"Jesus, Will You Be My Best Friend Forever?"

It was another trip to Easter Seals. What was once a quiet van ride only filled with the music of The Go Fish Guys, was now becoming Ethan's time to ask me questions about God. I was starting to look forward to these trips. Not only was it nice to have a "typical" back & forth conversation with Ethan, it was interesting to hear what questions he had for me. Almost like an inside peek into how his amazing mind works.

The day before my sister told me that her little girl had asked Jesus to be in her heart. This was something that I wondered if Ethan would understand or even WANT to do, but I had been praying for since he was created. And this is a pretty typical up/down feeling for a mom of a child on the spectrum. Most of your friends' kids are hitting milestones & achieving progress.......first steps, saying "Mommy," reading, writing, developing relationships, etc......and I am always so genuinely happy for them. I love seeing the kids in my life growing up....I love being Aunt Wo in my family or Miss Jessica at church or Mrs. Wolfe when I teach. But then there is ALWAYS a punch in the gut that comes with it. It's another reminder that my child is a bit different. That my precious Ethan may never achieve the milestones his peers are reaching. Up/Down feelings.....another quiet prayer in my heart.....my infamous broken record....."Please Lord, I want Ethan know you at an early age. And I want him to love you & serve you the rest of his life.

Discussing God with Ethan

What does God eat?

What is his favorite color?

Does he go potty like a big boy?

What do you ride on to get to heaven? A rocket?

LOVE. These are some of the questions that Ethan has been asking me about God, Heaven & salvation. On our 2 times a week drive to Easter Seals, we have a good solid 30 minute drive. Ethan, never being much for conversation in the car, prefers to listen to music. Our favorite groups of all time is The Go Fish Guys. They are a group of Dads that create Christian music...and some silly songs too....specifically for kids. BUT....they don't drive you crazy. I actually really enjoy them as well.

Something wonderful has happened this past month during our drives. Ethan has been asking a TON of questions about the words in their songs.

When All Else Fails, Use YouTube!

I have been a bit absent from writing for awhile. Like a lot of this country, we have been getting a LOT of rain. I hate to even mention it because there are so many families that are dealing with much worse rain damage than we are.....much worse. I am simply explaining what has been going on with our family.

1. Our basement filled with water. Not a lot but enough to ruin carpeting & such.
2. Our ceiling started leaking. Boo.
3. Our air conditioning went out.

All of this happened during the middle of one of our home projects.....replacing our flooring in 5 rooms. If any of you have ever done a home improvement project, you know what it is like to live among that mess. Nothing is where is should be, and your routines are off. Especially when it's the bathroom....which is where our project was when this rain business started.

He hated the roofers making noise,
but he LOVED the dumpster! LOL!

So, the flooring has been halted & our attention has been turned to all things "de-watering." Calling people, taking bids, learning way more about my home than I ever thought I needed to know.....it's wearing & super stressful. But we are making progress. We have had the roof replaced & the gutters are next. This will take care of a LOT of our water issue...but not all of it. We have a couple of plumbing issues that need to be uncovered & addressed as well. Baby steps, right?

Well, that is all things house related....only one portion of our life. We also have Ethan's birthday in 3 days...which I have done ZERO shopping. Oh...his birthday party too....I've done nothing. Mom of the year...right here.

Join Our Walk With Me Team 2013

This will be our 2nd year participating in Easter Seals Walk With Me! Ethan is an ambassador for this event, and we are putting together a team! Here is a link for more information about our team! We would love for you to join us!!!

http://es.easterseals.com/site/TR?team_id=126429&fr_id=3216&pg=team#.UbspbOe1FJs

I asked Ethan why he loves Easter Seals so much.

Here's how that conversation went....

Puzzle Piece Rewards System

Weeks of sticker charts!
DLTK's Custom Chore Charts!

For a long time, we have been doing the typical sticker chart to encourage Ethan to use manners, maintain good hygiene and become more independent. After a sticker chart was completed, Ethan would get $1 for his bank. That worked for awhile but then the novelty wore off. Getting a sticker for brushing his teeth was no longer worth it to him....and the battles returned.

So, we began to up the ante! Each night, we would count his stickers & he would earn 1 coin per sticker. And when his sticker chart was full, he would still earn a dollar.

Want to know a secret? I would just re-use coins already in his bank, so it didn't cost us any extra money. Shhhh....don't tell Ethan!


Well, that worked for awhile, but soon that began to wear off too. The battles were beginning to start again....fighting to brush teeth, fighting to self dress, and I was losing my currency with Ethan!

24 piece puzzle from Dollar General. 

And, once again, the Changing Challenging Behaviors Workshop from Easter Seals came through for us!!! Ms. Dona, leader of the workshop & Ethan's ITAP program, showed the class several strategies & examples. Corey & I immediately knew that we had found our solution.....puzzles.

How do puzzles work in place of a sticker chart? For every demonstration of desired behavior, Ethan earns one puzzle piece....instead of one sticker. Once Ethan has completed a puzzle, he gets to pick a prize/toy out of the prize bin I've put together. Things from the dollar store, happy meal toys, garage sale finds....nothing that costs more than $1 each. ETHAN LOVES IT!!!!

In the middle of a puzzle!
Almost time for a trip to the prize bin!

It has been working longer than anything we have tried before! He loves gaining a puzzle piece, loves putting the puzzles together, loves digging for toys in our prize bin! Initially, I was cutting up the cardboard boxes of his fruit snacks, cereal, pop tarts, and other recognizable logos. But once Ethan got the hang of it, we needed to go to more puzzle pieces so he wasn't earning a toy EVERY day. 

I am thrilled to report that this is STILL going VERY well, and he loves earning puzzle pieces!!! Now our battles are diminishing! Picking up toys, brushing teeth, turning off the computer, trying new foods, behavior in new places, and other issues are able to be a managed so much better with this new form of "currency." HOORAY FOR PUZZLES!

Route 66 Road Trip

To celebrate the end of school & beginning of summer, we decided to kick things off with a quick road trip to Pontiac, IL. Just a couple of hours away, the thing that attracted us to this small, rural town is it's the home of the Route 66 Hall of Fame. I thought my car crazy guys would enjoy this kind of getaway. We decided to leave right after Ethan got out of school. We got there about dinner time, ate at a restaurant, and then checked in to our hotel....complete with a pool. Of course Ethan wanted to swim ASAP, so we did. The place was so quiet & we had the pool & hot tub all to ourselves. It was wonderful. We just decided to lounge around in our hotel for the rest of the evening.

The next morning, after breakfast & a Ethan "swim" in our room's whirlpool tub, we were ready to head downtown. I think this place is the friendliest place on Earth! You should visit! It was VERY low cost (all museums were FREE), and lots of things to do! Now, I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves....get ready for a Parade Of Pictures From Pontiac!

Last Day Of Preschool!

The day finally came....Ethan's last day of Preschool. When Ethan first woke up he was full of energy & super excited for the day. However, once at school, he was a total bear! Did any of you notice that it was a full moon at the end of last week? Any of your kiddos in "moods?" Mine sure was! I told his teacher & principal that I was actually a bit grateful for his fowl mood. His attitude caused me to be frustrated & exhausted...instead of contemplative & sad.....it actually worked out! How's that for a positive outlook! LOL!!! HAPPY PRESCHOOL GRADUATION, ETHAN!

First day of Preschool 2012

Last day of Preschool 2013 

Walking in to school for the last time!