We took the twins to Chik-Fil-A (great indoor playground) this morning, for a chance to interact with other kids, and let's face it, to get out of the house. Jeff (big brother) is at nursery school, and Lori, one of our amazing helpers, was along to toddler-wrangle.
On our last few outings, I've noticed some funny looks, and I'm realizing that the twins' differentness is becoming noticeable to others. I believe we're are entering into a whole new phase of autism-parenting: deciding how much to tell to whom. For a long time I've been relying on saying, "They're very shy", which is true in a very extreme sort of way, I suppose. So far it's not actual misbehavior setting them apart. They have an unusual way of approaching playgrounds, they tend to dance around a lot, especially in front of mirrors, and they use signs rather than speech, most of the time.
It makes the twin situation feel so much more real now that others are finally noticing. For months, it's been me trying to convince people (Early Intervention, their dad, their pediatrician) that there was a problem, namely PDD. Now I find myself wanting to explain to strangers that it's not a problem, it's just the twins being who they are.
Favorite twin moments of the morning:
Murray sitting calmly in a "big-boy" chair at Chik-Fil-A, enjoying his chicken nuggets
Anthony attempting to dance "The Pigeon" with Bert on a Sesame St. DVD
Favorite Jeff moment:
The return of his Captain Feathersword pirate costume (flowered sun hat, sunglasses, rain boots, and a giant feather)
3 comments:
Explaining to other people is one of the toughest things to do. If you find an easy 'answer' or explanation let me know!
Best wishes
I love the Wiggles reference! My oldest was (and still is) a huge Wiggles fan! He kind of dropped it for awhile but now that his little brother is of age it is coming back full force!
He is currently huge into reenacting "Greg the Magician" scenes from Wiggly Play time. (Unfortunately the video seems to have been misplaced on a shelf high up in the air--not sure how that happened!!!)
Welcome to blog world. I am also using it as my "journal" of our travels and for personal therapy! I find it helpful to travel back through my own postings and see how things do change! It gets me through some rough days!
I hope it gets easier to go out in the "neurotypical" world and feel like all eyes are not on you -- it's hard for me too. I haven't told complete strangers about their diagnosis, but have come close. A big part of the problem is that I'm never sure what's just them being "two" and what's something else.
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