I wanted to let you know that I setup a super secret group on the My Autism Help forums for Dad's. I call it the Batcave. It's completely private and hidden from the rest of the forums. You can only see it if you are given a certain user type. Basically, no one even knows it there, unless they are given special permission. The Batcave is open to all Dad's of special needs kids as a place to let go and just be guys. Who knows, maybe we can even share our feelings?  :-P There is a great deal more freedom with the forums, plus a dedicated forum app (android only for now) that will push update and notify you of new posts and threads. As the Batcave grows, I…

This post is more a rambling than anything else.  I've been trying to process a great many things and these are some of my inner most thoughts right now..... In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings and all the tragedy these two monsters left behind, I've been wondering something. Is there really a need for Autism Awareness Month?  I mean, in all honesty, April is already done with.  The world's focus, and rightfully so, in on Boston and Texas. For me personally, I'm wondering if we are taking the wrong approach to a great many things. Reading the stories from the survivors on the boom blasts, especially the family of the little 8 year old boy who died, is absolutely heartbreaking.  I'm not afraid to admit that I was…

Today was kind of a rough day, especially for Lizze.  These hot flashes are killing her.  She's unable to sleep well at night and so she's sleeping more during the day. Her migraine is really bad still and that's exhausting for her. Elliott is still sick and will be heartbroken when he realizes that he going to miss his best friend's birthday party. Emmett had a huge meltdown before bed because he didn't want to brush his teeth.  Anyway, I'm feeling restless and would have likely kept Lizze awake so I've hunkered down on the couch for the night.  Bella won't leave me alone and so she basically laying on me.  Dogs have a way of sensing somethings wrong and they do their best to provide comfort.  She means we'll,…

This is really kinda off topic, but something I was thinking about tonight. I guess if nothing else, it just gives you more insight into what makes me tick. :-) Tonight, I was letting the dogs out and with the assistance of the dim street lights, I could see all the trees coming back to life.  It's a clean, crisp 40°f here in Ohio.  Even with it being so cold outside, there is still a feeling of new life in the air. It's so weird because I have experienced the change of seasons for almost 35 years now and every time it's like the first time.  I'm always amazed at how life can pause, while buried in the snow but then come back in the Spring.  To me, in this…

Today was one of those days that Gavin needed to come home after school for a few hours.  I figured I would just take him with me to the grocery store.  This would not only limit his time in the house, but also provide me with a chance to work on those real life skills he'll need if he's ever to live independently. When I got to the school and Gavin came out, I was a bit caught off guard to see him dresses in an Iron Man costume. Apparently, it was a special day at school and the kids were allowed to dress up as a superhero. Gavin was really proud of his costume and so I didn't have the heart to make him take it off before going…

I got home a little while ago from our most recent wraparound meeting.  For those new, wraparound is basically a meeting with reps from various agencies.  They help families connect with services and sometimes even problem solve. We have one of these meeting every couple of weeks. Honestly, they been able to connect us to a few things that will help to prolong Gavin's stay with his Grandparents.  I'm starting to feel though that wraparound may have run its course.  I don't know how much more they are going to be able to help.  Our situation with Gavin's mental, physical and emotional health is very, very unique.  Everything about Gavin is also extremely complex as well as uncommon.  It's for these reasons and a few others, that this entire situation…

We received a call last night from Lizze's Mom.  Apparently, Gavin completely freaked out on them.  He was playing Sonic on his tablet and must've gotten frustrated or something.  Her Mom said it was the worst they'd seen. Lizze spoke with her Mom to figure out if anything needs to be done. It sounds like they handled this really well and are even taking his tablet, at least for now. The problem here is two fold.  The tantrum itself is obviously a behavioral issue and a safety issue.  However, this is also a potential life threat for Gavin because his rage could trigger another autonomic crisis. I don't know what to do.  Thankfully, they are working with a counselor type person from DD that is there to assist in such…