New brothers!

Gabe has two new furry brothers, "Ricky and Major."  He loves them (a little too much at times)!  They have been a very sweet addition to our home.  

First Hair Cut!

Gabe finally got his first hair cut!  He did a great job of sitting in the chair and allowing the stylist to trim his beautiful curls.  Gabe's mommy is very happy that his curls did not disappear and instead are as curly as ever!!  

Zoo

Bruno, Gabe, "Neena," and I had a wonderful time at the Dallas Zoo this past Sunday. As you can see from Gabe's expression in the picture above, he was ecstatic to see one of his all time favorite animals, the giraffe! Gabe has been able to say, "gwaaaff" for awhile now and will point one out to me anywhere we go (on posters, clothing, in books, etc...). We spent a lengthy amount of time with the giraffe so that Gabe could study this creature he finds so intriguing.

Bruno attempted to take Gabe to the zoo last November and due to Gabe's anxiety at the time, they only lasted about five minutes before leaving. Gabe never even had the chance to see any animals! We were so excited to spend an hour and a half during this visit. We consider that amazing progress! Gabe did have to control the entire outing as a means of coping with his anxiety. We could only go on certain routes and could not get him to look at many of the animals we passed. We even had to force him to go in front of the elephants and the giraffe, but once we did, he was truly amazed at the sight of these enormous animals.

Our trip to the zoo was fun and a fantastic learning opportunity for Gabe. We do not get to experience many "typical" family outings, so this is a day that we will cherish!

Missing Pieces

Missing Pieces Mark Leland /Tim Calhoun Mallory Records/Nashville copyright 2005 http://www.myspace.com/markleland It was a mid December evening, in a room of heavy breathing, When I looked into my little baby's eyes, And like the ships that sail the ocean, he had captured my emotions, and wrapped them up just like a gift at Christmas time, I thanked the Lord above that he was mine, I prayed to God that everything was fine And after months we saw him changing, Nathaniel's speech was rearranging, So we took him back to see what they could find, And after ironing out the creases, They came up with missing pieces, And they told us that autism's on the rise, I looked into my little baby's eyes, I promised him to find the reasons why, Now I lay him down to sleep I pray the Lord my son could speak, And make him strong, where he is weak, This I ask of You.. And just like him, there's many more, That need our help to win this war, Cause who knows what might lay in store, To help them make it through. The doctor says, there's so much more to do, to put the pieces back together, but it's up to me and you So now we lay them down to sleep And pray the Lord they all could speak, Please make them strong, where they are weak, This we ask of You.. Cause now we know there's so many more, That need our help to win this war, And who knows what might lay in store, To help them make it through. Yes, who knows what might lay in store, The missing piece is me and you... I love you daddy (Nathaniel Powers/Calhoun talking)

Birthday #4!!

On Saturday we celebrated Gabriel's fourth birthday! Because he works so hard each day, we decided to honor his valiant efforts with a huge birthday blow-out!

What a great time! Gabe was overcome with joy and excitement when he saw the enormous Bob the Builder bounce house in our backyard! He ran through the house squealing with delight when he first saw Bob.


Our party theme was "Thomas," which is what Gabe is "in to" at the moment. Gabe loved his Thomas themed decorations and cake! He attempts to name many of the engines and refers to Thomas (his favorite) as "Ta-Ta."


I was a little nervous about how Gabe would handle having so many visitors in our home, but he seemed genuinely happy and content during his party. We had a turnout of almost 50 people!! We were thrilled to have our family and friends join us to celebrate this special little guy.


As Gabriel's birthday approached, we could have easily focused on the fact that we are not making the progress we had hoped to see at this point in our journey, but instead we chose to dwell on the many positives in our lives and to acknowledge the abundant blessings being granted to us from a loving God. We have a son that is so pure and innocent. He knows nothing of deceit, greed, or manipulation. Everything he does and every emotion he expresses is straight from his heart and with only the purest of intentions. Gabe works hard to learn things that come so easily to his peers and he refuses to give up. Instead , he shows us each and every day what a brave and useful soul he is... just like his hero, Thomas, "the brave and useful engine."

"Thomas is a tank engine

Who's small and short and blue.

He sometimes causes mischief, but

His heart is good and true."

(Railway Rhymes)

Prayers are Answered!

Many of you know that Gabe suffers from severe insomnia. He had a particularly bad week last week and was up for hours each night for consecutive nights. After several painful nights of less than three or four hours of sleep, I began to think I couldn't take it anymore and was literally losing my mind from sleep deprivation. Then came a glorious moment last Thursday evening when Gabe approached me, blanky in hand and eyes filled with that rare sleepy expression and pulled me to his bed. He fell asleep and slept the entire night! The same thing happened the next night and the next! He has slept through the night for five nights straight (a rare feat)! I was sharing my happy news with a friend (also the mother of one of Gabe's classmates) when she told me the sweetest story. Her family had attended Ash Wednesday service at their church and she and her son, Evan, lit a candle and said a prayer for Gabe and asked God to help Gabe be able to sleep. This was the night before our long stretch of sleepless nights finally came to an end! Her story of her precious son praying for my precious son reminded me of Matthew 19: 13-15, when Jesus reminded his disciples that children had the right kind of attitude needed to approach God. :) Jesus calls us to trust in Him with this same childlike faith.

Walk in My Shoes

A Walk in My Shoes

C. Waeltermann, 2007

Twas the Night Before Christmas
And all through the house
The creatures were stirring
Yes, even the mouse

We tried melatonin
And gave a hot bath
But the holiday jitters
They always distract

The children were finally
All nestled in bed
When nightmares of terror
Ran through my OWN head

Did I get the right gift
The right color
And style
Would there be a tantrum
Or even, maybe, a smile?

Our relatives come
But they don't understand
The pleasure he gets
Just from flapping his hands

"He needs discipline," they say
"Just a well-needed smack,
You must learn to parent..."
And on goes the attack

We smile and nod
Because we know deep inside
The argument is moot
Let them all take a side

We know what it's like
To live with the spectrum
The struggles and triumphs
Achievements, regressions….

But what they don't know
And what they don't see
Is the joy that we feel
Over simplicity

He said "hello"
He ate something green!
He told his first lie!
He did not cause a scene!

He peed on the potty
Who cares if he's ten,
He stopped saying the same thing
Again and again!

Others don't realize
Just how we can cope
How we bravely we hang on
At the end of our rope

But what they don't see
Is the joy we can't hide
When our children with autism
Make the tiniest stride

We may look at others
Without the problems we face
With jealousy, hatred
Or even distaste

But what they don't know
Nor sometimes do we
Is that children with autism
Bring simplicity

We don't get excited
Over expensive things
We jump for joy
With the progress work brings

Children with autism
Try hard every day
That they make us proud
More than words can say.

They work even harder
Than you or I
To achieve something small
To reach a star in the sky

So to those who don't get it
Or can't get a clue
Take a walk in my shoes
And I'll assure you…

That even 10 minutes
Into the walk
You'll look at me
With the respect, even shock.

You will realize
What it is I go through
And the next time you judge
I can assure you
That you won't say a thing
You'll be quiet and learn,
Like the years that I did
When the tables were turned.