The Bon Bon Gazette

A long absence!

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Thu, 19 May 2011 17:37:00 +0000

So, I have done some serious neglect of this blog since September. There are no excuses. Just busy busy busy. What started out as a small "break from writing"... well, it became longer than planned.

There is too much to summarize but I promise... I will be back :)

By the way - Thanks to the article "trashing" the idea of street signs for "autistic child in area" over at slate.com - was it not for the snarky comments that needed moderation I would have gone another day without writing.

Gluten Free Pizza in Brick, NJ

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 11:56:00 +0000

More and more places are starting to carry gluten free pizza including pizza joints right here in Brick Township. This is a huge bonus for Alex because he loves pizza but its never been so easy as just calling for delivery or hopping out for a quick local bite to eat.

At the end of summer school the kids had a class party but the teacher informed me they were having pizza - which my son couldn't eat. Of course it was on very little notice and I didn't have what I needed in my pantry. I called Federico's on Rt. 88 and they had this ready for me to drop off to the class right at the time of the party. This is cheeseless pizza on gluten free crust made with grilled chicken and mushrooms. It comes in one size and they give you sealed plastic pizza cutter to cut it with. The cost was around $16.99

And now, the pizza place literally around the corner, Cuzzin's Pizza on Herbertsville Rd. serving gluten free pizza - and they have a very nice eat in dining room and full dinner menu. The gluten free pie comes in one size - "Personal" which I would say is pretty substantial its a 12" pie and is $10.99. Yummy and a good price!

Thomas Trains FOR SALE : The End of An Obsession

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 14:45:00 +0000

Its been long overdue, and my son's traintable has served lately more of a laundy folding table than for play. But, every time I mentioned packing it up or passing it on - Alex has flipped out and demanded that he need to keep his trains. Like many kids with autism, the trains - Thomas in particular - became an obsession for him. The hours he would spend lining up the trains or setting the tracks up "just so" - he loved those trains beyond words.

And so now here we are.. years later and my going into 4th grade child still has a train table in his room. The time for it to go has been long overdue. Not only would it clear up a lot of space in his room, it would make another child very very happy. Yesterday I asked Alex if we could sell his trains. I told him he could have some of the money for spending money when we go on vacation or for whatever he would like to buy. I also told him that I would set up his electric keyboard with stand that is new in the box and unable to be setup until he gives up the traintable for space. He said yes, and then said no - and then switched back - and said yes.

Before he could change his mind again I went into his room and put them into their proper bins and took some pictures so I could put it on craiglist. I listed it high figuring I'll take a lower best offer - I know from when I sold all his Fisher Price Little People toys (another huge obsession) this worked well.

So.. anyone in the Jersey shore area looking for trains?

Thomas Traintable, Trains, track, buildings & more - $400 (Brick NJ)

The first day of school!

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 01:46:00 +0000

Well here we go again!

Back to school.

Alex is in 4th grade and continuing on with his current program with a bit of mainstreaming planned for math and science. He's continuing to make great progress and was very happy to get back to school. I was thrilled that he wanted to re-use his Wall-E backpack and even happier when I found out he had the same bus # as last year - the less change the better for him.

Off he went!

Today was a big day here because his little sister was also going off on a bus... to Kindergarten. So our morning routine has gotten a bit more hectic and will take some getting used to. But, off she went.. and came home 3 hours later very tired from her first day. She's in the class of 2023, now that is hard to believe.

Camp Bridge is over but the fun(ny) memories live on

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 00:27:00 +0000

Alex had another fun summer that included swimming lessons, bike camp, baseball games, beach days, extended school year, surfing, music therapy and his favorite - Camp Bridge!

This year we signed him up for 2 weeks at Camp Bridge (in August) and he was so excited and ready to go each day to camp. The weather during week 1 was great and they swam every day - he came home exhausted, a good thing.

Halfway through the week he reported to us that he learned how to kill a snake at Camp Bridge. He went into gory detail about how you kill a snake. My husband and I were a bit horrified by this fact, but something told me he was 'telling tales out of school'. When I asked the director she confirmed that they did not kill a snake, in fact they hadn't even seen snakes this year. Last year, however, they did see a snake on their nature walk which I remember him talking about.

