Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Autism Awareness Day

Today is April 2nd.  It's international Autism Awareness Day and in our house, that means something.  We live every day with autism.  The meltdowns, the concrete thinking, and the brilliance twists my view of the world.  My younger kids (unfortunately) have to deal with the fallout of that.

I am learning how to set boundaries and holding the kids to them.   As a family, we are becoming more organized and more structured.  I can happily report that I took the electronics away from the two younger children when they refused to keep up with their chores and clean their rooms.  IT WORKED!  I am beyond happy about that, I tell you what!

My last blog entry was rant.  What I didn't tell you is that I wrote that the day after I lost my brother to colon cancer.  It was easier to rant than to face that loss.  You see, my brother was a school counselor and a doctor.  He was my ally in the autistic world I lived in.  He was my encyclopedia.  I knew that he would help our mother understand that I wasn't a poor mother and that I wasn't doing such a bad job.  When she had a question about Rodney, she called my brother first.  And now she can't.

I know more about Asperger's Syndrome than I did just last year and I learn more every day.  Today, I watch my 14 year old fight in imaginary wars outside with a nerf sword and a stick.  I wonder if he will ever really 'act his age.'   I wonder if he will ever find his place in this world.

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