pumpkin carving

Lewis and I had some time on Wednesday afternoon and decided to carve the big pumpkin we got at the pumpkin patch. This was what it looked like before (above).


Lewis got really excited about pushing it over.


He got really into the seeds and saying 'hi' and 'bye' to the seeds as he took the lid off and on.


Lewis was pretty good company during the carving. Here he is with our finished product.



We toasted the seeds....very yummy.

Our very typical design (not too creative this year), but it still looked nice all aglow.

he saw something

Lewis has been stimming a bit more the last couple of weeks. The spinning of various objects has returned with a vengeance, and he has been obsessed with a couple of videos (anger and crying results when we tell him we're going to watch something else). His current favorite is a Thomas the Tank Engine video. He LOVES it. He's constantly reciting parts of it, and while it is a bit dry, Owen likes it too. These are two boys who love trains. When we get to watch a train going by near our house, that is the ultimate source of joy for the Shepherd boys.

Anyway, because of the stimming and OCD-like behaviors, we have been trying to get out and walk around more which seems to help him get rid of excess energy and get some other sensory input (jumping etc.) that he needs. Oddly, he has not been very excited about taking our walks like he used to be, but once we get going he has a good time. Due to his heavy therapy schedule, and the often cruddy weather, it isn't easy. But today was lovely, so we ventured out.

We were in the home stretch when Lewis looked up in the sky and said, "Airplane!" Sure enough there was a small airplane flying rather low over Bowling Green, and Lewis saw it and was so excited. I have to admit that my eyes produced a few tears. That is the first time (as far as I know) that he's noticed something like that at a distance and labeled it--calling my attention to it. What is common and obnoxious for many parents of toddlers had never happened in our world. Had he pointed at it, well, I might've let him watch "Thomas" twice. But for now, I'm so thrilled that our Lewis had such joy over seeing something out there. It was such a normal moment. We are longing for more of them!

little pumpkins

We went to Jackson's Orchard (see Lewis cheering above) for our annual quest for fun and fall pictures. It was a bit chilly, but we had a great time. It was Owen's first time out and about where he actually got to walk around some. He really liked it!

Justin had a few pics on his iPhone that we may add, but for now we want to post these and hope you are having a great fall. Lewis actually got to back to the pumpkin patch on a school field trip this week. We have a lovely collection of pumpkins now.

"pumpkin patch"--a preview

We took a ton of pictures at Jackson's Orchard (aka "pumpkin patch") over the weekend . As we sift through them, we had to post a few to keep you tuned in for the rest.




to be continued......

autism rates and Hep B

On Friday, Lewis had an evaluation at Vanderbilt in connection with the Baby Sibs study that Owen is part of. They needed to confirm Lewis' diagnosis of an Autism Spectrum Disorder so that Owen could continue to participate. Lewis enjoyed the eval, and their psychologists agreed with the original diagnosis of classic autism. I asked if it was possible to determine how severe or mild Lewis is at this point, and they said that at his age it is too early to tell. They do think he has a good personality for intervention and were pleased with how much he has improved since November. Unlike our first evaluation, I did not cry for days afterward. It was not news to us, and was exactly what we expected.

Sadly, we have become used to autism, and living with it day in and day out. It is still heartbreaking, and stressful....and our calendar is literally packed with therapy, school and interventions to help Lewis as much as possible. It is not easy!! But the small breakthroughs make it worthwhile, and of course we adore Lewis, and wouldn't trade him for anything or anyone else. Still, we are always interested in what is coming out about this disorder as people do their work to get to the bottom of it.

A recent study came out that suggests that autism rates could be as high as 1 in 91 kids today. It is scary to think about, and it makes me frustrated that less real research is happening to determine possible causes. I don't blame vaccines, but I do feel like certain kids are at risk and should not receive vaccines on the typical schedule. Recently, someone sent me THIS ARTICLE about a possible connection to the Hepatitus B vaccine. I had never heard about it before, and was sad that this is one that Owen received all the doses for. Regardless, I wanted to pass it on to those of you out there with kiddos, and grandkids, neices, nephews, friends or whatever who are trying to determine the best way to vaccinate and keep these kids healthy. The people who are struggling with vaccines are not all quacks! Until research proves them wrong, I think more should be done to check into these connections.

it's potty time

The city schools had fall break for the last week and half. We took that opportunity to attempt potty training with Lewis. We are so happy to report (if you haven't read my last 10 or so Facebook status updates) that Lewis is doing really well. The first day I was ready to give up over all the accidents, but the next day he spent 2 hours dry in our church nursery. It was not easy, but in just 10 days or so......Lewis is staying dry, and using the potty very quickly, which is a huge bonus.

