Sunday, June 5, 2011

GBE2 Weekly Challenge: Lost and Found

I'm listening to my husband air a grievance about our older son's lack of respect for property...including his own. He tears everything apart. Most of the time, he's trying to figure out how things tick. Sometimes, he does it just for kicks. My husband's complaint today is valid as his glasses fell victim to this habit of our son's just this morning.

I have bins of broken things all over the house. They are taking me over. Our son will get a new toy and fairly quickly decide to break it. However, whatever you do, for the sake of us all, DO NOT THROW ANY OF THE PIECES AWAY! These pieces become coveted items. I'm not sure why. Are they now new toys to be played with in a different manner? Are the memories to the toys to which the were once attached.

The top to a toy carousel. A wheel to a play car. The rooster that was once part of my favorite egg timer. Covers to vhs tapes that carry beloved insignias-the list is extensive. And, so were the piles collecting in my house.

Tell me, what name should be assigned to the turntable upon which a carousel once sat? Or, what shall we call the plastic window that once covered the face of a toy vacuum? An odd wheel? And, how does one distinguish this week's wheel from last week's wheel which is still different from the favored wheel last month?

Our troubles really began when these pieces started roaming with him, for our son never, ever is without an object in his left hand. He's quick, and his preferences change often, so that piece of nothin' can be dropped at any odd location if the attending parent is not paying attention.

Lol. This is me, avoiding a stroll down the road of marital discourse...

Ahem, so, an item goes lost, and, of course, there is only one natural time for our son to discover this: bedtime.

Sleep. We all want sleep in the worst way. There really isn't much that I wouldn't do for sleep.

SO, PLEASE, PLEASE! CAN ANYONE REMEMBER THE LAST TIME THIS KID HAD THE BLUE STICK THING-Y???????

It is night. We are so close to our goal! I am about to lose my marbles and any hope of sleep if we do not find this treasured item!! Yes, I know that, in the long run, we are not helping his coping skills any by jumping through such hoops. But, listen, losing a piece of junk that has somehow become our son's favored toy threatens what many families of autism do not joke about: sleep.

In the car, under furniture, in bins of toys we look desperately, usually to find the object by chance in some spot we would have never expected. But who cares? Success! For one more evening, the lost item is found, and so, too, is my sanity.

20 comments:

  1. I wonder if you were to buy him a special small trunk and tell him that you bought it just for his treasured items, would he use it? Just wondering. My latest GBE 2 blog is here: http://helpforsingleparents.blogspot.com/2011/06/lost-and-found-teachers-who-kill-their.html

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  2. Keeping your sense of humor is vital! lol Bless you and your boys. Very funny to read, probably not so much to live.

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  3. Theresa, thanks! We have FIVE trunks now. LOL!

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  4. MARITAL ...i saw material discourse...glasses destroyed "daddy please see me" i heard. WOW left hand links to the heart..those lil items are his balance, his link to sanity..and you are the gatekeeper...WOW (this needs to be a chapter in your book) I can't wait to purchase it!! MUAH~!

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  5. I know this scenerio all too well! First is was a little plastic Founder. We even called Disney to see if we could special order a "lot" of them, knowing we were going to have to make sure she had access. For Spencer, it can be anything and it changes often...

    Today he played with 20 pounds of thistle seed in his room unbeknowst to us...What a huge mess. Took Doug and I hours to clean it up. It was everywhere!!!

    Love your blog, Amy! Feels like home!

    Ann

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  6. Wonderful post! It doesn't get any better with non-SPED teenagers. Last night, the night before going off for the summer to be a camp counselor, we're all looking for the camera charger. Why do they all wait until bedtime to decide they need these things?

    God bless. I'm your newest follower.

    Joyce
    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com/2011/06/lost-and-found-gbe2.html

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  7. Lovely twist :) Pls check my blog cnovac.blogspot.com for a well deserved award!

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  8. Okay...this sounds oddly familiar...only my kids are always either hungry or thirsty at bed time.

    I don't like to see a kid go to bed hungry or thirsty...so I always cave in. My husband always makes the point that this is a stall tactic, they really aren't hungry or thirst, they just don't want to go to sleep.

    He's right, I know. So we posted a sign in the kitchen, no food or drinks after 7:30pm. We sat them down and explained the rules. It seems to have worked, for now. Now the children are finding other ways to stall, like "I want to wear my purple shirt tomorrow and I can't find it." and they start searching frantically.

    "Now is not the time to search for it. It is bed time." And out the lights go.

    Amazingly, they are never hungry or thirsty any more when its time for bed!

    I hope you can figure out a solution so you don't go through looking for those toy pieces at bed time!! I can totally understand the frustration.

    Cheers, Jenn.

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  9. LOL. Jenn, so you kind of get it.

    Sadly, I don't see a sign taking away the perseveration of our anxiety-ridden older son. It would, however, work on our younger son. And, I think I'll steal your idea, if you don't mind! Thanks!

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  10. Every day (and apparently, night!) is a new challenge. The Navy's old slogan, "It's not just a job, it's an adventure" could apply to parenting, too. :O)

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  11. Hugs to you takes a special person to cope with a child with special needs you come through with flying colors. Kudos hon

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  12. Hugs to you! Wonderful blog. Although my kids don't break their stuff usually they do lose stuff and demand it immediately to which life doesn't go on till it is found. I can completely relate to that! Sometimes being a parent is down right exhausting!

    Kathy
    http://www.thetruckerswife.com/

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  13. Fabulous! I had an Uncle who was blind and very child-like. He tore everythinhg apart! He was so easy to shop for because all we had to do was gather up broken appliances or toys and he was happy. He also kept all the parts and would "twirl" a certain one sometimes for days until a new one took it's place. He got very agitated if he lost that special part.

    ~chickee

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  14. Our little cherubs give us many moments of writing material, don't they? :)

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  15. My daughter likes to break things too lol

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  16. Oh,Amy.... I was laughing and panicking right there with you. I know it's a different situation, but my eldest daughter had a bear.... you know... THE bear.... When he occasionally got lost, life was not worth living. Here's to you and those piles of bits which might one day become something amazing! I LOVE your blog :))

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  17. Oh my gosh - this would drive me crazy enough to not write about it. But thank you for sharing with a touch of wit! I was laughing with you while feeling your pain. Fantastic read as always. :)

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  18. Both my son and husband are the same. They don't treat their possessions very well. I see CD's, DVD's, and games tossed everywhere. If I have one scratch on my disc, I freak out.

    Good post.

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  19. Thank you for saying that. I was only writing about my older son, but my younger son and bhusband have no respect for their things...just as you have described! I am exactly the opposite. This house is a disaster zone, and they don't even realize it.

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