“Thank You” 

It’s been awhile since my last blog post. Life took another unexpected turn when my mother passed away on August the 18^th. After a LONG trip down south for the funeral, with eight of us packed into a Tahoe, and Josh starting middle school the day after our return home I wanted to focus on making sure he was prepped and ready to go. I’m pretty sure he’ll be fine; after all he has been at the school for nine years already. I’m the one having the “middle school” anxiety! Then last night before going to bed I checked in on the new Facebook page I created, Me and “My” Professor (shocking…I know). I have found this to be a wonderful place where I can share what I have learned about Autism/Aspergers while learning from others as well. It’s off to a slow start but little by little I am connecting with other parents of children with Autism/Aspergers as well as individuals with this disorder themselves. I have received numerous messages from parents and adults on the spectrum encouraging me to continue on. I thought I would take the time this week to write a little “thank you” note to these individuals and to the autism community for offering me such a warm welcome!

First I would like to thank all my Facebook family and friends for putting up with all the “Josh” posts through the years. When he says something funny and insightful I just can’t help myself. When I come across information on Autism/Aspergers I am compelled to share and I’m sure at times it’s annoying. I wouldn’t be surprised if some have hid me from their newsfeed, LOL! That is why I decided to create my own page named after this blog, Me and “My” professor. It has become a place where I can FREELY post about Autism/Aspergers and share some of what Josh has taught me both past and present. Thank you to all my friends and family who hadn’t already hidden me from newsfeed and *LIKED* and shared the page. This is where it all begins.

Next I must thank ALL the other Autism pages that have *liked* my page and shared it with their followers. It’s an amazing feeling when I receive a message from another person on the spectrum telling me how they can see themselves in my Josh and that even though they have endured some difficult times they turned out more that okay, they turned out AWESOME! It’s a great feeling to know I can now, at any time of the day, ask an ASD related question and get feedback from those who have gone through it, are going through it and made it through . I trust you all completely and it’s comforting to know that I am not on this journey alone, none of us are, although at times it will still feel that way.

There are still those who don’t understand why I do this, many of which are family and close friends. To them I say, educate yourself on Autism/Aspergers. Until then you won’t understand. I am doing all I can do through this blog and the FB page to help, the rest is up to you!

I’m making this short and sweet today but I’m also making a promise to myself and all of you to try and blog at least once a week (emphasis on TRY). There are so many topics to dig into these days… He’ll be twelve in twelve days and I have slowly been having “the talk” with him. I guarantee a good blog out of this one! Just last week during one of our conversations he said, “STOP I’ve heard enough for now. My ears can’t handle it and my stomach feels like I’m going to throw up!” All done in very dramatic form, and that evening he did throw up! This from a child who hasn’t done that since he was three. Coincidence??? Hmm… I’m thinking first a blog on how he handles the death of loved ones. For someone so young you’ll be amazed how mature he is. (Just a couple of teasers for you.)

I’m closing with a final THANK YOU to all of you again. I’m hoping to reach 250 *likes* on my page by October 1^st (Josh’s Birthday). With everyone’s help I’m sure to get there and will continue my never ending journey of educating myself and others on Autism/Aspergers. I already have more *likes* on my ASD page than I have FB friends on my personal page. I’ll consider that a small accomplishment, for now. J

 

Thanks for giving me a moment of your time, and until next time take care! J

Ann