The hardest part

One of the hardest parts of dealing with a child with Autism is the sleep deprivation. Jack is awake between 3am and 4am at least once a week. He's not just awake either, he's wired. It's like he has his own espresso maker in his room and drinks 8 of them before getting out of bed. It's difficult enough to deal with the running, jumping, and yelling during the day, but it takes a special kind of patience in the middle of the night.

It's times like this that I have to remind myself how cute he was when I opened his door and got a cheery "Hi Mama". It wasn't so long ago that he wouldn't say anything. I think about how much he laughs when we spell out T-I-C-K-L-E B-U-D-D-Y and tickle him till he can't breathe. I'm lucky this morning because I was able to distract him with play-doh and Christmas shaped cookie cutters.

I guess there's really no point to this post, just my thoughts as I sit here on the computer in the middle of the night.