Difference Between Autism and Aspergers

I thought this was an interesting video explaining the differences.  And there are differences!

Rosette Picture Tutorial

 I recently taught a class at Market Boutique on Main here in Oshkosh how to make these rosettes.  I wanted to post a picture tutorial so they wouldn't forget the wonderful things that they learned.

Chain 17.  In the 5th chain from the hook (arrow pointing to it), dc.

This is what it will look like and  the 5 chains and the dc count as your first V stitch.

Chain 1and skip the next stitch on the main chain (arrow pointing at stitch you need to skip).

In the next stitch, (dc, chain 1, dc) in the same stitch.  This forms the V stitch.  Repeat these 2 steps, chaining 1, skipping the next stitch on the maing chain and doing a V stitch, across.  You will end on a V stitch in the last stitch.

Here is what it will look like with 7 V stitches around.

Now we will start the next round by chaining 3.  This will count as your first dc.

Turn and do 5 more dc in the V stitch.  You will have 6 total stitches.

Sc in the space between V stitches.

Dc 6 times in the next V stitch and continue working one sc in the space

between V stitches and 6 dc in each V stitch.

Here is what it will look like.

Pull yarn through loop on hook and pull up a long tail for sewing and cut off.

Roll into a rosette and put needle on for sewing.

Sew through layers until it feels secure.

Tie the two tails together in the back and cut .

You now have a beautiful rosette that you can use to add bling to a hat or scarf.  You can even put a pin on the back to make a corsage.  Just have fun with it!  You can also try this in the medium and large sizes from the pattern below.

Rosette

Ch 17 (35, 53). 

Row 1 Dc in 5^th ch from hook, *ch 1, skip 1, (dc-ch-dc) in next ch – V-stitch made; repeat from * across; – 6 (16, 25)

V-stitches made. Turn.

Row 2 Ch 3 – counts as dc, 5 dc first in ch-space, *sc in next ch-1 space, 6 dc in next ch-1 space – shell st made; repeat from *, ending 6 dc in last ch-1 space – 6 (16, 25) shells.

Fasten off, leaving long tail for anchoring Rosette.

FINISHING: Thread needle with tail and weave to base of last st. Starting at that end, roll first shell tightly to form

center bud; anchor at base of shell with 2 sts. Roll remaining strip to form Rosette, then secure by stitching in and out through layers of foundation ch at bottom of Rosette.

Routines and Rigidity

My oldest son Benjamin has been a pretty go with the flow kid despite his autism.  Matthew, however, is not so much that way.  He has started becoming more rigid in his routines and the way that he thinks that things should go.  For example, on our walk to pick up his brothers from school yesterday, you would have thought that I had stabbed him with the screaming he did because at one of the corners we did not walk through the dip in the cement for people with strollers or wheelchairs.  Blood curdling scream because we walked off the edge instead. So I had to talk to him for the next block about how it was going to be OK and changing things was OK.  So we walked through the dip at the next corner and his world was right again.  While he is gaining and making progress with his speech skills, these are moments where I really wish I could talk to him about his thought process.  We have had more success with written instructions because while he doesn't talk much, he can read.  We have also found talking him through situations really helps him calm and know what is going to happen next enough to start feeling comfortable again.  It can be such trial and error!

I was at a local park with him on a field trip of sorts with his Early Childhood class and I have noticed something else.  He always comes up with a "path" of play.  He decides on something that he likes to do on the playground and then he will circle that path on the playground doing the same thing over and over, sometimes deviating but not much.  If I were to take him back there in a month, I guarantee that he would circle that same path of play.  I just need a window to his mind every once in a while.

I remember being fascinated with the book "There's A Boy in Here" with how his mother describes the behavior her son had exhibited and then his older self explains his thought process and why he was doing what he did.  Maybe someday, Matthew will be able to make more sense of it all for me.  For now, I will take the small daily victories and take it all one step at a time.

Progress!

I had Matthew's IEP this morning and I am amazed at how far he has come in the school year.  He is getting ready to transition from a small intimate Early Childhood classroom to a 4K program next year and I think it will be really good for him.  His speech is really starting to come at a faster pace and we were laughing about some of the quirky things he says or does.  He currently has an obsession with rainbows and draws them a lot. He was reciting the book "What Makes a Rainbow?"  while playing with a rainbow toy in the classroom during our meeting.  Recently, he has decided that he likes to talk during the really quiet times at church when we meet as a congregation.  I told him to whisper the other Sunday and he starting singing the Mysterious Whisper line from They Might Be Giants song "Fingertips" and then proceeded to sing other funny lines like "Please pass the milk, please" and "Are you the guy who hit me in the eye?"  Last Sunday I was worried it was going to be Bugs Bunny lines.  He likes saying "What's up doc?"  "You're despicable" Roadrunner's "Meep Meep" and sings Figaro from the episode where Bugs Bunny is driving the opera singer crazy.  We have also had him say "Miss me, miss me, now you've gotta kiss me" and come up and give you a kiss.  So sweet!  Our little man is growing up and though it's frustrating at times, it is so good to see the progress!

Don't Let the Pigeon Crochet This Doll!

Here is my latest design.  My kids have really been loving the Mo Willems book series about Pigeon and his other series Elephant & Piggie.  I guess I will need to do those in the future but here's pigeon for now:)  I will be adding the pattern to my Etsy shop soon.

Much Deserved Thanks!

