Last Friday night, Mike surprised me with Eric (who is Mike's son from his first marriage and who visits his mother out of town during the summers). It's been a month since we've seen him and it was very unexpected for him to come for a visit! What a blessing!!
It was Ryan's weekend to spend with his dad, so I called the next morning to see if I could pick him up overnight so that he and Eric could visit. It was a 25 minute drive to pick him up. Eric was excited to surprise Ryan. He kept talking about what Ryan would do when he saw him.
We pulled up, and Eric and I got out. Ryan came around the corner of the house, saw Eric and exclaimed "Eric!! You're home!!" and gave him a huge hug. On the twenty minute drive over to Grandma and Grandpa Baukol's house, the boys were on cloud nine. They were playing, laughing, watching the crop dusting planes and goofing off. I had tears of joy in my eyes and my heart was bursting with joy, seeing their happiness together and having all my kids together again. When we arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's house, the boys ran off to play. They played soldiers, sneaking around the yard with bb guns. They watched a movie together when we got home.
They have a bond that goes beyond blood. They are brothers. Through and through. It makes me so happy that Ryan can have a relationship like this.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Playtime
Ryan has never played 'normally'. For example, as a toddler, he would lay on the floor and watch the wheels of a matchbox car roll on the ground, rather than use it to 'drive'. He would hold or carry toys around but never use them properly or pretend with them. Even a couple weeks ago when my parents bought him a Thomas the Train track, he used it for a day or two and now only carries the train that came with it around.
And playing with peers has been virtually non-existant. He doesn't have imagination in the way that typical children do. He is too logical, too set to following rules to pretend that something is something else.
We had a playdate with an "Autism Friend" (this is what Ryan calls his friends who also have Autism) the other night. The boys PLAYED together. There were times that they were doing their own thing but they engaged, laughed and played like typical little boys. It was heartwarming. He's made such amazing progress in his social skills!!
And playing with peers has been virtually non-existant. He doesn't have imagination in the way that typical children do. He is too logical, too set to following rules to pretend that something is something else.
We had a playdate with an "Autism Friend" (this is what Ryan calls his friends who also have Autism) the other night. The boys PLAYED together. There were times that they were doing their own thing but they engaged, laughed and played like typical little boys. It was heartwarming. He's made such amazing progress in his social skills!!
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