the little ticks...

 Everyday is the same but different with Hunter he has a lot of coping mechanisms that keep him calm. For instance he will sit on the floor with a book and strum the heater vent like its a guitar,he will stand in front of the microwave lay his book on the table and bang in rhythm on the front of the microwave and he will often bang the top of the glass candy jar on top of the microwave for added affects.Lol.It can get loud at our house.Most kids have a favorite teddy bear mine has a old insert book to a leapster that we call 2 pages because it used to have 10 but it is so old and disgusting it fell apart and with it he carries the handle of a fly swatter the swat is gone but he twirls the handle.I'm not sure about this one yet but he covers up the clock on his dvd player with the dvd remote so he cant see it he has from time to time done it to our tv and he does it at the inlaws too, at first I thought it was odd but I work with a 28 year old Autistic girl and one of her jobs requires her to sit across from my desk and every Friday she comes in and covers my clock with whatever paper is laying their.I asked her one day why she covered my clock and she told me because my break is at 1145.

 Hunter recites his tv or movies that he watches all day everyday and it never stops and when he is real excited he flaps his arms and the crazy thing is this is all normal to us we dont even notice the little ticks he has I just wish someday I could really understand what he has going in his mind.He just called me into his room to look at the computer to read a word and he has his you tube that he is watching in Arabic and I said Hunter I can't read that he said oh mom yes you can.lol.Any movie that he can convert into another language he will and watches it then he will rewind it back and forth.I'm sure some day he will speak another language and I will have no idea what he is saying.

Dvd's and Movies

Kids with Autism tend to like and want to have the same thing.Have I mentioned he has so many movies and dvd's that when he gets them all out they cover his play room floor.They are mostly the same title when he asks for a movie he wants the same as he already has.I think he has at least 6 copies of Toy Story 3.This may seem crazy to most but this is normal to us.Yes, we have spent alot of money of the same movies.If he goes in the store that is IF he goes in a store with us he will grab all the same movies he already has and we dont ususally leave without getting one he already has.

he likes....

Hunter likes....spaghetti,doritos,goldfish crackers and diet coke.

Hunter dislikes....dogs that bark,kids that cry,geico commercials.

Hunter likes....tootsie pops,ring pops,ice cream.

Hunter dislikes....anyone that sings to him however he loves music we just cant sing it.

Hunter likes...blinds shut with blankets over them,doors shut,sitting freezer strumming the grate like its a musical instrument.

Hunter dislikes...going places,birthday parties,me on his computer so we had to get another one.

Hunter likes....computers,you tube and Thomas the Train.

Hunter dislikes....wearing clothes,shoes,and gloves.

Hunter likes....long sleeved shirts,his hood or hat on at all times.

Hunter dislikes....Haircuts.Thank you Miss Michelle for putting up with us.

Hunter likes....Toy story,Scooby Doo,and Curios George.

Wonderful People

Words can not describe  how wonderful all of Hunter's teachers,aides.bus drivers and therapists have been.He is a handful at times....he escapes from the classroom and runs down the hall,he runs into other classrooms and says non appropriate words,he has taken off or tried to take off his clothes a time or two in class,he says NO alot and clears his desk of schoolwork,and this is just some of the things he does but at the end of the day they still care about our son so much and want to help him succeed in school.These people are not paid enough for what they do for our kids at school.

While I am on wonderful people let me tell you about my in-laws if it wasnt for them I don't know where we would be they have watched Hunter from day one and have helped us in every way to assure Hunter gets to where he needs to be if we are working or just being there to help give us a break.He has his own room at their house and his habits are usually the same eats the same things,watches the same movies,wears the same clothes.He loves to go there and see his Mamaw and Pawpaw.They are definetly Hunter's Heroes!

Third Grade

So here we are third grade...a new teacher,new kids,new expectations and new nerves.The first day of third grade Cliff and I were real nervous Hunter is so routine oriented that a new classroom and teacher had us freaked out.I took him to school the first day just to see how he would react he seemed to be fine I thought for sure he would want to go straight to Mrs. Ford's classroom which is right down the hall but he didn't.The first few days were ok but he did have to be harnessed to his bus seat again for a few weeks but as Cliff put him on the bus each day and Linda his bus driver and Marie the aide(have I mentioned they are saints for dealing with what they deal with)they just kept at it and eventually he figured out he was not going to get his way he stopped needing that harness....for now.

Mrs.Marsh was his new teacher and he had new aide but she decided to quit and Miss Michelle was floating from school to school so she was only in the room a few days a week.The classroom got a new aide her name is Mrs.H (aka Cookie) and she is WONDERFUL.I appreciate this woman more than I can describe.She has so much patience with Hunter.Hunter is still not completely potty trained but she has put him on a schedule and he now can wear underwear all day long at school.Hunter follows his picture schedule everyday and if he sees a change he is questioning why.He seems to like the older kids more because they dont cry as much in the classroom and wants no part of going by Mrs.Ford's room now in fear a student will be loud or cry.Any kind of crying or yelling puts him in shutdown mode.We were at ease hoping third grade would go great.