The trouble with...........scissors

Do not be fooled by the title of this blog. Robbie is very good with scissors. His fine and gross motor skills have developed well and he can cut things easily. The trouble is....... you never know what he will decide to cut. His hair, his t-shirts, his sister's favorite beaded bracelet, 10- ok 15- ice pops in an hour, I-pad charger cords, or a small model sailing ship from the vacation house my parents so graciously paid for ( Sorry Gama, he just had to cut all the sails off and put them in a pile.)  This is unlike his sister, who has only dared to cut the hair of a Barbie doll, after her older cousin telling her it was a good idea. ( A right of passage,  haven't we all done that?) For this reason, we hide scissors, although being as resourceful as he is- he always seems to find a pair.


Another difference between my 3rd grader with Autism and my neurotypical 1st grader is the back to school shopping list. In Robbie's class this year they are going to work on personal hygiene. Along with pencils, notebooks and folders they have added deodorant, hair brush and toothbrush. Robbie has always been pretty good about brushing his teeth and hair. These are things we have put into his picture schedule.
On another topic language has definitely blossomed over the past year. Robbie has been articulating his thoughts much more regularly. At times you can tell he is frustrated because the words don't always come out as easily as he'd like, but it is improving. For example the other morning Robbie asked where the white car is? (Rob has a white truck that we had swapped to use his brother's larger black truck for our vacation travels.) I asked if he was referring to Dad's white truck. He responded by saying- "It's like Power On." This is what the truck says when you start it up. The phrase "it's like" has been used frequently. He'll say a robot and the "it's like beep bop beep" and make robotic movements. It's a great way to communicate.
Lastly, the same issues arise with the stimming and lack of attention span. We went to a new karate session last weekend- yes trying it again. The instructor is a new ABA therapist that comes to our home 2 days a week to work with Robbie. He is running a special needs class in the fall and asked us to come by a few weeks before that begin to make sure Robbie is comfortable with the environment.  I had a hard time explaining to Robbie where we were going. I didn't want to confuse him with pictures of karate in fear that he'd assume we were going to the old class where he was over whelmed. I mentioned "Mr. Mike" who is his behaviorist. His immediate response was "No Mr. Mike, No Miss Yvette" ( his other behaviorist).  Nothing personal here- he simply did not want to "work" on a Saturday. I completely understood.  Still, we managed to get him in the car after switching from crocs to sneakers and sneakers to crocs- at least twice. ( The indecision is another challenge that seems to occur when he feels overwhelmed.) The ride to karate was uneventful as Lexi was also with us. Once we got to the location Robbie did not want to go in. We sat at a table outside and I gave him the doritos and capri sun I had stashed in my purse as a  bribe/ reward. Mr. Mike came out and asked the kids to some check it out. Lexi went right in- no fear. Robbie took his time but did follow her lead. Lexi followed Mr. Mike's direction, mimicking the appropriate kicks and punches. The look of shear concentration on her face. Robbie jumped, flapped, spun around and said "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE" a million times. He was really excited but also could not focus on the task at hand. I believe his own reflection in the mirror was most distracting as he was checking himself out. Still Mr. Mike plowed through and did get him to do a few kicks. The question is for $80 a month do we continue?  It's hard to know if Robbie truly enjoyed it or was too overwhelmed.I am not sure. Time will tell.

Amazing and so very scary

We are at a crossroad. It is so awesome and so scary at the same time. My 8 year old son wants to make friends. He wants social interaction. For a child like Robbie- this is HUGE! This is also very scary. Robbie is socially akward with most kids his own age. His speech can sound a bit robotic and then there is the stimming. At a party I did try to help Robbie engage with another special needs child. Robbie showed him the toys he had been playing with. The little boy didn't say anything and walked off. Robbie said "I guess he didn't want them" and moved on. Bravo Robbie, for making the connection that he did not want to play and not getting upset by it. A party guest, who had not seen Robbie in a long time mentioned how much he has grown and developed. He spoke of  the first time he met Robbie. Robbie was standing in front of a large fish tank staring. Not really at the fish, just staring and hard to engage. Now a few years later he will make eye contact and has the ability to engage in back and forth dialogue. It feels like it took forever and it feels like time flew by.


Later the same night we ran into another family with a special needs boy who Robbie used to play with. They were happy to see each other and Robbie gave him a big hug. They played on a swing set and ran around for a bit. It was awesome. Now both situations were with other special needs children, those who are "safe." We recently took a trip to the library. Robbie wanted to go. Movies are the first thing he goes for and books are second. He was his usually stimmy self. Jumping, flapping, hand wringing , saying "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE." There were 2 other children around his age. They stared. They looked slightly horrified. I was sad to see that.  So happy that Robbie had asked to go to the library. Many times we opt to avoid social situations with Robbie. I know it is time to get out there more often. I know many times there will be stares and whispers. I also know you really don't know until you try. Robbie is ready. I am ready. So to all our friends and neighbors- get ready to hear "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE."