NATE AT REGIONALS

Nate didn't make it to Nationals but he skated really good. He tried but the other boys were just too fast. He was a little sad but there is next season if he decides to skate again. He had fun watching Ericka kick some butt. He is happy for her and kept cheering her on.
His favorite part of the trip was getting to go on all the fun rides after the meet. They hold Regionals in Portland Oregon at Oaks Amusement Park and skate rink. Every year after the first day they have a big picnic and the skaters all get to hang around and have some fun at the park. Nate wanted to go on everything and I spent a lot of time chasing him down. He was really excited and worked up so he was a challenge to say the least. He gets really hyper and goofy and pays no attention to whats going on. I can't count how many times he ran into people because he was busy looking at all the flashing lights etc.
Kids from all different teams were hanging out together and having a good time. There were a couple of other boys in his division who found him and asked him to go on a ride with them. He actually went and they were laughing when they came out. He is starting to make more friends at the meets and they stick together. It doesn't matter to them that he isn't the best skater. They never make fun of him. The faster boys try and tell him things to help him get better. They all pick up on the fact he's a bit different but they are patient with him. The thing we like most about this sport is that the same people go season to season over several years. Some of these kids have been skating together since they were tiny tots and stay in it for years. They grow up together. There are some families where they are 2nd or even 3rd generation skaters. It's kind of like a big family. We have been part of it now for over 2 yrs and it's the one group that has been the most accepting of him. There are several kids in this Region who are really talented skaters who at school are outcasts. Like Nate they may not always be the best by any means but they get out there and try. Even though Nate never places in his division he does place in relays and it has helped his confidence. At several meets they let kids from different teams group up and relay together. Nate has been lucky and has been put on some good relays. He's smart and knows when to go out and he does his part well. He knows the other kids are counting on him to do it right so he tries hard to pay attention. They see that and respect him. It's good because then when he's goofy off the floor they are more forgiving. It also helps that he follows around his sister who makes friends easily. She is his navigator and explains him to the others.
He is SO ready for school to be out. I am too just so I get a break from the homework fight. I wish that he could just tell the teacher the answer. He hates to write and it is a battle I am tired of fighting. Next year he'll be in third and they really start focusing on penmenship. He is going to struggle with that for many years to come, hopefully they figure it out and help him.
He is happy that the weather is finally getting warm. He goes out and plays any chance he gets. I think we are all looking forward to summer and having some fun.

Birthday Boy

My baby turned 8 yesterday. I can't believe it! He is growing so fast. We took him out to dinner and then came home and watched Barnyard. He got to open a couple of presents but the rest will wait till Saturday when we go to grandma's. We got him a remote control helicopter that he's very happy about. He's wanted it for awhile so he was pretty excited when he unwrapped it. He spent the afternoon terrorizing the poor dogs with it.
School is going okay I think. He says that he has been getting in trouble and missing recess. He says that he isn't getting his writing done on time so he gets sent to study hall. I feel sorry for the person in charge there, Nate+boredom = chaos. His papers come home with high marks except his writing so we are working on that still. I think that is going to be an issue for a long time. He absolutly hates to write and can't stand holding the pencil. He loves math but when he has to actually write the answers rather than say them he gets frustrated. It's a battle every day to get him to do his homework. He fights and cries and whines and it turns into a tantrum but he eventually gets it done. He keeps asking how many more days he has until school is done. Lucky for him there is only about a month left. We've got some fun stuff planned for the summer so he'll be a happier boy we hope.

OUCH

We had a little drama the other day. We had to pick up Nate from school because he got hurt. He was playing on the monkey bars and fell. We were told that on his way down he hit his head on the lower bars. He knocked himself out from the sounds of it. You can never get a clear story from the recess people. He didn't remember what happened and just laid there. He didn't throw up and his pupils were normal so they didn't think it was an emergency. We brought him home and let him rest and he was fine. I think it scared him more than anything. He didn't have any big goose egg or bruise. He returned to his normal self after a couple of hours of rest and some pain meds.
Other than that he's been doing good. He has been practicing with Ericka to get ready for the meet next weekend. He will be doing his division (primary boys elite/standard) a Juvenile 4 mix relay with Ericka, and a primary 2 boy relay. He's gotten so much faster the last month and he knows it.
Ericka got quad skates so of course he wanted some too. Since his birthday is in a couple of weeks we went ahead and let him choose a pair. He seems to like them a lot and wants Troy to teach him all the tricks. He has already learned a couple. He is pretty good in them after only wearing them for a couple of hours. We were a bit surprised he would want to try them. They are a lot different than what he is used to. I think the idea of him being the only one in the family without them overpowered the whole change thing that usually bothers him.
Anyways, school is going well, and he's been busy doing all the typical things little boys do.

PRIVACY

ATTENTION!!!!

We set the blogs to private so you can only view by invitation. If you followed the link as a guest you will only get to view for two weeks. If you want to be able to view after that you will have to create a google account. It is simple if you follow one of the links from the invite I sent you. If you already have a google account then just use that to see the blog. We didn't want just anyone to see the kids' blogs. Hope this doesn't cause confusion etc but if it does just email me and I'll help you out so you can continue to read the posts.

