Family and Friends

The S word

We were driving home from the Y (MCA). I was done working for the day, and the kids were done with camp for the day. Beth wanted to tell me about an “inappropriate” incident, but I asked her not to while Adam was in the car. Beth, not so easily deterred, went on anyway. Now before I go on, I need to explain that Adam has been immune to the ‘spelling what you don’t want him…
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BethFamily and Friends

When the autism spectrum wins

After a month of hunting down posts about Beth’s childhood, my mind wandered to our other child. How has he fared through all of this? I remember first thinking in terms of Beth’s disorder “winning” during a Skype therapy session for obsessive-compulsive disorder. The therapist sought to personalize, yet disassociate the disorder from Beth in a way. She tried to objectify…
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BethFamily and Friends

Now for a few fuzzy birthday videos

Here’s a few quick videos from Beth’s real birthday (we’ll be doing a few late celebrations after Adam sheds his virus). My apologies, the quality is exceptionally poor. I forgot to recharge the batteries in our camera, so I settled for my old iPhone 3G, which was never really meant to be a video camera. It’s a pretty lousy still camera when you get down to it. The…
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Beth

Today – Beth’s 13th Birthday

Just in case you missed the last thirty posts, today is Beth’s thirteenth birthday. The title of these posts were supposed to hint at a pinch of mock doom and gloom, as our girl passes from childhood into her teen years, but in some respects I feel like Beth’s been a teenager for years. Inheriting the sarcasm and smart-ass genes from her father created a teen-like aura at an early age.
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Beth

D – 3 (Tween time)

Counting down the days until Beth’s thirteenth birthday with a few reposts from the archives. Originally posted: Aug 20, 2006, Beth’s age: 9 I am stuck in that moment between getting home late and the time when you feel like going to bed. We decided to go to a Devil Rays away game this evening, and we’re just getting back. They were at Tropicana Field, where they occasionally play…
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Beth

D – 4 (Beth versus the psychiatrist)

Counting down the days until Beth’s thirteenth birthday with a few reposts from the archives. Originally posted: Jun 8, 2006, Beth’s age: 8 “Can I call you Miss Rachael?” “No, but you can call me Dr. Rachael if you want.” “Wait, are you a real doctor?” “Yes Beth, I’m a real doctor.” “Did you go to college?” “Yes Beth…
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Beth

D – 5 (The dust settles on another school year)

Counting down the days until Beth’s thirteenth birthday with a few reposts from the archives. Originally posted: May 18, 2006, Beth’s age: 8 Let me say that most of the folks we’ve dealt with at my daughter’s school have been wonderful. They’ve been kind, patient, understanding, and caring. All the same, next year my daughter will be going to a different school. Why is…
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Beth

D – 6 (Not so shallow)

Counting down the days until Beth’s thirteenth birthday with a few reposts from the archives. Originally posted: Jan 20, 2006, Beth’s age: 8 Beth and I were leaving Tae Kwon Do and I heard the sound of sudden submersion behind me. I looked back and saw Beth up to her shins in water. (Defensively) “Dad, I stepped in a puddle by accident!” (Angrily) “Beth, that’s the…
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