Week 2 began with colder weather and some rain. However, the sunny part was that Miss Beth, one of the directors who runs the camp, was back this week. He loves Miss Beth and had missed her from the previous week (she was away in Disney). When he saw Miss Beth, the first thing he asked her was "How was Disney?" and he was actually conversational with her. I love to hear when he makes improvement in this area!

One day when I picked him up, she told me that he had taken out the trash for them - without being asked. He just did it. They were impressed! Alex loves to help, and one of his "jobs" at home is taking out the trash, so when they told me about this I wasn't real shocked.

On one of the cooler days, they took a trip to a local farm which he really enjoyed. He did not, however, like the way that the pigs smelled. STINKY City!

The highlight for me was this "report" that I got from Miss Beth on the last day of Camp.

He is very literal. He asked if if he could get rid of a wet chair with soda on it at lunch time and I said yes then he threw it over the railing into the woods. The counselors looked at me to see why I didn't yell at him and I laughed and said I told him to get rid of it and that's what he did. Haha!

This is priceless to me. I can totally see him picking up the chair and tossing it over the railing of the pavilion and into the woods. While I am sure that is not quite what she had in mind by "getting rid of it" - I am so glad they "get" why he did what he did. And, yes - I'm still laughing about it!

What a great way to end summer - with a smile on our face!

Related Links:
Camp Week - A visit from the Therapy Dogs
Camp Bridge - Taking Autism To Camp

He's ready for a wedding or a party, Who's inviting?

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 22:08:00 +0000

So a few weeks ago, I shared how the first week at music/movement therapy class went - or rather didn't.. It was tough to see Alex meltdown and struggle over the environment. He has come so far over the years that maybe I have taken a lot for granted. Maybe I needed that wake-up call/smack in my face to remind me that after all, my son is autistic and has sensory issues. So many of his sensory hurdles have been put behind us, so I hated seeing him have a hard time.

This is video from the first week - doing the YMCA song and you can see him doing it, but "shhushing" at the kids around him to be quiet.

The next week, before class I made a point of going to YouTube and we looked up videos of the YMCA, how to do the macarena, and how to do the cha-cha slide. I let him watch them over and over again. He loves YouTube and I purposefully limit his exposure to it because 1) he could get into stuff he shouldn't on there and 2) he will watch the same movie over and over and over again.. We call that "You Tube Stimming" and I know that I'm not alone in this...many of the autistic kids I know like to do this. So I purposefully encouraged YouTube stimming on videos that had to do with learning these 'party/wedding dances'.

Here's what happened that second week when they did the YMCA song. Watch around the 1 minute mark for a remarkable Alex!

What a big difference, huh? Instead of the child who was telling others to be quiet. He was the loudest one. Ok, so we need to work on that a bit.

He also enjoyed learning the Electric Slide, with the help of one of the moms. And his favorite, they did Eenie Meenie (a Justin Bieber song).

Week 3 showed even more improvement and he is now doing all of the above dances plus the Cha-Cha Slide and the Macarena, independently.

This week will be out last session, Week 4 - and I know he'll be sad for "music class" to end. What a fun time. And another sensory hurdle has been jumped!

Surfing in Seaside with POAC & Sharks

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 18:23:00 +0000

Alex & his boogie board

Alex loves the ocean and looks forward each summer to the various surfing events that take place hosted by organizations like POAC, Best Day Foundation, Brick Recreation, and Surfers Healing. His favorite one year after year is the POAC surf in Seaside Park. There's been sharks lately in Seaside (and all over the Jersey Shore beaches) but we went anyways.

The kids were excited so off we went to the beach. This was a milestone in and of itself since I went with just me and the kids and no second adult. I couldn't have done that in previous years but this year I've actually braved the beach many a time with just me, myself, and I.

So we loaded up the Wonder Wheeler Beach Cart, packed his BZ BodyBoard, and off we went to Seaside. The kids had a blast playing in the water and Alex even let me uses his boogie board - wow, now I know why he loves it so much. He had a late surf time of 4pm and by that point the waves were pretty intense. Alex was ready to go catch some waves and he got matched up with his Surfer - I think his name was Sean.

I hoped to get some good pictures but after taking 2 pictures of him with his bodyboard my camera battery died, which meant I could only use my android phone to take pictures. I was able to capture a few moments but the picture quality isn't that great. Regardless of pictures, he had a blast and caught some pretty big waves! He kept getting flipped off of the board and swallowed more salt water than he could care to. I am so glad I had him in swimming lessons this summer, because his swiming skills were certainly put to the test.

