Book Review: The Way I Act

At the end of May I won a book giveaway from Age of Autism and received a copy of The Way I Act by Steve Metzger (verses) and Janan Cain (illustrations). I have been meaning to review it for quite a while, but as of yet had not taken the time…until now. Yes, it’s true. I’ve been slacking. It’s been known to happen on occasion. Besides, I've been mitigating the craziness of summer break! 

First of all, let me just say a huge thank you to the great folks at Age of Autism for not only having the giveaway, but somehow picking me as the lucky winner! You have no idea how exciting it is for me to receive a book in the mail. It’s like Christmas! You should have seen me when I got my author’s copy of Sensational Journeys. (For those of you who are not aware, I am a contributing author. Isn’t that super cool? I’m still doing a happy dance over that little tidbit.)

Anyway, I have a slight book problem. I love books, but I never have enough time to read them all. I continue to buy them whenever I have two pennies to rub together. I keep reminding my hubby that “it’s for the families” (meaning I will buy it for myself and then make it available in my support group’s lending library). It’s justified, right? Maybe this book obsession could even be considered honorable! OK, I’ll stop now. Getting back to the topic at hand…

The first thing I noticed when I received The Way I Act was how vibrant the colors were on the cover art. It had immediately grabbed my eye in a positive way. Prince Charming happened to be in the room when I opened the package and he caught a glimpse of it at the same time I did. Within seconds, he was at my side clamoring to look at the book. Prince Charming's reading skills have really blossomed in the past year. He is finally showing an interest in books, which I am thankful for. So, before I could even open it or read it, I handed it off to him and he climbed up into Titan’s lap and snuggled in for some reading time.

He opened the book and it captured his attention right away. He began to read the words and Titan helped him with the more difficult ones. He had great satisfaction when he could turn to the next page. When he finished the book, he asked to read it again. And he liked it. When he was done reading it the second time through, I saw him continue to flip through the pages while he looked at the illustrations. I think he really appreciated the colorful pictures.

I have to say that the illustrations are my favorite part of the book. They are captivating. My next favorite part of the book is the cadence of the verses. I think we can all agree that books are much more fun to read when they have a rhythm to the words.

The Way I Act covers 13 different ways to behave in a positive manner. As many of you are aware with autism, it’s harder for a child to grasp the “no” and the “do not” rules. They have more success when there is an example of what is “yes” and “to do” instead of only focusing on the negative behavior. Words like considerate, cooperative, and respectful are all concepts that I want my children familiar with. These words (and more) are addressed in the book with some ideas on what each of the words mean in action.

There is also a note for parents in the back of the book that provides 4 tips on how to better use the book as a teaching tool with your child.

Overall, the book is fun to look at and fun to read and it easily moves you toward discussion about the concepts presented. I have not read the previous book, The Way I Feel, but I can imagine that it would also be a worthwhile book to have. I’m sure my boys would love it.

The Way I Act is mom approved AND Prince Charming approved! It doesn’t get much better than that.

To take a look at the book more closely and read other reviews, click on the picture to the left. And, while you’re at it, visit Parenting Press to learn more about the other titles they have available.           

Ewww...that's gross!

As the summer progresses, things just keep getting nuttier and nuttier around my house. The boys are wound up so tight with energy that I cannot adequately describe it to you, other than to borrow the words from my friend, Lindsay, over at Earth Monkey Moms. My boys are like “monkeys on crack.” Lindsay, you hit the nail on the head with that one!

I play my boys as hard as I can, but they do.not.slow.down. Ever. Unless they are sleeping. And, that could be potentially because mommy slipped them a magical “nighttime vitamin.” Melatonin, I love you. Truly. You have single-handedly saved my sanity at night.

I’m seeing an increase in sensory-seeking behavior as the summer progresses. It’s cropping up everywhere we go. At home. In the car. Out in public. Everywhere. They can be loud, erratic, argumentative, and even combative. They are ramping up their behavior in every way possible. In the process they have developed some new, ummm, interests…  Yes, interests. That’s what I'll call it.

