Adjusting

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Josiah was discharged from the hospital November 4th, almost 5 weeks ago.  What an exciting, joyful, emotional time it was to get our boy back home.  What a huge adjustment it was for him. And what a huge adjustment it continues to be for all of us.  Some of the changes we’ve experienced recently are these:

Josiah came home on 7 medications.  SEVEN!!  Some are prescribed 4 times a day.

He gained weight.  Quite a bit of weight.  Josiah continues to gain at an alarming rate; 1 – 1.5 lbs or more per week.

He sleeps now.  He sleeps really well.  Some days Josiah even takes 2 naps.

He no longer goes to Public School.  Josiah is currently being home schooled.

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HUGE Decision

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IAllowFaithExactly one day after Josiah turned 13, I began praying some very specific prayer requests for him. I’ve been asking God to keep him free from aggression and self injurious behaviors; for protection from germs so he can stay healthy; for a functional form of communication in all of his environments and for wisdom about his medications.

Given all Josiah has been through since then, one might think God hasn’t been paying attention, but I know He is at work. Josiah’s medications have been tweaked and he’s doing really well right now. His mood is stabilized.  He’s sleeping great.  He’s even beginning to have success using his Ipad for some basic communication.

In addition to these prayers, I’ve also been praying for something else.  Something huge. It has been on my heart for a while. A small part of me has always felt it’s what’s best for Josiah. However, I wanted to be absolutely, positively, without a doubt, SURE before moving forward. I need to know it’s the right thing to do since it so greatly impacts many other things. For the past 9 months I’ve been praying for wisdom about whether or not to home school Josiah.

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Simply Amazing

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elmo-julia-1024Yesterday, Sesame Street introduced their newest muppet, Julia, a character with Autism. Drawing attention to similarities among all children, they’ve developed an app and online videos to explain what it’s like to have autism from the viewpoint of a child with autism.

Their new site, Sesame Street and Autism (see amazing in all children) encourages others to celebrate the uniqueness of each and every child.  http://autism.sesamestreet.org/  You can view or print social stories for every day tasks like teeth brushing, going to the store and trying new foods. http://autism.sesamestreet.org/daily-routine-cards/ Read more…

Growing Boy

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Two months ago, Josiah entered the hospital wearing size 12 shorts.  He had a couple of size 10’s that fit him also.  Yesterday, I noticed the shorts he had on when I arrived were zipped, but the snap at his waist was unsnapped.  He tummy was just too pudgy for it to close.

I took them off and put a larger size on him, a pair with an adjustable elastic waist band hidden inside. (Who ever came up with that ingenious idea is my hero.  We get so many more months of wear with just the simple addition of a piece of elastic and a couple of buttons sewn in.  Fabulous!) They didn’t fit him either.   Read more…