The Autism Ups and Downs

Yesterday morning, Hutton came and crawled into bed with me and Hubby when it was still dark out. I didn't really mind, though I knew I wouldn't get much sleep, as Hutton tends to wriggle and talk if he comes up to snuggle. A little while later, I heard Harrison coming upstairs. Hutton sat up in bed, and said, "Harrison's awake! Hutton's going to go play with Harrison!" And he did just that.

Now, apart from the use of third person, much like Sesame Street's Elmo, this was an amazing sentence to hear from Hutton. These longer sentences (and even ones using the first person - I!- are becoming much more common, and I love to hear them. I feel great, thinking, "Wow, maybe we're finally getting...there."

There - the magical place. Where is there? Is it full recovery? Or is it halfway to recovery? Just a little bit better? I don't know. Just being on the road to recovery might be enough.

Or so I thought.

This morning, as I put Hutton on the bus to school, the bus driver said, "Hutton's been having a rough time at school. The teachers thought it might be from the Thanksgiving excitement, or switching schedules around. But he had a tough day yesterday, too." I felt my upbeat attitude sinking into a pit in my chest, as I muttered, "Yeah, it never ends."

I got off the bus and headed home to get Harrison, who had stayed home to finish breakfast with Hubby. I thought about the possibility of homeschooling Hutton. Would it help? He wouldn't have the peer interaction of school, but he and Harrison play well together, and Hutton loves to have playdates with friends. I figured that wasn't really an option, as I'd probably just go crazy trying to homeschool my children. I can't even function normally on days they go to school.

A few minutes later, as Harrison and I drove down the street to run errands, we saw a big yellow school bus turning the corner. "There's Hutton's bus!" Harrison called out.

"No, that's not Hutton's bus. He rides on the short bus," I said, watching the bus of elementary school kids round the corner, looking at the little faces looking back at me. Will Hutton ever get off the short bus? Get to ride the big bus? Are we even on the same road the big bus runs on?


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UP-Date (emphasis on UP)

Hutton's teacher just called. I felt my heart stop, wondering what horrible thing had happened at school. Then she said, "Hutton has had a great day at school, and he earned enough checks to call you!" Back story: At his parent-teacher conference two weeks ago, I gave Hutton's teachers the token sheet we use for his home therapy. If he earns enough checks on his chart for good behaviors like sitting quietly when asked, following instructions, etc., he gets to work for something of his choice. At home, he likes to call people on the phone as his reward. So, he earned his checks at school and wanted to call me! I told him I was glad he was having a good day at school and earning checks, and then Harrison said hi to Hutton as well. We're back to the up/positive position on the Autism meter. Let's hope it continues!

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Just in case you schadenfreudists are down, thinking everything is going too well, don't worry. The gods of small appliances are still fighting me. The microwave repairman is due sometime between 1 and 5 today, and charges $79 off the bat, and that's before he figures out what's wrong with the microwave. (You know, the microwave that is the top part of our microwave/convection oven combo, that can't be cheaply replaced, though we did buy a cheap microwave to fill in until our built-in one is repaired.) And...and...the appliance ill that cuts me to the core...SIRIUS is acting up. Sirius, the espresso machine, has started pumping out coffee-colored water in place of coffee the past two days. I've cleaned the machine, tried new beans, made about ten cups of brown hot water, and searched online for advice, but am at a loss. I really don't need to spend more money having my espresso machine repaired. Sigh. At least I got some mochas this morning doing my secret shopping.