Everything Will Be Great

    As many of you know Autism affects every part of your life. It brings great moments and bad moments. Everyday is like being on a rollercoaster ride, but as scared as we all are, we hold on tight and try our best to get through the ride. I look at my life and see nothing but beauty. I have been blessed with the life I have and wouldn't change it for anything. I do not and will not let Autism take away my happiness.
   My daughter is my blessing from god and she has shown her beauty. Autism doesnt change who your child is or will be, its the foundation of something amazing.  The journey gets bumpy along the way but what lies ahead is so much more greater. When we see all of the milestones our kids reach it puts in perspective that our children are more than a diagnosis.
  It took time for my daughter to get where she is now and thats okay because I have had great memories that I can cherish forever. I am happy that she is making progress even if it takes a long time. Any progress is better than no progress. Stay strong and never lose hope!!

Knowing The Signs Of Autism

   As a parent of three children I always looked forward to seeing when they first crawled, when they stood up on their own, their first step, their first word. These are basic signs every parent should suspect as their child grows. But what happens when the child doesn't exhibit these accomplishments or stops making progress. Well then as a parent that's where some common sense comes in and you are now alerted that something is going on. Don't ignore your suspicions. Knowing the signs of Autism or any disability comes from the parents concerns first. We know our children best. We have to act quickly when we feel something is not right. Its the only way to receive the best diagnoses and services. As much as it overwhelms you and makes you cry to think or know that something can be wrong you have to stay positive and stay strong. Its only a diagnosis and does not change who your child is. Here are some signs of Autism to look for:

• Poor eye contact
•  Repetitive behaviors ( lining items in a row, watches shows repeatedly, hand flapping)
•  Loss of speech
•  Walking on tip toes
•  Poor social skills
•  Plays by themselves and plays with a particular part of toy ( like wheels on a car)
•  Struggles to express feelings
• Doesn't exhibit understanding of ones directions

It is very difficult to see your child struggle in many areas but by not being aware of what's going on is even more difficult. As parents you will hurt, cry, and have so many questions. Take the first step in understanding the signs and then keep moving forward to help your child achieve their full potential. You are never alone on your journey. There are many parents who are on the same journey. You just have to walk alongside your child and they will guide you down the path and show you the way. Never lose HOPE!!

My Son's Opportunity

            I know it has been a while since I blogged about my son. So I will write one for him. I have seen many changes with my son since he has started school. His academic performance is rising. He shows his capabilities in his assignments. He is willing to try even if he is unsure ( that is a big step for him and me!!). His social skills are remarkable as well his self esteem. He has many more interests in hobbies and sports I cant keep up with it. He always wants to sign up for something new. So he told me he wanted to sign up for flag football. When the roster came out his name was not on it. He was very upset about it and I told him to speak with the coach and ask him why didn't you make the team. I knew why my son didn't make the team ( the coach saw that he didn't know the rules and how to play).  Which in my opinion is totally wrong! Every child should be given an equal opportunity. My son went to school the next day and asked the coach why didn't he make the team. The coach only responded with " Tell your mother to write me a note stating that you can play flag football". ( I think the coach knew he was wrong). I had tears of joy when I heard he was on the team. The news just made my our day! I was very happy and grateful to the coach for allowing my son an opportunity to participate in the sport. No matter what disability a child might have they should be given opportunities like everyone else. Equal treatment goes for everyone. There should be no such thing as discrimination against our special needs children!! They are human too.