Those interests involve their fingers. If you are a fellow mom you might have some sort of idea where I’m going with this. Good Lord, help me.  

Prince Charming has learned the fine art of mining for treasure in his nose. He’s getting to be quite the expert. He likes to practice this skill in private and I catch him every so often. When caught, he immediately runs and hides so he can attempt to continue his new favorite sport without seeing mommy’s disapproving glare.

Monkey decided he’d like to take a stab at Prince Charming’s worst habit – nail biting. He is quite the consummate professional now. Not only does he peel off his nails with his teeth, he picks at his fingers until hang nails form and even bleed. As a matter of fact, he has taught himself to put on a bandaid by himself because it was happening so much that I began refusing to fix him up. Whenever I see him with a bandaid on his finger I know what he’s been up to. As if it couldn’t get any better, he has taken nail biting and turned it into the art form of removing a portion of nail and treating it like chewing gum in his mouth. It.is.disgusting. He is an expert at being sneaky, so I know I’m only catching him in the act a fraction of the time he actually does it. Blech! It makes my stomach turn just writing about it.

I know boys will be boys and all that, but my boys are driving me bananas with their new habits. What is a stressed out mom to do? I’m thinking bribery. Whaaat? Yes, it's true. I have been known to offer a bribe now and again.

We are approaching the end of summer break and I’m feeling worn down and in need of a mommy treat. And, a bribe can also be a mommy treat. Especially when it’s Starbucks! Can you say treat receipt time? My boys love to split a grande passion tea lemonade. It’s pink, after all. And, there’s nothing quite like the threat of mom consuming their special treat in front of them if they continue to choose to misbehave. I know, I know. I’m bad. But, I’m so good at it! J

I hope you are surviving your summer break! If you happen to be so lucky as to already have your kids back in school, well, let’s just say that I’m jealous.  

  

A new chapter

This weekend I was a part of something wonderful and I wanted to share it with you. I’ve been running a support group for special needs families for almost 3 years now and have been doing it as a one-woman show pretty much the entire time. I have always been happy to do it because I know that the group is needed in my area, and frankly, I need the support for myself. Each meeting I get to connect with great people. No matter the diagnosis, we all share similar struggles. And, many of the attendees I can now call my friends. The whole thing is a true blessing to me.

The best part is that I have an opportunity to learn something new at each meeting. The speakers always have great information to share and I soak it up like a sponge. I have a desire to learn, not only for myself, but for the sake of my children. This should come as no surprise. I was always a nerdy kid and got really good grades. I even went back to college (before kids!) to get my Master’s degree because I thought it would be fun. I still get weird looks about that one, especially when people learn that it wasn’t to gain fame and fortune or an executive position somewhere. I just like school, I guess. Yes, I know I’m strange.

As an aside, I’ll tell ya what that fancy and very expensive degree got me in the job department...nada. Zip. Zilch. I’ve always found a job easily, but even with an MBA and an extensive job search in the past year, I got nothin.’

I am a self-proclaimed busy body and not having a job when our family could use some financial help is not my idea of fun. To make myself feel better, I always find ways to stay busy and do work (even if it is unpaid). Helloooo, can you say blogging? Anyway, I got to thinking about how I could create my own job doing what I love. I’ve found that my mindset has changed drastically since my boys’ diagnosis. My heart is truly in the special needs community now. It’s what I am passionate about. I mean, how can I not be passionate about something that affects me every single day?

Since I started the group I’ve met hundreds of people who have children with autism and other special needs. Not one person has had an easy time of anything. We all struggle and there are some significant needs out there. I have to say that my life is pretty darn easy compared to some people I know. I recognize that and I appreciate what I have. I also see it as an opportunity to do something when others might not be able to.