Read about more of our Surfing Adventures with Autism here

Jim Dowd's Shoot for the Stars Foundation donates $10,000 to Brick Stars

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 02:27:00 +0000

Jim Dowd's Shoot for the Stars Foundation chose the Brick Stars as their recipient this year for the proceeds from the annual Ocean vs Monmouth All-Star high school game. The game took place on August 8, 2010 at the Red Bank Armory. Several of the Brick Stars special needs hockey players were at the game and were given a chance to go out on the ice to play a 5 minute game. The kids were joined on the ice by NHL hockey superstar, James vanReimsdyk of the Flyers as well as Jim Dowd.

Belle and the Jersey Devil Mascot

Jump Start Get Moving Family Fitness for Wii Review & Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 03:53:00 +0000

It has been miserably hot this summer, though I've been trying to keep the kids outdoors and active as much as possible. They've been riding bikes, swimming, and going to the beach - but when the temperature presses towards 100 degrees with high levels of humidity - the only place we can be is indoors in the comfortable a/c. We've taken trips to the library and borrowed DVD's and we popped popcorn and watched Wallace and Gromit discs over and over. When I felt like the kids were being a bit too sedentary, I encouraged them to play the Wii. One of my Alex's most favorite pastimes is playing the Wii. - especially the Wii Sports games along with the Wii Fit. A few months ago we added a new fitness game to our game inventory - from Knowledge Adventure/ Jump Start called Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii. This is their latest game which is fitness based and a twist of Wii Fit/Wii Sports Resort with a Jump Start look and feel.

My kids have really been enjoying Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii because the fitness activities take place in Jump Start world "worlds" and you can customize your own Jumpee to play the game instead of using the Wii Mii Characters. I found that where some of the Wii games are a bit too hard for my 5 year old, this game isn't as hard for her. For my son who is a fan of Jump Start world and the Wii Fit this was a really nice hybrid of the 2 genres for him. The game came out mid June and is rated E for everyone with "comic mischief". Its priced at $29.99 but I wouldn't be surprised to see this drop to a $20 game at some point. The game is definitely worth it for the price - it doesn't replace the Wii Fit or Wii Sports, but its something different for the kids to play that also keeps them moving.

Giveaway Info:

To win your very own copy of Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii for your family, please leave a comment and share your favorite pastime that gets your kids moving. You must be in the US to enter and over 18, and you must provide a way for me to contact you to let you know you have won (email address).

The giveaway closes on August 15th (2010) at midnight. 1 copy of Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii will be given away and shipped directly to the winner from the company.

Kids and Parents love Jump Start World

I'm a believer in Wii Therapy

Consider the Nintendo Wii for Kids with Autism

Disclaimer: I was provided a promotional copy of the Jump Start Get Moving Family Fitness game to try out for free in exchange for my honest review.

Organicville ketchup, a new found love

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 02:46:00 +0000

My son will someday turn into a bottle of ketchup. The kid puts ketchup on everything. His favorite forever has been Heinz. I became aware of the amount of sugar and also HFCS in many ketchups a while ago so I sought out some healthier brands. I figured when we ate out at restaurants it was one thing, but at least the ketchup in our house could be healthier. We settled on a Nature's Promise (Stop N Shop) brand, and alternated buying it between the big gigantic bottles of Heinz (that my son can go through in 2 weeks). I recently was turned on to the Organicville brand of condiments. These were not only gluten free, but also organic, dairy free and most didn't contain sugar - instead the ketchup is sweetened with Agave Nectar. I was even happier to find that while more expensive than brands such as Heinz, it wasn't so expensive that I couldn't justify buying it frequently. Even better, this line of condiments is now being carried at my trusty Stop N Shop (my second home, it would seem).

So, when my son received a bottle of ketchup and also dairy free ranch dressing to try out - we were both excited to try it. Alex didn't care for the dairy free ranch dressing, but that's fine with me. I've been loving it on salads and as a dip for fresh vegetables. The Organicville ketchup, on the other hand - he LOVES. Unlike many of the other "healthy" ketchups, he took to Organicville right away.

