Out of order....
I've been trying to keep the blog in a kind of chronological order of what happened, but I just have to report on the week's happenings. Bright Eyes has been making so much progress, and I'm so delighted.
A few little snippets for you:
1. Toilet training!
I thought this would never happen, but after a slowish start last week, Bright Eyes is getting into the hang of heading to the toilet every hour and a half or so. Someday... in a few months... I might not have to buy nappies any more!! (And I know, I am the queen of cloth nappies, but you can't make an ASD three year old wear them if he doesn't want to wear them.)
2. Imaginative play
Yesterday and today, Bright Eyes was a cat called Thomas. He got it from a Disney movie, but he kept it up most of the day and loves to be petted and called 'here kitty cat'. Up until a few weeks ago, I had never really seen Bright Eyes play appropriately or indulge in imagination games.
3. Running commentary
Four or five months ago, I despaired of ever having Bright Eyes say anything except 'Thomas The Tank Engine' over and over again. Today he was giving me a running commentary on everything he was doing. "I'm going up the stairs." "He's eating his dinner." "I'm a princess" (alright, he hasn't got the gender thing quite right yet). His own language (as compared to a script) tends to be stilted and his intonation is awkward but at least he's using it appropriate and thinking original thoughts.
4. Using scripts more appropriately.
Bright Eyes is amazing at learning set phrases off by heart and using them over and over in completely irrelevent situations. But in the last week I've noticed he is becoming more adept at using a script in an appropriate place.
For example, he recited a whole page of a book we had months ago about toilet training as he hopped on the loo. "Step One, Go to the toilet. Step Two, pull down your pants. Step Three, Sit on the toilet. Step Four, Do a wee or a poo. Step Five. Wipe. Step Six, Pull up your pants. Step Seven, Flush. Step Eight. Wash your hands."
Stay tuned for what therapies and interventions could possibly have made such a difference in his little life!