Any kind of break from the routine is no such break in the houses of autistic families. It is a week of long days, filling up our little one's time with activities and schedules. By the time the week ends, parents are bleary-eyed and exhausted counting down the seconds until Monday morning school begins.
Because of this, I decided I would share some of my favorite things in the autism world. This list is by far NOT exhaustive (because I am!), but it is a good start and may give you something to do during this week without STRUCTURE!!!!
1. Adam- This is an incredible story about an adult with Asperger's Syndrome. This is the movie that I tell people to watch when they ask me what autism is like on a day to day basis, and what autism may look like in adulthood. It is a touching story, but also incredible acting! Go see it.2. Parenthood. I've talked about it before, but it bears repeating...THIS SHOW IS AMAZING! The writing is so great and true to life. Sometimes I will talk to my friends who watch this show like the characters are real- as if they are who I was with last Tuesday night. Then, I have to stop myself and say, "oh yea, they're not real."Adam and Christina are a couple (on the show, Rebecca) with a child on the autism spectrum. His name is Max, and although he can grate on your nerves with his whining and complaining, or the way he calls the shots in his family routine, you cannot help but feel empathy for the whole family. Again, if you are a family with a child on the spectrum, it will give you a good laugh and a good cry. If you are not an autistic family, it will enlighten you to the real life struggles that having a child who demands so much, and gives back so little, has on the people closest to them. They are, I believe, four seasons in, but it is worth sitting in your bed with Netflix and starting from the beginning. You won't regret it!!
3. Jasongood.net
A friend of mine recently sent this to me and I howled with laughter!! Jason is a comedian, husband, and father. I love anyone that can make the ordinary funny and can throw in humor about the woes of parenting. Because as I often say, if you're not laughing, you're probably crying! Jason recently posted this little gem referring to his 3 year old. I have no idea if his son is on the spectrum, but it sounded so much like my little guy that I decided to copy and paste his post.
46 Reasons My Three Year Old Might Be Freaking Out
Some of these are total guesses. Educated guesses, but guesses nonetheless. Seems like it’s hard being a kid.
His sock is on wrong.
His lip tastes salty.
His shirt has a tag on it.
The car seat is weird.
He’s hungry, but can’t remember the word “hungry.”
Someone touched his knee.
He’s not allowed in the oven.
I picked out the wrong pants.
His brother looked at him.
His brother didn’t look at him.
His hair is heavy.
We don’t understand what he said.
He doesn’t want to get out of the car.
He wants to get out of the car by himself.
The iPad has a password.
His sleeve is touching his thumb.
He doesn’t understand how popsicles are made.
The inside of his nose stinks.
Chicken is gross.
A balloon he got six months ago is missing.
A puzzle piece won’t fit in upside down.
I gave him the wrong blue crayon.
The gummi vitamin is too firm.
Netflix is slow.
He jumped off the sofa and we weren’t watching.
He’s not allowed to touch fire.
Everything is wrong with his coat.
There’s a dog within a 70 mile radius.
A shoe should fit either foot.
I asked him a question.
His brother is talking.
He can’t lift a pumpkin.
He can’t have my keys.
The cat is in his way.
The cat won’t let him touch its eyeball.
The inside of his cheek feels rough.
Things take too long to cook.
He has too much food in his mouth.
He sneezed.
He doesn’t know how to type.
The DustBuster is going to eat him.
His mom is taking a shower.
Someone knocked over his tower.
He got powdered sugar on his pants.
The yogurt won’t stay on his spoon.
EVERYTHING IS TOO HOT.
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Another post from Jason talks about his wife's habit of trying not to use expletives in front of her children. If you've ever stepped on an action hero with bare feet, and have almost blown an O-ring from trying to keep from saying a bad word, then this is the link for you: http://jasongood.net/365/2013/01/the-g-rated-phraseology-of-motherhood/
4. Jim Gaffigan So, speaking of comedy, I don't know anyone who does not love the comedy of Jim Gaffigan. I hear he has a new special out on DVD, but the most recent one I have seen is Mr. Universe. He is a father of 5 kids, and has lots of material with that fact alone. Netflix has it, so no excuses! Go check it out!!
5. Savant "Burgertime" So, my oldest son is WAY in to DJ's, dub step, and electronic dance music. It is an entire other world of pulsating beats, light shows, and headaches. (because after several minutes of listening to it, you will get a headache!) But, every once in a while, he will play me something that I can hang with. I like some of the more pop stuff. And, there is a chap with autism who started making dub step music several years ago. His DJ name is aptly called Savant. My son informed me that last year alone he produced four albums, so he is definitely living up to his name. I wanted to share his song "Burgertime" because I like the fact that he refers to his diagnosis in the song, and I think it's incredibly brave for him, and informative for us.
I will end my list of favorite things, for now.
I hope this week proves to be a time when you actually CAN listen to a song on Youtube, watch an entire movie, or maybe even an entire season of a TV show.
Sometimes you just gotta just unplug.
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