We're not even a month into the new year, and I really think it's going to be a hell of a year! For those of you who follow this blog (and yes, Sarah, there are more than family among our readers), I have never mentioned either my occupation or my employer, and that's not going to change today; but I will say that I moved on to a new employer (my choosing) and I couldn't be happier. It was as if the clouds parted and allowed the sun to shine through. Combine this news with Sarah's success and happiness with her self-employment venture, and I relish the coming year.
But the real reason I believe 2011 will be special is, of course, Elijah. Although sometimes it feels as if his autism is dominating his brain (his insistence on telling everyone he meets to"smile with your teeth" is wearing thin), he continues to show growth in all aspects of his socialization process. Every morning, as he bounds out of the car at school, he will greet any adult or classmate he sees. At a Cub Scouts meeting, he interacted with everyone he knew and enjoyed himself so much that we are participating in the "Pinewood Derby" for toy wooden cars this weekend. On the mornings I can't take him to school, he happily catches a ride with our neighbor Doug and his daughter, apparently yakking it up the entire way there.
But to me, the real show of progress was his request (actually, insistence) that two children he played with on New Year's Eve come over to his house for a playdate. A former co-worker of Sarah's who has a boy about a year younger than Elijah (and a little girl less than 2 years old) invited us over on New Year's Eve. Elijah, who had gotten to know Quinn during the past few summers at the local park pool, was very excited about going over to the house and counted off the days until the big event. When we got there, an added surprise, a little girl cousin named Zoey, was also there. After a little bit of getting-to-know-each-other time, the three played all evening long, which allowed the adults (there were eight of us) to relax and enjoy each other's company.
The next day I asked Elijah if he enjoyed playing with Quinn and Zoey, and not only did he reply in the affirmative, he asked if they could come over to our house to play. I could count one hand, with fingers to spare, how many times that has ever happened. Needless to say, I was overjoyed and insisted that Sarah start the process to get this done. When arrangements were finalized we put the date on Elijah's calendar and, as the date neared, he eagerly counted down the days.
Unfortunately, it appeared as if Mother Nature would put a crimp in our plans. Seven inches of snow had fallen a few days earlier, and now the weather forecast was calling for another four to five inches the day our guests were due to come over. Thankfully, the local weather people were as accurate as they always are, and all we got was a little dusting in the morning. Elijah was so excited he climbed up on a chair to move the clock hands, as if that would really make them come any earlier. (He mistakenly turned the hands back rather than forward, so it appeared to Sarah that the batteries had gone dead, and she insisted I change them.) When the young guests finally arrived, it was almost three straight hours of jumping, laughing, playing musical instruments, sledding (our backyard has a hill) and finally, cookie eating. It was a complete success!
These pictures may seem to be nothing but some kids playing together in the snow, but that's what makes them so wonderful to us. That Elijah not only asked for Quinn and Zoey to come over, but actually played and laughed with them, is an incredible milestone, one which I'm sure we'll be repeating soon. Yes, it's going to be a great year!
