It was spring concert week for us this week as both kids were set to perform with their respective school choirs. Riley was up first on Tuesday, with Ryan following on Thursday. The contrast in how those two evenings went for Ryan reveals a lot about how he deals with one of his least favorite […]
Read more "A Tale of Two Concerts"Other than my parents and brother, I can’t think of anything else in my life I have cared about as long as the Washington Capitals. I was born in Washington and went to my first game at age 4 or 5. That was in the late 1970s. That first outing ignited a life-long love of […]
Read more "Microscopes vs. Telescopes"Ryan had a difficult week last week, what with state standardized testing and the accompanying implicit pressure from teachers and school administrators. We felt the effects elsewhere, everywhere, and it took us a while to make the connection that the testing was likely the source of his added stress. Mostly, his anxiety manifested in an […]
Read more "Everyone Has a Plan"I have a few half-finished posts that I’m working on, but nothing that was exactly flowing off my keyboard this morning. Then my iPod provided some inspiration. I was listening to Pandora when it served up my all-time favorite song, Bad, by U2. I’m not huge on interpreting the meanings of all the music I […]
Read more "If I Could, I Would, Let It Go"Life with autism is often described as a roller coaster — long, slow steady uphill followed by precipitous drops. Lately, ours has resembled more of a fever chart, as Ryan’s moods spike wildly between happiness and explosive anger, with very little in between. Whenever there is a sudden change in behavior, we go searching for […]
Read more "You’re On Notice"
Pucks and Puzzle Pieces 