Positioning for Success

Middle Son has a service dog, Willow, who we've had for about a year now.  Middle Son is a wanderer.  Given the opportunity he will slip out unlocked doors, open windows, or climb over fences.  Any time he goes outside, I strap the dog to his belt.  It's very difficult for a 12 year old to climb over a fence with a 90 pound dog strapped to his waist.

Yesterday we went to the grocery store.  It was me, Youngest Son, Middle Son, and Willow.  I forgot to put Middle Son's belt on, so I had him hold the leash.  It seemed like he and Willow had a lot more trouble than usual.  Willow was distracted and looking at other things, Middle Son kept pulling in different directions, etc.

We went to the grocery store again tonight.  This time I made sure I had the belt.  They both seemed much more focused and calm.

Both dogs and children with autism are driven by routines.  Sticking to the familiar script makes them both more successful.

Child Proof Locks Aren't Anymore

I got official confirmation that Middle Son can now open childproof locks.  I found him eating from a bottle of gummy vitamins.  He had the lid in one hand, and was eating straight out of the bottle.

Picking Up

This morning, Youngest Son (who is developmentally typical) wanted to watch TV.  I told him that before I turned on the TV, he needed to put his toys away.

To my surprise, rather than arguing or dragging his feet, he said "Thanks for reminding me Daddy!" and scurried to put everything away.

Later in the day, he came running out of his room and said "Daddy, come look and see how tidy my room is!"  It was picked up, nothing on the floor.  I was slightly amazed.  He told me later that he had put some things under the bed.

Surprise Party

Youngest Son is turning 5 in a couple of weeks.  I was talking to my ex about his birthday party yesterday.  She said that he told her that he's having a "surprise cowboy party."

Accommodations

We met with several of Oldest Son's teachers yesterday.  He's struggling with homework and figuring out what he is supposed to do, especially with math and science.

I'm concerned about the science teacher.  They have a new science curriculum that is "exploratory."  The students make lots of choices about how the go through the material, and there is less directed learning.  That's difficult for Oldest, his Asperger's gets in the way of that sort of executive function.  The science teacher said something to the effect of not understanding why Oldest was having trouble with this.  I got the sense that she doesn't think he should need accommodations.  Oldest is smart, and he's able to do the work, but he has major trouble organizing things, and his thought process tends to be slow.

It's always frustrating to see a teacher that doesn't want to provide accommodation because he seems "normal" enough.

Celebrating Clothing

On Middle Son's school note today, the "Celebration" was "wore all clothing appropriately to school today."

Hygiene

A couple of weeks ago I cut Middle Son's hair.  I had someone helping me, but it still a huge ordeal.  By the time it was done I had bruises, and one of the towel rods in my bathroom had been torn off the wall.

I was talking with my care-giver about it last night.  She had been talking with my ex about, and about how long Middle Son's nails are (which was something we talked with his teachers about at school last week).  The care giver said that normally she's opposed to sedatives, but in Middle Son's case she thought it was worth talking to his doctor and getting a prescription so that we could do "hygiene day" every 2-3 months.

I think that is a good idea.  I can usually manage to trim his finger nails without a big struggle.  Toe nails are harder.  And frankly, I'm not sure I can cut his hair safely any more.