Welcome to my annual post about autism. As a short background for newbies, our Middle Child was diagnosed with autism in 1997. She is now in her early 30's and has worked as a library page for 8 years. She is unable to drive due to executive functioning and attention deficit issues, so I drive her to/from work as well as to all of her activities. Over the 17 years of this blog, I've shared some of her school and employment problems, friendship and socializing challenges, and pandemic survival. In recent years, I've highlighted some of her positive attributes such as her musical ability and published writing. Today's post will focus on the positive once again and talk about her creativity.
Despite the fact that she’s always struggled with her fine motor skills, and spent many years in occupational therapy, Middle Child has always loved arts and crafts. Any time she can release her inner creativity, she is happy. I will share some of her artwork with you. It is child-like and reflects her perfectly:
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| This is her Craft Corner in the basement. |
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| She can usually be found down here about 5 days per week. |
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| One of the ways she shows love is making birthday and holiday cards for friends and family. These were the Valentines she made for her nieces and nephew this year, based on their individual interests (Bluey, Mario, Moana, and Sesame Street). |
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| The 3D card I received last Mother's Day. |
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| A picture she painted for my husband a few weeks ago. We have a family college basketball bracket competition every year that she keeps points for. She won first place with Florida this year and was very excited! Her team name was The Grand Floridians. |
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| She painted this for her Dad at one of those ceramic studios at the mall. |
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| One of her favorite mediums is polymer clay. Here's a pencil holder she made. |
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| A snowman and snowflake. |
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| Although she loves to paint freestyle, I have bought her some paint-by-number kits over the years that she's really enjoyed. This snowman was part of a four seasons set that she hangs in her room based on the season. |
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This Spring picture is the one currently hanging on her wall. They are quite detailed and took her a long time to finish. She is very proud of them.I hope you enjoyed seeing some of her work and learning a little bit more about her life. |
What creativity! There's a lot of love shown in those cards. Thanks you for sharing these. As a mom of a special needs daughter ( and a boy who's definitely not typical) , it's so good to read about positive things that the future can hold. A job, a beautiful hobby- your daughter is inspiring!
ReplyDelete- mbmom11
DeleteThank you so much! I recognize your name now from our mutual friends. It was a long haul, but we are now in a settled place where life is good. She really is an inspiration. Again, thanks for your kind comment.❤️
DeleteAs you already know, my longtime, dear friend (Diana) has a son (Nico) with autism as well, so every April when you post this, it touches me deeply.
ReplyDeleteI'm in awe, not only of your daughter and her many talents, but of you as well, and how you continually focus on the "positive". I so admire that in you and always have.
I LOVE these photos of her Craft Corner.
"One of the ways she shows love is making birthday and holiday cards for friends and family."
That brought tears to my eyes because I could actually FEEL the love. Not to mention, how incredibly professional they look. She is so talented in so many art forms. Love that clay pencil holder!
"This Spring picture is the one currently hanging on her wall. They are quite detailed and took her a long time to finish. She is very proud of them."
And she should be, it's stunning! Reminds me of Monet. Gorgeous!
Once again, my friend, thank you for sharing Autism Awareness this month. I truly believe that by sharing, you open the minds and hearts of others.
I will be sharing this post with Diana.
Have a grrrrreat week! X
Hi Ron! How are Diana and Nico? As I mentioned in the previous comment, it’s been a long haul for us. I don’t know how I got through preschool, public school, and community college with her. There were a LOT of tears. And then her first two jobs did not go well. What a blessing this library job has been!! She’s happy there AND they seem to really appreciate her work. We could not ask for more.
DeleteShe loves her artwork and always asks for more supplies at Christmas and for her birthday. Thank YOU, my dear friend, for your support over all these years! XO
How wonderful, Bijoux! I love that she makes greeting cards - and all her art is very lovely! I especially like the clay cup that holds her pencils and pens. It's really pretty. You must be so proud of her! Working as a library page is a good job and I could see it as being so satisfying with organization. Well done to both of you! Motherhood is a tricky business, especially when neurodiversity comes into play, but clearly you have done well!
ReplyDeleteHer greeting cards are the best! She specifically makes them based on the person's interest. And she always remembers everyone's birth date (including year), even those who have passed. It's quite endearing. We are very proud of her accomplishments.
