A Dads Journey

New Year's Resolutions

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:10:15 GMT

Hopefully, no one will go back a year from now and see if I actually kept any of these. 1) Eat Healthier - God, I love fried chicken! Fact is, I like almost anything fried. But at age 52 and with 8 year old autistic twin sons, I've got to stay on the road way...

I'm feeling DWAB

Wed, 24 Dec 2008 16:14:29 GMT

As many of you may have read, the Easter Seals and Autism Society has published a survey on Autism. According to one blog summary, those of us with autistic children are; "Depressed, Worried, Anxious, and Broke" (DWAB) Hey, how's that for Holiday Cheer? Why do I share that?...

Insurance

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 14:46:55 GMT

The latest estimate for raising and caring for an autistic child over their lifetime, $5 million dollars. As a father of twin autistic boys, I just have to look at that number and smile. Because it is just numbing to comprehend. How will I get the money to help raise the boys?...

Autism drugs head into human clinical trials

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 21:40:29 GMT

A news story that caught my interest while perusing Fierce Bioreseacher, something I do right after Page 6 of the NY Post: ________________________________________________________ Experimental drugs aimed at correcting three rare conditions linked with autism are beginning early-stage human trials. These therapies are targeted at Rett syndrome, fragile X [1], and tuberous sclerosis complex. And the scientists involved in these programs say that they have data that suggests...

Sensory, Sensory, Sensory!

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 20:27:00 GMT
On Monday, we go in for Sean's IEP. I'm on the record of saying that public schools treat IEP's like pep rallies. The goal is to infuse the parent with enough school spirit he actually forgets that their eight year old son is barely verbal and still craps in his pants. Heck, you'll...

The Beat of a Different Drummer

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 14:41:34 GMT
Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them. - Henry David Thoreau Well Thoreau never actually said that, but it�s a good paraphrase and he might have been cool with that. I was thinking...

sous-chef?

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:42:18 GMT
The other night Sean took out a box of cake mix. That didn't surprise me. The attractive cover of devil chocolate looked pretty damn appealing to me. "Later pal. Your mom is the pastry cook around here." was my response. I didn't pay too much attention as he continued to...

Economic Realities

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 15:55:19 GMT
I had lunch yesterday with two old college friends who have day jobs as an architect and master contractor, respectively. Quickly, the conversation came around to how we were doing with our small businesses. I told them I was off about 10% and they both admitted they were dead in the...

Happy to be Home

Fri, 07 Nov 2008 02:32:34 GMT
Which I'm not. I'm at a conference in Chicago, a town I like very much. By the way, if you travel near the lakefront, I definitely recommend Volares on Grand Avenue near Michigan. Missed the Obama shindig by a day, but everyone here is telling me I also missed all the traffic. Meanwhile back at the ranch, Sean continues to deal with emotional issues. Michael continues to stay under the radar and Douglass Outreach continues to send me $2,500 monthly invoices that I simply can no...

Ah Wilderness!

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 15:03:10 GMT
About 8:10am this morning, I checked on Sean with whom I had an awful sleeping experience only hours before. I was pleasantly surprised to see him comfortably asleep. Surprised, because that meant he had managed to comfort himself. It is very rare for Sean to be able to put himself to sleep. But his bus was only 20 minutes away. Not much time to wake a sleeping eight year old under any circumstances. I was also reluctant to turn the sleeping angel in front of me back to that...