Timeline

By one year old, he had spoken his first words and was meeting most major milestones.

Attends local daycare.

We signed him up for ISR (Infant Swimming Resource) classes around 1 year old. This was a safety measure due to the many pools in our area. 

One year and 8 months old. We come from a family of water polo players...little did we know when we took this picture, what an important part of his life the sport would become.

Sometime before 2 years old, we don't know exactly when, his language stopped progressing. His social engagement started to fade, and eventually, he began to lose words he had already learned. 

By 2 and a half, he had received a speech evaluation and began receiving speech therapy.

Favorite pastime: tossing coins into a fountain. He used to ask for pennies, and I'd happily hand them over. Then one day...he didn't. Or more accurately...couldn't. I remember begging him--just say 'pennies' and you can have them all. But the words just wouldn't come.

At 2 years old he is diagnosed by the Regional Center with autism due to delayed language development, poor eye contact, understanding social cues, preference for solitude, repetitive behavior, sensory sensitivity, restricted interests. 

A second evaluation at the local Children's Hospital confirms a diagnosis of autism (which we expected), delays in speech and language development and sensory sens

The week of his 3rd birthday, he is assessed at the local school district. The assessment concurs with his previous assessments, adding in fine motor development delays and difficulty transitioning. 

He is placed in the special education preschool class designed for students needing the most support.

He receives in home play based ABA and speech therapy, as well as, occupational therapy and speech therapy at school.

He attends private preschool at a local church when he is not in public preschool.

We are asked to sign him up for activities during nap as he struggles to rest and is distracting to other kiddos. So, we sign him up for soccer, but he is not allowed to participate after the first ses

His baby sister is born. She sparked social interaction and language growth in him like nothing else.

As he began traditional school, Mom's instinct was to shield him. Dad's instinct was to join the parent group, start conversations, build relationships. Through that, we connected with amazing families. People who would become our son's first includers, his advocates, social circle and our sounding

With the advice of his Special Education Preschool Teacher, we decided to go full inclusion for Kindergarten. He immediately received a 1:1 aide, as well as, speech, OT and SAI through school. Safety awareness was an issue (he could be a runner). The focus at school was about learning noise and body regulation, how to pay attention and communicate.

We continued assessments (which looking back, we wouldn't do again). We tried T-ball and meaningful participation was hard. No matter what, we just kept trying new things. No matter how hard or how many meltdowns may come with them. 

By the end of Kindergarten: 

- He was moving from echolalia into more scripted speech

- Still preferred independent play

- Found success in rote skills like ABCs 

- Still working on being able to sit still in class.

At one parent-teacher conference, the teacher explained that she was determined to finish an assessment despite him running away and hiding under a table. So, she followed him under the tab