DeleteMy best friend's son has Asperger's and I remember too well all that she went through from the time he was probably 8 until he was 17 or 18. Between the schools, teachers, doctors...it was a nightmare. They originally were treating him for ADHD which it clearly wasn't. Now would you believe that at 24 he is a fireman? We are SO happy that he has found something he loves and is willing to put everything he has into.
ReplyDeleteI just love your daughters artwork. She is very creative. Her craft spot is awesome and I'm glad to hear she has such a lovely happy place. I'm glad she has found a good place to work also. That has to be so fulfilling for her and has to make you feel good to see her blossom.
BIG hugs to you and her both, because I have seen how difficult this journey is.
It really was a nightmare, just trying to get her diagnosed back then. Asperger's was just becoming recognized and not much was known about autism back then. I knew something was not right away because she could never maintain any sort of eye contact. However, she was always very verbal, so that threw most doctors off.
DeleteThat is amazing that your friend's son became a firefighter!!!! WOW! I bet that is a story in itself. Was he fascinated by fire trucks as a young child?
Thank you for your support, Lori!
Yes, my friend actually read something about Asperger's and brought it up at one of his appointments when he was probably 11 or 12. He has many of the characteristics. She fought very hard for him as I'm sure you did for your daughter. He was the same with eye contact. He was always very smart but the traditional classroom style of learning was very hard for him. He learns much easier by physically doing. He started volunteering at various places his senior year of high school and being at the fire department was where he found his calling. He was lucky that everyone there willingly took him under their wings and helped him with the process.
DeleteThat is such an amazing story! Thank you for sharing it here!
DeleteThat spring painting is beautiful, the detail is amazing. Your daughter is a talented artist who clearly has a gift— and the perfect place in the basement to pursue her muse.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting!
DeleteI’m so glad you write this post every year and share a little of her with us. As you know, E is also on the spectrum, so it’s really inspiring to read about your daughter out in the world. As E gets older, she’s been feeling pretty apprehensive about adulthood and how she’ll provide for herself.
ReplyDeleteI loved seeing your daughter’s craft corner—it made me so happy! Her artwork is beautiful, and I can tell she’s incredibly thoughtful and loves her family so much. 💜
It is scary because the future is so much more unknown for them. We still don't know what long-term housing is going to look like, but I can't dwell on it or I'd lose it. I'm glad my post brought some sunshine and light into your day!
DeleteI love that your daughter enjoys getting her creative juices flowing. Her work is great and I love the personal touches. The flower painting is so pretty. Great colors. Having a dedicated space to do her work is so important. The man from our parish who Reg spends time with training for Special Olympics, is great about giving us cards. When someone had covid, he sends a get well card. He never misses a birthday or a good luck at college or Happy St. Pat's Day moment. He is great at brightening our days. It sounds like your daughter has a similar gift. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Ernie. That is so awesome to hear about Reg's friend. It sounds like he enjoys spreading love in the same way that my daughter does. Very cool!
DeleteThis is such a wonderful post, B. Thank you for sharing this story openly and giving us a peek into the amazing talent that is your daughters. I love, love, love, love, LOVE her creativity. I love her space and everything she makes. You know creativity is my jam, I gotta have it every day it's like the air I breathe.
ReplyDeleteYour daughter's cards?? Hey now, I make cards too and hers are so great! Like seriously. Quality work. I love the personalization and how she remembers everybody's special day. What a gift she is... You are both so blessed to have one another. What a great spiritual vibe.
Oh, her pencil holder is my favorite! Now I want to make myself one! Inspiration across the miles. Tell her I said thank you! I'll post something I made recently just to make you laugh. - Gosh. You know it's a great post when your readers are feeling good after reading it. Good on you!
I’m hoping this is Mimi? Yes, yes, and yes! You would get a big kick out of her! She really goes all out on decorating her room for Christmas, too. Lots of homemade decor going on up in that bedroom, like a nativity and all sorts of stuff! Oh, and she also makes a fairy garden every summer with a different theme. You’d love it! 🥰
DeleteYes! It's me! Why am I anonymous?? So weird! Omg. A Christmas girl too?? And fairy gardens?? Holy smokes. I wish we lived closer. The glitter would be flying!! Lol. I would love to see aaalll of her creations!!