I began thinking that I should take my group to the next level.

Pink Panther and the Fly Hunter

I wanted to extend a thank you to Pink Panther. You may remember me telling you about how my boys love to watch the show and I love that they don’t dialog the words (since there really aren’t any to memorize and endlessly script). Well, I just discovered that Pink Panther also helped Prince Charming to stop being afraid of flies.

He used to have a humongous fear of them. If a gnat flew into the room, the blood-curling screaming that ensued made you envision an axe-murder dismembering him bit by bit. I would come running into the room and find him petrified by a fruit fly. God forbid it was an actual house fly. Those creatures made the screaming intensify by at least ten-fold, if that was even humanly possible. I swear I have permanent hearing loss from this kid.

I used to encourage him to pick up a toy and use it as a swatter and take a swing at the flies in order to scare them away. I would tell him repeatedly that the flies were teeny tiny and that he was a big boy and that if anyone was scared, it was the flies who were scared of him. He always felt better when he had a toy in his hand (like a plastic bat) that he could swing around and scare the fly or try to “smash” it with. Invariably, the feeling of superiority to the fly would diminish and he would once again be scared and I would ultimately have to become the fly huntress and kill it.    

Recently I noticed that his fear had been lessening to some degree and I could not attribute it to anything other than maybe he was just getting older and it wasn’t quite so scary for him anymore. I was happy for the change and didn’t really think all that much about it.

It got pretty comical recently when we were out at Starbucks getting me a caffeinated afternoon delight (with my treat receipt, of course!). I watched him start jumping around while we were waiting in line to order my drink. I had no idea why he was doing that. I saw him do some moves that looked oddly similar to karate and I asked him what was going on. He told me he was trying to smash the fly. Since I didn’t see a fly, I assumed it was a little fruit fly. He started moving around in a jerky, fighting-with-the-air fashion, advancing more into the dining area where patrons were sitting and enjoying their coffee. I had him come back and stand with me, but the look on his face was that of a diligent hunter tracking its prey. It was pretty funny and I gave him a loving squeeze to tell him that I was proud that he wasn’t scared of the fly.

The fly hunter thing happened again a few days later (in a Starbucks…no comments about my coffee problem!). And, it happened again the next day (yes, it was in a Starbucks again…what is it with flies inside Starbucks anyway?). Each time it happened it was funny to me yet oddly distracting and I’m sure it garnered a few strange looks here and there. Oh well. My boy is not screaming in the Starbucks because he saw a fly. It’s all good, right?   

Cue Pink Panther. We were watching another episode of the show one evening and I noticed that Pink Panther was having an epic struggle with a fly. As the episode progressed, Pink decided to find a way to rid himself of the fly and began teaching himself karate. All of a sudden it clicked. Was Prince Charming’s newly-found bravery due to Pink Panther demonstrating that you could retaliate against a nuisance insect? It made total sense!

I asked him, “Honey, did you learn how to smack flies from Pink Panther?” He replied, “Yes.”

Well, there you have it. Go, Pink Panther! Not only do I like you for not having dialog in your funny cartoons, you have also turned my 6-year old into a brave fly hunter. I do not miss the screaming one bit. And for that, I thank you.    

Call me Author

Call me Author. Or call me Ishmael. Or just Angela. Although, Author does have a nice ring to it!

I am happy to announce that my story will be included in the new book, Sensational Journeys by Hartley Steiner. The book will feature stories from many different families and their journey with sensory processing disorder. My particular story discusses both autism and SPD.

I can hardly believe that I’m officially a contributing author in an actual book. I should receive my author’s copy any day now. It makes me giddy just writing those words!

The book will be available one month from today, on September 1^st.

Amazon has the book discounted for presale for a few cents over $10! What a bargain!

I will be doing an interview with the author and there may even be a giveaway of the book. I’ll keep you in the loop as all the details get worked out.

Now, click on the picture to the left and go check it out!