That's Some Good Stuff, Right There!

Ted, Ted, Ted. He's such a puzzle. There's so much we don't know about him: how bad the conditions in the foster care home really were, what his early life was like with his bio-parents, what all he was exposed to. I've chronicled how tough his life has been; how everything this boy does is a battle - whether battling autism, the results of drug exposure, neglect and abuse, it doesn't matter. He has so much stacked against him. I talk about his struggles - and MY struggles accepting his diagnosis and disabilities. But, sometimes, I forget to talk about the good, the funny and the amazing. So. Without further ado...

The Milky Way
We were at Red Robin (aka "The Bird Place") on Tuesday. As we sat waiting for our yummy chee'bur's, Ted began looking at his Kids' Menu. The theme at RR is Red Planet. You know, planets, rocket ships...that kind of thing. Ted looked at the picture of maze-cum-asteroid belt and said, "This is the Milky Way."

Holy shit! You could have knocked me over with a feather. My kid, my sweet confused mini-man, knows about The Milky Way. Not surprising, he had watched either a Backyardigan or WonderPets show the day before. One or both shows were of the space theme. Nevertheless, Ted made a connection. He absorbed the info and spontaneously blurted it out in an appropriate, meaningful way. Holy shit, indeed!

Red Robin kid menu - check out that Milky Way!

The actual Milky Way...I guess...
Ted knows more about the Milky Way than I do at this point.
Huh. Imagine that!

Brontosaurus

Ted has a "thing" for Dino Dan. That show annoys the ever loving crud out of me, but for whatever reason, Ted just loves it. There is quite the Internet controversy on whether or not Dan has Asperger's. Kinda like the Max and Ruby debate. Anyhoo...Dina Dan, you might infere from the name, looooves dinosaurs. He is obsessed and sees the freaking things everywhere. Clearly. Obsessed. It is educational, however, in that it teaches kids about long dead lizards. Ted just stares and watches. He doesn't ask where the dinos are in real life, doesn't ask why only Dino Dan can see these creatures, doesn't interact at all with the show. I kind of just thought it was a mindless TV moment for him.

Today, at the doctor's office, however, he proved that I have absolutely zero idea of what goes on in his head. He was playing with dino stickers, peeled off a Brontosaurus and said, "This is a Brontosaurus."

Huh. What the hell?! My boy has knowledge!

Sooo very annoying!

This a Fork. This a Hand.

Ted got some Tinker Toys for Christmas. Awww yeah, boyz! Remember Tinker Toys? Anyway, I made a killer airplane, complete with prop, landing gear and tail. Then I had to go make dinner. I, unwisely, left Ted to his own devices for a bit. To my complete amazement, he played with the Tinker Toys all on his own. This is what he made (uh...roughly...):



"This a fork. This a hand."

I didn't show him how to do that. He independently and uniquely built a dual-function apparati that would work as both a FORK and a HAND. All by himself! Seriously: independent, imaginative play. We'll count this as a "win" for sure!

Yeah, Ted!