If you haven't liked other organic ketchups, definitely try Organicville.
1. It is the right color
2. It tastes great
3. It smells good and not overly strong.
4. The consistency is comparable to Heinz - not too runny nor too thick.
5. It is gluten free, dairy free, has no HFCS, no sugar added, and its organic!

My ketchup loving and picky kid gives this one, a thumbs up.

For more info: http://www.organicvillefoods.com/

Disclaimer: I was provided Organicville Ketchup and Ranch Dressing to sample in exchange for my honest opinion as posted here at The Bon Bon Gazette.

You put your right hand in, you take your left hand out...

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 01:52:00 +0000

Today was "one of those days". First, it marked the last day of ESY for Alex. He gets a whole week of vacation now before he starts camp for 2 weeks and then goes back to school. Talk about a very short summer vacation! Alex came home happy and presented a really cool Pirate craft and some of the projects they had been working on this summer at "school". ESY didn't seem very academically focused, but Alex enjoyed it.

So, I had signed Alex up for a music therapy/enrichment program through POAC. We did this program 2 years ago, but Alex was in the "younger" session because well - he was younger. Now, they have the kids broken out ages 3 to 12 where they do music activities and then ages 12 to 21 where the program is focused on getting the kids up and moving and learning the wedding dances (like the chicken dance, etc). Even though Alex isn't 12, for a variety of reasons he is in that session. It seemed like a more appropriate fit, or so I thought. I'm now not so sure. There are a few kids in there that are his age and some of his peers, I think probably moreso than the younger session. But, I digress.

On the way there Alex asked if he could get a slurpee. Since it is disgustingly hot out, I decided that sounded good so we stopped and got one. What happened next I could have never planned. I hit a speed bump and the straw went up his nose. The bloody nose was outrageous and a big mess. He was in the back seat crying about being a "bloodboy". It was that bad. I asked if he'd rather just go home but he said he wanted to "go to POAC". I'm glad he looks forward to these activities. This is a free program that is being possible from funding through the Graeme Preston Foundation for Life.

Alex recognized the music teacher right away, he is awesome. He liked that there was music playing and he started dancing and announced "We need a Disco Ball". This gave us all a chuckle as we told him the ceiling fan would have to suffice. They started out with the hokey pokey and Alex knew this one and got right into it. After that it went down from there. He got particularly upset with the Macarena because it seemed that all the other kids knew how to do it but he didn't. I told him to watch the girl next to him and do what she was doing but he struggled. With the Cha-Cha slide, he followed along a bit but he started to get enraged. Occasionally he had an outburst and would yell that people needed to be quiet. The meltdown wound up and then up some more. He cried. I felt lousy. I hate seeing him this way. I know it was out of his frustration and trying to cope with the sensory stuff, and the nosebleed beforehand didn't help any.

So next week we try again.

In the meantime, I actually am going to encourage YouTube this week and find a few videos that are appropriate that have these dances in them so he can watch and become a bit more familiar.

I also think maybe on our week off, we'll be spending some time as a family doing the Danceland: Fun Songs & Activities to Improve Sensory Skills and 28 Instant Songames: Fun Filled Activities for Kids 3-8 CDs a few times with both kids and trying to get Alex back on track. This is supposed to be fun for him. And I saw at one point he was having fun but then it went all downhill from there...

Any other ideas?

On Life Skills, Chores & Helping hands

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 23:32:00 +0000

I blogged over at Jersey Moms Blog about Chores or Child Labor? and my kids love of helping out when I do the grocery shopping. They are huge fans of the self-checkout and the new "Scan-It" system that they have put in at our local Stop & Shop. Going shopping with the kids is a breeze and they scan all my groceries either at check-out or with Scan-It. Its really taught them quite a bit about prices and reading ingredients. Plus they are all about the re-usable grocery bags which is a help since half the time, I'd bring them in and forget to put them back in the car. While shopping yesterday Alex asked yesterday for a particular brand of applesauce and also if we could buy corn. When we got home he helped me shuck the corn and get it ready for dinner. He also prepped the fresh peas the other day from their pods - a "chore" that I personally find very tedious and boring. He had a blast.

Alex has made huge gains this past year in the Life Skills department. It all started when his teacher sent home a checklist and asked the kids to do things like set the table, take out the trash, or make their beds. He took to taking out the trash with gusto. It is one of the few things that when I ask him to do, he'll easily tear himself away from my laptop or a video game and go find his shoes and take the trash out. He also likes to do some laundry related tasks like folding towels and also matching socks.

