Most Impressive Yet...

Sam's First Tattoo!

Everyone is feeling good in the Sheidy house.. finally... and all is going well...especially with Sam. The little man had his monthly review last Thursday and as usual, we were amazed at the progress we continue to see. He's such a different little boy at school...so good, that I often wonder...what are we doing wrong at home? At school they are very structured, very scheduled and strict. At home we are not structured, scheduled or strict. I guess it's time for Adam and I to sit down and decide how we are going to proceed with making changes here so that we can also experience positive behavior with Sam. It was so obvious that this little guy is certainly playing us...big time! I once thought that if I read all the books about raising a child with Autism, it would be a little easier. Boy, was I wrong. There isn't any child with Autism alike. They are all different and unique in their own beautiful way. I often sit back and look at him, look at his smile, listen to his laugh, and feel my heart melt when I hear the most beautiful voice coming from a child who was once thought to never speak a word. Thank you God!

At Sam's review, he showed us that he is counting objects that are placed in front of him...up to 10! He hasn't mastered this, but is so darn close. I'm almost certain that by the next review in March, the child will be counting 20 objects! He is able to identify what many different objects are using the picture cards. He's now able to trace his name perfectly and he uses scissors to cut along a pre-drawn line. He's also being taught how to finish off songs that are being sung to him (he has no problem singing along with Taylor Swift!). For every task completion, Sam earns a Thomas the Tank token and once he's received 6 tokens for completing the task while using quiet hands and a quiet voice, he gets to choose whatever he wants to play with for 1 minute. Adam and I always sit stunned at how well this works for him at school. We can't even get him to pick up toys! Again, we need to make changes at home. His toilet training continues on at school and he comes home with many stickers on his shirt for peeing on the potty. I haven't been given the "go ahead" to start at home. I did inquire today as to when we can start and will find out tomorrow. This is awfully cute...Sam and I go through a routine everyday on our way home from school. It kind of goes like this:

Me - "How was your day Sam"

Sam - "Good"

Me- "What did you do today"
Sam - "Pee on the Potty"

One day I didn't ask my usual questions and he caught me on it on the way home. He said "I had good day Mommy...I pee on the potty". I laughed and was so proud that our little routine meant so much to him. I will never forget to ask him about his day again!