurologist and the doctor told us to ignore the behavior. Ignore it because it will go away. he might be doing this due to not being in school and having that routine. SO for now, I have not heard it many times today. We will see. JJ told me that he does miss school and that he loves it. He misses his friends and being able to ride the bus each morning and afternoon. It is the little things that mean so much and that are very important.

I Read Ya!!!

 

So blessed and happy that JJ is reading at a second grade level. We were informed of this at his PPT meeting yesterday. I knew he was beyond the Kindergarten level since he has been reading before he could even speak,, but to hear this news was wonderful because it shows how much JJ has advanced and made as well as continues to make improvements in all areas. Books are his "thing", well one of them at least. He loves to read. It has been a natural thing for him. We kept going with it, never pushing. It was right for him. All children are different. All children have their "thing". There are areas in which he is superior to "typical" children his age and other areas, such as social, where he is not. It is OK. Autism is a super ability. it is a "label". He is part of the spectrum. I would not change him for the world. But ya know as his mommy, I do want to change the world for him.

My Boy: Part 68

Long weekend for Jorge Juan, I repeat, long weekend for Jorge Juan. In all ways, it sure was a long weekend for my boy from having Friday and Monday off from school for a total of a four day weekend...he was a little off of schedule. Today he woke up for school just a little crabby but yesterday he had a huge meltdown. He could not wait at all for anything and did not have any patience. He was overly sensitized. He was grumpy. When I looked at him, he was not "here" with me but in his own world. It was super hard but I tried to comprehend. I had to ignore him yelling and screaming. I told him to wait while I finish eating to take him outside. He was in pure meltdown mode. I eventually took him in the bathroom and wet his face with cold water and told him to take deep breaths. It was way much. He was red from sweating and screaming. He calmed down just a bit but I was not caving in. I saw in his eyes he was hurting but I did not know how or what would really help him. I finished eating then took him outside. I really wanted to send him to his room but it was so hot and by that time I wanted fresh air myself. Once he got outside he was running and feeling better but I told him that I would not be playing with him at that point. Later on he gotten better. He was feeling okay. The running in the fresh air soothed him a bit. We had watermelon and his smile was back. At dinner time earlier, he was being Mr. Crabs also. After playing in the sun, I gave him a nice bath. He fell asleep shortly after only to come running to our room about 2 am because he said he did not want to be alone. At that time I caved in because he hugged us very tight and said he loves us. Earlier Saturday, at Grandma's house, he had a meltdown over a ball of yarn. He wanted it as if it was the best toy ever. He became attached. For some odd reason that I am unsure of. Anyhow when we got home, i threw the yarn away. He cried for a bit because he wanted it so much. It was in the trash and that is the premise of how he got to go outside. Actually , he there it in the trash, unwillingly but his desire to go outside was greater. Sunday, we stayed home all day. He was OK. a little crabby here and there. On Saturday, we had a community day at karate school. He was a little off at first. Getting impatient waiting in line to get his face painted. He started licking, spitting etc. I kept my cool. After a while he was OK and was able to enjoy the rest of the carnival day which was good. At first a lot of playing with saliva, it was annoying. This behavior is gross and i am not sure where it came from or how it developed but I did not want to leave and take him home. He needed to be around other kids and enjoy himself despite being grumpy. Going back to Friday, a day off from school, from what I can remember, Jorge Juan had a swell day. Nothing major to report. Nothing unusual of the day from the perspective of a child on the spectrum. Wooo. I am glad that he is back in school. I need the breather but as well he needs to be in his school environment where he must adhere to rules and be on his schedule.

 

Oh yeah, there was flapping too. As he told my husband and me, the other night, that he can not stop his flapping and he really does not know when he is doing it. He just does it because he is excited. I did get teary eyed when he told us. It was so sincere. At that time I just wanted to put him in a bubble to protect him from the world.

My Boy: Part 56

Jorge Juan was very busy today...So here it goes; he just said he wanted to help me with the keys,. So, the following is straight from him.

ghhghhgmtoycar - Here he was figuring out where the letters are and looking to spell words. So, here we have toy and car. He is so excited about this.

jorge loor juan - Here he typed his name all by himself. Cute, first, last, middle but he is quickly learning to locate the keys, which is awesome.

fast cat loor dadgog hog  gungum -He was excited about typing some words here. He already memorized the space bar and backspace keys. He finds this enjoyable and he is learning. It is really awesome to watch him do so. The lap top is very different from his tablet. He likes the feels of the keys. It is a really neat experience that should happen more often especially since we are in a technology mode everywhere we go.

