A springtime check-in with our favorite Autistic young man, beginning with his favorite holiday, based solely on the candy-factor… and the removal of all the Easter basket grass is essential to finding each and every bit of the good stuff.

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Ready on the left (fries), ready on the right (burger), but best to lick any remaining invisibly microscopic morsels off of the burger wrapper first, and make sure none of them have lingered on his palm. Hors d’oeuvre.

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Three pieces of pumpkin pie were left, Ben having already eaten five big slices over the previous few days. I gave Ben one of the three, and he was unrelenting in making known his desire for another one. When he did the same for the last piece, I assured him he would get it “tomorrow.”

Hey, but the earth could be destroyed at any moment by a rogue planet hurtling through space, so better safe than sorry. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. Bon appetit, Ben.

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The cupboard is deliberately bare when we have Ben at the apartment, except for the jar of apricot preserves that has been in the fridge forever, and that Ben has tried to sneak out of the fridge every chance he gets. And on this day, he finally succeeded. Ben is channeling Winnie the Pooh with the honeypot.

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Written Social Stories are a regular part of our time with Ben. He is more relaxed when he knows (and can see) what’s to come, especially when what’s coming is (as always), food. When he gets into the car, Karen (who always sits next to him in the back seat) will jot his current social story, like this one…

. . . and after reviewing his schedule, Ben informed Karen:

“Number 6: McDonald’s.”

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Ben MUCH prefers going to the doctor than to, say, a barber. In fact, he loves going to the doctor. What that means is, he likes going into the office, seeing the doctor, and leaving after the doctor listens to his heart with the stethoscope. “Go to the car,” is the next and immediate request. So, the real trick is keeping Ben happy in the doctor’s office while the nurse and later the doctor actually examine him. But no problem. That is why the good lord invented Fruit Loops.

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Eyes on the prize! Ben, suffering the torture of 25 seconds with an electric razor, focuses on the rich rewards awaiting him.

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Ben very seriously considering french fries at Five Guys Burgers.

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Ben very seriously considering Golden Books at Half Price Books.

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Piglets? Or Buddhas?

Ben almost never wants anything more than one book on our regular Half Price Books visits. Almost, but not never.

As they were ringing up his Golden Book for the day (Bambi), Ben noticed a display rack of… something. And he wanted four of them.

I like it when he sees a toy or something other than a book that he wants (which is the opposite of most parents who would love their kid to want a book instead of a toy), and since his usual choice of book is under two bucks, I indulged him his splurge (6 bucks each!!!).

The moment the cashier had scanned them, Ben ripped off the tags and left them all on the counter. I glanced at what the labels said they were.

Buddhas.

I asked Ben what they were.

Piglets.

And having been de-tagged, it’s possible he is done with them.

Or not. Either way, he’s now the happy owner of four piglets. Or Buddhas.

No. I’m not arguing with Ben. Customer’s always right. Definitely piglets.

Or Buddhas.

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And we’ll let Ben bid a fond farewell for now… (press play)

Maribeth: This is a video postcard — hello!
Ben: Maribeth.
M: And… Ben!
B: Ben-Ben.
M: We’re taking a walk today. Good to see you guys. Hope to see you soon.
B: Go to see Dad soon.
M: See Dad soon! What do you tell them?
B: Bye Dad. See you soon.

E, A and T are Ben’s Favorite Letters in “Easter”