Welcome! I am the single parent to two teen boys on the autism spectrum. I have been writing at this site since June of 2005. My youngest son, Matthew is fourteen with severe autism and behavior issues, as well as being non-verbal. Matthew has been on anti-psychotic medication for over seven years now. In the past he has had feeding therapy and floortime. In December of 2010 we started in home ABA therapy to work on toilet training, using utensils, drinking from a cup, toothbrushing and to stop the smacking of the walls. Matthew loves to run laps around the track at school. He is in a MRS class - mental retardation severe - the only boy with several girls who have down syndrome. This is a better fit than the autism class throughout elementary school with the same six boys. I see him as being the next Carl Lewis - Special Olympics could be in his future. Matthew is in eighth grade and will be attendig high school in the fall of 2011.

My older son, Nicholas is fifteen, turning sixteen in March and considered higher functioning on the autism spectrum. He was fully included from first through fifth grade. He is now in high school and has been attending California Virtual Academy, an online school utilizing www.K12.com curriculum since sixth grade. He wants to be a zookeeper like Jack Hanna. He was thrilled with the visit to Sea World over spring break on his tenth birthday. Nick used to participate in weekly social skills´ classes with other children in his age group. His favorite television stations are Animal Planet, National Geographic Channel and Discovery Channel.

Both boys were retained in the first grade. They attended a special autism day camp every summer for eight years until they up and moved north without notifying families. I will be sharing tips, ideas, suggestions and resources for a variety of subjects. These will range from books for children, preparing for field trips, terminology, government programs, behavior issues and strategies, supervised visitation, assessments, social skills, communication systems and IEP goals. There are reviews on books, toys, CDs, DVDs and food related items.

I have been writing Reviews on Epinions for over ten years. You will also come across my reviews on Amazon. I sell books on ebay under the id of "autismfamily". I am on twitter and Facebook


Whether you are new to the autism world or have been living with it everyday for many years - I hope you find something of interest here and check back often for new articles. Parents´ helping other families is what support is all about. For many of us our own families are not in the picture and we gain insight and strength from those who have lived with autism on a daily basis.

Visit the Forum to discuss any article or topic you would like to share or get feedback on.

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I created a yahoo group in January 2004 that shares PECS cards and resources.





Click to join MakingPECSCards


Educational Autism Tips for Families 71 page resourceful ebook for families entering the school system with a recent autism diagnosis. Find out what issues take place over the course of a school day and meet these challenges head on.





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