Marley's Magical Mind

Hi friends! Its been a few months since my last post.  Marley is thriving in her new class. She's doing very well in her classes and is even doing pretty good with math.  Her class has a separate teacher just for special education students.  Unfortunately her original special education teacher fell sick and had to take a medical leave. Luckily her new teacher is very sweet, but we all know how she does with changes.  It took a few days but she was able to adjust. She has been blossoming as a writer.  She discovered the 'notes' in her Mac computer.  She has been typing away with new stories and situations she imagines.  I haven't read any of it yet.  I don't want to break her trust and have her stop writing.  She is very "all or nothing".  If she finds out I read her 'diary' she will never forgive me.   Her lyme disease hasn't reactivated.  I'm really hoping it hasn't taken over her like it's taken over me.  She asked me...

At her IEP meeting back in March the child study team let me know that they wanted to mainstream Marley in the fourth grade. At first I wasn't too sure about her being mainstreamed, but after I thought about it I realize that she needed to move on. While the program is phenomenal in our school district, I feel that at times it hinders her maturity. I understand that a child with special needs has to have certain opportunities be made a little more easily available, but at the same time it also makes her think that she's entitled to other things. She thinks everyone is going to cater to her.   Marley is on the spectrum so while she may have developmental delays she has no cognitive delays. She is, for all intents and purposes, a nine-year-old girl. I think mainstreaming her in a regular classroom, with a lot of support, is a very good idea for her.   We tried to give her a heads up as much as possible. But how much can you explain to a nine-year-old that things are going t...

I wanted to jump on real quick to give an update.  Marley and I have both been undergoing treatment for Lyme disease.  I am happy to say that Marley kicked it's butt !!!! It took two rounds of antibiotics, but she is now feeling much better.  I also was able to defeat Lyme, but the parasite, Babesia, decided to stick around a little longer.  I have been on antibiotics, antimalarial and antiprotozoal medications.  I have been exhausted, to say the least.  The past few weeks have been a little better with the exhaustion but I still have the stomach issues associated with this disease and also the medicines.   I am grateful that my family and I have the means to be able to treat this and live the rest of our lives happy and healthy! I appreciate all the support my family and friends have extended out to us. Sometimes just being able to vent about how awful I felt was enough to alleviate any discomfort I had.   Love to all, Vanessa

5 months old Can't handle the cuteness !!! Kids with autism usually are very particular about what they eat. Most of the time I feel it's because of sensory issues in their mouth, and because of this some of them do limit what they eat, sometimes so severely, that it could result in nutritional deficiencies. When my daughter was born she was never a hungry child. I remember when Marley was few weeks old she fell asleep for five hours and did not wake up to eat. I actually had to wake her up to eat. Being that she is my first child I thought it was normal, but I soon discovered that it was not.  At this age children usually wake up every 2 to 3 hours to feed, and they are very hungry.   She never finished the appropriate amount of formula for her particular age. I tried breast-feeding but she would not latch on. I later found out, through Marley's neurodevelopmental pediatrician,  that children with autism have difficulty latching onto breast-fee...

My daughter Marley with my nephew Shawn. What are the realities of autism being genetic.  I am not an expert on genetics or anything like that, but I do know that autism has affected my family.  My 2nd cousin is 16 years old and diagnosed at a very early age with autism. Just recently, I discovered a few photos of my grandfather. In each photo he was not looking at the camera.  It wasn't a situation that he was looking away by accident, it was an intentional 'can't look in your eyes' type of situation.  When I asked my mother about him and his tendencies, she admitted that, now in hindsight, my grandfather had stimming tendencies. He would pace back and forth, just like Marley, and rub his fingertips insistently.  He would do this for a long while, and people around him would notice and comment. My uncles would occasionally tease him endearingly.   I also know that my husbands aunt, although never diagnosed, had severe tendencies leaning towa...

First let me start by saying that not all kids that have SPD are autistic but most autistic kids have SPD. I want to make that clear because one of the ways parents sometimes determine whether something is not right is because their kids are hyper sensitive to sound, light or clothing. In some cases even hypo sensitive to pain.  Marley can cut her finger and it seems like it doesn't even phase her. But if you sing 'Happy Birthday' too loudly, she'll cover her ears and scream 'too loud'.  This is Marley being 'over-processed' by the bright sunlight. She tried to tolerate it because she wanted to go on her swing. Swinging is another form of stimming for her. As in my personal case, I am not Autistic. I was diagnosed with ADHD at 6 years old. At that time it wasn't even called ADHD (I am now 42 years old). It was called short attention span with mild hyperactivity and mild depression. I was reevaluated when I was in my twenties and while th...

Like most parents, I like to observe my child at play. I like to watch her with her imagination going and how she behaves with her dolls and toys. Sometimes my child seems to not play with toys appropriately. There is a difference between using imagination and not using a toy appropriately.  One thing is to use a toy race car as a moon buggy, another thing is to use it as a roller skate. She also loves to hide everything in drawers and cabinets. It drove my mother, her Abuela, crazy !!! She would find her salt shaker in her vitamin drawer...lol!!! Marley likes to take her plush toys, she has a Bowser and Enderman specifically, and wrap them with tape.   She covers them in rolls of regular tape, the kind you would use when wrapping a gift.  I'm still trying to figure out where she came up with this idea.  It would take me about 10 – 15 minutes a to try and unwrap all of her plush toys.   I would explain to her that doing this will ‘break’ her plush to...

My little girl had her first horse show !!! How proud am I ?!  Marley takes horseback riding lessons at Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship  celticcharms.org  . She has been taking lessons since October 2013. Marley has thrived in this environment and loves being with the horses and the other animals at the barn. She has also made a friend, which considering she has ASD, is a wonderful accomplishment. Hubby and I made some good friends also. Celtic Charms Therapeutic Horsemanship is an organization that only allows individuals with special needs to join. They accept individuals from age 4 and up.   Spiffy !!!   Although the equestrian outfit is not a requirement, I felt it was appropriate for the occasion. I think this makes her feel like she is part of a group with no judgement Before the show started we had to sign in and get her number to wear. She did exhibit quite a bit of anxiety. She doesn't do well in crowds and l...

Wednesday, June 25, 2014 we decided to go to Crayola Experience in Easton, PA.  It was about an hour and a half...unless you follow Google Maps......then it turns to 3 hours !!! But anyway, we got there in one piece, and Marley took it all in stride. If you don't already know, my daughter was diagnosed with Asperger's when she was 4 years old.  Which, since the DSM change, is now considered ASD, high functioning (or level one), and ADHD.  My daughter has sensory issues.  She isn't able to deal with loud noises or lights that are too bright.  When we arrived I could tell that the noise was too much for her.   Luckily, mommy is always prepared!!! Earplugs to the rescue !!! I also brought her sunglasses, but it wasn't overly bright in the building so she didn't need them.   Putting in her earplugs !! As we walked around she realized it wasn't as loud as when we first arrived, so after about 30 minutes, she took her earplugs out, looked at me an...