Yesterday was one of the roughest days of my life. Our suspicions were verified and then some. Many people in our lives aren't in on our "secret." Not that we've made it a secret, we just haven't been openly advertising. Yesterday, both Caleb and Andrew were given labels that will forever change their lives and mine. Our sweet little boy, Andrew was diagnosed with Autism, yep, the "A" word. The one thing no one wanted to believe because he's such a smiley, affectionate little guy. It's not just that he's not talking, it's much greater than that. Older brother Caleb has been diagnosed with an "Autism Spectrum Disorder." Yep, our little boy who can out-read most 1st graders I know. It's not about reading, it's much greater than that. Four months ago, the "A" word wasn't even on our radar for either of the boys, mostly because Autism is so misunderstood, I thought I knew what to look for, but I didn't truly understand it. Statistics dictate that someone you know has Autism, whether diagnosed or not. I encourage everyone to learn more about it, and know that Autism looks different in each child.
So it looks like the direction of this blog might be changing. We still plan to homeschool Caleb, but it's going to look a lot different. Everything in our lives is going to look a lot different.
 |
| Andrew (almost 3 yrs old) |
 |
| Caleb, 5 years old |
Sort of an anthem I've adopted (Thanks Becca for sharing):
is wrapped in blue wrapping paper with cloud images I printed off the computer. Last, I wrapped it with cellophane wrap.
.
for the balloons with 
.
(I suggested buying premixed red, using food coloring to get red is very difficult)
are the new thing in our house. Caleb wrote his name a few times and enjoyed scribbling with his brother. We have a 5ft by 11ft window in the dining room, which worked as a great canvas for a neighborhood art show. Plus, clean-up was a breeze, and actually Caleb's favorite part- silly boy. I'm hoping that these markers will be yet another vehicle in inspiring Caleb to use his hands more, even if it's scribbling. I plan to take them in the car for long trips. 
are also available.
, that I purchased a while back that he hadn't seen. Caleb loves constructing words and these word cards work great for phonics. For example it pairs letters to create the sounds "ch" instead of using separate letters "c" and "h". Overall it just helps with phonics. I got out the pocket chart tent to work on the words when he noticed the back of the tent has a dry erase board on it with pockets under it. At his prompting, we rotated the tent. He told me to spell out a word with our 
and he promptly took the dry erase marker and wrote it right out! He wrote faster than I'd ever seen him and with more confidence. We took pictures because that is a major encouragement to him. The fact that the dry erase board is upright and the marker is higher contrast than a pencil were just the things he needed. The tent is stable and at just the right height for him. This activity is a definite repeat!
)
(the foam kind, I do not suggest the gel) or whipped cream
(for a visual aid)