Skip to main content

Use Your Imagination

On our last visit to NY, we stayed at my Dad's house. Ben was able to have his own bedroom on the second floor. We quickly realized that Ben could open the door and crawl out. Not being totally adept at climbing down stairs, this was not a great situation. We set up wood in front of the door so at least the noise of the wood falling would wake someone up, and we would rescue Ben before he would get to the stairs.

One of the nights, I went out with a high school friend. When I came home, all three kids were sleeping. Nona and Grandpa had laid down the law, gently, and everyone went to bed without question. My father was especially proud of himself because he devised a fail safe method to keep Ben in the bedroom. He wedged 4 large and heavy RubberMaid containers (2x2) in the doorway of Ben's room. The door to the room was open but the containers blocked the way out.

Before seeing this system, I told my father I had my doubts - Ben has a way of getting around things. Once I saw the setup and felt how heavy the containers were and how tight they were wedged in, I agreed that Ben was safe inside.

Next morning, Logan came into my room telling me that Ben was awake. Knowing that Ben could not get out, I figured I had a few more moments in bed.

Logan came back. "Ben's getting out."

Jumping out of bed, I found Ben perched on top of the containers sitting "criss-cross apple sauce" with a grin on his face. If I had a camera, it would have been perfect, but I did not want to tempt fate so I got him down from his throne.

I am reminded of the children's book, "We Are Going On A Bear Hunt." For each obstacle they encounter, the family chants, 'we can't go around it, we can't go under it, we can't go over it, then, we must go through it.' It seems Ben has much the same attitude when something is in his way.

Comments

  1. It must have been scary for you but I just love that attitude. Go Ben!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thank you for reading my post. I appreciate you taking the time to comment. If you wish to contact me directly, please let me know and I will email you.

Popular posts from this blog

Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities

  "Parenting an Adult Child with Disabilities" is a series on eSpeciallyBen. As Ben approached 18, it was clear our role changed as parents. We needed to help Ben transition into adulthood. These stories are meant to assist other families who face, or will face, some of the same challenges. Talking About the Future Guest Post - Matt Wilson Legal Guardianship, Medicaid and SSI Researching Group Homes Questions to Ask at a Group Home Visit Referral Packet for Group Homes Getting Assistance from a Care Manager From Group Home Placement to Discharge Reaching for Independence

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother

After my post, Brotherly Love , I received an email from a reader who reminded me of this song. I knew the song, but had never really thought about the words and the meaning behind them. I looked it up and thought others might see the lyrics in a new light.   He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother The road is long With many a winding turn That leads us to who knows where Who knows when But I'm strong Strong enough to carry him He ain't heavy, he's my brother. So on we go His welfare is of my concern No burden is he to bear We'll get there For I know He would not encumber me If I'm laden at all I'm laden with sadness That everyone's heart Isn't filled with the gladness Of love for one another. It's a long, long road From which there is no return While we're on the way to there Why not share And the load Doesn't weigh me down at all He ain't heavy, he's my brother. He's my brother He ain't h

ABC's of ABA

A few weeks ago I attended a workshop presented by a behavior therapist. As it turned out, I went to a conference on the same topic over a year ago. I will describe what I have taken away from these methods in my own words - but please take a look at the links I have provided below. After I learned about this, life with children made a lot more sense to me. Not that this is earth shattering material, but it helped me to better understand the hows, whats and whys of behavior in children, and occasionally husbands. I am in no way an expert in this - just a parent who wants to share a behavior strategy that has worked in our home. I hope to inspire others to explore it further.  Any errors in information comes from me and cannot be blamed on the presenters. Also, you may have seen ABA - Applied Behavior Analysis - connected most often with Autism - please do not let this deter you if your child is not autistic. I use these methods with all my children, none of which are labeled au