I knew it would be hard to keep this up and now 2 months later I am only writing for the second time. I am happy to report that Kristian's ankle has really healed well. It is quite sensitive when we put shoes on, but he can wear shoes and that is a step forward! We could not put shoes on him for 7 weeks, so he wore flip flops everywhere. But now that we have snow on the ground I am very glad he will allow us to put shoes on. It was quite an ordeal! We went to see the phycyatrist again and she said that she was pretty sure Kristian would not make the connection between the motor scooter and his burn. So we did the experiment, and he could not wait for another ride on the motor scooter! I was pretty sure when the accident happened that he was unaware of what had occurred. I am thankful, even through accidents, that I can learn how his mind works or doesn't.

While we were at the same phycyatrist appointment we had taken Grace with us. I was so thankful that we did. It was so interesting to have the doctor point out how Grace is socially more advanced than Kristian. Not to discount any progress that Kristian has made, but to see where he is behind and why. The room was very small and Kristian would not let her anywhere near is little space. Sharing was out of the question, and she was continually pushed out of the way. She was not amused. Again I asked the question of whether Kristian was high or low functioning, and again the same answer. We will have to wait a few years. Some children progress quickly and tapper off and some progress slowly and then continue to improve. Either way we will not know for now. I am okay with that, because we are learning as we go. Of course I hope for him to be as high functioning as possible, but if he is not then we will continue to learn and be thankful we have him in our lives.

Today was our first Sunday with Mark in the new bishopric, and it has been a long but good day. Kent and Kayla spent the night last night, and and were a big help at church. When we got home Kristian was on a rampage! Everything was making him mad. He threw at least 4 good temper tantrums and it was difficult to calm him down. I am trying to figure out the best way to calm him down and not give in to what he wants. When he calms down and can use words to either communicate an apology or a request, he is rewarded. I hope that is what I am suppose to do. I am learning as I go. His language is improving really well. I have been able to notice the speech therapy has been a huge help. Although his vocabulary is improving, he really struggles to express himself. When he finds himself in a difficult situation there is a lot of grunting, screeching, and crying. If I talk him through it, then we generally find out what the problem is. He is still best at yes and no question. We are limited in the descriptive area as well. But I think it will come with time.

We are making slow progress in the toilet training area. It is getting very difficult to change his pull ups, because he is getting very strong. But he has been staying dry longer and he has started, in just the past couple of days, to tell me when he has peed or when he is poopy. That is great. I know it will be a while but I will take all the progress I can get. We go through a box of Costco pull-ups every month! Not to mention diapers for Grace! She may pass him in this area as well, or be his teacher! We will see.

Emotionally I feel really good. I am continually thinking of my brothers and my parents, and the amazing example of facing adversity with an attitude of gratitude. I know that everyone will face trials in one way or another, and I know that this will not be the only trial we will face. At the same time I know that if we stay close to the spirit we will be guided in all our decisions, and as we follow our Saviors example we will find that the blessings far out weigh the trial.

My friends have discovered the fun past time of blogging. I have not made it a priority until one of my amazing friends said, "you should do a blog for Kristian. That way you can keep a journal of all his ups and downs and also of his progress." It was such an amazing suggestion. But she also knew that I needed a little shove so she even set up the blog and had it all ready for me to type. She rocks. I am not the best writer, and spelling can be an issue as well, but I am ready to dive in and give it a shot. Kristian is my 5th child of 6. In June he was diagnosed with autism. I had been watching him for a while, with several concerns that I was blaming on his ears, until it became obvious that it was something else. When he was 2 my pediatrician was concerned and asked me if I thought he had autism. I was not sure. He was definitely delayed in many, if not all areas, but I did not know enough about the disorder to be sure. We are continually learning more as a result of his diagnosis, and we would not trade him for the world. Each day he makes me and our whole family better.

Going back to last Thursday the 21st of August, Kristian had a bad little accident. We were coming home from a friends and he got a ride on a motor scooter, which he loved. He arrived home and was getting off the scooter when he grabbed the handle and some how pusher the accelerator. He was not able to process the information and he ended up caught between the curb and the moving scooter. He was stuck as the scooter's muffler moved over his leg and burned him pretty good. One side of his right leg was road rash, and the other had 2nd degree burns. He was quite hysterical, and unaware of the object that gave him such horrible pain. I got a wet rag with ice in it to ease the pain until we got to the doctor. They were able to get it clean and bandaged up. We have been changing the bandages twice a day since. I am hoping to let it air out during a movie tomorrow. He hates to have the bandages changed, and it is hard to reason with him. I needed to go to Walgreens yesterday to get some more supplies for his burn, and he saw that we were going to the store. I said that we needed to get things for Kristian. He responded, "Thanks mom. You da best!" I then said that we needed stuff for his owie. He then responded, "You no da best!" It was so funny, and great to see that he understood!

Today was also his first day of preschool. He is attending the same special needs preschool that he did in the spring. It is great for him, and he gets all of his pt, ot, and speech therapy at school. The bus comes right to our door to pick him up and to bring him home. They call him their little surfer boy. Everyone loves his hair. I have learned how to ask him questions. Questions such as "what did you do at school?" will get a blank stare. But if I ask, "did you have fun at school?" I will get a resounding "yes!". Mark was asking him at bed time "Did you read stories at preschool? Did you eat snacks? Did you play with toys? Did you flush the toys down the toilet?". Yes was the response to every question! So we know there is not a flushable toilet in the trailer at his preschool and he is not toilet trained. I know he had a great day because he came home happy. He is a very happy boy, and he is a gift in my life.