For the past few days I have been very busy. Monday I attended a conference in Columbia SC where Dr. Tony Attwood spoke to us about Autsim/ASpergers Syndrome. I have waited on him to come to a conference close by as he is the guru of Aspergers. I have several of his books and there are even more I would love to buy. His insight concerning Aspergers is amazing and he offered many solutions and ways to deal with situations/challenges that can arise with children that have Aspergers. I couldn't write fast enough. Amazing and very enlightening. So...that's where I spent my day on Monday. I am glad I waited for him to come this close. Next stop a bigger conference with Dr Attwood, Temple Grandin, and some of the other great gurus/voices/researchers of Autism. It's all overwhelming...so much information...but it is well worth it. I try my best to put most of it to use with Greyson but I'm by no means perfect and do tend to slip now and again. That is the reason I continue to read and attend conferences. Practice makes perfect right? You never stop learning so I intend to learn all I can about my son and his way of seeing our world. It truly amazes me. So...that being said...a friend of mine had sent me the volunteer forms for the "Lose the Training Wheels" Camp months ago. I read about it and decided to volunteer. It started this week as well so Tuesday once I got back I headed off to my first volunteer experience with LTTW. Greyson is in Karate Camp this week in the mornings so I timed my volunteering to coincide with that. he goes to Karate form 8am until 12pm and I do my shift of LTTW from 9:30 until 11:15. I want to tell you guys he has been doing awesome at Karate Camp and Friday he tests for his brown belt! He is only 3 belts away form black belt...Good Lord that's exciting and scary all at the same time. His Karate teacher was really proud of him because he was one of the few to learn the Kata and memorize it in one day. The Kata is when they go through several moves one after another and it looks almost choreographed. I watched him when I took him to Karate class Tuesday night doing it and was dumbfounded by his grace & skill. I was sooo proud of him. He really embraced that in his morning camp and had it down that night. he was doing it with 2 black belts! I must get a video I tell you. Anyway...I have to return to stories about my camp experience now.I arrived at camp not knowing what to expect and let me tell you...it was and is amazing. I was assigned a boy I will call "J" who was like a bigger Greyson. What a gem! How blessed I was to have worked with him. He had me cracking up. There were several of us assigned to him trading turns chasing him around the gym on his bicycle. He was wide open and ready to ride so by the time my turn came I was running full out around and around. My pride would not let me cave to early to ask for relief, but I could have used a sit down after about 3 laps! While he exclaimed he had the fastest legs in the world I was begging our Lord not to let me fall out and die there. In my head of course. hahahaaaa I had a full blown sweat going. We finally had to tell him he needed to go medium speed because he got so excited at one point he was loosing a little control int he turns and drifting. It was a proud moment to him though. He told me look at me...I'm drifting...I keep drifting. I continued to run with him while telling him on occasion, "Slow down a little in the turns". He was great and I loved working with him. He said his hands were burning too from holding the handlebars so tightly. He was very honest about everything, down to his bottom hurting from sitting on the seat too long. It was awesome working with him and I can't begin to tell you what a gift these kids have to offer when you are there spending time with them. Today I headed out and was matched with a little girl I'll call "k". She was amazing too. Squealing and hollering to beat the band while riding along on her bike. She was Autistic as well and very determined. She also would get to pedaling quite fast and I had to slow her down a few times due to her being very unsteady once the speed reached max capacity. She also had words of wisdom for me. She told me her bike was beautiful, she told me she pedaled fast, and she mimicked alot of what she heard us tell her. At the end I believe she was tired because she was stemming more and getting a little more unpredictable. Stemming is a way Autistic kids calm themselves or lower their anxiety levels. (ie: hand flapping, repetitive touching, etc...) She liked hopping on and off the bicycle first one side then another. She would sometimes let go of the handlebars to clap...yes...she kept me on my toes and I loved every minute of it. The funniest thing was her at the end. She promptly pointed her finger at me and said, "K" you better be good or you are gonna have to go sit with daddy! No talking to me you hear! I am gonna go fast and you just go over there!" (She spoke to me like I was her) I said, "I have to stay here with you. That's my job right now." I guess it worked because off she rode with me in tow...She was trying to hop off & run more at the end. I think she had had her fill for the day and she kept telling me...I need to run! Can I run now? Her dad was insistent that she keep riding. I think it may have been better to let her run some but what the heck do I know. After that she told me...I want to fall and I want to fall my bicycle! It basically became a battle of her vs. me and me saying you can't fall your bicycle. Finally the guy running the show came over to tell her she had to get off and get a drink of water. He explained she couldn't fall her bike so that took care of our slight drama. At the end she let me give her a huge when I asked and then burped right in my face...too funny!
The other amazing story was as I awaited my turn with "k" I sat and talked to "J"'s mom. I told her what a pleasure it had been working with him the day before. We got to talking and he has an amazing talent for art. I had said how much he reminded me of my son...just a bigger/older version. We started telling stories and I found out he has illustrated a book she wrote. Like a child's book and she showed it to me. it was remarkable. He is soooo talented and could easily be a cartoonist. he should work for Disney or Pixar. She also told me some funny stories about how when he started getting hairy legs he looked at her and said...Mom, I am turning into a monkey! I died...I could so hear Greyson saying that in about 5 years! What a great guy. How did we get so lucky to share our lives with these great kids. Such a blessing that so many people unfortunately do not see. They are sooo missing out!
It was great to be around these kids each unique in his/her own way, yet they all have some similarities in their challenges. Some just to a higher degree then others. They all amaze me in their perseverance to ride a bicycle and I am sure they meet all of their challenges with the same enthusiasm. It was wonderful to watch and be a part of it all. I can't wait until next year. I want to sign Greyson up if he isn't riding his bike yet. The program opens doors for these kids and gives them a boost in their self esteem for sure. Great stuff! As for Greyson, he is doing great and lobbying everyday for more LEGOS. We may go broke form LEGOS alone. He has stayed busy this summer and I intend to keep him that way until school starts. It's what works! Good night all! ...and for my girl Susan...Welcome to Moe's!!!!!!!!! hahahaaaaa
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