It Matters to This One

My dad wrote a song for the Autism Sings fundraiser last Friday night, and I want to share it with you all. He dedicated the song to the 17 year-old girl who put the concert together, as well as to everyone who has helped me and my family with my special needs. For all of you who have made a difference by contributing toward my dog, prayed for me and my family, and follow this blog, we dedicate this song to you.

It matters to this one

A father and son were taking a walk on the beach
Enjoying the sun and the warmth of the sand on their feet
When suddenly they came upon – as far as the eye could see
A thousand starfish drying out – the ocean just out of reach

So the boy knelt down and picked one up
And threw it back in the sea
Then another and another were saved

Till the father had had enough
And he said, “Son, you can’t save them all.
It doesn’t really matter anyway”
But the son said

It matters to this one, I can change a life
Even one tiny act of kindness Can make the world more bright
I may not save every one, But I can do my part
You can call me crazy, But someone’s got to start

It’s a great big world out there with lots of problems to be solved
At times it seems an overwhelming task
But we can’t afford to give up
We can’t be cynical and hopeless
We dare not lose sight of what’s important
Or forget the power of love
We need our children to remind us to think small

It matters to this one, We can change a life
Even one tiny act of kindness Can make the world more right
We might not save everyone But we can do our part
Let the world call us crazy, But someone’s got to start

It matters to this one, you can change a life
Even one tiny act of kindness Can make the world more right
You might not save everyone But you can do your part
Let the world call you crazy, But someone’s got to start

Let the world call us crazy, We can each touch one heart

Words & Music by Jason Chollar (c) January 2009

Autism Sings concert update & next Brigadoon visit

The concert last night was amazing. I was even able to sit through it (although Mom bribed me with sour gummy worms). My dad (of course) was awesome! I did manage to escape Mom's grip at the end of the concert and run through the emergency exit. LUCKILY the alarm didn't go off, so Mom was relieved about that one. I also ran up to the stage then into the back during intermission, but Dad was right behind me so I didn't get too far away--just enough to get him a little exercise!!! Last night Mom was really wishing Bond were there to help keep me corralled! But the event was a success--there were 330 people there and over $4,000 was raised for Autism Speaks. Yay!

Mom emailed Denise, and we will be going to visit Bond on Feb. 16th. I'll make sure to have Mom take lots of pictures and see what the current status of my new friend is. :)

UPDATE ON AUTISM SINGS CONCERT

Because of the flooding, the autism concert has been rescheduled to this Friday--here is the new info--I'll be there, and I hope to see some of you there too!

Autism Sings
Friday, Jan 16th
Stanwood High School Performing Arts Center
7:00 pm
$5.00

A good cause for those of you in Washington

On Friday night a Stanwood High School senior, Tara Smith, is going to be putting on a benefit concert to raise autism awareness, and money for Autism Speaks. Her brother, Noah, is 12 years old and is also affected by autism. Tickets are $5 a person, and there will be a silent auction as well. She has some great acts lined up, and my dad may even be getting up there. :) If you can make it to this performance it will be worth your time, and it's a great cause! There is an article in today's Everett Herald about the performance, and why Tara is doing this. Mom and Dad are going to take me, so I hope that I will see some of you there!
Aaron

Friday night (Jan 9th)
Stanwood High School Performing Arts Center
7:00 pm
$5.00

BE THERE!!!

I don't stay out of trouble for long

I could only be "good" for so long (other than the fact that I've cut off my tracking bracelet three times this week). Someone (Dad) left the bathroom door open, so I sneaked in there and emptied/smeared everywhere: the hair gel, shaving cream, shampoo, soap. Madison was put in charge of me while Mom cleaned up so that I couldn't make another mess while she was cleaning that one. Christmas break is over in 9 days--so Mom and Dad have to hang on just a little bit longer! Maybe going back to my routine will help them out a bit! Have a Happy New Year!!!
Love,
Aaron

Merry Christmas

I just wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and happy holiday! I am so blessed to have a wonderful family, friends, and all of you who care about me. I hope you enjoy your day. Eat lots of cookies (I keep getting into the rice crispy treats!!!). Mom will be glad now that the scissors can be really hidden again (I've cut my bracelet off three times over the past couple of days). Have a wonderful day and a Happy New Year.
Love,
Aaron

Good Days

I usually post all of the naughty things that I'm up to, but I have had a really good couple of weeks, so I thought I'd post the good things too! It's these times that Mom holds on to! I have been very verbal the last two weeks, and am making some great eye contact. I love it when my dad tickles me, so I've been going up to him and SPONTANEOUSLY (big word for you autism know-it-alls) asking him "more tickle" in this irresistible voice! Huge step. I've had a lot of fun interacting with my brother and sister, and school has been very pleased with my behavior lately. I've been using these "yes" and "no" cards at school, so my teacher sent a copy home so Mom and Dad can use them with me here. I'm not totally successful but it's a work in progress. My teachers say I'm doing well in school, and they are really challenging and pushing me. I have also started speech therapy again with my very first speech therapist (hi Irna), and Mom is very happy about that! Even though Thanksgiving is behind us, my family and I have a lot to be thankful for. Including all of you who have supported me through the process of finding my dog, to those of you who check up just to see what mischief I'm in! :)
Have a great evening!
Love,
Aaron