I'm currently reading the book Autism Life Skills: From Communication and Safety to Self-Esteem and More - 10 Essential Abilities Every Child Needs and Deserves to Learn by Chantal Sicile Kira and I highly recommend it to parents of kids on the autism spectrum. Especially as Alex gets older (he is approaching 10) I've become even more aware of all the things that he'll need to know how to do in order to live independently. It took him a long time to be able to get dressed independently (and he still often puts shirts and pants on backwards or picks clothing that is not seasonally appropriate) and to self initiate his bed time. We take things one day at a time here, but I can say quite confidently that I am very hopeful for him and the direction he is headed.

Related post:
Learning Life Skills at School

Fun at the POAC Blueclaws game

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 19:49:00 +0000

On July 31st, there was a POAC fundraiser event and we got to purchase tickets to the Blueclaws game for a great member price. Since Alex had so much fun at the SEPTA BlueClaws night, we decided to make it a family and friends night out - and 10 of us went to the game. The fact that Alex likes to go to the stadium is reason to celebrate in itself.

Going into the stadium itself has become an accomplishment for Alex since there was a time when he wouldn't even go into the stadium parking lot or make it from the car into the stadium. "Its dangerous", he'd yell and flop on the ground. For a kid with sensory issues this is a no brainer - it is too much. The stadium is a scary place with loud noises, crowds of people, outbursts of clapping and applause, yelling, hooting & hollaring, plus the dreaded "loudspeaker/announcer". Alex hates announcements that come over a PA system. So, it is a bit of a shocker to us how he has come to love going to a ball game. It seems that everything that he once hated is all in one place and happening tenfold. Go figure. I can't figure it out. But - I'm enjoying that he likes to go because it makes for a fun night out.

So, the Blueclaws lost this particular game. But we still had one helluva time with our closest friends and a set of grandparents. The kids overloaded on sugar and junk food and they crashed to sleep on the way home. As ever, some of the favorite moments of the night included the eyeball race and the pork roll, egg & cheese race that take place in the middle of innings. But, by far - the highlight of the night was when Alex got to go onto the field and participate in one of these between inning entertainments... this particular event was the Hoagie Toss that was sponsored by WaWa. He got to throw a rubber sandwich (a dog toy, he called it) and compete to win prizes. He got a T-shirt and a reusable water bottle (that he loves).

I still can't believe that my son, Mr. Sensory Kid, was out there on the field at a Blueclaws game.

Pictures to prove it:

Fun Times at the Lakewood Blueclaws POAC event 7/31/2010

Alex got to participate in the Wawa Hoagie Toss and go out onto the field!

Swimming without Sharks

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:23:00 +0000

Since he was just a baby Alex has loved the water. In fact, when he was a baby and toddler we did an infant/baby swim program and he learned how to swim. He's never been afraid of the water and loves to swim and splash around. One summer he was swimming and then last summer, he seemed to have lost swimming skills and become a big sinker. He needed to wear floaties again and I really was afraid he was going to drown in our neighbor's pool. My husband encouraged him to be independent (I would have had the kid in a life jacket and everything else!) and he was right. With practice he was swimming by the end of the summer so when we vacationed in September he was "a swimmer".

This summer we've gone to the beach and swam with friends a lot. He's happiest when he's swimming and with this heat, its been the only way to stay cool and still be outside. However there's been a lot of reports of sharks lately swimming in close to the shore which has made me more nervous about the beach - not like that has stopped the kids.

I put Alex into swimming lessons through the Brick Challenger program so he's been swimming 3 times a week for the past 2 weeks. The ratio of instructors to kids is awesome - practically 1 on 1, sometimes 1 on 2 or 3 (depending on the kids skills). Alex swims but he can't seem to float. He sinks. They have been working on getting him floating and also developing his strokes so he swims that way instead of treading water or a dog paddle. The interesting thing is that he swims under water pretty good and he loves to go under water. I am not an underwater person - but he is all about diving down into the water to find rings and toys that they throw into the water for the kids to retrieve.

The lessons have helped him immensely and I feel like we are crossing one more thing off of the cannot list.

Alex can swim.

Related Posts:
Swimming in Winter
Swimming Pool Progress Report

Lose The Training Wheels - The Prize: A green bike!

