Ethel: Mommy, my friend told me her autistic sister pulls her hair. I also heard of another autistic brother who fights.
Mom: Then Calder must seem like an angel. He doesn't even make noise. And he doesn't say "I want I want". He just waits quietly for us to give him things.
Ethel: Yah, I think we got the best autistic child.
Hubby and I found we could track Calder easily using an old handphone. Here's how:
1. Get a 3G/4G android handphone.
2. Get a prepaid/postpaid data card.
3. Set up a Gmail account. Register this account to your kid's handphone.
4. Turn GPS on for your kid's handphone.
5. Download the app "Find my device" on your own handphone.
6. Sign in as guest and key in the Gmail address and password.
>>The map will zoom to where the handphone is.
>> The app also indicates the battery power left in the handphone, so you know when to charge it again.
*You can tap "PLAY SOUND" to get your kid's handphone to ring even it is in silent mode.
*Do not tap "ERASE" unless you want to clean up all the data in that phone.
For more information, click "Help & Feedback" on the 3-dot menu of the app.
I've never seen anyone eat pizza the way Calder does - the fillings first, then the crust. He probably doesn't understand what it means to save the best for last.
The weirdest thing happened last night. It was bedtime for Calder and I asked him, "Calder, is Daddy awake or asleep?" (The Dad is usually the one to put him to sleep.) Perhaps I had expected him to peep into the bedroom and report to me the answer. But he walked right into the room and uttered, "Is Daddy awake or asleep?" (Maybe I shouldn't put a question mark here because Calder's questions always sound like a statement.) When I caught up with him, I saw that he had been talking to a sleeping Dad!
Was at NUS today to brief a group of students who had volunteered for the One Child One Skill project (http://www.come-into-my-world.com/one-child-one-skill). Brought Calder along so the volunteers could try interacting with an autistic child. In groups, they had to teach Calder Tic Tac Toe:
Volunteer: Write one 'O' here.
(Calder wrote "10".)
Volunteer: Write another one here.
(Calder wrote "1".)
Volunteer: If you put one more here, you will have three!
(Calder wrote "3".)
The art of communicating with an autistic child.
Calder has learned to use the self-service check-out counters at supermarkets so I am expanding his shopping skills by teaching him to use a shopping checklist. First type in the items Mommy needs, then find these food at the supermarket and check them off.
Today, Ethel had a school dental appointment. I brought along Calder's piano file so he could play piano at one of the pianos sitting around the school's common areas, while waiting for his sister.
Then it occurred to me - maybe I could ask the dentist to do a dental check on Calder as well. Because Calder cannot express himself well, we are always guessing the causes for his occasional bouts of moodiness. Would be good to rule out the possibility of toothache.
Thankfully, this dentist was flexible. Since the slots were empty after a girl after Ethel, she agreed to attend to Calder without prior appointment. When I explained to Calder that he would be sitting on the dentist chair next, he looked - excited! He actually walked over to gaze at how the dentist worked on his sister's teeth. Grinning!
What a long way he has come. He was the boy who wouldn't sit on the dentist's chair. After years, when he finally did, he wouldn't open his mouth. When he finally allowed the dentist to peep into his mouth, he wouldn't keep it open. And when the dentist tried to use the electric tools on him, he wanted to jump out of the chair... Eventually we had to pay 2K to put him to sleep (anaesthesia) to fix all his cavities.
Last year, the dentist (a kind aunty) saw how jittery he was and just managed to smear some paste on his cavity before his mouth clamped shut.
Today, the dentist was a young lady who spoke gently and who patiently explained what she was doing to his teeth. To my delight, Calder sat calmly and kept his mouth open for the treatment. So the dental treatment this time round was a complete cleaning, not a hurried short-cut one. I noticed also, that Calder was finally able to gargle without wetting his shirt.
At 12, Calder has finally graduated from the school of dental treatment! God is so good! Mommy is proud of you, Calder!