MUSIC

We had to put a new music link on Nate's blog because of the other one not working.
Just click on the play icon twice and it will start playing. If you hover over the right hand side it will allow you to skip a track or two forward. The songs are some of Nate's favorites.
Nathan is keeping busy playing and driving us looney. He's been having problems lately with any loud noise and will get really irritable. He's always been sensitive to sound but it seems to be worse right now for whatever reason. We were at session the other night and he was out skating and seemed to be enjoying himself. He comes and sits down and just starts crying so I asked him what was wrong. He has these big tears coming down and says "the music is too loud and it's hurting my ears". He's been going to session for 6 years and hasn't complained for a long time. He's also becoming even more picky when it comes to food. I can't for the life of me understand how he weighs more than Ericka. She eats everything and then some and she is 5 pounds lighter.
He has been building tons of spaceships with his legos the last few days. Maybe we have a future engineer. We took him to the IMAX the other day. They were showing the Mars Rover being built, and you could just see the wheels turning in that head. We watch the show Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader and he gets most of all the math and science questions right. It's funny because he'll get annoyed with the people if they can't answer the questions. Our little Einstein :)

SICK

Nate hasn't been feeling well the last couple of days. He hates being sick and lets everyone know it. He's better today but still a bit grumpy. He wasn't happy to find out that he couldn't play outside, so that made him even more irritable. He loves playing in the dirt but now that our grass is in there isn't any to make a mess with. It will be nice once it gets warmer so he can go outside more and play. He gets cabin fever worse than any of us so he's itching to run out the door.
I asked him if he wanted me to sign him up for soccer or baseball but he has no interest in either. I think the whole team thing scares him. He likes to skate because the plays are always the same. You just go as fast as you can for so many laps and your done. You don't have to be overally social and that is the way he likes it. He has learned through school/PE that if you mess up your team gets mad so he avoids most sports. He tries so hard to keep up with the other kids but he just can't do it so he gets discouraged and gives up. He was even starting to get frustrated with skating but once he won his first trophy that all changed. His goal now is to catch up with Ericka. He's got a lot of work to do but I won't underestimate him. He might just do it.

CONFERENCES

We are happy to say that despite Nate having some low marks for behavior he is in the top 3 of his class academically.
He scores way above grade level for math and is reading at a 3/4th grade level (he is in 2nd). Last year he was behind. He has really good teachers here who seem to know how to motivate him. He is easily distracted and his handwriting is not where it should be but they are helping him. The two teachers he has run a tight ship and he seems to be thriving. He has one teacher (female) who comes in the mornings for reading, writing and spelling. Then another teacher (male) comes in after lunch and does Math, Science and Social Studies. It's just too bad he won't have that set up next school year:(
His teachers were also very supportive of his skating. I asked them if him missing school once a month for meets is causing problems. They both said that it hasn't and that they are happy he is in something he enjoys so much. I guess he has been writing stories about the meets and all the fun stuff they get to do. The conference went well and hopefully he continues to keep his grades up.

BUT HE LOOKS SO NORMAL...

Well in many ways Nate IS like any other "normal" 7 year old boy.
He likes to run around, play in the dirt and annoy his older sister. He likes to play ball and play video games. He plays a mean game of chess and his favorite part of the school day is recess. He loves animals and says he wants to be a veternarian when he grows up. He likes playing with cars (even if his idea of playing is lining them all up and leaving them in the hallway for us to trip over). His favorite subjects in school are math and science. He will read anything and everything to do with planets, nature and he really likes dragons. He will spend hours building things with his Knex and legos.He just has a few things that makes him "quirky" or as some people say "eccentric".
Nathan has many sensory problems and he has a hard time controlling his behavior, especially in certain environments. He doesn't make friends very easily and he gets confused when it comes to social cues and rules. A lot of people say "well everyone has quirks". That is true but unlike the rest of us he gets stuck and can't filter things out as easily. We might have things that annoy us or temporarily set us back but we can find ways on our own to overcome and function. Aspergers makes it impossible to do this without help. That is why it is currently called a "developmental disability".
I don't look at him and see a "disabled" little boy though. I see a very smart kid who's brain works in a way that society hasn't caught up with yet.

ASPERGERS 101

I have wanted to create a blog concerning Aspergers Syndrome for awhile. It is something that is obviously personal since Nate has it. I will start off by educating those of you who may not be familiar as to what AS is.
Asperger Syndrome or (Asperger's Disorder) is a neurobiological disorder named for a Viennese physician, Hans Asperger, who in 1944 published a paper which described a pattern of behaviors in several young boys who had normal intelligence and language development, but who also exhibited autistic-like behaviors and marked deficiencies in social and communication skills. In spite of the publication of his paper in the 1940's, it wasn't until 1994 that Asperger Syndrome was added to the DSM IV and only in the past few years has AS been recognized by professionals and parents.Individuals with AS can exhibit a variety of characteristics and the disorder can range from mild to severe. Persons with AS show marked deficiencies in social skills, have difficulties with transitions or changes and prefer sameness. They often have obsessive routines and may be preoccupied with a particular subject of interest. They have a great deal of difficulty reading nonverbal cues (body language) and very often the individual with AS has difficulty determining proper body space. Often overly sensitive to sounds, tastes, smells, and sights, the person with AS may prefer soft clothing, certain foods, and be bothered by sounds or lights no one else seems to hear or see. It's important to remember that the person with AS perceives the world very differently. Therefore, many behaviors that seem odd or unusual are due to those neurological differences and not the result of intentional rudeness or bad behavior, and most certainly not the result of "improper parenting".By definition, those with AS have a normal IQ and many individuals (although not all), exhibit exceptional skill or talent in a specific area. Because of their high degree of functionality and their naiveté, those with AS are often viewed as eccentric or odd and can easily become victims of teasing and bullying. While language development seems, on the surface, normal, individuals with AS often have deficits in pragmatics and prosody. Vocabularies may be extraordinarily rich and some children sound like "little professors." However, persons with AS can be extremely literal and have difficulty using language in a social context.
There is much more to the story but you get the point.