Wednesday, April 02, 2008

The long and bumpy road . . .


. . . just became a lot smoother!

Well folks, get ready for this! As of last Friday, our little Asher is officially mainstreamed!!! This is a huge deal for Asher and our family. We are sooooo proud of him and all of the progress that he has made. Sterling and I are also so indebted to all of the teachers and therapists who made this possible.

It seems like just yesterday that I was at an I.E.P. for Asher, asking the group when, if ever, they thought that he would be able to go mainstream. All that I got was a blank stare from everyone . . . and silence. Now, just a year later . . . :)

This journey has been so long, slow, and emotionally painful at times. It is interesting because we have just been plugging ahead with our heads down and all of the sudden, we look up and see how far we have come. How far Asher has come. I am just so grateful.

Asher will get to go to his home school next year. He will get to ride the school bus with his neighborhood friends. He will still be pulled out for 30 minutes a day of "resource" (with some of his other "normal" classmates) and speech therapy. The I.E.P. team also decided to keep his label of "autism". They felt that it was best to keep this window open for any future aid that he might need.

One teacher was joking that they had "cured" him. It was very tongue and cheek though because, as many parents of autistic children will tell you, there is no cure. There are only improvements and adjustment made until your child can function in harmony with society . . . and still have his individual quirks that make him unique!

For some families, I realize that this doesn't always happen. Knowing this, my heart reaches out to them. I think that it also makes us all the more grateful and humbled because of the progress that Asher has made. We love him so much! We are so proud of you Asher.

11 comments:

smart mama said...

Yay! That is very excited- I am very happy for you- ihope he will continue to do well!

Owen said...

Asher! Way to go kidd-o! You must be such a good student!

Congrats Zoe! I know how much hard work you guys have put in! I agree that not evey child with autism will be able to do what Asher has been able to do and I will never EVER be able to understand the level of hard work, patience and constant adjusting all you parents of these sweet, sweet children have to do day in and day out. You ALL are amazing and you deserve a HUGE pat on the back. I am in awe of the dedication each of you give. There will be a very large reward in heaven for you.

Anonymous said...

Zed, it's not nice to make your mommy cry. What a sweet picture of Ashman. He is so earnest. Love you thiiiissssss much!!

Cari Ann said...

Asher is such a beautiful boy. I am very happy for you. It is great to see good things happen for you, you deserve it. It was fabulous to hang out you with you the other nights. I really needed the fun. It has been a while and you are one of my favorite people to have some fun with.

Jacobson Five said...

Zoe, that is awesome. I'm so happy for you and for Asher.

Lei said...

I have tears! I'm proud of him too (and you - you are such a good mom).

Candice said...

YeeHaw Asher! Wow, the school bus and everything...life is great! Good luck with all those "typical" kids...I hear that they are pretty strange-Ahahahahaha!

Anonymous said...

We've come a long ways with Asher:

http://freshpreserves.blogspot.com/2005/04/mommy-what-is-dog-eating.html

I am so happy for him and am very proud of my wife for guiding him these past few years to this point.

I love you Zoe!

-Sterling

Cari Ann said...

Hey, I am having my skirt party this Thursday. I put an invitation in your box before I went out of town. I am Arizona. We had my Grandpa's funeral today. Soooo sad and really nice to. It has been hard but really great trip. I get home Wednesday. I hope to see you soon.

Evey said...

What a blessing your little man is and so very handsome. So glad to hear such good news.

Oh and you need to blog ;)

Owen said...

The long and bumpy road is getting longer!!! POST SOMETHING NEW por favor!!