We recently cut down 3 mulberry trees in our back yard do to the destructive nature. For most of the summer our yard is literally buried in berries. I'm talking inches of berries. The berries bring bee's and other nasties around and the kids simply can't use the yard. A few weeks ago we took three of them down. I have since chipped them and stacked the lumber. As the yard is finally coming together I have been thinking of ways to make it more usable and relaxing to spend time in. We definitely need a space to go into that allows us to relax and the kids to get some exercise.  would also love to have small get together's out there. One of the first things I have to do is…

Gavin's facial ticks are getting really bad now. We are waiting to hear back from the doctor. He goes back in later this week. All his facial expressions are greatly exaggerated now. His lips keep moving even when he's not talking. He has also hit another period of regression and is becoming more and more difficult to manage. The rest of the summer is going to drag on forever until we figure this out.

Elliott Richard is not sleeping again. So Lizze is down stairs sleeping with him tonight. I just got up stairs to go to bed and Emmett John is still fully dressed with his shoes and socks on. If I try to take his shoes off he just screams. I really don't see what it hurts to let him go for right now. If it's comforting to him then so be it. Hopefully as these services begin to kick in then we can work on that. For now he is sleeping peacefully and that's how it's going to stay.

One of the biggest things I have learned over the years (besides not being able to purchase sanity at the local drive thru) is that animals can have such a positive impact on an Autistic child. Animals have such a unique way of bonding with a special needs child. Last week I introduced Maggie, our English Staffy. People are deathly afraid of her due to her very aggressive appearance. However, after meeting her EVERYONE falls in love with her. She never fails to amaze me with how good she is with our kids. Today was another great example. She has this three ring pull toy. She is very "enthusiastic" when it comes to tug of war because she will always win (doesn't matter how strong you are because she's stronger).…

How do you manage 3 kids on the spectrum with 3 very different sensory needs? Often times their individual needs may even be conflicting with someone else's. As a special needs parent that is one of the toughest parts. As with most kids on the spectrum, sensory stimulation can be both good and bad. The truly tough part is identifying the sensory needs or each individual child. If you can accomplish that you can even better manage the meltdowns and tantrums. In our experience, many meltdowns are triggered by some type of sensory overload. In Gavin's case we are still trying to figure that out. Gavin's needs have always been a moving target. However, seamless clothes have been a help. We have only gotten as far as seamless socks but…

So I have been struggling lately. Honestly, I have been struggling a lot. My life is very overwhelming. My wife and I are raising 3 kids. 2 of our kids are special needs and all 3 fall on the spectrum somewhere. Gavin our oldest is extremely challenging. It appears that we are also dealing with schizophrenia with him as well. I can't even begin to explain how tough that is. We are back to multiple violent meltdowns everyday again. Our youngest Emmett John is most likely non-verbal autistic but we don't know for sure. He is 2 years old but stuck at about 9 months developmentally. We are trying to get him every possible resource in order to help him. He doesn't talk so we struggle to communicate. EJ is…

Elliott Richard is up again tonight with nightmares curtesy of Gavin. Gavin has been telling ER scary things and now He has nightmares every night. The only way anyone will get sleep is to camp out on the couch with ER. It's what makes him feel safe right now. His anxiety is through the roof right now anyway if this helps then so be it. I wish there was about a 10 second delay when Gavin opens his mouth so we can head it off at the pass.

Seriously, who ever said that "as a parent you should have endless patiences with your kids" clearly didn't have an Autistic child. I recognise the fact that I need more patiences but I've got none left. True Story: The other day I was going through the drive thru and when asked what I wanted I asked for sanity.