My son is 6.5 and today lost his first tooth. I of course, was very emotional. He wasn't phased at all! No crying, no anxiety, nothing. He asked to keep it b/c he's been wanting to start a collection. He's aware he'll lose more teeth so I guess this is his first collection? I told him he could exchange it for a treat (we don't give money for things (yet)) but he declined. So, we decorated a ziploc bag and that's where we decided his teeth will go (and they better STAY in that bag!). Oh, and my 3.5 yr old son has been using the potty since Sat. Today he finally pooped in it. It's a little bit too much growing up in three days for me, but I know it has to happen and is ALL GOOD! J

My son has always been a builder. I cannot understand what he says he's made half the time but he enjoys it. So, we have a LOT of blocks, legos, kinnex, zoobs, etc. He also likes to dress dolls and barbies. We also have a set of magnetic paper dolls AND wooden puzzle pieces where you can dress the bear. It helps to orient him to what kind of clothes you'll wear in what weather. Big fails: anything for imaginary play--dress up clothes, play kitchen, even games haven't worked, little people, etc.

I wouldn't question it if it's working for you. The only reason we do not do more school is because my son cannot focus for longer than 1hr15min. Some days I TRY to stretch it a bit longer because he also has vision therapy homework (which can be quite time consuming for us), but afterwards he's competely zoned out. J

First off it's terrific that he's reading! We've been doing VT as well and has helped tremendously. I use Saxon Phonics. I used level 1 and am now doing 2. It's spiral like their math programs. So, there's a continuous review. It does come w/ worksheets (side A/B) but much of it is discussion. It also includes readers that go along w/ the program. I've been lucky to find complete kids (used) off ebay for no more than $30 (but I suspect I've been lucky). I supplement this w/ ETC. I really like ETC but it wouldn't be enough for us to do just that. He wouldn't get it at all. J

Where I live Healthsouth has a Pediatric therapy office. Several actually. This is the only place we've ever attended. I tried to schedule at one point w/ another facility but they turned me off right away. They just didn't seem like they cared about anything other than the payments. There are def. nicer and more innovative, newer places but 1) they're much too far for me to drive even once a week and 2) I am pleased w/ the results where I am. I know Healthsouth is nationwide but am not at all certain about their outpatient pedi. clincis. J

:iagree: I had originally planned to be fairly scheduled but then we'd have these huge learning losses. He just couldn't retain info. So, we take days here and there. Sometimes the days are scheduled and sometimes they're not. My son actually misses school when we don't have it and I like to keep him happy. :) I say my son is in First only because that would be his grade level in ps. However, as far as when our school year is 'over' isn't so easy to define. He's much better w/ math and spelling and is not quite on level with reading/phonics. Not sure why that is, but he's kind of all over the place. It feels weird to me for us to take an extended break when he's straddling 2 different grade levels. We tend to do 5 days/wk but Fridays are for review/assessment only. We don't cover any new material on Fridays. Like I said, I really wanted structure. Everything in my life I organize and schedule. And although my workboxes are organized and school is always ready to go, our homeschooling schedule is really, really flexible. J

Happy to hear that 1) I am not alone and 2) you figured out a solution! I recently started taking mini breaks every 30-45 min of no more than 5 minute duration. We do jumping jacks, stretches, finger exercises, get a glass of water, bathroom break. I've been able to stretch class out an extra 45 min so can now do all the subjects I had planned.

I broke several of the 'I would never' before even bringing my first child home from the hospital. I am now trying NOT to say 'never'. LOL J

I'm sure it IS very frustrating. Particularly for your children. As they are older now it doesn't seem that his opinion will change. However I'm sure the kids have always appreciated your support of them and their issues. Jessica ps....are you by any chance in Austin? Your posts and your name very much remind me of someone in my local homeschool group. If it is you, just wanted to say Thank You for all your advice!

Although we use as a supplement, I do think it could be used as a complete program. My son just needs extra instruction to really solidify learning. It helps that he thinks the pictures and sentences are funny so getting him to do the extra work isn't hard. In addition, I like the reading comprehension bit. He has a VERY hard time with this and it's simple for him to look at the picture and then pic which sentence is correct.