Today's Brigadoon Visit

Today Mom, Madison and I went up to Brigadoon to hang out with Bond for about an hour. While we were there, I spent a lot of time petting Bond, sitting with him in his crate, and just hangin' out. I was much more engaged with Bond than I have been, and was initiating contact with him. It was fun for Mom and Denise to watch me interact with him. While we were there, Mom asked Denise about what is going to happen from here. So here is what is in store for us: There are two other dogs in front of me that need to be trained. They will start their formal training as soon as the holidays are over. Once they go to their new homes, Bond will start his formal training. That will include learning to track my scent, going different places, and practice being tethered to me. We're not sure yet how long that is going to take, so there is no set date that Bond will come home with me permanently. As it stands now, after the holidays Bond is going to come over to my house to do a home visit, and hang out on my "turf". We'll just kind of plan sporatic visits up to Brigadoon until his formal training starts, and then the "fun" (work) will begin! Here are some pictures of my visit today, and have a Happy Thanksgiving next week. My family has a lot to be thankful for this year, and one of the things we are thankful for is the support we have from all of you.

With Love,
Aaron

Saying hi to Bond

Playing on the kitty perch

Playing in the dog crate

Bond hanging out in the crate with me

Mom just thought this was an interesting picture...

Bond was getting ready to drag me around--for a second!

Giving Bond some lovin'

Taking a rest

Bond watching over me

Sleeping in the car after a long (1 hour) visit--or because I was up at 5:30....

Why try?

Yesterday was NOT a good day. It seems like we are having a lot of those lately. It was Veteran's Day yesterday so I was out of school. Sometimes I do okay when I'm outside of my routine, and other times I don't. Yesterday was one of those days. Mom went from mess to mess, cleaning up after me. As soon as she started cleaning up the mess I had just made, I went on to a new one. She tried to be proactive and play with me, but there are two other kids, and Dad is sick right now too. Mom's breaking point was a shampoo incident. She recently bought shampoo in the form of a bar because I was dumping liquid shampoo left and right. She figured that a solid bar would put an end to cleaning up shampoo and supporting Suave. :) She was wrong. While she was checking up on Dad to see if he needed anything, I got into the shower, grabbed the bar of shampoo and scraped/smeared it all over the bathroom. When she found me (she had been in there less than 5 minutes) I was standing IN the toilet, the bar of shampoo was in there with me (she is SO glad I didn't flush it), and bar shampoo was everywhere. She was not happy. She had a long way to go before bedtime, so she just hung on until then, and I managed to live through the day. :) Today I went to school, so it should be a better day--maybe.

Mom can't wait for my friend

I'm going to put a disclaimer on this post so there is no confusion. Mom is not expecting Bond to "fix" me or prevent me from all of the destruction I have planned; however, Mom IS looking forward to the possibility of less mess! So here is how the last few days have played out: I have been sick with a cold, so last week was a rough week for all of us. I have been known to throw little temper tantrums every once in a while, but this past week I have thrown some of the worst tantrums my parents, therapist and school has ever seen. It has been really hard on Mom and Dad this week, and they are kind of at a loss of what to do. So in addition to that going on, I have been enjoying getting into a little more trouble. Other than my usual shampoo dumping (which I have moved to the toilet) here is a story. Sunday turned into a particularly not-so-good-day with my mom. The day started out fairly nice. Mom and I went to Target and Costco to do a little shopping. She bought me a piece of pizza and we had lunch together before we did our shopping. Once we were done with Costco, Mom put me in the car and started unloading the groceries from the cart into the trunk. At this point I found a cup of water, went to the back seat, and dumped it all over the seat. I looked her right in the eye as I did it too! (She said "no" before I dumped it, but I didn't listen). She gently and nicely told me to sit down in my seat, so I did--I knew I was in trouble! She finished unloading the groceries, closed the door and took the cart back. She got in the car and started driving off when she smelled something....and decided to look back at me. Well, while she was gone putting the cart away (literally 10 seconds away), I decided to get into the two cans of shaving cream that were in a bag. I thought the inside of the car would look so much nicer with shaving cream all over it--oh and myself. It was a big mess, and at that point I'm pretty lucky I'm alive. She cleaned me up the best she could and drove on home. (Ironically Mom had to buy new shaving cream because I had emptied the last one). So by this time Mom had had it, but the day was young (only 1:30)....fast forward to the evening... Mom looked at the computer I use because it was turned off only to find it sitting in a pool of water. Yes, my computer is now fried. No more computer for me. :( I am very sad, and Mom is trying to have sympathy, but at the same time she is mourning the loss of a computer at my hands. So, I'm not sure what I'm going to do now. She won't let me near her computer (I'm not sure why), so I'm kind of on self-inflicted computer restriction. So if you have a magic trick to resurrect a computer, please please please let her know. :)

Well I'm tired thinking about all the trouble I got into this weekend!!! Mom thought I was having a fairly good evening until I got into the shampoo.....oh well. It's bedtime now, so it should be trouble-free around here for a few hours anyway. Nighty night!