Holidays provide the opportunity for family and friends that you may not see very often the chance to spend time with your child who is on the spectrum. We all know there are new and interesting stories that can come from these interactions. I don't have any amusing or tantalizing gossip or catastrophic family disasters to share from this Christmas. Instead, I have a reminder that all of us need to hear from time to time.
Listen to your heart.

SPOILER ALERT: This blog discusses the topic of Santa Claus. Not approved for children.
Mason believes what he sees. Literally.
Oreo Cookies exist because he sees them. Milk exists because he sees it AND they taste great with his oreo cookies.
He’s observed Santa Claus from a safe 50 foot distance at the mall. Getting him to sit in a strange fat man’s lap wasn’t going to happen. It’s those untrusting issues with persons he doesn’t know, plus I strongly suspect that the beard freaks him out.

On top of our Christmas tree sits a beautiful, shining star. Every day that I see this star it reminds me of what is to come, it reminds me that today will pass and to have hope for tomorrow. It wasn't all that long ago that Christmas time brought sadness, frustration, fear, and even dread. Christmas had always been my favorite holiday. Celebrating the birth of our Lord has always carried with it such optimism, purity, and peace.

Welcome to all our new friends from the Texas State Conference on Autism! We are so happy to have been able to meet so many of you face to face that we have known for some time as "online friends", meet many more of you who are just getting to know the AutismSpot community, and we are thrilled to be able to bring SpotUniversity to so many of your schools, clinics, and professionals who are looking for a training resource.