We've found a ready made frozen crust that is corn based. I do not know the name but it comes in a package w/ two crusts. It makes more of a deep dish style pizza.

Our OT recommended these pencil grippers and have helped w/ pain/fatigue quite a bit as they encourage proper grasping. http://www.amazon.com/Pencil-Grip-Crossover-Ergonomic-Metallic/dp/B001SN8HPI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1317414394&sr=8-2 Also, she suggested having him write on a slanted surface or even an art easel. I gave him a 2" binder and put his paperwork on that. J

Although my son is on the spectrum he is not an Aspie. My good friend's son however is and he uses Switched on Schoolhouse. This works really well for him as he has difficulty grasping and writing so he can type it out. He also seems to respond well to the computer instruction. Not sure if this program is in keeping w/ TWTM model or not.

I have a good friend who must take Ambien nightly due to insomnia from her post-transplant meds. They keep her pretty wired and she is so thankful to have Ambien. She takes two although I'm not sure the total dosage. It does work great to help you fall asleep and stay asleep. I tried Ambien shortly after having my first son. I couldn't sleep and my OB prescribed Ambien. I was one of the extremely unlucky ones who had psychotic reaction including hallucinations. This was when the med was relatively new and these reactions hadn't been cited as potential side effects. The ER treated me like a drug abuser and even had somone supervise me giving a urine sample. It was by far one of the worst nights of my life AND did NOT make me fall asleep. I guess I am both allergic and unresponsive to it? LOL I'm sorry you had such overwhelming side effects although they do not sound too out of the range of 'normal'. I'm pleased that Ambien has been alerting via TV commercials/print as to their more worrisome side effects to educate the public. I don't know if this would have influenced me into taking/not taking it had I known, but it was a very scary experience for myself and DH to be dealing with (not to mention being first time parents of a 6 wk old).

Yes, I'm in Austin,TX. We just reached 101. If my oldest wasn't sick we'd soooo be in the pool (again).

I know you're jealous. :D It's only 95 right now so we shall see, but it is predicted to happen. J

If you do indeed decide to stay on site, you should look into Dinsey's Magical Express. They will bring you from airport to hotel and back again for a fee. No carseats and you don't have to pick up your luggage either (they take care of that and it Magically shows in your room within a few hours). Not sure where you're heading in from, but Southwest has a pretty good booking site and you can book flights, dining plan, tickets and magical express all at the same time.

Many ASD kids are very literal thinkers. Abstract just cannot be done. You may want to present him with concrete things. Things that he can see, perhaps touch, and read about. Then have him write. I would guess that creative writing would be extremely difficult for him. My son cannot even do imaginary play so coming up with a creative story on his own would be impossible. Or you could ask her what he's learning in history or science or perhaps ask him a subject he likes and then write about that. Many ASD persons do have fine motor issues so I would not expect his actual writing to be neat. A computer seems to work very well instead. If you ever feel he isn't 'hearing' you show him pictures instead and then write a descriptive essay. In addition, as an educator and caring person I would encourage you to speak to her about having him tested. There is therapy and treatment that can help in many different areas (auditory, OT, etc).

I keep trying to like Unversal/Islands of Adventure and I just don't. On our most recent trip to WDW we decided to go to HP just for me. I love the books but we knew our kids were too small to do anything. I get motion sickness anyway, so that wasn't a big deal. But, overall I was unimpressed and disappointed with that section. I'm sure my complaints will seem petty so I won't list, but I will share this. We bought two day tickets and didn't return to use them for the second day. We did not regret it.

