Mr. Emmett John, aka Spiderman, aka Captain Independent was a really big help at the grocery store yesterday.
Emmett is by far the most profoundly affected by #Autism, so I try to spend some extra time working with him on life skills that promote independence and self esteem.
At the grocery store, he helped by pushing the cart and loading items into the cart.
He was occasionally distracted by the items that needed to be lined up on the store shelves. He would stop and fix something he felt to to messy. It was really cute.
The only other oddity was that, if left to his own devices, be would have bought two of everything. I don’t know why that is but Elliott does the very same thing. Neither one knows why they do that, they just do.
This was posted via WordPress for Android, courtesy of Samsungs Galaxy S III. Please forgive any typos. I do know how to spell but auto-correct hate me.
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I have high-functioning autism. I used to work as a grocery store and wound up losing my job, in part, because I was spending way too much time carefully lining the products up on the shelves as opposed to actually working.
@AspieWriter @reality_autism he is really cute!
I used to eat things in multiples of 2…there's just something unbalanced about odd numbers..prime numbers are the worst! Even numbers have a lovely symmetry to them 🙂
@julh thanks for sharing that. 🙂
How cute! I love the way he merchandises.. my 8 yr old son with autism does that too. I have videotaped him in the store straightening all the boxes of bandaids on the shelves. If only I could find a way to get him to organize like that at home!
@rebeccamagliozzi no kidding. I wish he would be that neat and clean at home.
Buying two of each? One for each hand – why waste the trip??? 🙂 I feel 'unbalanced' when I only grab one of anything.
We all line up the shelves – it is called 'fronting the merchandise'. I used to work in a store and was expected to do it when we went down any aisle. I kept the habit and they picked it up. My kids do that – and turn in opened / broken items when they find them. Maybe his attention to that detail will turn into thoughtfulness that helps the store. One of the perks of autism?
@MBee Maybe it will…. 🙂
I understand the compulsion to buy multiples of things even if not needed.
It takes so much will power to not buy multiples if the price tag says X for $X Even if we don't need X amount somewhere in the back of my head is DEMANDING i buy X only if we just need one, or even half of one.
@Dan R It's really nice to meet you. Thank you for the honest insight. 🙂 Since Emmett is only 4 and not yet reading, I wonder if it's simply the need to make everything match.
Again, thank you. I really appreciate your honest insight.
Have you ever gone shopping with little Spidey dressed as Spiderman yourself? There's a cute Youtube clip of a Spidey dad taking his Spidey son trampolining 🙂
@KateJenian I have not. Wouldn't that be fun though. Emmett would love that. 🙂