Rose's goofy cuteness makes people in the grocery store checkout line giggle and say, "She's so cute!"
And Caden makes us so proud when brings home perfect report cards and acts like a little man.
But for the untrained eye, it might be a little trickier to spot Waylon's awesomeness.
I can feel the stares of those who just don't understand, when Waylon sits under our table in the restaurant and screams. Or when he races away from us in the video store, laughing uncontrollably. I know he appears to be a terrible kid, but he's not. He's awesome.
Underneath all of the confusion, sensory overload, language barriers, and instability of his world, he has this beautiful personality. He is funny, really funny. He likes to make people happy and he loves to hear laughter.
When he brings home a daily note that says Waylon was a 'rockstar' today, it's an A+ in our mind. And when his bus driver stops us at the church bazaar to tell us how much fun and well behaved Waylon is on the school bus, we beam with pride.
When a teacher or tutor moves on in their career, or we move on to a different program, we have to say good-bye to people who have worked with and really cared for Waylon. And every time, we hear how much fun it was to work with Waylon, how special he is, and how much they'll miss working with him.
(Maybe I'm a bit bias, but I don't think they miss every kid as much as they miss Waylon.) =)
Usually past teachers become Facebook friends, so they can keep up with Waylon's progress, and we know that we have friends we can trust if we ever need advice or help from an autism professional.
Three great tutors just moved on to further their careers, and we will miss them very much! We are so proud that Waylon was able to make a positive impression on their lives.
Facebook message from a past teacher this week:
Hi Lindy! I thought I would friend you to see how my little guy is doing. I miss him SO much - he literally made my day every day and I miss his big smile and energetic personality! Hope all is well with you and the rest of your wonderful family!
Ahhh... That makes me so proud.