A Great Start To A New School Year

          This school year has started off great so far. I have met with my son's teachers at a grade level meeting to discuss his needs and to introduce my Intervention Plan I made for him. He has been doing very well with his classwork and has not needed any assistance from his teachers. He has passed his NJASK  math section this year with a score a lot higher than last year. I am so proud of my son!!!!!! I knew he could achieve his goals, I am just glad I was able to guide him in the right direction. He has shown so much confidence in his ability to do the classwork it melts my heart to see how happy he gets. My 3 yr. old daughter has also made some HUGE HUGE improvements with her education this year. She has learned some new words like "bread", "book", "pull- up", "car", "pink", "purple", "me", "Katelyn", "Three", "Mom" this time she refers to me!!! And this one it's sooooo cute... "cheesecake"!!!!! She has learned to say some sentences too like " My name is Katelyn" and " I am three years old". " Are you proud of me?"  She has even learned to read the words "milk" and "eggs" from a book!!  She makes me proud everyday. I love to see improvements even if it doesn't happen for long time. I am very proud of all of my children's progress this year!! My hard work and dedication has paid off. But it doesn't mean I can just stop and lay back, no it means I have to continue teaching, advocating and fighting for my children to receive ALL the help they can get. Looking forward to the rest of this school year!!!

Don't Know What Autism is?

         This is my daughter and she has Autism. You ask but how could that be? There are no physical disabilities. Well because Autism is a developmental disability not a physical disability. Autism affects the learning, social and emotional process. She is a very normal, happy little girl. She has abilities that shine through everyday. She can become social and emotional and learn.
       She has to be taught how to learn new things and shown to become social and emotional. All of this is present she just has a hard time showing it because she doesn't know how. Its not that she cant. So when you hear Autism please don't think "oh my god, poor child". There is nothing wrong with my child because her abilities are stronger than her disability. If she wanted to become a doctor, nurse, lawyer, judge guess what, she can. You might think she cant, how?
        If you do not live with autism you will never understand. Even if you learn about autism you will still not understand. You see, what my daughter shows me is unexplainable. She is unique in her own way and she makes me proud. The reason she is able to strive and show her potential is because she has a family who supports and knows she can achieve what she sets her mind to. That is what Autism is.

Can You Tell The Difference?

      With the recent J Cole and Drake comments about autism it had me thinking, we have a serious issue going on here. Its not okay for people to degrade our children and use autism in a negative way. So, here is a scenario for you.... Its a beautiful sunny day and you are at an outing with your family or friends. You see parents with their children. As you are trying to enjoy your day you see the children are upset and crying, running around, stomping their feet and maybe even throwing themselves on the floor. The parents are doing their best to calm their children down, but its not working. As all people do they stare with a confused face and make a comment like " if that were my child I would have better control over them and they would not act like that". Am I right? Probably, everyone who doesn't deal with autism will have a rude comment like that. My point is, don't be so quick to judge because that child that is crying, running around and stomping their feet, that is my child and she has autism and you wouldn't know. There is no deformality. Especially if you don't know autism and what to look for. My child does that, all children with autism do that. Even neurotypical children do that. They are human and they have feelings so if you are quick to judge then you are just ignorant. Learn the signs of autism and educate yourself about it because stares and rude comments really hurt our feelings. Our children are just children, looking to have fun and find their place in this world and we cant do that if there is hate towards them, because autism doesn't define who they are. I hope this helps you to understand and sheds light on this issue.

My Summer With Autism

            So far my summer has been great. I have had family time and had a blast. We have gone to the park, swimming and a water park. My daughter has been attending summer school. She has shown so much improvement and is starting to be a little vocal. I have been working with her and teaching her how to say sounds and two to three letter words. She is so interested in imitating it comes naturally for her. This is the moment I have been waiting for. Now she still can't hold a conversation with anyone but can say some words. I have taught her how to say her name and age. She is such a fast learner, she learned it in a matter of a couple days. It is one baby step at a time but there is progress. By going to the park it has increased her interest in becoming social. Teaching her how to swim has gave her that confidence that she needs to know that she can do it. Everyday its something new and when your dealing with autism you have to be patient and have hope because my daughter is capable of accomplishing anything. All of these accomplishments may seem small to other people but to me it means the world. Its like when a mothers first born begins to talk, crawl, and walk. Well for me, and every autism parent no matter their childs age a small accomplishment is a big one. We still have a long journey ahead of us, and so much more to teach and learn, but looking back at the beginning of our journey until now she has come a long way and I am very PROUD of her and myself. It has been tough but we push through everyday and never give up. I hope she sticks to that as she gets older because there will be obstacles and struggles but in order to succeed you cant give up!!