Ava is 6 years old and is our youngest. She has always been very friendly, curious and regal; she is 50% princess and 50% tomboy and is the only person in the world who can make her dad do ANYTHING! She loves to go clothes shopping and admire herself in the mirror when she's not climbing everything, getting said clothes dirty outside, and playing/learning on her iPad. It is her belief that ketchup, barbeque sauce, and honey mustard make everything taste better, especially toys.
Her development was normal, until we noticed delays in her expressive language. We decided before she was born to hold off on her vaccines until she was older because of concerns/questions that we had regarding vaccine safety and their connection to autism. She received an official diagnosis at 2 years old and received services through Early Intervention and Building Blocks, and began school at 3 in an autistic classroom. Although she had difficulty at first (as would any kid), she quickly caught on and has always enjoyed school. She has been nonverbal until the past few months, but is now beginning to use some words -- mostly imitation at this point, but it is a start!
I began teaching her one-on-one using Rapid Prompting Method when she demanded that I do so because she had seen me use it with Aidan, but she has had a break from it because she has been receiving services at home after school and I don't want to wear her out! Some time in the near future I will start working with her once a week because I think she will benefit more from it now that she is a little older and able to sit for longer periods. At this point she probably is more proficient in math than I am and her spatial awareness and puzzle-solving ability is extremely advanced! True story: a few months ago Aidan and Ava took part in a university study and part of it was puzzles which consisted of a pattern with a piece missing. Ava kept getting them right, and the clinician kept giving her more and more difficult patterns. As the patterns got more complex, there were some that I thought Ava got wrong, thinking to myself, "Still pretty impressive, though. I mean, she was CLOSE!" only to find out that she wasn't close. She was right and I would have chosen the wrong pieces!
She is currently obsessed with the number 2, as she has realized that 2 is better than 1. She notices when there are two of something, insists that I comb her hair into 2 ponytails, and when we tell her she can have 1 of something she's been known to say, "No. Two." I believe that's her first sentence.
Ava is absolutely amazing, and her autism is just part of who she is. I am glad that her language is emerging, because the only thing that has held her back at times is the frustration of being unable to communicate. She can be challenging at times, but I can't help but admire her fierceness and tenacity even when she's making me want to pull my hair out!
As with all of my children, I don't want to change who she is, nor do I want her to grow up thinking that there is something wrong with her. I simply want her to be accepted and to have the supports needed to reach her full potential -- which, by the way, is huge!
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