Mine (6.5) has this problem, too. I bought speciall pencil grippers his OT recommended ( http://www.amazon.com/Pencil-Grip-Crossover-Ergonomic-TPG-17712/dp/B001SN8HPS/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1317268102&sr=8-11 ). This has helped. As has giving him a slanted surface on which to write. I just use a two inch binder and put his worksheet on that. Our OT had said that writing on a larger slanted surface such as an art easel would also be a good idea. I am also his scribe or if there's an option to just circle or draw a line, he does that. His handwriting itself has improved dramatically in recent weeks. Not sure why, but when he does write it is obviously his best work. We still work on reversals and starting the letters in the correct place. J

It doens't seem to take us long at all. However, it's a good fit for us. I like it's ease of use and he thinks it's super fun! He even prefers it to MUS. We finished level 1 over the summer a just began 2 a few weeks ago. We don't do meeting book (as I don't own it) but we do everything listed for each lesson. They take me maybe 10 min to teach. He does both sides of the worksheet. But we don't do every drill sheet. I typically only assign him half a page/day (if we do one). Not that he can't do the work but he has some fine motor issues and his hand is quite sore at the end of our class time.

Eat at Disney the food is great and it's so much fun! You may want to check into the dining plan (DDP). Often the DDP is free if you book for certain dates and stay on site. This is a HUGE savings and it allows you the full Disney experience. Every restaurant has a ton of variety of food including veggies/fruits. My kids are not your typical chicken nuggets and pizza type and so they were allowed to order off the adult menu but would be brought a kids size. Disney is also good for folks w/ food allergies. They are especially accomodating and will send a chef out to your table to get an idea of what the allergy is and what he could substitute instead in your meal. Also, you may want to keep in mind that if you do stay off-site you'll need to plan an extra 1.5 hrs to get from your hotel to the actual park you wish to visit. On site is anywhere from 30min to an hour. So, if you're wishing to go back and eat lunch it will take a huge chunk of your day. You can always have groceries delivered to you hotel via PeaPod. We've done this each trip. We typically get bananas, soy yogurt, soy milk, and regular milk delivered. Along with a case of bottled water to take into the park. If you find there's something you must have that the parks/hotel don't this could work for you. We've only stayed on site (well, not counting that time in college, but life was different then). We generally do not eat BF at the hotel but at one of the parks instead-typically a character one. It's such a nice way to start a day! When I hear people complaining about the food there it's mostly because: 1) they ate fast food/quick service the whole time. That's all fried and no healthy stuff. 2) They thought the dining plan was too expensive but didn't realize how expensive it all would be a la carte. When they added up at the end of the trip what they actually spent, it would have been cheaper to pay for the plan. I'm sure others will express a different opinion, but this has been our experience. Either way, you'll have a terrific time! It's such a wonderful, magical place. J

I've never been given the option to observe a session but I also know that would be distracting. However, I would not be happy that my session was being shared with another client. Our office has 7 therapists but they are very good about not having more than one person in a room doing therapy at a time. Our sessions are an hour long plus 15 min at the end to discuss with me. She talks about progress and hands me our homework instruction sheet. She also demonstrates any new tasks for that week and has me return demo to be sure I understand. Also, if you had a different therapist this time then last I'd suggest asking who your regular therapist is or perhaps choosing who you want to see each time. We met with 4 different ones and felt the one we chose had the best rapport with our son. I think all of them at our clinic would have been terrific but there was something special between her and our son.

I may hear some names that I may think are quirky and perhaps others think the same of my choices. But I absolutely LOVE when people explain WHY they chose those names and the special meaning it has to them. It makes it seem like it was chosen with love as opposed to people wanting to be different or out of the ordinary. If an ordinary named happened to appeal to me I would've chosen it. As it was, my husband and I had taken a vacation to the most beautiful place I've ever been, I was inspired, and we named our first son after it. His middle name is the city we were married (as is our younger son's). My mother HATES their middle name. Hates. And, I'm an only child so I'll never hear the end of it.

I had thought my son was dyslexic and I called the Scottish Rite for assistance. They do all the testing (which costs $1000) but once they are diagnosed the treatment is FREE. It is several days a week after school (I think they even pick them up from school) and it lasts for 2 yrs starting in second grade (I think). I'm so sorry I can't remember more of the specific details. I do know that they test, dx and treat dyslexia. Perhaps that would be a good place for help. Good luck, Jessica