I have been meaning to write a post about why I haven't been writing many posts lately, but go figure, for all the reasons I haven't written about yet, I haven't finished it. So, I'm going to take the excellent suggestion offered by Wendy of Renewing Ruined Cities, who said I should consider re-posting some [...]
Posts under ‘sweet kid stuff’
At Any Given Moment
Image credit: Photo by Cayusa on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons The scene: Janie's elementary school. A first grade girl is throwing a huge, spectacular tantrum. She is alternately thrashing on the ground and trying to kick, hit and even bite her own mother as dozens of well-behaved, polite children walk past. Passersby are shocked [...]
Haiku for Janie’s Gift
Gleaming silver dimes pulled from Janie's piggy bank, clutched in her warm palm. One by one she drops, into the paper wrapped can, dime on dime. Plink. Plink. "Some kids have cancer, and it's bad that they are sick. I want to help them."
I Don’t Love You
Image credit: Photo by jessica.garro on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons Most parents hear it at one time or another. Some variation on the universal theme of parent awfulness: "I hate you. I wish you were dead. I don't like you. I'm not going to be your child anymore. I want a new Mommy/Daddy. You're the [...]
Measuring Love
Image credit: Photo by tripp-e on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons My daughter Janie ran up to me today, curls bouncing and eyes sparkling, and exclaimed enthusiastically, "Mama, I love you the most of anyone!" Then she thought for a moment and (clearly not wanting to leave her other loved ones out of the picture) [...]
Mother’s Day Haikus
"I'm so excited for Mother's Day," my kids say. What are they planning? Maybe they'll steal in, burrow under the covers, on Sunday morning. Maybe they'll give me a handmade card, crayon bright, delivered with hugs. Maybe a flower: bright, crinkly crepe paper or soft, living petals. It doesn't matter; I have my gift already. [...]
Guest Post: My First Hug
Today's guest post is from SavedAspie, who is the mom to an autistic son and an Asperger's adult herself. This sweet little post reminded me of so many of my own son's, each one savored when he reached them in his own time... (Note on comments: I'm a control freak and moderate my comments. I [...]
The Hardest Words
Image credit: Photo by Bekah Stargazing on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons My son Austen, like many other autistic individuals, does not like (or understand the purpose of) many of society's little pleasantries. He balks at words like hello, goodbye, please, sorry and thank you; anything that can appear in a conversation as part of [...]
Life and Death
Image credit: Photo by [phil h] on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons We have a friend who is pregnant right now, and this has got my son Austen thinking about life, although oddly enough, not how life begins, but rather how it ends. He hasn't really expressed much curiosity at all about how life starts; [...]
Christmas Shopping with Austen
Image credit: Photo by jsc. on Flickr Licensed under Creative Commons Last night my son Austen and I went out shopping so he could pick out a Christmas gift for his sister Janie. He wavered between two different stuffed toys before settling on one he thought she would like. When we got to the register, [...]