As he was looking and searching the keyboard, he was sounding out the letters. I bet he is going to ask again tomorrow to type some more. That is great thought. He is understanding more now that I am sharing his story and telling you all about him. well in his mind, he is on the internet and I put him on a website : ) Too cute!!!

Yesterday, Jorge Juan went to karate. He did fairly well despite the fact that he did not receive the reward lollipop. I understand that but he did do better than the last several times. We went shopping at a few stores and he only had a mild tantrum because he wanted to go in the dollar store. He lived. He got over that after the fact that my mom took him while I was grocery shopping. All was well in his world because he met up with me with his plastic bag filled with a book, a box of fruit snacks and a fishing game. Well, 5 out of 6 packs of Angry Birds fruit snacks were eaten before we got home and the fishing game is missing in action, unopened. The book, he put the stickers in last night and that was that.

He watched some cartoons today and paled a lot. he also did his own little project with sand and water, he loves sensory and hands on play. He also practiced writing and read 2 short stories. He was active all day but went to bet a few minutes earlier than usual after a nice bath. Sometimes this little dud gives me a run for my money but I would never change him for the world. He is unique. He does not like tags on clothes or on any stuffed animal or toy at all. He stims from excitement and runs back and forth. He is repetitive with his questions. Lately, he has been keeping us on our toes. He has been over stimulated but all in all, he is an empathic, loving child with a heart of gold.He is on the autism spectrum and he is mine. Thank You God.

It is OK...Jorge Juan

It is OK with me if Jorge Juan wants to wear the same T-shirt for a couple days in a row and also if he wants to wear miss-matched socks. It is a part of having an opinion and say in things. It is OK with me if Jorge Juan wants to jump on his bed and put stickers all over his wall, it is a part of self expression. It is OK if Jorge Juan does not eat all of his dinner because he loves to drink water and he lets us know when he is hungry. No one wants to be forced to eat, so it is OK. It is OK for Jorge Juan to want long hair, therefore we will not force hi to cut it. This is also a part of his identity and self expression which is very important to children. It is OK if Jorge Juan wants to wear clothes that do not match because he is getting the opportunity to make a choice based on his likenesses. It is OK for Jorge Juan to have fun, play and make a big mess. It is important not to stop the learning and playing process. That is a child's work. It is OK for him to also help clean and have responsibilities. It is OK if he wants to write his name like this, JoRge because he is writing well and has advanced well in his fine motor skills. It is OK for Jorge Juan to get dirty, after all that is what soap is for. He can dig for worms, play outside, run, make a mess of his clothes because he is healthy enough to do so and that is also what being a child is about. It is OK if he does not want to complete his homework all at one sitting. Children need breaks, mentally, physically and emotionally just as we do. It is OK if Jorge Juan watches TV because he can learn a lot from quality programming and also because he loves to read, a lot. It is OK for Jorge Juan to not take a bath every single night, he is a kid but he does know the importance of brushing his teeth and going to the dentist. It is OK for Jorge Juan to play game son his tablet and also to play in a kitchen area holding a doll baby if he so chooses to. It is all about imagination and the learning of life skills. It is OK for him to voice his opinion and feelings as they need to be validated as any other person's. It is OK for him to eat candy and pop corn because he loves to eat fish (I do not, my husband does) and eats lots of raw fruits and vegetables. It is OK for Jorge Juan to color minions red and the Hulk black if he chooses to. It is creativity and thinking outside the box. It is OK for him to pretend play using figures, blocks, spoons, sticks, cups or anything else that is not a traditional "toy". This is where great learning happens. It is OK for him to slide down the stairs, after all it is beneficial for children to engage in risky play. It is OK for Jorge Juan to be friends with all types of children despite gender, race or religion. It is OK for him to say that he does not want to go to school. We all have our days where we are just tired and want to stay in bed. It is OK for him to watch the same movie time after time because he made the choice to do so. It is OK if he stims in public, burps or farts, as long a she holds his manners and says excuse me, for the latter 2 of course. He shall never have to be made ashamed for stimming and people see him as I will never try and stop him.

And it is OK that he is on the autism spectrum because look at all he can do. It is a blessing. He just does not have special needs, he has all the needs and desires of typical children everywhere.

My Boy: Part 51

Jorge Juan is very excited that our family is here from Ecuador. He is super happy that he has his cousin, who is 7, to play with. They get along very well. Both of them have been taking good care of Jorge's guinea pigs. Jorge Juan is an only child so to have another kid in the house makes him excited. he has been flapping here and there and continuously jumping out of happiness. he almost had a sensory overload. He is becoming sensitive to sounds again. Loud yells and screams at karate class, he covers his ears. When flusing the toilet, he covers his ears. Now he has not been doing that for a very long time and it started up once again. When I use the Vitamix in the morning to make juice, he has to covers his ears and runs to the living room. Thank God he has not had any ear infections or any problems with his ears ever since he had the tubes put in his ears. Since then, they have fallen out. So far so good.