DeleteI’ll send you a pic of her fairy garden this year, probably in about a month!
DeleteThanks for sharing, Bijoux. It is wonderful seeing all of her creativity in her artwork and I am glad she has found something to express herself. Mrs. Shife works in occupational therapy so she is always working hard with the kids to help them find ways to show off their artistic skills.
ReplyDeleteI did not know your wife was in OT. Artwork is such a great way to improve those skills. I bet she enjoys working with the kids.
DeleteYour daughter is very creative; I'm impressed with her various mediums that she enjoys. The paint by numbers art is so fantastic; I have several friends who enjoy doing those. I think I tried one and it was too tedious for me! How sweet that she changes out the art work in her room according to seasons; a true decorator at heart.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing her with us!!
She redecorates her entire bedroom for every season/holiday. I love that for her❤️ I haven’t done a paint by number since I was a kid, but I did like them.
DeleteThank you, Bijoux, for sharing about your daughter, her challenges and especially her creativity. Her art space looks wonderful and the projects she makes for others are special. I remember the paint by numbers and even did one in my much younger days. YOur daughter's results looked much better than my own!
ReplyDeleteI did paint by numbers when I was a young teen and mine were much smaller and not as detailed, but I did enjoy the final results. Thank you for stopping by, as always!
DeleteYour daughter is very talented. There are some lovely things in your photos. I like the snowman and the snowflake.
ReplyDeleteShe sure enjoys being creative!
DeleteI look forward to these posts every year because I love how you focus on positivity. I wish I were half as talented when it comes to art projects, but alas, I fear even paint-by-the-numbers is too advanced for my limited skill set. I love all her cards. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome, Mark. One of these years, I won't be so positive - LOL! I'm glad you enjoy these posts though.
DeleteI love all the pictures you shared, very creative.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Mary!
DeleteOn the spectrum myself I enjoy these posts. I am independent & married but autism isn't something that ever goes away or healed. Back in my day I was thought of as shy. I did not speak until I was 6. When in kindergarten I was tested & found I was bright . Not retarded ( their words not mine) . Your daughter is so very lucky to have a wonderful mother like you. Thank you for bringing awareness because it is still so misunderstood.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for commenting. Yes, unfortunately words like shy, backwards, and retarded get thrown around by those who misunderstand differences in others. I’m glad you were able to be independent and married. My brother is also the spectrum and is independent, but dating never worked well for him and he will always be single.
DeleteA beautiful post. She's quite talented. As a person who can't draw beyond a stick figure, I enjoyed seeing her projects. Your post is particularly timely, given that jerk JFK, Jr's recent remarks about autism. He's doing so much damage to health in every direction, it's disgusting. Bless you for enlightening people with your stories. Well done!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your daughter's artistic ability with us! I can see why she spends so much time at her space in the basement! That spring picture is gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteOh, these are so lovely, Bijoux! Thank you so much for sharing this beautiful work with us. Blessings upon you and your wonderful family.
ReplyDeleteThank you! Happy Easter!
DeleteThanks for sharing more about your daughter and her creativity! I used to try working with polymer clay but never quite got the hang of it, but find her little sculptures to be quite impressive! It's great that you've set her up her own little art nook where she can create and express herself through her artwork any time she pleases. I'm sure her handmade cards and works of art are always your favorite gifts to receive.
ReplyDeleteI’m glad you enjoyed the post, Theresa! Yes, we love receiving her cards and she’s always thoughtful about what she makes for each person.
DeleteShe is so talented! I'm so glad she has this wonderful, creative outlet that she can share with many others. That last flower painting is so beautiful! That and the snowman are my favorites. :) ~Betsy
ReplyDeleteAww thanks, Betsy. Hope your kiddo on the spectrum has things that keep her/him happy.
DeleteIndeed. She draws also, and likes to write stories. Sometimes she draws characters from her stories. :)
DeleteThat’s great, Betsy!
DeleteThank you for sharing your daughters lovely art work.
ReplyDeleteI think for many who are on the spectrum art is a wonderful medium.
All the best Jan
I agree that it’s a wonderful outlet for them to be expressive!
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