Warning: mammoth post follows! 
I don't think I've posted since the start of the summer, and a lot has changed for us since then. I remember saying I was going to make more effort to post on the thread. Well, at the end of June, I found out I was pregnant again! Mis-timed rather than unplanned 
but we're all happy. So all my plans for the summer holiday went out the window as I was knackered and feeling sick! Anyway, much better now and we're all back on track.
Hello to all the newer people, and the old ones that have reappeared!
Onto DS. He is doing really well. Going through a grumpy teenager patch this week and last week, but good otherwise. We've been doing TH 18 months; DS is 4 and a half. He was diagnosed with autism just after we started. Would he still get a dx today? Not sure but he has definitely come very far since then, and I do feel he is slowly moving away from that dx.
His language and undstanding has come on in massive leaps. Sentences longer, more complex etc. He still often babbles. It's in English but doesn't make sense. It's kind of like he's seen people having conversations but doesn't really know what to say so makes something up.
His eye contact has improved hugely in the last 3 or 4 months. This is really noticeable when we're talking.
He was in nappies until about a month ago, then (bizarrely) toilet trained himself overnight. He has only had a couple of accidents since and it's really been quite amazing! Still wears one at night but it's always dry in the morning. However, we are now constantly reminding him to remove his hand from his pants!! There was definitely some kind of developmental brain leap because at the same time, his nursery commented that he was suddenly far more engaged than he had been (though his attention is still pretty poor on activities he didn't pick).
Social interaction is coming but still quite behind. He does enjoy playing with other children but isn't too good at initiating it. This has improved as his language had improved, and I've always been convinced the 2 are linked for him (despite being told otherwise). He's better with them when it's a running about game/hide and seek rather than imaginative game. His imagination has come on but he would never pick that type of game to play.
I am considering giving gluten free another go. We tried it for a month last year and saw no difference. Since then, we've been more 'gluten light', try and avoid it but don't worry about small amounts here and there. Last weekend, DS was shopping with me and asked for a wheat-based cereal. They sometimes have cereal as a snack or after their protein breakfast. In this last week, I definitely feel a brain fog has descended and I'm linking it to the cereal, which he loves. He also is often constipated, looks tired with bags up under eyes, and has very spiky concentration. Thanks for that list Indigo, very helpful. Can I ask, were you very strict about it all the time, or did you allow small amounts on occasion?
Our next big worry is starting school. We are in Scotland and due to his birth date, I was able to defer his school entry by a year. He should have started in August. But, I can't buy him another year and he needs to go next August. Or be home educated, as we have been thinking that through too. I'm putting off visiting schools but need to get it done. I'm concerned that they will just view him through his dx, as that's what all the other 'professionals' do. The problem is his attention is still very poor if it's not something that interests him, and this has been identified as his major barrier to education. And the more I read about home ed, the more I love the idea and think it would really suit him. Not sure what we're going to do yet.
Well, if you've got this far, well done! I said it would be a big one!
Oh, I was going to ask about probiotics. I know some of you use them. Which ones? Robin recommended trying some as DS is prone to constipation. I bought one I found online but wondering if anyone else has a recommendation. Are some better than others?