You see, Andrew has made so much progress that our service provider has determined he no longer needs in-home services.
Andrew is now enrolled in a private Christian school that has an autism program. It's run by a board certified behavior analyst (BCBA). And Andrew has been THRIVING since we moved him there.
It feels a little scary in the sense that no more therapists will be coming to our house to have sessions with Andrew. But over the past few weeks, we the parents have received some intense training of our own. But not as scary as I might have expected had you asked me five years ago.
We have been given tools to help shape Andrew's behavior. My favorite has been, "let's try that again." It's a form of redirection. When improper behavior occurs, you don't just say, "don't do that!" Instead, you need to redirect the child to what's appropriate. With these tools, I feel armed to move forward.
But I'm getting off track. The point is, as parents, we have learned so much over the past five years about how Andrew views the world. And with these extra tools, we are now in the driver's seat to help him grow up and become all that he can be.
It is hard to say goodbye to someone that has been such an integral part of our family. Someone that has helped Andrew transform from a non-verbal toddler to a part of a community of friends and family. Into a boy that giggled last night on the drive home after his school's Christmas program, telling us how much fun he had. Into a boy that will spontaneously go up to strangers in the waiting room at the doctor's office and become their friend.
Indeed, an end of a era. But also the beginning of a new and exciting one.
