So much to say!!

I've been thinking about posting everyday for the last week. I have so much to say that the post in my head gets longer and longer and more and more overwhelming. Here is the condensed version, then I can get back on track!

1. We went to Las Vegas for a week. It was good to get away but vacations can be very hard of John. We wanted to go to some of the free attractions at some of the casinos but that actually requires walking through the casinos. That just doesn't work for John. One of his stimming behaviors is hitting his hands on each other and watching something scrolling gets those hands really moving. He wanted to stop and watch the slot machines scroll but kids just can't loiter around the gambling. He collapsed on the floor. Of course I was mad and told him to stand up. People around me were wondering what was wrong with him because he just collapsed and they probably thought I was the worst mother for not being compassionate and concerned about his ailment. I wanted to say, "He has autism and this is a tantrum. There is nothing wrong with him!" Needless to say, that drove me crazy!

2. When we got back we couldn't find our cat. When we left we looked and looked for him to make sure he was in the house and we were pretty sure he was outside. He will go out and not come back for 2 days so we couldn't remember the last time we saw him. Honestly, I didn't even think about putting food and water outside for him because we have so many wandering cats and other animals in our neighborhood. I really didn't want 4 cats, 12 mice and 6 gophers hanging out on our back porch waiting to be fed. Anyway, we were gone for 8 days and when we got back we thought the cat was gone for good. Don't worry, I guess cats are very resourceful and he showed up the second day we were back and now he is very reluctant to leave the house.

3. My parents took the boys camping for 2 nights and I think Kate was about to go crazy. She really missed them and when I picked up John (Scott decided to stay for 2 more days), he and Kate actually got along and played well together. That is a small miracle! Usually he is very mean to her.

4. We went out to lunch on Saturday and we left Kate's Zannies (aka blankets) in the van. There was a van very similar to ours that was leaving the parking lot and she thought it was ours. She kept saying, "Oh no, oh no, oh no!" I'm sure she thought she would never see her beloved zannies again.

5. Today was the first day of school for Scott. It's amazing how much he has changed in the last two years. When he was in kindergarten and I dropped him off at school, we would have to wait for someone to arrive so he would have a friend to walk in with. If no one showed up I would have to walk him to his class. I was supposed to drive this morning but one of the mom's I carpool with called. Her daughters wanted her to take them and help them find their classrooms. I asked Scott if he wanted me to take him and help him. He said he didn't care, he could just line up at the 2nd grade doors with all the other kids. I was so impressed.

I'm all caught up so now I can get back to my normal posting schedule. See you tomorrow!!