I just finished two IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) for my oldest two kids and have another one on Wednesday for my youngest.  I was very struck and overwhelmed with the love and care that these people have for my children, how much time they work on understanding them and helping them be successful during the school day.  I have been blessed with wonderful people: autism support teachers, regular education teachers, speech therapists, occupational therapists, principals, and many other staff members throughout my children's lives who have worked and continue to work so hard and do such a great job supporting me and my children.  It is such a good feeling as a parent and I know I am very lucky.  Not all parents have such good experiences.  So a HUGE THANK YOU to all of you wonderful people out there who work with children with autism every day and love them for who they are and help to make them and their families better people.  You are truly amazing and this journey would be so much more difficult without your love, help and influence.  THANK YOU!

Seaside Sandals and Headband Pattern

These are the cute Seaside Sandals with matching headbands at Market Boutique on Main here in Oshkosh. The pattern comes from Two Girls Patterns. So excited with how they turned out!  I thought I would post the pattern for the headband on here.

Simply Adjustable Baby Headband

With an F hook and cotton yarn, ch 80.

Turn and slip stitch in the 2nd chain from the hook and across until you have 12 stitches left.  At this point, *ch 2, skip the next 2, slip st in the next 2* repeating this twice more.  Tie off the end and weave in the ends.  You will have 3 button holes.  I used clear buttons and sewed them at 1st and 3rd button holes.  I added the bow and jewel embellishments from the sandals but there are lots of other things you could add too.  Enjoy!

Blame it on the Rain?

OK so my kids have been CRAZY this week!  Just not themselves at all.  It is hard enough to get them to do what they need to do on a daily basis with their typical behaviors let alone under these conditions.  I was talking with one of their aides at school and she pointed out that it has been a full moon this week.   Not to mention the high pressure with the terrible storms that we have been having over the last couple of days.  I found an interesting blurb on another autism blog that that you can check out  here about how weather affects kids with autism. I really can't believe that no one has done any scientific research into this phenomenon but glad to know that I am not just making up these erratic behaviors in my kids.  Any thoughts?

Crocheted Sporty Sandals

I made these by modifying the Sporty Sandals pattern on CrochetDreamz blog.  Bright for spring!  I like that this is a unisex pattern.  I have a few patterns in my Etsy shop right now and I have been selling my baby shoes and hats at a local shop called Market Boutique on Main.  Kind of trying to decide how much I can do, what I want to do and my niche market.  There are so many things to crochet and so little time in the day!

The Best Kind of Different

During the holidays last year, I finished reading a wonderful book called The Best Kind of Different by Shonda Schilling. Jacob's teacher had let me borrow it and she had read it because she has an adult daughter with Asperger's.  I was so glad that I took her up on it!  It is Shonda and her family's journey towards getting their son diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome while being the wife of a famous baseball player and being in the public eye.  I loved it because it wasn't from a professional or research standpoint, it is just an honest picture of how she felt as a mom struggling to figure out her son and what was best for him.  I could relate in so many ways!  My children can appear so normal at times because they are all pretty high functioning, so to speak, so it can be easy to forget at moments that they really don't think the same way that I do.  That's when  I have to stop and change my point of view and try to look at things through their eyes.  Easier said than done!  But when I try to make an effort and step back and figure out what's really going on, things usually go more smoothly.  I really loved this passage from the book:

Curt Schilling’s Top Ten Things You Learn or Experience with an Asperger’s Child

10. It is humanly possible to say “Stop” four hundred times in a ten-second time frame.
9. You know the exact time you will be exhausted everyday: within fifteen seconds of waking up your child with Asperger’s.
8. At fifteen your Asperger’s child will likely have an IQ twice as high as yours and let you know exactly when and how you were wrong every day.
7. Everyone at the grocery store, swimming pool, or other public gathering place knows your child’s name, even if you didn’t tell anyone.
6. Be prepared to never have the last word in any conversation, ever.
5. Pray that if they have any nervous tics or habits, they don’t include picking their nose.
4. Be prepared to be presented with more information than any human has the right to know about Legos, Star Wars, bulldogs, Bakugan, Pokemon, dinosaurs, Yu-Gi-Oh!, World of Warcraft, Webkinz, the human skin, bowel movements, and body hair – and hope your child only picks one.
3. Do not fart in public if you don’t want everyone within earshot to know who, where, and what just happened.
2. Get ready for a serious dose of unconditional love. The heart of an Asperger’s child is not bound by society’s norms, not limited to lessons we were told or taught, not confused or embarrassed by anything the heart emits. Theirs is a brand of unconditional love we should all pray at night to be exposed to, or to be able to extend ourselves.
1. Be prepared to go further than you dreamed, work harder than you thought possible, to love, and to cry, but at the end of the day wrap your arms around a true gift from God.

Here is a link to the web page for the book: http://thebestkindofdifferent.com/

I love the phrase she used for the title of the book and I would agree that my kids are also the best kind of different.  I highly recommend it!

Jenny

Welcome!

In an effort to streamline my internet time and the dominant things in my life, I am starting this brand new blog. What will you find here? Eventually, I want to share the story of my journey with my 4 sons and their autism spectrum disorders, good books and resources that I have found, my crochet creations and designs and maybe a few recipes and other random things here and there. These are the things in my life and I want to be able to share what I love and hopefully help, encourage, and inspire other people. Welcome!