He had a trip to the dentist the other day. Words cannot describe how proud my husband and I are. There are really no words to describe it. Jorge did an amazing job. Smiling and laughing the whole way through. He even wanted to get x rays of his teeth. he did not need them so the hygienist took an x ray of his finger. he loved it so much. At the end, he got not one, but three toys for doing an amazing job. It was his first real dental cleaning and it was a true success. We are really blessed. He cannot wait to go back again. That day, he had a great day the whole way through and it started from him picking out his clothes for school since he did not have to wear his uniform. He was happy about that and even stated that he was different.

Days like that I forget that he has autism. Usually I do not even think of it any more. To me he is just a kid. He is my child and he is the best he can be in my eyes and i would never want to change hi for the world. Autism is a blessing in disguise. It was not always so but I thank God for Jorge Juan every day. He can see, hear, walk, play and is healthy. What more can I ask for?

My Boy: Part 50

Wow!! 50, I can not believe it. I never would have thought to be sharing Jorge Juan's journey in so many parts. I never thought I would have a blog in the first place either. It is amazing for all of the support. Thank you for reading. It really means a lot.

Jorge Juan was so tired this morning and he did not want to go to school. We woke up 20 minutes late but got ready in time for the school bus to pick hi up. All the while he was saying he wanted to sleep and rest. Usually he is sleeping by 8:30 but he stayed up later than that last night. there was supposed to be a huge snow storm, so I thought no school and he could stay up later to pig out on some frozen pops we made at home (shared on www.facebook.com/loorducation) as well as popcorn all while watching The Lion King. Although he fell asleep halfway into the movie, he was sleepy and needed more rest in the morning. He had a long day yesterday playing, moving and shaking the whole day through while having fun. He did not want to go to school but I can say that I am blessed because he is a morning person after all and did not give too much trouble at all getting ready. He cheerfully greeted his bus driver and was excited that the bis monitor was finally back from maternity leave.He got to wear red and white today to honor Dr. Seuss and is excited for tomorrow which is crazy hat day.

He did his homework very well today. I can see that his fine motor skills have developed a lot. His coloring is getting so much better along with his writing. He is doing it with ease now as before it would be frustrating for him. He is showing great interest in homework. He loves to read his take home book and impressed me today after he completed a book. He was able to retell the whole story to me, in his own words using great details. He is enjoying making up his own sentences as he practices his letter board words. This makes me very happy and proud. I love that he is developing such a great love for learning. His vocabulary is expanding and when he speaks, he uses such descriptive language that leaves me in awe. He is a great kid. He loves life so much. We can learn a lot from him. He gives some lessons that are harder than any EDU class. Every step is worth it. With love, hope, dedication and faith, my child is progressing and so can yours. Never, ever give up. Give anything, but up!! You can do it, look at Jorge Juan, he is doing it. Greater days are coming. Thank God for today.

Autism is a journey and not a life sentence. Many, many days I "forget" that Jorge Juan has autism. I see him stim, I smile. the day goes on.

My Boy: Part 18

What is your super power?
In our home, we have autism.

So it seems that Autism has been in "hiding" for a while.According to much of society and the lack of autism awareness, autism is many times looked down upon. My son has been doing very well. He is learning so much. I am in awe of him. Each day I am learning so much from him. He does well on the weekends and wakes up nicely come Monday morning- usually.

He engages in pretend play. He shows so much empathy and compassion. He cares for his guinea pig. He is a typical child with a super ability.

Thinking back over the past couple of years, Jorge has pretty much come full circle. He still is sensitive to sunlight, bright lights, loud noises and things of that nature. He has not been stimming and I must admit, I do miss seeing him stim. It has been a part of him.

He talks...and talks..and questions the world around him. He strikes up conversations and is not shy to help people in need, especially crying babies.

He eats on his own. He uses the bathroom and brushes his teeth on his own. He reached those goals. He has gotten there. There were times when those goals seemed far fetched but with determination and perseverance he hit the mark,

He tells us what he does and school and what food he eats for lunch. He can tell with with whom he did each lesson or project with and lets us know the rules of his classroom. He does his homework and chooses his own after school snack. He likes to have choices as with any child, typical or on the spectrum, choices are important for self-esteem.

We are very proud of my son and hopeful that he will lead a very successful life. There is no doubt in mind. He has inspired and done so much in these 5 years of his life. His love, compassion and energy is contagious- not his autism. Which, if it was, would not be so bad after all. Autism is not a life sentence, it is the beginning of life's novel of never ending possibilities.