The time has arrived for the infusion to begin.  Basically,  they will start an IV and draw some blood for a CBC.  They do this so that Gavin doesn't need a separate blood draw in order to get his Clozapine prescription filled. The infusion will last a few hours and they will frequently take his vitals to ensure his body isn't having a reaction. He will continue to pass the time along games.  However,  I have had to ask him to stop playing when the nurses or doctor comes in because he completely ignores them.  He's so lost in his game that he doesn't respond to them when they are talking to him. So the games get paused until they leave to he can focus on the conversation. This is…

We have arrived at Akron Children's Hospital for Gavin’s 7th Antibody Infusion. It's really hard to believe he has already had 7 of these already.  It's already become pretty routine and so we simply just go through the motions. As always,  once we arrive he has to be prepped.  Basically,  that entails vitals,  numbing patches for the infusion site and some medications to help his body accept the donor antibodies without a reaction. The preparations take about an hour or so.  During this waiting time,  Gavin is resting in his private room,  playing PlayStation and waiting on his lunch.  I'm so proud of him because he never,  ever complains about the pain or inconvenience of these potentially life saving infusions. Rock on Gavin. :-) This is the main waiting room…

It's hard to believe that Gavin has been having these potentially life saving antibody infusions for 7 months now. Tomorrow morning,  Gavin will receive his 7th infusion at Akron Children's Hospital. He has pretty much gotten this down to a science.  He does really well and spend about 3 or 4 hours playing video games as that's really the only time we allow him to do that. They also serve him lunch as well as snacks. I think that with each successful infusion,  the process becomes quicker.  Gavin's body tolerates the donor antibodies pretty well so they can more rapidly infuse him. While it seems like we have been doing this forever,  it's something that he will have to have done for the rest of his life. I'm confident that…

Lizze and I were watching Netflix and all of a sudden we heard what sounded like an explosion. Elliott and Emmett both woke up and were frightened. It literally rattled the windows. Maggie was going nuts and people had come out of their houses to see what was going on. While I was talking with one of my neighbors,  we heard more.  These sounded like gun shots as apposed to actual explosions.  We were hearing them to the north and the south of us.  I have no idea what it was but decided it was best to retreat back to the house and call the police. They are sending cars out.  I don't know if they had received other calls but it seemed like they had. Now I'm gonna escape…

Lizze and I are downstairs watching King of the Hill and kept hearing this thumping sound. We figured it was Gavin because he was the only one still awake. Having said that, I had no idea what the hell he was doing. When the noise didn't stop,  I went upstairs to see what heck he was doing. I want you to guess what he was doing..  Go on and guess. I'm waiting...... Since I bet most of you won't ever guess I'll just tell you. He was freaking running into the wall in his bedroom,  falling down and doing it again....over and over again. WTF......... I was like,  "WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING? " I meant that question to be rhetorical but of course,  he answered. He was like, …

I just spoke with my claims adjuster at State Farm. I also spoke with Downtown Ford as well to get a total estimate. Well folks,  it's not looking good.  The estimate for repairs is over $2,000. The claims adjuster said that she hasn't received the official copy from the dealership yet but she does the the value of the van and we are looking at a total loss. Once the estimate gets into the system,  I'll hear from the total loss department and they will make me an offer.  I would love to receive back what we put into it but but that's simply never gonna happen.  In fact,  we will likely owe money and lose our van at the same time. This is because we just had $2,500 worth…

Last night as I putting Elliott in bed,  he told me that he doesn't have school today. I said,  of course you have school on Monday, why wouldn't you?  He was very insistent that he didn't have school.  I told him,  if it would make him feel better,  we could call the school in the morning and find out. Morning came and I told him to get ready for school.  He went and woke Gavin up.  Gavin came into my room and told me that they don't have school. Hearing this from Gavin is a different story.  I had assumed that Elliott had confused the holidays or something.  However,  having Gavin back him up changed things.  Gavin is rarely ever wrong when it comes to remembering dates and times ect. …

****This is the second very special guest post by Rachel Cohen-Rottenberg of Journeys with Autism.  She is heavily involved in raising awareness about the case of Amelia Rivera. Amelia Rivera is the little girl being refused an organ transplant because of “mental retardation”. I spoke with Rachel and asked how I could help and she provided this post, which is the second. Please read these posts and help spread the word about this grave injustice.****   Over the past few days, the story of Amelia Rivera has made the local, national, and international news. It’s been picked up by such media outlets as the AP, NBC News, ABC News, Good Morning America, Fox, and CNN. It’s nothing less than a miracle that this story has gotten so much attention, and it’s due to…