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 02:52:00 +0000

Since Alex had learned on the neighbor kids bike, we had to give that one back. It was a good lesson in sharing for all involved. Alex was happy to return it, thank his friend, and show him how he could ride now. His friend was excited for Alex and to get his bike back. However, this also left Alex without a bike to ride. His other 20" bike (which was gifted to him years ago) is still too big for him, even with his seat on the lowest setting and handlebars adjusted. No wonder he had been really struggling with it even with training wheels! Lesson learned on that one. So, the silver bike will go back up on a rack in the garage and maybe he can use it next year or whenever he grows into it.

I took Alex off to the store to pick out a new bike, also in the 20" tire size but one that fit him better. It is not surprising he selected a green bike.

And then, off he rode...

To see both Alex and the neighbor's child riding down the street on bikes together was awesome! Finally, Alex can ride bikes with the kids in the neighborhood and not watch from the sidelines. This feels good.

Also, his little sister wants to take the training wheels off her old bike and learn. So guess who used a wrench again?

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 5 Graduation Day

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 00:46:00 +0000

And on Day 5 the kids rode some more. By the end, they were all on 2 wheels. There were a lot of tears, happy tears. One of the children, a little boy with Downs Syndrome got on 2 wheels for the first time today. It was near the end of the session when he took off. I don't think there was a dry eye in the field house. I think I had a more emotional reaction to seeing this kid ride than I did with my own. When Alex rode I was giddy and happy. I just kept cheering and praising him and giving him hugs and high fives all day. I had cried when he didn't ride when others did, but when he finally rode - I didn't cry. Yet when this boy rode, I bawled like a baby. I had that lump in my throat emotional, feel almost sick, cathartic cry. I realize that I was crying for all these kids - not just in our session but all the kids out there who are in this boat. And our kids have had this amazing opportunity to be able to get over the hurdle of riding a bike. This is a life skill! This is just one more thing that we can cross of our list of CAN DO and DID ITS where people said "your child will never..."

Talk... Check!
Potty Trained.. Check!
Read... Check!
Swim.. Check!
Ride a bike.. Check!

My kid did it! He rode a bike. He lost his training wheels. He can do anything when he is given the proper tools and a chance.

I have hope!

Congrats to all the kids in our 11:20am session who got their wheels!

Thank you to Lose the Training Wheels & UNYFEAT.

Here's the kids - see those smiles! With Cory & Nikki from Lose The Training Wheels

Alex & Gia Carroll, president of UNYFEAT. I went to highschool with Gia so it was really nice to see her again and share in this experience.

To Alex's special volunteer helper, Brian. Brian was there for him. He ran with him. He walked by his side. He helped him when he fell. He laughed with Alex. He was quiet when Alex needed him to be. Brian had such a nice nature about him, he was very "chill" and laid back like Alex - just what we needed. Alex also had another helper Kim, who is a teacher. She wasn't here on the last day but she is in some of the other pictures I posted. Kim was essential in teaching Alex how to brake and stop!!! Very important!!!

Important Links

UNYFEAT

Lose the Training Wheels

Media Coverage of Rochester Lose the Training wheels 2010

Lose the Training Wheels" Program Teaches Kids w/ disabilities

Lose the Training Wheels - 13WHAM News Video

Alex's Lose the Training Wheels Journey

We're off to Lose The Training Wheels
Lose the Training Wheels - Day 1

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 2

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 3 - RIDING!

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 4 - Practice

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 5 Graduation Day

Lose the Training Wheels - 13WHAM News Video Rochester NY

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 04:56:00 +0000

My son is the one going around shouting out numbers.. how appropriate!

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 4 - Practice

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 01:30:00 +0000

Since yesterday Alex "took off" on two wheels - he has successfully lost the training wheels.

Now, its time to hone his skills. First up was the matter of stopping safely without crashing - learning to break. Also he continued to practice and work on his balance. A big thing he needs to do is remember to look where he is going and pay attention.

As you can see in this video footage most of the kids are on now on 2 wheels and practicing. Some go real fast, others have slow starts, some are wobbly.. One thing for certain, these kids have accomplished a whole lot in a very short time.

Alex worked really hard on his stopping and steering today. He practiced both indoors and out for the entire (75 minutes) session. During that time WHAM 13 came and took footage for a news story which I will add to the blog when it goes online.

