I Had a Moment

Tonight, Eden and I were alone in the house. Ed was picking the girls up in Westbrook, so that left her and I alone to have dinner together. After dinner, we were watching some TV and a commercial came on with a snowman. I know it's completely random, but this caused Eden to say, "Christmas." That was it, so I looked at her and told her Christmas was coming soon and she would have to tell Santa what she wanted for Christmas. I asked her, "What are you going to tell Santa you want for Christmas?" and without a beat she told me, "pillow-pets." I said, "What do you want to tell Santa if he asks if you have been a good girl?" and she said, "I love you."

To some this may not be a big deal...I mean she is 4 and should be able to understand and tell me this stuff but this is one of the very first times I have asked a question and she has come up with her own answer, not a scripted sentence that she has learned like when I say, "How was your day at school?" and she says every time, "School today." and then she says, "played with friends." and when I ask, "Who did you play with?" She says, "I played with Brayden." Everyday without a beat. Most of our conversations are like that, when I could tell you word for word what she is going to say.

This moment got to me to think back. It's been about a year since we noticed something was "different" about Eden's speech at least. At that time she could barely talk and most of the time could not come up with words on her own but would repeat the words if we said them to her. We have also in this time come to the understanding that when Eden misbehaves in stores, restaurants, and other public settings it is not because we have treated her differently (spoiled her) nor do we yell or get frustrated at her when she does these things because that is part of who she is. She needs to be taught how to deal with these situations.

We have also learned that shielding her from these places does more harm than good. We can now make it through the grocery store and she is enrolled in Sunday School through our church. Now our trips to Walmart are not so bad if we keep them under 30 minutes and she figures out how to cope with the sensory input for a while and does a very good job even when she finds it hard.

We have learned that if we listen to her she will tell us what she needs and we also can read her signals and help her vocalize and relax herself. Gum, deep pressure (hugs and little pushes on her head and shoulders), going to the bathroom every 3 minutes if needed, going for short walks and jumping are some of the ways we help her process sensory input so she won't have a meltdown.

She has come such a long way and I am so proud of the things she has accomplished. When I heard the words Autism for the first time I was so unsure of her future; would she be able to talk or do things that other children seem to take for granted? One thing I'm very sure of now, she will work very hard to get what she wants because she does it everyday at school and at home. I see how she works and succeeds and I make sure she knows that I notice everyday.