Clara VS Ryan

SO...
apparently sibling rivalry begins early. Clara is 21 months old and has figured out that certain things and behaviors irritate the heck out of her brother Ryan. I know this happens in every household with more than one child, and its perfectly normal. However, Ryan doesn't understand.


(this was a post I began a long time ago...so much has changed, yet so much remains the same.)

Summer

Many people believe that summer vacation is a time of fun and joy for their kids. Not mine.
Not that Ryan doesn't enjoy summer, he loves being outside and playing. What doesn't seem to agree with Ryan is the lack of schedule. He is overly moody, he's lost interest in doing certain things, he's not eating as well...I completely attribute this to not having the regimented schedule of school. During the school year, its up at 6:45, eat breakfast, get on the bus, go to school, get back on the bus, come home, go to therapy, play, watch a little TV or do other activity, eat supper, take a bath, go to bed. EVERY day. He thrives on this type of schedule. The school told me this year he didn't need to attend the summer school program because he was functioning so well in his classroom. But based on this year's reaction to lack of schedule, I'm going to request that he attend the summer program next year.

Goggles

So for a kid with sensory issues, Ryan has really taken to wearing goggles. He wants to spend hours in the tub, looking underwater with his goggles. I hear him talking to himself, reciting Finding Nemo, or searching for sharks. It melts my heart to hear him 'pretend', a concept that is hard for many kids with Autism. Its literally taken Ryan 7 years to learn to play pretend. So thanks to Grandpa for buying the goggles that helped lead Ryan down a path of growth :)

Baseball

Ryan is playing baseball this summer! He joined a 'special needs' baseball team called the FM Challengers. The first day went okay...he was excited but unsure of what to do. There were a lot of kids running around and the volunteers weren't to sure of themselves either! He got a red t-shirt that had been left over from last year. He hit the ball from a pitch and got to play first base! They have snacks and lemonade afterward. The second day was not as good. They passed out this years t-shirt, which is black. Ryan didn't want to wear the black shirt, he wanted the red one. OKAY. Pick your battles, right? They were doing pictures that day for his 'baseball card' and so halfway through the game, I was trying to convince Ryan to change into his black shirt for the picture. He finally wore it over his red one, and took it off right after the photo (which turned out really cute, btw!!). The next couple weeks went great. He is hitting amazingly, playing first base, running all over the field to get the balls. There is one young man volunteer who has been helping Ryan and who Ryan seems to really enjoy. They play catch together. Its really fun to watch. Two weeks ago Ryan got his baseball cap. He's hardly taken it off since! I wasn't sure that he would like the hat, he normally doesn't. He looks like such a BASEBALL PLAYER wearing his hat, it brings tears to my eyes. Ryan has been doing so well and improving, that I'm considering possibly enrolling him in a neurotypical baseball league next year.