Alex was also really excited to show off his new bike riding skills when his cousin (who is a special ed teacher) stopped over to visit. Despite being in the middle of a heat wave here - high 90s he rode his bike all the way to the end of the street and back. His little sister chased after him on her bike (with training wheels) and is now asking to 'lose the training wheels'.

The kids were very sweaty, but even more so happy!

"Lose the Training Wheels" Program Teaches Kids w/Disabilities

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:25:00 +0000

Rochester's WHAM Channel 13 came to bike camp today!

Here's an article about one of the kids in Alex's session. 6 out of the 8 kids in our groups are on now on 2 wheels.

"Lose the Training Wheels" Program Teaches Kids w/Disabilities

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 3 - RIDING!

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:05:00 +0000

Today had a lot of highs and lows but has ended on a positive note.

First, my son woke up before 8am and announced he was ready to go to bike camp. He was excited and ready to go.

FB Status: first words out of Alex's mouth today: "Can I go to bike camp now?". Awake before 8 and asking to ride. Says alot!!!!

He told me that today he was going to ride Drew's bike and "lose the training wheels" at bike camp. I think he thinks they are really going to "get lost". But, that's another story. So.. we brought his bike with him, in case he was ready to be "launched" off the special bike from the adapted bike. I hoped for the best.

Here you see him (he's the 3rd child - the one with the white helmet). He was going a little slow but has his moments where he picked up the speed.

Understandably he got tired as the session went on. I watched as the other kids got launched onto 2 wheels and then I'd look at him going around and around and watch him fixate on the numbers on the track. 1 -2 -3 - 4 -5. Every time he went over a number, he'd announce it. He'd swerve so that he could go over each number which was stamped on different lanes. I could see that he was getting to be "done" as in exhausted. At the end of the session all the kids but 3 of them were onto 2 wheels. Alex was one of the few not yet riding. He was so close. After we left when I asked him about it on the way home he got really upset that he wasn't riding a big kid bike. "I want to try again". He didn't understand that his time for the day was up. I felt bad for him. I wished they had put him onto the 2 wheels but it was only day 3, I didn't expect the majority of the kids to be riding already. . They said he was "right there" and probably would get it tomorrow.

Here is where I disobeyed the rules... they tell you to not have your kid practice at home between the LTTW sessions but I saw my son's frustration and I felt it too. I knew he was very close and he could do it. So, knowing my kid better than a stranger does, I took him to a nearby parking lot to give it a try.

One training wheel had already gotten loose and fallen off earlier in the day so I let him ride around with just the one remaining training wheel. While he made some laps around the parking lot I noted that a lot of the time it was off the ground and figured there was no better time as now to remove it.

...It was here that I used a wrench (anyone who 'knows me' knows this is big!).

....And then, he was off. He's riding!

No more training wheels!!!!

A new friend

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:50:00 +0000

This is one of my mom's dogs. She has 2 goldens, and the kids are having so much fun with them. Alex likes the boy one the best. He's definitely a gentle giant! Since our big dog passed away a few months ago, Alex definitely has missed having a big dog around. I think this one would make an awesome therapy dog - he is so loving and also playful.

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 2

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:47:00 +0000

Day 2 and the kids made more and more laps around the field house. By the end, Alex was exhausted. Today he went a little bit faster and from time to time his volunteers (Kim & Brian) had to run a bit. I attempted to take video because I couldn't get good pictures that weren't blurry since he's constantly in motion. However, my luck with the video wasn't great. Everytime I attempted there was some sort of issue like someone walking right in front of me, or Alex riding right into the divider (oops!). He's definitely my kid, I'm not the best with balance - sorry Alex.

As you can see the bikes have a big yellow handle on the back which the adult uses to help the kids. They said we could buy one at the end of camp if the kids still require help.

The highlight of the day was the kids got to take a tandem bike ride. Alex loved it. There is a video of it on facebook by my highschool classmate who is with UNYFEAT. Hopefully I can get it to post here. He was all smiles on the tandem bike. I have to say it looked like a lot of fun!

Lose the Training Wheels - Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 20:58:00 +0000

Today was the first day of Lose The Training wheels camp for Alex. He was so excited to go ride bikes. At first he wasn't thrilled about the orange camp T-Shirt, but then agreed to wear it over the top of one of his (many) Wall-E shirts. I told him that he'd get hot, but decided it wasn't a battle worth picking.

