Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Mean Mom

There are some days that I feel guilty because I can not wait for Jackson to get on the bus and go to school.  Today is one of those days.  He has been throwing fits the last couple of days whenever I have to redirect him.  It has been a long weekend!  We have been fortunate enough that he hasn't been throwing full-blown tantrums, but wrestling a 4 1/2 year old while your 18 month-old is screaming at you and you are 7 months pregnant isn't always a cakewalk.

I also feel guilty because in our home I get the fun title of "Disciplinarian". Yay!  Which means Matt is always the good guy.  To be honest, there really isn't a lot of discipline in our home because Jackson doesn't understand his wrong actions yet.  In the classes I attend regularly they teach that you use consequences rather than punishments for most situations.  However, Jackson has begun some destructive behaviors which we need to put a stop to right away.  He has been finding pens or crayons around the house (he can reach all the drawers and shelves) and started to write on different surfaces.  So far the casualties have been my rocking chair and a table.  My husband Matt tattles on Jackson and I am the one who has to show Jackson what he has done wrong and put him in timeout.  I think I am going to start insisting we rotate that part, because it is difficult to get upset at Jackson.   

Obviously, this is a huge learning experience for our whole family.  Our family dynamic is going to be very different from most families and we will have to rely on the people we know that are facing the same challenges for their advice. 

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Christmas Break

I used to really look forward to Christmas Break.  It is an exciting time that is full of family, parties and best of all, no school!  Yeah... that was before being a parent.  Especially a parent of a child with autism.  It's not that I don't enjoy spending time with Jackson, but it really throws a wrench in his routine.  Consistency is critically important for children with autism.  When Jackson was younger, he was more flexible. As he has become more aware of the world around him, I think he struggles with the inability of being able to communicate his needs and control his environment. 
 Despite his frustration, I feel like he did really well at parties for the most part.  There were a couple of tantrums and we didn't really get to socialize at most of the parties, but we made it through.  Our life is just different now.

Jackson didn't have any therapists during Christmas break either. After a week, he started displaying more negative behaviors.  He would scream, get naked, hit his head on the floor, get naked, push his little brother over, get naked, hit his head on the wall, get naked, jump off ridiculously high things and .....did I mention get naked?  I also failed as a parent by not preparing him for the transition of going to a new church class this year.  He had a meltdown when his class was led into a new classroom with new teachers.  Honestly, I didn't even think about it!  I am so grateful that we have an understanding primary presidency and an amazing aid that are so concerned that Jackson is learning and having a positive church experience. I think that we have everything worked out for next week, but time will tell.

Jackson has been able to get back into his routine and he finally seems to be happy and regulated.  He has been smiling a lot and is excited to work with his teachers. (sigh of relief)

                                                              Brotherly Love
                                                    I love Jackson's face in this one!
iPad and Grandpa