Raising a Resilient Child with Autism

My worst nightmare happened. Our air conditioner broke down at the beginning of a heat wave. You don't know hell until you have lived in the Midwest during the summer without air. It all happened suddenly, of course. I left a very cool and comfortable home to go to work, and came home to what felt like a steam room. Of course, I was the only one who noticed the heat.  The next day, we got the bad news. Our 19 year old a/c system had a bad thing-a-ma-bob. I don't know what it was now. I'm sure I lost brain cells in the heat. Well, whatever it was, it was going to be expensive to fix. We finally came to the decision to replace both the a/c and heating system.

As we patiently waited for installation day, we tried to take refuge in our basement. I called it a camp out. Trying to make the best out of a challenging situation. I'm crazy like that.

We even brought down a tent!

After one night down there, it became apparent that we were going to die down there. Ok, I'm exaggerating, but it was hot, friends. How hot was it? Well it was so hot, I think the worms were using pot holders to pull worms out of the ground. It was so hot, the cows were giving evaporated milk. It was so hot, I was starting to sizzle and smell like bacon! Yeah, it was hot. We ended up checking in to an Embassy Suites for a couple of nights. What more could we want? A suite, an unlimited supply of snacks and drinks, a pool for the kids, free wi-fi, and oh yeah, AIR CONDITIONING! That's right. Livin' the dream, baby!

The suite life!

During these few days, the kids had to adapt quite a bit. When we tried to wait things out at home, we made them stay in the basement, where it was a bit cooler. We were all stuck down there together, agreeing to watch the same shows, not having much privacy or space. And we managed to do this and still love each other!

It's these times when I am glad that we did our best to raise resilient children. We always tried to push them out of their comfort zone. From crowded subways, to cross country flights, to walking in the heat across the Brooklyn Bridge (yeah, we did that.). 

While keeping the kids in the safe cocoon of our home surely would have made things easier in those early days of Autism, it would not have made the kids as strong as they are today. I'm thankful for the struggles. And thankful for a husband who puts up with my jokes and belly flab. It's all been worth it. Because for 5 long, hot days, we made the best of a challenging situation. And we did it with smiles. And sausage, of course!

Thank you, God, for the family that I have. And for air conditioning!