World Autism Awareness Day

 

April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day. On the eve of April 1 and 2, prominent buildings across North America and the world will turn their lights blue to raise awareness for autism and to commemorate World Autism Awareness Day. 

I was first exposed to autism when I enrolled in a SPED class as part of my MA requirement. I remember memorizing important information about autism and other developmental conditions. Everything I knew then was based on my professor's lecture, stories from classmates and observations of children with special needs. I remember our professor asking us to do a school visit and writing a report about it. I observed a number of  children with autism. I talked with their parents. I interviewed their teachers. I was given a tour of their classroom and therapy room. I wrote my report and waited for the results.  I was happy to receive my final grade. I felt I knew a lot until my very own son was diagnosed to have ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). Autism is real! It is happening right before my very eyes. It was then that it hit me -straight to the heart.  As a parent of a child with autism, I know that there is so much to be done with  the little time we have in our hands. I never imagined that I could love as much as I am loving my son and my family now and that is all because of my son's diagnosis. Autism changed me. It changed the way I live my life. It allowed me to see the beauty of life despite the challenges we face each day. It allowed me to see beyond the diagnosis. Experiencing autism is something that no textbook can ever describe.

It all begins with the diagnosis. Though we some kind of expected it, thanks to the "red flags" that I memorized in class, we felt sad but relieved. Relieved to know that there was indeed an explanation and a name for our son's condition. At that time, he was labeled - Autistic.  We knew the moment we were out of the doctors clinic, something needed to be done. I felt the urgency of the situation. I wanted to do many things all at the same time. Anger, grief, loneliness? Yes, I felt all of those, too. But I forced myself to stop grieving and start seeking for answers to help my son.  The never ending research started and is ongoing as of this very moment.I never stop learning about my son's condition and I personally monitor all of his interventions. Is he high functioning? Or does he belong to the low functioning group? I really do not know and  I honestly do not care. He is living a wonderful life and I want to believe he is getting better each day. I learned to trust God to do what is best for us. And God has never failed me and will never fail me. We will recover our son! In fact, he is already on the road to recovery!

If you are a special parent like me, don't lose hope. Learn about the condition. Research. You are your child's greatest advocate. Love, love, love. It works wonders! Expect miracles to happen each day. Celebrate your child's achievements no matter how small. Pray and pray unceasingly. The Lord listens to our prayers and ask your child to pray for his healing, too.

Let us all raise awareness for Autism. Children are being diagnosed each day. Let us offer our prayers and love for each and every child affected by autism and their families too. Let us support Autism Awareness  and light it up blue on the eve of April 1 and  April 2. We are doing this for the love of Joshua and for all the children and families who, just like us, are in the same challenging but exciting journey. May God bless us all!



Home is Cool

"Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it." - Proverbs 22:6

We officially ended our homeschooling year 2010-2011 last week.  It has been 2 years since we bravely  got  into homeschooling. Deciding to homeschool our children was indeed a difficult decision. Aside from coming from a family of educators and not to forget that I was once a teacher, too, sending our son to school was one of his best intervention. It has indeed worked wonders for him. After 2 years in a SPED school set-up he was mainstreamed to a regular preschool classroom. It was indeed the best years... until we experienced the joy of homeschooling.  Homeschool? Are we nuts? Are we crazy?

I have a confession to make but let's make it our little secret. We are a crazy family!. We have no household help (no yayas for our 2 energetic kids) and we homeschool.  We do so many things that drive people crazy. But our craziness is what's making our life fun and our home cool! We have good days and great days! But of course, we also have our share of bad days and stressful days. But it is during these difficult moments when we feel God's presence the most, embracing us so tight and assuring us of His love. 

Sharing with you a beautiful Psalm that strengthened our conviction to homeschool.

 "Happy are those who obey the Lord,

  who live by His commands.

  Your work will provide for your needs;

  you will be happy and prosperous.

 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine in your home,

 and your children will be like young olive trees around your table.

 A man who obeys the Lord will surely be blessed like this." - Psalm 128:1-6

"Thank you Lord for the gift of homeschooling. Thank you for blessing our conviction to serve you as we love and serve our children and for allowing us to share with them a wonderful world of knowledge and love as we bring them closer to you - Amen"

Tuesdays with Isabela

"The best things you can give children next to good habits,

are good memories." - Unknown

It has been a routine for me and my daughter, Isabela to have our weekly date on Tuesday afternoons. While her brother is having his weekly Speech Therapy sessions, Isabela and I would go out and have our fill of McDonald's Spaghetti, Chicken Nuggets and Fries or Chowking's Wanton Mami (Isabela's favorite :)), Chicharap, Lomi and to top it all, Halo-Halo! Yum! Of course, she also does not forget to remind me to grab something for her brother,usually a happy meal toy or a book from the nearby bookstore. She excitedly hands it over to him when we pick him up from his therapy session.

