Comme-ci, Comme-ca

Every day can't be a good one. Andreas woke up at 3:30am to use the bathroom. He went right back to bed, and right back to sleep. Unfortunately, we didn't fall back to sleep before 5:00. My leg was feeling numb except for the zinging sciatica I haven't felt in days. We finally did fall back to sleep and none of us got up til after 9:00. A's very first question was, "Oue, buss, namae, Onika?" Which translates to, "Can we go outside and take a bus to the orphanage and Veronika?" My heart sank. Instead of jumping up to start the day, I dragged my feet. This part is very hard!

Then, I wanted to check my email, so Dan got A's breakfast. Nothing seemed to go right with breakfast. Then he wanted to sit in my lap. He is allowed to sit with me at the computer as long as he doesn't touch. He gets three chances, and then he has to sit somewhere else. Well, he was not happy when I moved him. He sat on the floor and immediately started the self-stim behaviors that we try to avoid. He would not respond to the usual distractions, but just kept getting further and further away from us. For a few hours he was very difficult to be around. I didn't know whether to leave him alone, or try to get him out of his funk. I decided to get myself pulled together first since most of the problem was created by me. It is easier to avoid problems than to stop behaviors once they start. Anyway, I didn't beat myself up. I set up a game for A and took a shower. Once again, 15 min. to myself is amazing!

When I came out, he was playing with the empty bottles. He was still vacant and silent except for stim noises, but at least he was doing something. I still didn't know what to do, but I have noticed he likes me to be busy. So, I did all my chores and tried to engage him every time he looked up or came near. Slowly, he began to respond. At snack time, he went to the fridge and demanded a snack by pointing and grunting and growling.:) I calmly told him that he could have a snack if he used words or signs and asked politely, and he did. What a relief!

After snack we went for a walk. Our plan was to try Hessburgers. It is alot like McDonalds, but supposedly better. We got through the door okay, but A refused to sit at a table. Instead of making a scene, we just left. We walked around a bit more and went home. We were praying he would take a good nap and wake up a new person. Well, he didn't sleep at all because someone was on the roof breaking off icicles. He played quietly in bed for an hour. Then he came running in to the living room with a huge grin, yelling, "Tere! Tere! Tere!". Our Little Man was back.

The rest of the afternoon was great. We bowled with bottles and A watched some tv and learned some new signs. Dan walked several blocks with 2 large pizzas. What a guy! Andreas LOVES pizza!! He ate 2 1/2 pieces and was still asking for more. So, even our bad day, turned out good in the end.