Posts by Kate Swenson

Every morning I wake up to messages from people on social media. Most are well-meaning. Many are kind. A few are awful. Some are bizarre. And some, tell me how to raise my son. And how I’m doing it wrong. They tell me what I should be doing, how I can do it better, and what I can and cannot say about him. I’ve gathered a list of what I cannot say. I cannot say he has autism. Or is autistic. I can’t say he is nonverbal or nonspeaking. I…

We have a unique family. At least I think we do. We have a teen and a tween and a little and a toddler and a super social dad and a tired mom. We have four that like to go and do and one that needs a little more encouragement. We have four that are extremely social and two that prefer the comforts of home. And we have autism too. Which means some things just aren’t possible right now. Like flying in an airplane. Or long car rides. And sitting…

Did you know there are some women out their who never whine? Or complain? Or even say it’s hard. I never knew that. I really didn’t. So when I stumbled across a post on Facebook bashing women for talking, or as they said whining, about the hard parts of life, I was shocked. Apparently, these so called whiners hate their kids and husbands. It was a lot to take in I a tell ya. I realized, they are probably talking about me. I talk, whine, complain, vent all the time.…

This morning, when I came out of my bedroom, far earlier than I would have liked, I knew my son Cooper was waiting on the stairs for me. For one I could hear train whistles and happy music coming from his ipad. We often hear him before we see him. And secondly, lately, he’s been waiting for me more. Near, but far. Not close enough to touch, but easily heard and seen if I peek around a corner or under a table. He gasped as he usually does when it’s…

A few nights ago, my husband and I found ourselves driving around a picturesque town for 20 minutes or so…alone. We had no kids with us. There was no loud noise or fighting, endless questions, or voices from an iPad. It was just us, driving around looking at holiday lights, Christmas music playing softly. Eventually we found ourselves in the parking lot of what looked like a brand new apartment complex located right on the river. It was breathtaking. After looking at the sign, we saw it was for folks…

When you have a child who communicates differently than most, you learn to listen with more than your ears. You learn to communicate with a look, a touch, a gesture. Words became less important. You read your child’s needs just by looking at their eyes. A simple look is all you need. You know what a sounds means. One grunt or squeal can tell you everything you need to know. A flap of a hand or a stomp means happy or stressed. Some days you swear you can even feel…

Tonight was one of those really special nights. Our family, along with 25 or so other families, spent an evening with Santa Pj and Sparkles the Elf. Some kids lined up chairs. Another watched an old 1950’s train docu-series on YouTube called Hobart and Cosmo. A few played tag. Some did crafts. One young man had a stack of paper with printed photos of the vintage treasures he wanted. Another young man wore noise canceling headphones the entire time. A few used speech devices to say…’hi Santa.’ One beautiful girl…

I don’t know how you do it… Last night I shared a video on Instagram of my autistic son ripping paper and books. It’s a new behavior. It’s really loud. And messy. I shared it for a glimpse into the beauty and reality of our world. I could tell you why he does it. He wants to have all the pieces of the magazines and books in his hands. He’s a sensory seeker. He likes to see and touch. To spread the pages out. To line them up. It makes…

I was rushing to get out of the house. Helping Cooper with his shoes and wrestling the baby into her jacket. Only she’s in that…‘I do it myself mama’ phase. I filled water bottles and packed a bag and grabbed snacks. Made sure kids had hats and gloves and Cooper had his speech device and that I looked halfway presentable. You know, doing all of the things. Cooper, my oldest, who is autistic, was nonverbally letting me know that he was going to bring all hundred of his treasures. Sawyer,…

There is a quote that says, ‘don’t ever save anything for a special occasion. Every day your alive is a special occasion.’ My son Cooper reminds me of that quote every single day. The reason I’m sharing it with you is because someone recently commented on one of my posts, pointing out that we always have balloons in our house. And it’s true, they are everywhere. They drift through the house, from room to room. Birthday balloons. Dora balloons. Square. Round. All brightly colored. Some old. Some new. Why? Because…