Thursday, May 28, 2009

Max said ten new words this week



I would like to invite all of you to pledge to Team Max in this year's Walk For Autism. Max's mom, Katrina, has been deeply kind and supportive of me in the last few months. She played matchmaker for us with some of her friends who were looking to give away baby things they didn't need any more. She encouraged me when I was miserable and sick and wondering what the hell I had gotten myself into. And what I wonder, every time a note pops up from her with a word of advice about something I've complained about, or a check-in to see how I'm doing, is where the hell does she find the energy?

I can't possibly tell you what it's like to be the parent of a child with autism, much less what it's like to be that kid, but I invite you to consider the following figures:

Recommended treatment for autistic kids: Intensive Behavior Intervention. This is most effective between the ages of 2 and 5. It is recommended that children get a minimum of 21 hours a week of therapy. The cost, out of pocket, is $45 an hour. The wait list for funding for this therapy, as I understand it, is currently hovering somewhere between 2 and 3 years. That doesn't take into account how long you might have to wait to get a diagnosis in the first place. When I think about what this would mean for us--that in order to get appropriate treatment for our child, we would have to pay out more money than we make--I feel sick. And when I read about what Kat's working on to make sure Max gets all the opportunities he deserves, I feel inspired.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Come with me if you want to live.

...Guys?

I know I just moved and all, and there are probably a number of updates that people might be happy to have about what's going on in my life and this trailer is no longer even that new, but...

Apocalyptic sf makes me flaily.

The first Terminator movie made deep deep grooves in my brain when I saw it as a kid, and I am similarly excited about this, Christian Bale's douchebaggery notwithstanding. And how excited am I? I'm wondering whether it would even be possible to get in to see it on Thursday, and if not, how soon thereafter we could go, given our work schedules.

I am full of squee.

Friday, May 08, 2009

Oof.

At lunch today, shrimpbaby kicked me in the ribs so vigourously that I made an involuntary "huh" noise, and then stared down at my treacherous belly.
"Those are my ribs!" I told him. He kicked me again. "And I am currently using them!"

I can see that this is just preparation for things to come, for example the foolish notion that sleeping through the night is worthy of consideration.