a better day...

Today was a better day. Things are looking up and I hope I'm coming out of this funk I've been in for a week or so. Sometimes I just need to feel the way I want to feel for a few days and then I can get back to the task at hand, which is to help Holden, be a mom to all of my kids, and a wife to my husband. I feel better.

Tomorrow looks a little like this: 9-11am: ABA for the 1st time at Quest Kids, 11:30-12noon: Speech at home, 1-1:30pm: OT at the clinic. Busy, busy morning. We FINALLY are starting the ABA through Early Steps, thank goodness. It's taken long enough, seeing as he's been approved since October 19th.

We went to a friend's house today to help celebrate another one of my friends' birthday. The friend's house we went to - she's an OT, and also has a son who WAS on the spectrum a few years ago. He's since tested "typical". Anyway, this was the 1st time she's met Holden. I was a bit nervous. Thinking he would just rub his hands on the walls, or find something to stim on, being in an unfamiliar environment. But, guess what? He didn't. He was SO good. He watched TV, walked around, played with their toys. He stimmed for about 20 minutes out of the entire 3 hours we were there. And even then, he was able to be interrupted without a tantrum. Nice. My friend said to me: If I didn't know he was autistic, just seeing him, I would have never guessed. I can't tell you how good that made me feel...

Last evening, the boys next door were playing outside. Zoe was outside too. I took Holden out, and the boys were kicking soccer balls and laughing. Holden was stimming a bit - walking back and forth, back and forth - the same path from our yard to theirs. Then, he saw the boys playing ball, and got a huge smile on his face, ran over, and laughed while he ran through them. It was obvious to me that he WANTED to play, he just didn't know how. I loved the fact that he even noticed.

And, I have to talk about Zoe for a second. She had such fun today with my friend's daughter - who's the same age as her. They love each other. They put on a fashion show for us and it was SO wonderful. I love that kid, I really really really do.