Tales of a Literal Child

If I ever write a book about my first born, it will surely be titled Tales of a Literal Child. (I can see all of you "Aspie Moms" nodding your head in understanding) For everyone else, allow me to explain.

Now would be a good time to introduce you to my "cast of characters". Little Man (LM for short) is my oldest son. At 13 months old we began to suspect significant developmental delays. At 2 years old he was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. By 3 and a half years old he was starting to talk, but only stringing 2 words together or labeling objects. Thankfully with the help of wonderful therapists, a strict sensory diet and days filled with Floortime, we now have a very bright, very interactive and very very talkative 5 year old on our hands. Bear is his little brother, a very typical 2.5 year old who loves to be his big brother's sidekick. Bear's journey has certainly been easier than LM's but he also "put in his time" as part of the Baby Sibs Project at Yale University. We travelled to the Child Development Center in New Haven once a month for the first 15 months of his life. Remind me to blog about this later as it's a phenomenal program. So those are our children, a 5 year old professor and a 2 year old Ivy League grad. No shortage of blog material in this household! =o)

I've learned to love all of LM's quirks, but my favorite by far is the literalism. From our aptly named pets, (Fish our-last-name) to his philosophical day to day commentary, the Little Literal Man keeps us laughing. I thought I'd share one of my favorites.

We were recently on vacation with his cousins, sharing a cozy cabin in the woods. This was our breakfast conversation:

Me: How did you sleep R?

R: Fine.

Me: How did you sleep T?

T: Ok, I was a little hot.

Me: How did you sleep, Bear?

Bear: *ignores me while he chows down on his blueberry pancakes* (typical!)

Me: How did you sleep LM?

LM: On a bed with a pillow.

I should note that with this dry delivery comes an underlining "Well duh? How did you sleep?" To which I can only answer, well ... On a bed. With a pillow. duh.

La La Later ...
Lea