Finding God In Autism

There is a book, Finding God In Autism, which I have yet to read. However, it looks very intriguing. Rachel has purchased it - so I will check it out when she is done.

You know, I never asked "Why me? Why us? Why my son?" There is an entire autism spectrum and I know every family has their own battles - for better or worse. We have days when we struggle. We are very blessed.

I do find God in autism. I find God in David and I find God in this journey we are on. I am very blessed to be David's Dad.

Don't Mess with my Boys

My biggest struggle with David being on the autistic spectrum is developing a connection with him. With a lot of hard work over time - we have developed a deep bond and a true love for one another. What I have been trying hard to do for some time is connect and have it stick. Specifically we are working on proper actions/communication in the social setting. We are working hard to have him do simple things - for example: proper hello/goodbye and eye contact.

Two instances happened today which remind me that we still have work to do. 1) Inappropriate physical and verbal behavior at church and 2) He punched me in the ___ (lets say "boys") at Trader Joe's. It's hard to concentrate on the checkout line when you are seeing stars.

These are not intentional acts. At least I don't sense them to be. It most likely is a call for attention or overwhelmed by the situation (lots of people, lots of sensory inputs).

We've made progress. I love him immensely. It's a gut check (literally) and I know we need to stay the course.

Simple but Powerful Days

The last 2 days I worked around the house. Cleaning the garage, cleaning the patio furniture. Getting ready for Spring. Throughout the day all 4 kids joined me outside. They played while I worked. In between work we rode our bikes, played baseball and soccer. What surprised me the most was they wanted to help clean. So we cleaned the patio furniture together - they liked spraying me with the hose!

We went to the park yesterday. Well, actually 2 parks. I can tell each of them enjoyed the days outside because they were exhausted by 7 pm each day. We had a blast.

Simple days but hopefully very powerful connections were built.

Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie and Child Friendly Ballparks?

Yesterday I attended the LAST Shea Stadium Opening Day. Thank you to Rae, BH, Ed, Sean and Shimmy for making that happen.

I MUST bring my kids to Yankee Stadium this year.
However, after experiencing a wild upper deck at Shea.....Do I really want to expose my children to the inhabitants of Yankee Stadium? Anybody have any suggestions? Shall I dare check out the No-Alcohol Bleacher seats?

I really wanted to see my boys tonight. When I arrived home, they were already asleep. Trying hard to fix that daily weekday routine.

The Game of My Life

I noticed the book, "The Game of My Life" while walking in the supermarket. Initially, I thought "sports book".....cool!

I soon realized it was more than a sports story. I soon realized whom it was about - J Mac.
I could not give him or his story any justice, so take the time to check out this video.

If you've read the book, leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts. I will do the same.
It is stories like this that keep me going.

Autism Speaks... on CNN

Something that saddens me is I often forget the details of where we came from with David.

I guess that is a good thing. But when pressed by others to elaborate on his early years, I struggle. But when I remember the details, I am filled with many emotions. I guess I can go back and read this blog from the beginning. Some day. But I am sure reading it will give me a sense of where we are today. Not that I don't appreciate all the hard work and dedication of everyone. I feel I am living in the now.

Tomorrow (April 2) CNN is devoting a full day of programming to investigating Autism. Wow - impressive. I'll poke around the channel and see of this actually happening.

Check out this section on CNN which covers all articles, videos, podcasts on Autism.