Oh we do like to be beside the Seaside (but only when it's quiet!)

Yesterday evening, after the crowds had gone and the temperature had cooled, we spent two hours down on the beach,playing and taking in the view. It was one of those a rare special moments (which only the parent of an autistic child could understand) when my autistic son asked to come with us. 
Free of crowds and noise he played happily with his sister and I captured the  moment with the camera.

This is what life was like for him only a few years ago and I realised that it can be like that again in the future  if only we tailor the world around him and plan our activities for the 'quiet times'.

He loves the company of his siblings- it makes him feel secure and that is why he finds outings so much harder when they are at school.He misses social contact- but only a little bit.That's why the X box plays such an important part in his life. Sadly he doesn't feel able to join in the activities put on for autistic children at the moment - he has a fixed idea in his head as what they will be like!

We have had so many fewer 'grumpy' days since we followed his 'rhythm'- we have no expectation or demands and understand that when he says 'I don't know' he often actually means 'you choose'.
His sleep patterns are still irregular but he is sleeping less during
 the day- giving him time to go out and play or talk to his siblings
.
I heard the slap,slap slap of wellies the other day as I tended the front garden. My son, donned in red ear defenders walked passed the gate and waved at me. He had decided to walk to his friends over the road to ask if he could play. That hasn't happened in a long time - he normally waits for his friend to come here! I didn't see him again for three hours.Such a small thing to people who don't understand but for the parent of an Autistic child a massively SMILEY event!