We had the aid of behavior analyst Amanda Reagan to guide us in this process. She got us started and set up the system of so many minutes on and off the potty that first day. We used videos, toys, and all kinds of fun stuff to keep Lewis on the potty until he was able to go.


Then we spoiled him profusely with candy and special toys so that he would feel rewarded when he used the potty. When he had an accident the special toys went away. After about day 3, he rarely had accidents and needed only minor reinforcement for urination. He still does not initiate going to the potty, but as long as we take him every 30 minutes to an hour, he will stay dry all day. He is starting to have fewer accidents with bowel movements too, though we have somewhat of a schedule for those as well. Yesterday was perfect, and he even woke up dry this morning. At home, and for small trips out, Lewis wears his underwear (see above) and rubber pants just in case. But honestly, I don't think he needs those anymore either, as long as we keep his schedule. I have to say that while we are mostly responsible for his success, he has learned what is expected and is compliant and eager to stay dry. We believe in time that he will begin to initiate going and become more aware of what that feels like. Since he has such a hard time understanding complex language and concepts we were not sure how potty training would go, and had our doubts at first. Lewis is proving to us that he capable of succeeding if we will make the effort to give him all the help he needs.

jackson's field trip

Some ladies from our church organized a trip to Jackson's Orchard last week, and thanks to Justin's mom (aka Grandma) Lewis and I were able to have some quality time by ourselves with the other moms and kiddos.


We did what they would normally do for a school field trip, and it was a lot of fun. Lewis was a bit thrown off by the lack of routine at the orchard, but was excited when we took the hayride on the apple wagon. We have a ton of kids at church, and these are just a few. (See below)


We got to pick out a pie pumpkin from the pumpkin patch. It was neat to see them growing on the vines out there. This is Lewis with our pumpkin.


Lewis out in the pumpkin patch.


Lewis especially enjoyed going down the big slide again, and got to meet a scarecrow person.


We rounded out the time picking an apple off a tree, and having an apple slush. It was pretty fun!

Since then, Lewis has been on fall break and we've been potty training. It's exhausting, but has been going well. More on that later!

baby steps

Owen has been making some good attempts at walking recently. In fact, today he has been doing great. He's walked several times from our coffee table to the TV (about 8 feet or so). Here are some of his tries from last week. Sorry for the lapse. We'll try to get him when he's not taking as many nose-dives.

our little disciple

Lewis has taken a sudden interest in the children's Bible we have called "The Jesus Storybook Bible." It's really a nice summary of the old and new testaments in easy to understand language, though it is still a bit too much for Lewis to understand. I love the way it connects each story to Jesus...even those Old Testament passages that are a bit odd. And the illustrations are just lovely.

We used to try reading it regularly, but it seemed a bit too much, so we had set it aside. Anyway, I had it out to show a friend the other day, and Lewis started looking at it. He's looked at each day, and come asking for me to read it to him a couple of times. He's sleeping with it tonight for the second time. The other night he even sneaked back out into the light so he could look at it some more! Our naughty child up trying to read his Bible. It's really kind of funny.

It's been one of the harder things with Autism......not knowing how to approach spiritual topics. The world of the unseen is very hard for Lewis, and it has been tough because we want our kids to know about God and what Jesus did for them (and for us). We have no idea what he is getting out of reading this Bible, but we are thrilled for the interest and will pray for the understanding to come. Children typically have the ability to trust in a deeper way, hence the term "faith like a child." We hope Lewis will develop knowledge and understanding of some of these spiritual, unseen things so that faith can take root. Maybe the wacky illustrations in this little Bible will aid in that understanding.