skimming the surface of Garret

I'd like to take this opportunity (the Suz is napping) to talk about Garret.  (My playdate companion this morning was curious...)

Do you want to hear all about his birth?  

Ew.  No.

But I'll tell you that up until shortly before his birth we were going to name him Brady.  After hearing of a bunch of little "Bradens" being born I was done with that.  Garret.  Not too common.  Not weird.  (Suzie calls him 'Get'.)

As a newborn his days and nights were switched so that's how I discovered the charm of "The Nanny" with our middle-of-the-night parties.

As a toddler he liked basketball, trains, oreos, and walks.

His first (of very few) words were "a-sat?"  (what's that?)  

He liked to sit next to the piano as I played.  He would hum along and rock to the music.

When he was 3 and 4 he wasn't really into TV, but would jump with excitement with the upward-rolling end credits.  He would pounce and giggle, flailing his arms, at the end of any movie. 

We tried the Gluten/Casein free diet for 11 months.  It only made him lethargic and depressed.  We wanted to try for a complete year, but by the 11th month he seemed so sad and expressionless.  We had had enough.

At age 5 he would sign "more" for food, mostly sweets.  

We signed up for a free, research-massage treatment for children with autism.  I was taught the massage and he had the professional one once a week.  Didn't seem to do much, but he liked that "cuddle" time we had every evening.

He loved water and mud.  I would set a large mixing bowl on the back patio, full of water.  He'd be soaked within minutes, giggling so much he would gasp for breath.

Age 6.  His favorite toys are sticks and ropes.  Anything he can swing or swish.  He seemed to calculate his days around being outside.

School was hard then.  I know his teachers tried but the classroom had little supplies and many students with various, serious needs.  I finally had to insist on a transfer and that was a good move.

He loved/loves his bus rides.  Well, all car rides really.

At age 7 he loved "Wallace and Grommit".   A secretary at his school had a Wallace figurine on her desk and on his walks he would walk by it giggling with fascination.

Christmas mornings his sisters would be getting dolls, legos, music toys, etc...  Garret would get streamers, sticks, lengths of rubber hoses with yarn tied to the ends, and candy.  ...And be in heaven.

Age 8.  Lives for the backyard.  Can't seem to ever leave his clothes on...

 
Now he's 9.  (Is this post getting long?)  He's on the trampoline right now.  Hopefully clothed!  Soon he'll come in and lead me to the kitchen.  I'll make him some french toast or waffles.  (No syrup, he likes it plain.)  And tomorrow morning I'll wake him for summer school.  He'll be happy to get on the little bus.  

And maybe soon we'll figure out what makes him 'tic', but in the meantime he is one handsomely-happy, loved boy.     

his current favorite toy- blade of grass wrapped in sock