Thankful

I am most thankful for my son--for having him in my life to love and learn from--but I am also especially thankful for all of the progress he is making.  He is still behind in many things and has many challenges ahead of him, but his speech is coming right along and he is constantly making progress and saying new things.

Until he was 3&1/2 (October of '09)  Ben did not talk.  He would say a word once or twice and then "lose" it.  He did not communicate verbally at all.  At three, he began saying "Mommy" and "Daddy", and he learned four more family names that summer.  Then the progress stopped, which dashed my soaring my hopes, until October, when there was an explosion of speech:words, sentences, sassiness, and even jokes all at once.  Due to Autism, he primarily repeats things he has heard (echolalia) or communicates basic needs, but he does tell us "I love you" and he is beginning to talk in conversation form, although he sometimes has to be prompted to answer questions and respond to others.

Today, the day before Thanksgiving, I am most thankful for conversations with my son, like the one we had this morning:

Me:  "I need to go fold laundry, Bear."
B:     "No.  You stay here and snuggle me."
Me:  "Well, who will fold the laundry?"
B:     "Curious George."
Me:  "Curious George?  Can monkeys fold laundry?"
B:     "Yes.  Curious George loves to fold laundry!"
Me:  "But is he good at folding laundry, or will he make a mess?"
B (giggling):  "He is good at folding laundry.  You make a mess!"