Sometime in the past week, Alex has outgrown his bike helmet (it was a Razor Multi-Sport Helmet that he liked because it looked like the one the big kid down the street has) So, we had to make a quick stop off and get him a new helmet. One of the requirements for the program is a properly fitting helmet, and I new that the other one was getting too small. So, after trying on several we found one that he liked that also fit well. (He choose this: Youth Mongoose Street Series Helmet - White). And then we were off to "bike camp".

The kids were paired with volunteers who really get a workout walking (and running) around the fieldhouse with the kids who are riding on special bikes. The bikes are pretty funky and have rollers on the back instead of tires - think paint roller.

NOTE: These pictures are from my phone - and are a bit blurry because he was moving pretty quickly and not stopping to pose

According to Alex, riding it is easy - easier than his bike with training wheels. He did pretty good going around and around and around... Only a few close calls each time as he rounded one bend I thought for sure he was going right into the bleachers but he would always turn at the last minute. After the hour or so, he was definitely slowing down and getting pooped.

Now, the hardest part is that he wants to go outside and practice on his bike but the people at the camp suggest that the kids don't do that. So we are inside watching movies (its at least 90 degrees out anyways!).

Tomorrow, I bring both bikes over to the camp and see what they have to say about them. I had the crooked handlebars adjusted on my neighbor's son's bike at the local bike shop and they also fitted and made a suggestion for a new bike for Alex if neither of the bikes we have work out.

The best part of this whole adventure is Alex is very very excited about learning to ride a bike and giving total cooperation.

Here's to a good first day!

We're off to Lose The Training Wheels

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 06:17:00 +0000

I'm so excited for Alex right now, and also nervous too. Ok, the idea of driving with both kids in the car for 8 hours by myself is a bit daunting as well - but I'll do it! I've done it with one or both of them before. We're visiting Grandma. And while we are there Alex is going to attend Lose the Training Wheels sponsored by UNYFEAT. So, the kids and I get a week with my mother (their Grandma), I get to connect with some friends that I really miss, and also Alex gets to work on his bike riding skills.

Alex has been riding a bike with training wheels for a while. He was very confidently riding a 16" bike with training wheels but he preferred to ride his scooters instead. As a result, he outgrew the 16" bike which I sold to a friend with a younger child. Ages ago his grandparents had gotten him a 20" bike which my little brother and husband fitted with training wheels. But, it seemed just a hair to big for him. I'm guessing by the end of the summer with the way he's growing. For the camp, they want the kids to be able to be flat-footed while sitting on the bike and with this one he's tippy toed. As we were practicing on it tonight and I was thinking to myself that the LTW people would tell me that the bike was too big for him (sending us out to buy a bike).

Well, right at that moment a neighborhood child came riding down the street on a bike that looked smaller (but was also a 20" bike). The boy is 3 years older than Alex and pretty much his only non-autistic friend. One of his very few friends. So, I asked him if Alex could try his bike and it fit Alex really well. Meanwhile he was commenting how cool Alex's 20" BMX style bike was - "sweet ride" was the term he used. I said to him maybe they could trade bikes for a week (and would ask his mom first, obviously). So, we biked back to his house where I talked with his mom (a friend of mine) and she said it was no problem - glad to help. No trade needed as the schedule worked anyways with vacation, etc. So we switched the training wheels to the other bike and Alex got right on. Alex definitely fit this bike better and was more confident. His main problem seemed to be a lack of paying attention and not looking where he was going. Ooops! He'll work on that, I'm sure.

So, I've decided I'm bringing both bikes with me just in case but at least now we have options.

I'm really hoping that Alex learns how to ride his bike this week and is able to give up training wheels!

Here's to Losing the Training Wheels!

Beach Yoga

noreply@blogger.com (hellokittiemama) — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 18:28:00 +0000

I took the kids to the beach. Of course, they had a blast. The funny thing was they started doing yoga in the sand. First it was my two children and before I knew it there was about a half a dozen other kids all doing yoga and immitating the poses along with them. The leader was my 9 year old son who has autism! What an awesome sight to see. I do love living near the beach but I didn't always.

Read more about this at Jersey Moms Blog