We have been doing this for sometime and even if we go to the same place over and over again, we still find ourselves getting excited everytime. My heart is overflowing with joy everytime my daughter tells me how happy she is spending our afternoon together. She is truly full of gratitude saying, "Thank you mommy for bringing me to McDonalds. I am very happy!" Hay! Though there are still times when I feel guilty for not giving her the same attention that his brother is getting (since Joshua needs more attention than she does), I am more than happy to know that she appreciates every moment that I am spending with her.

Simple joys... simple needs... simple life...moments like spending Tuesday afternoons with my daughter, going to the grocery with my son, playing silly games with my wonderful children, family breakfast, sharing stories with the family before bedtime, listening to the kids argue who get to sleep with whom, evening family prayertime and our Sunday Family Day are just few of the precious moments that I hold close to my heart. It is my prayer that despite the busyness of my day, I may be able to create good memories each day for my children to remember and treasure for a lifetime.

Lead Us, Lord

The Lord says, "I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you." - Psalm 32:8

A day after my son's diagnosis, my husband and I did not waste any time getting in touch with people and centers that could provide intervention for our Warrior Prince. We called up schools, therapy centers and asked friends for recommendations. We scheduled assessments and committed ourselves to helping this wonderful boy. We also did our own research regarding his condition. I've spent late nights reading books and journals and absorbed everything that my mind could hold. He was into early intervention at the age of 2 years and 3 months. He started school and Occupational Therapy. Speech therapy followed the following year. He was non-verbal at 3 years old. We added ABA (Applied Behavior Therapy) before he turned 4 and at the same time we were introduced to the other forms of intervention such as the GFCF (Gluten-Free Casein Free) Diet and Biomedical intervention for Autism.

Even if we knew so little about the condition and the interventions in the beginning of our journey, we felt the Lord's hand guiding us along the way. He alone gives peace in our heart inspite of our son's condition. He also led us to consider home therapy programs to supplement existing therapy goals. We saw our son progressing rapidly maybe because we were able to do the activities and exercises on a regular basis and we were able to tailor fit each activity according to his needs compared to the usual once or twice a week therapy sessions. Warrior Prince spent 2 years in a SPED school. On his 2nd year, he was presented with the "Moving Up Award" for showing dramatic cognitive, physical, emotional and social improvements over the school year. His Developmental Pediatrician gave us his go signal to put him to a regular class so he was mainstreamed the following schoolyear. It was nearing the end of the schoolyear when we felt the Lord calling us to homeschool. It was a tough decision to make since socialization was a major factor for Warrior Prince being in school. We exerted all effort to look for that "perfect" school for him but it seemed that all roads lead to homeschooling. So in the end, we prayed for guidance and just decided to obey. We have been homeschooling for two years now and it has been a wonderful experience for the entire family. Everything is falling into place. We are just so happy with how things are turning out for Warrior Prince and the whole family ever since we started with our homeschooling journey. We continue to feel God's presence in our lives, guiding, loving and leading us to which path to take next.

Aside from all these, prayer is still our most powerful form of intervention. We continuously ask for prayers from family and friends and together we storm heaven with our thanksgiving and prayers for our son's recovery and healing. Yes, healing and recovery! We believe that recovery from Autism is possible! Even though doctors would say that Autism is a lifelong condition, we continue to hang on to the Lord's promise of a beautiful life for our family and for our son. For nothing is impossible for those who believe.

For now, we open our hearts to the Lord's leading. Which way now? This way? Or that way? Come journey with us and be amazed with God leading the way!

Home Sweet Home

"Everything that happens in this world happens at the time God chooses" - Ecclesiates 3:1

It was in 2007 when I finally decided to stay home and be a full time mommy to my 2 beautiful children. It was not the first time that I actually thought about it. I was planning to do just that a few years back even before I gave birth to our "panganay". But for some reason, it did not happen. I remember telling myself, "maybe it was not the right time yet". I loved what I do. It was not all about giving up my work but it was more of giving up something that I was so passionate about.

Many times I knew the Lord was telling me,"it's time!". I refused to listen. He was whispering it to my ears but I pretended not hear. I was on my 4th month with our second child when our firstborn was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The image of God shouting at the top of His lungs flashed in my mind. "Yes, God, I can hear you now. Loud and clear!" " Our dear son would be needing early intervention and I needed to be there for him. But since I was still working then, he was left in the care of a "yaya" (nanny) and his grandparents (thank God for Lolos and Lolas) until I finished the school year (I was a teacher, by the way). It was the longest 8 months of my life.

Everything happens for a reason and this time, giving up something that I love was much easier since I knew that I should be where I am needed most - home with the people that matters most to me.

Welcome Home!