Okay fine. I’ll admit it. Maybe there might be a slight possibility that I was kinda sorta overly sensitive But there was a time when you would run into my arms in a crowd and cling to me until I had to pry you off and promise to douse you with sloppy kisses as…
Back-to-School Blues: How Andrew Managed to Make Me Look Like a Whiny Liar
So Andrew started fourth grade this morning. I say fourth grade, but really, it’s all sort of ambiguous when you have a special needs child with as many developmental delays as he does. He’s more like in PreK1234th grade. But that’s for another day. Instead, I come to you today to tell you that my…
Andrew’s iPad2 is Here!
Thanks to Gary James over at A4cwsn, Andrew received his iPad2 in the mail yesterday. If you haven’t heard about Gary, then let me be the first to introduce you to a true miracle worker. A father who has special needs children of his own, Gary is truly making a difference in our children’s lives…
Parenting a non-verbal child can suck sometimes.
It’s been a strange few weeks here at the Ashline household. Andrew’s been fluctuating between intense frustration and euphoric joy and none of us are getting a full night’s sleep due to his erratic night schedule. Mikey is operating on fumes and I’m close behind. Andrew has started stimming a lot, squinting his eyes, laughing…
A is for Apple and…Ace of Spades?
I love it when Mikey spends time with the boys. The sounds of laughter coming from the bedroom as the men in my life build new cities out of legos and create artwork that would rival Picasso make me all kinds of warm and fuzzy inside. They speak their own language when they are together,…
Autism Studies Reveal a Bunch of Crap Most of Us Already Knew
So there were two studies released on Monday, July 4th, 2011 regarding Autism, genetics, and environmental factors. Both studies claim that environmental factors should not be ruled out when it comes to determining the causes of Autism. Um. Duh. Honestly? I don’t think we should be ruling anything out at this point. Especially when it…
A Lesson Learned
I could hear the boys playing in their rooms when Andrew began to whine. I gave it a minute. Then two. By the third minute I could feel my jaw begin to clench. “Ian, is everything okay? What’s going on with your brother?!” I called from the kitchen. I was starting to feel the familiar…