long time

I find this hard to believe even as my fingers are typing it: I have less and less to blog about. Indeed, Martin has had remarkably good behavior for the past month or so. His communication has improved dramatically. His school routines make him a generally happy guy. It's not that we don't have our moments. Martin still fights us sometimes. He still experiences moments of communication difficulty. He still lines things up and repeats movie lines. But things have really settled down. Honestly, life as Martin's parent is not the gut-wrenching thing it was six months ago when we were in the midst of school trouble, tutor meltdown, and all-around Martin unhappiness.

So maybe it's time for the blog to go in a new direction? Maybe it won't be a chronicle of parental difficulty peppered with funny autism stories. Maybe the funny stories can come forward with the parental troubles only popping up periodically in the background? So here goes...

Yesterday, Martin was saying lines from the first season of the Muppet Show. If you're ever interested in catching up on the stars of late 70s pop culture, rent this disk. You'll see episodes with Joel Grey, Rita Moreno, and Florence Henderson. You won't believe how hard you will laugh when a six-year-old calls out, "Let's welcome our special guest star, Mister Jim Neighbors!"

Martin is especially intrigued by a recurring sketch on the Muppet Show. The Muppets are ballroom dancing to cheesy orchestral music. A couple glides to the front of the stage to tell a funny joke. The laugh track sounds and then another couple moves forward. Martin replays these scenes with his animal figurines. He hums the cheesy music, moves an animal couple forward, tells a joke, simulates the laugh track, and then starts all over again. After awhile, he breaks off the scene and does the Muppet Show introductory song, complete with Gonzo attacking the O in "Show" with some sort of gong. It's awesome to behold.

I used to wonder if Martin had any chance at a "normal" life. I also wondered if we would ever have a "normal" parenting experience. I didn't want these things because I think normal is so awesome and something to aspire to. Rather, I just wanted life to be easier for all of us. Life seems to be getting easier. And it's nowhere near normal. I like that.