We have pretty much binned all therapies too, not not without much soul-searching on my part. The Growing Minds VB programme was great and we still use ABA/VB teaching methods all the time but we have found that nothing really 'sticks' with DS unless it is done within the context of a highly motivating activity and/or it really matters to him. So he learnt loads of stuff at the table with ABA and could generalise it too, but he never EVER used it spontaneously unless it was something desirable. If we could find a 'key' activity, like Jimjams' Ds's surfing, we'd be away, because if he's involved in a motivating activity he learns very quickly. For example, a friend who's an excellent trampolinist (is that a word?) taught him a sequence of movements in 30 minutes the other day, and although she wasn't trying to get him to speak, he was using much more language than he ever does usually, and it was completely spontaneous. And I know this is all about reinforcement, and as such is pure ABA, but with DS the reinforcement has to be intrinsic to the thing he's learning, rather than an add-on - if that makes sense.
Within the limits of his language ability, Ds2 is pretty good at the emotional/social stuff: he can tease, share a joke and is extremely affectionate. He references us all the time to check our reactions to things and if he is enjoying an activity or someone's company, his eye contact is excellent.We do a lot of Floortime/Intensive Interaction type games with him, and always have done, and I believe that his strong engagement has much to do with this.
Latest idea is to convert a room in our house into a softplay/sensory area and to use that for therapy - for example teaching verbs and putting them into sentences - within the highly motivating framework of being bounced, thrown about, tickled and spun!