It's been a year since my last post! I've been very busy with so many changes in Patricia's schedules, I can't find time to write, not to mention the changes in her sleeping pattern that changes from sleeping at 4am to sleeping early and waking up at 3am..=) But since it's Autism Awareness Month once again, I'm doing my share, in my own little way.
Patricia is now 7 years old, can you believe that? It's been 5 years since she was diagnosed. It's been a roller-coaster ride with so many ups and downs and trials and errors. We learn to accept and embrace that these are parts of our lives. We are now more at ease, comfortable and relaxed in handling the challenges. One thing we learned is not to expect too much from Patricia, her therapists and teachers. They can't perform miracles (but for me, the small miracles they've made are so many I can't thank them enough) and make Patricia a normal child. We all just want her to be happy. That's our primary goal. Others just follow. And the way Patricia is now, we're so grateful. She may still have tantrums as she still has fears (she's still scared of riding the elevator, hearing Mickey Mouse Hotdog song, and lately of the dark.) at least we already know how to handle her. Other than that, we've really come a long way!She's completely potty trained, oh, except when we go to the mall! She doesn't like going to the mall's comfort rooms because she fears that she'll be seeing an elevator. She can now go grocery shopping with me without riding the cart. Now, the problem I have is when she hoards everything she wants. 6 pcs of Cheetos, 6 pcs of Lay's, 3 bags of Hershey's Kisses, 6 pcs of Chocolait, etc!! Gosh! We need to be rich daddy! She now knows how to remove her clothes, which means she can remove it by herself and go take a bath in the bathroom by herself too, which happens at around 3-4 times a day!! Waaaahhh! She can also say what food she wants to eat. Her favorite words (which she says very clearly), "Jollibee" "spaghetti" "McDo" "cheese" (for cheeseburger, she only eats the cheese) "french fries" "KFC" "pizza"... no wonder she's now 80 lbs!! The clothes we buy for her are for 16 years olds. She can now borrow clothes from me. Hahaha!
At this point in our lives, we want nothing more than to give her a happy, enjoyable, comfortable and healthy life. A positive environment without too much pressure on her to act normal. Where she can be herself, enjoy life and feel loved. In my first posts when she was first diagnosed, I said I'll squeeze the autism out of her in any way I can, now what I want is just to give her overflowing love embracing her and her autism. And we won't stop until our last breath.
Happy Autism Awareness Month!
