Anyone secretly love having an asd perspective on the world?

[nikos]

I know it's hard and lousy at times, but does anyone else catch themselves thinking they would never be without having a child with asd and the unique and quirky way they see life?

It's let me be more myself, so if the boys can do their special things, I can get to have time out on my laptop too.

We are currently planning what we shall eat on Xmas day, it may well be 3 different special requests, one for each child plus one for us adults who are actually able to agree on one dish! It's our normal now.

Yes, I've loved having an alternative lens to view the world through.
He has made me challenge many of my assumptions.

ds with asd, 2 neurotypical kids- just had a big family meal and he had us all in stiches. When he is on form he rocks!!!!

I would say I can appreciate both sides. If I could take away the parts that make his life so hard and the bits that he gets so dreadfully angry and upset about, then I would agree.

I do have to say though, that he is the most fantastic company and when he's not here for any reason I miss him terribly, not least of all because its so quiet! I have also learned so much from him, about life yes, but also about Star Wars, Pokemon, Nintendo, The Universe/Planets ....... etc etc etc. The list goes on and on!

I have just been doing his annual Santa's Portable North Pole message, digging out photos of our holiday and trip to Legoland etc and its made me realise just how many good times there have been this year. Sometimes its so easy to focus on the negatives, but doing his Christmas message has really reminded me that its not all doom and gloom and in actual fact ds1 brings a lot of love, light and laughter into our lives.

lovely,lovely moose

Thanks for this thread. Yes if it's just us in our own little world then it's (mostly) easy. It's engaging with the outside world that causes most of the stress.

Moose what is your north pole message?

Now that we have have got Dd3 into a lovely school, we are seeing more of her wonderful character. She is who she is now warts and all.

There are days when she makes us roar with laughter, I love her honesty and the way she sees the world.

There are sad days too though when she doesn't understand the world and has a hard time fitting in.

This is a lovely threadnikos, it has made me think of Dd3's lovely ways.

Me

I don't miss care work (changed career a month ago) but I do miss sparky, stroppy teenagers with their own point of view that they're not afraid to express! Hurry up, DNephew (aged 4, not quite at the discussion stage yet) and DNiece (6, ASD, verbal but not communicating yet iyswim)!!

oodles, its a free online video message from Father Christmas. You set it up and personalise it and can add photos of events in your dc's year etc, then they send you an email with the whole message. FC talks to them about what he's been up to all year, then what they've been doing over the year, what they've tried extra hard at and what they want for Christmas. You can set it up as if they've been naughty or nice and FC then checks his files to see if they are on the naughty or nice list and either asks them to try harder between now and Christmas or congratulates them and says he'll be delivering their presents very soon.

Here

Last year's was great, because you could select different aspects of the message (tour different parts of the North Pole iirc) so it was slightly different for each child - useful when you have 3 dcs. This year I will have to watch it with them separately, as it seems they all get the same basic message with the details and photos changed etc.

yes, yes, YES!

even if DD will announce to the world that there is a bad smell, she orders you to stop in the supermarket because she "needs to tell you i love you and have a hug" it's the best

(i spent ages making the PNP vid for her, she looked at it and said 'oh right, you did that mum, those are our pictures' and walked off )

lovely thread

My BEST EVER was the day I dropped DS in the playground before school - of course he just walks off - as usual no goodbye or anything - so teacher standing guard HAS to interfere "what do you say to your mother????" - so he turns to me and informs me which models of bus re used by Metroline on route 33.
good lad.

Haven't been on mn for a very long time and due to stress having a sleepless night!!! Found this thread and it put a smile on my face!!!! I have a ds, aged 9, with aspergers and after watching young apprentice tonight I turned to my hubby and commented that ds would give them all a run for their money in a few years!!! He would probably try and fire Lord Sugar....he truely says it how he sees it!!! when he was first diagnosed 2 years ago someone said that one day I would embrace his diagnosis and now two years on I get that!!! Still have tough times, especially as I juggle a dh with OCD, but my ds really is a blessing!!!!

santastooearlymustdache - brilliant! Thought I was the only one who runs through the house to find the source of the screaming for "mum", only to be told, breathless and panicking, "Hug! Hug!" because DS had a 'love feeling' as he calls it.

There is something refreshing about the way DS ( 4 with ASD & LD) is 100% himself and that doesn't change in any social situation. He is who he is all the time! At the end of the church service on Sunday I was asked to pop into Sunday school to ask someone to come and play the final hymn - ds saw me and came back into church - as we went in at the front he turned and said "Hello" to the whole congregation, it was very sweet. Earlier in the service he shouted "Cake" "Blow" when the advent candle was lit.

I love the absolute honesty of DD (5). If she doesn't want to do something she will say, and I greatly admire her for that. Like she was one of 5 in her whole school who didn't go to a Hallowee'en party and she didn't care what people would say.

She did make me giggle at the weekend when I said "You need to go to the toilet" and she said "Well I'll go for a wee if grandma and grandpa go home because I want them to go." :o

Galaxymum yes!! DD has asked her GPs to go as she wanted to watch her dvd in peace!

I also realise (now) that if she wasn't the quirky little person that she is, i wouldn't have more than 50 different pictures of her standing on the same tree stump.
It's like a photo calendar of her life