Gotta Mention the Good Things!!!!

The boy child has Aspergers so has struggled all his years to control himself around other kids and not be bossy, not just go on and on an on about stuff that interests only him, and his need to correct people all the time.  All completely normal kid things to do right?  But Aspergers kids don't learn how to filter all that easily so at 13 some of his behaviours are as selfish as an 8yr old, but hey, social behaviour is a learned thing, he just needs more help to actually learn it and apply it.

And having a mother who threw her filter away when she entered the work force as a truckie and was already a foul mouthed, sarcastic bitch, Marcus grew up from before age 5 hanging round the trucking yard hearing all that (and stuff I wish he hadn't heard!!!) from the guys working there.  And then came the bullying at school, particularly when he changed schools for year 4.... So I tried to teach an unfiltered child how to use his words instead of hands, feet and objects, but teaching an 8 yr old (who we didn't realise was on the ASD spectrum then) sarcasm possibly wasn't the best way to go, this child has an incredible wit, but now it's an incredibly dry and sarcastic sense of humour, one that GRATES!!!

So him going off to college this year was a blessing as he was heading into a new school where the majority of kids didn't know him or his buttons they could push, it was the chance at a fresh start for him where he could step out of the role he had found himself pushed into.  Of course, this meant he needed to change the way he interacts and REACTS with other kids, so now that he is taking the school bus to and from school, part of the deal is when he gets home before he jumps on his computer he does some chores, veggies for dinner, vacuuming, or something else and he reads a chapter of 'How to Have Confidence and Power in Dealing With People' (next on the list is 'How to Win Friends and Influence People') and he is really enjoying the book and it's making sense and we talk about which chapter he read when I get home and talk about how he can apply it at school etc.  Well, altho he still manages to push others buttons enough that they hassle him, and learn his buttons enough to get him to react, he is doing a LOT better at school than he did last year, and better this 2nd term than the first term, he's finally maturing a bit!!!

And he's a great wee helper round home now, actually thinking of other people not just himself, I haven't been able to say this much about Marcus thru the years, but he is a real joy to have around and a great help at home now.  Proud of how he is growing up and that book really is helping.

He's also just picked up some work after being allowed to chuck in his paper run at the end of last year, he's cleaning down our spreader trucks at work when we (the drivers) don't have time to get them cleaned down and today was his first day doing that and he took pride in his work and he did a great job, really proud of how he went today too.  My little boy is finally growing up.