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Author Archives: Cynthia J. Patton
The Upside of Puberty
This fall, my daughter and I are entering new territory. After a year or so of nonstop growth, Katie is 5’1″ (or was in August when I last measured her. By now, she’s probably even taller.) She has outgrown girl’s … Continue reading
Posted in Autism, My Life
Tagged Age-Appropriate Clothing, Autism, Junior Clothing, Middle School, Milestones, Parenting, Puberty, Unplanned Life
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The Waiting Is (Almost) Over
Last Friday turned out to be a RED LETTER DAY in my crazy, unplanned life. First, my poetry collection, Across An Aqueous Moon: Travels in Autism, was finalized and sent to the printer. It should be ready to ship in … Continue reading
A Trip to the Park
I wrote awhile back about the downside of Facebook, and how sometimes—not always, just sometimes—I get sad when I think of all the things I probably will never be able to post about. Then my unplanned life zigs when I … Continue reading
Posted in Autism, My Life
Tagged Acceptance, Autism, Belonging, Expectations, Gratitude, Parenting, Single Parent, Sorrow, Special Needs, Speech Delay, Unplanned Life
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Final Galleys Are Here!
The final galleys for Across An Aqueous Moon: Travels in Autism have arrived!! For those of you that don’t know, galleys are the publisher’s layout of a forthcoming book. It’s kind of like the publishing version of a draft. About six weeks … Continue reading
Waiting
We are in limbo. Everything is on hold as we wait to see what happens with my daughter’s placement. School started in our district on Monday, August 22nd, and the following week, on August 29th, at Open Mind School (OMS). … Continue reading
A Life of Quiet Desperation
For years, my brother Tom lived a life of quiet desperation. I saw it and recognized it in myself, recognized what I had seen years earlier in my father’s father. I think Mom saw it too, must have at least … Continue reading
Posted in Autism, My Life
Tagged Acceptance, Authenticity, Autism, Divorce, Family, Happiness, Marriage, Parenting, Quiet Desperation, Remarriage, Settling, Social skills, Speech Delay, Unplanned Life
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Playing Chicken
The school district and I are playing a high stakes (at least for my daughter) game of chicken. They want me to sign an Individualized Education Plan (IEP)—read annual contract—committing my daughter Katie to the generic, for-profit, non-public school (NPS) … Continue reading
Running Out of Time and Options
I am now in a place that I’d hoped at all cost to avoid. There is no available space in any of the five non-public schools (NPS) focused on autism spectrum disorder that I visited. Nothing. We have been waiting … Continue reading
What Happens at Camp Arroyo, Stays at Camp Arroyo, Year 2
This year, my daughter didn’t just survive, but truly thrived at summer camp. Once again, Katie attended Camp Arroyo, which is where the Exceptional Needs Network (ENN) holds its summer camp for special needs children in conjunction with the Taylor … Continue reading
Katie’s at Camp Arroyo!
Yesterday I dropped Katie off at Camp Arroyo. This is her second time at the Exceptional Needs Network’s summer camp for children with special needs. To say she was excited would be an understatement. I was pretty excited too. (Still … Continue reading
