Summer

I cannot believe I have let the summer slip by without blogging. I'm not even sure where to begin except to say.....WE MOVED THIS SUMMER. It has been two months and we are
still trying trying to put stuff away. Believe it or not, I think Yates adjusted better than
the rest of us. Speaking of Yates, he was one busy boy this summer. I think his social calendar
would probably have put a college kid to shame!
I do want to share a few summer hightlights: The Star Center held its first ever Arts for Autism. It was a huge success and I was so proud that the Yates Foundation was able to help some of our local families. I definitely see this camp growing in the future.
If you have a child with Autism or know someone, mark your calendars for October 23rd.
The Yates Foundation will be sponsoring a mini-conference with several sessions including: ABA, biomedical treatments, recovery, and how to become an advocate. More details will be forthcoming!!

Date set for Yates Foundation Gala

The date for the third annual gala "Breaking the Silence of Autism" has been set for April 17th, 7:00 til midnight at the Flatiron Grille. For more information and ticket sales, please contact West Tennessee Healthcare Foundation at 731-984-2140.

It's gonna be AWESOME this year!!! Ang.

Just the other day I was playing around with Facebook and came across something really cool.
Several moms were posting back and forth all the wonderful lessons they had learned through their experience with autism. Naturally, I began to think about Yates and the last 8 years of
facing this mysterious and baffling disorder. So, I thought I would share some of my own thoughts as well as lessons learned, some even the hard way:

1. The term "retard" and the phrase "the short bus" should be outlawed.

2. Alcohol is not the answer. (Ugh, hard lesson here) :)

3. Ceilings, furniture, material wealth, etc..... WAY OVERRATED!

4. What some take for granted such as a simple word or a tiny gain in progress, we call for a CELEBRATION at my house.

5. Humility..............yes, can you believe it, it's not about me and my timeline, instead it's
about God and His purpose in my life.....at least that's what I think.

6. No matter what, I try to keep HOPE in my heart, without it, I am lost.

7. I would rather trust my instincts over anything the government recommends! HA! yes, I said it!!!

8. The most wonderful people I have ever met are parents of a child with autism!

9. As I think about Yates and his innocence of the world, I long to be more like him. There is no
gossip and judging others in his world..........he is just so beautiful inside and out!


There has to be so many more lessons, but this is what a beautiful Saturday morning brought
to me!

Parents Cry Too

I think there is a book out there titled "Parents Cry Too" or something similar. Please forgive my spelling and such......my head is pounding as Yates continues to scream this evening. I know
he is in pain. We've run the list, is it acid reflux, is it his head, could it be yeast again? He's still
locked inside and cannot tell us.............oh, how I want to help him so bad, so bad that I could cry too. I thought my crying days were over. In time your skin toughens and you become immune to so much. But not tonight, no tonight I hurt with him and I pray to God- please help my son.

To think that I am alone would be ludicrous. The CDC's new findings now indicate that children with Autism are 1 in 100. What's really crazy is that statistic is from 2004. My God, what could the number be on this day, January 11, 2010?

To think of my future would be too overwhelming, so tonight I pray for Yates and I pray for my fellow mothers and their struggle with Autism. May God heal our children.

YIKES!

OK, so I bragged about Yates yesterday......only to find a Sunday morning disaster. Why is church so hard? With fingers crossed and mindful prayers we set about our morning drive
looking somewhat like the Grizwall family. We're a little late of course. Sarah and I sneak
through the doors while Rolf hangs with Yates.....just until the announcements are over. Deep
sigh....all is well. A few moments go by, and then out of nowhere, "COOKIE!!!!" bellows through
sanctuary, "I WANT COOKIE!!!!!" yells a small child from outside the door. My head drops and
I peak at my mother-in law, we smile at each other because we know the cookie monster
personally. OK, so no big deal, Yates wants a cookie. Will Rolf deliver???? that is the million dollar question, but not soon enough! And BOMB! ....he's on a roll, even the choir can not compete with the wails of one Yates Hazlehurst. This must be my cue to exit, and there they
are, one stressed out dad, and one unhappy Yates. Another deep sigh.............we'll try again next Sunday.

Christmas

Holidays can be so tricky, huh? I've decided to ask Santa for a conversation with my son!
In the meantime, I think a trampoline might be nice. I've also been thinking about all the
parents on the Gluten Free Diet.....OMG!!!! It might be a good idea to have a few digestive
enzymes handy in case there are infractions. I realize my post is all over the place, but
you can ask anyone, that's just me....zig-zag, over here and then over there. It could be
called overwhelmed parenting! :) At any rate, I do have something to share. Every child
is so different and I personally know the rollercoaster of "This is it- we have found the magic
protocol.....only to be disappointed." Therefore, I share this with some reservation- although, it may be worth a try. Almost 4 weeks ago, after a consult with Yate's Peditrician, Dr. Mary
Megson, we tried a new supplement called Enhansa, made by Lee Silsby Compounding Pharmacy. In this first month, I have seen a calmer happier Yates. He seems to be more
in tune to his surroundings and what is going on. I decided to google Enhansa, and guess what?
I found lots and lots of success stories. I'm actually looking forward to month two and more improvements. Some might ask, so what is it and how does it work? Enhansa is Enhansed Absorption Curcumin. It works by increasing glutathione levels to the cells, it improves liver detoxification, it acts as an anti-viral and an anti-fungal, and so on...
If anyone has had any experience, I would love to hear your thoughts! Also, Christmas gifts????
what is everybody doing this year??? Sending out love and hope- Ang.

Welcome to the Yates Foundation for Autism! I can't tell you how excited I am to
finally have this site up and running. There is so much going on in the world of
autism. I look forward to sharing and receiving new ideas, success stories, what
works, what doesn't, etc.....

I was equally excited to see one of our local moms from Milan, TN on national
television last night. What an amazing mother! If anyone missed the segment,
it focused on ABA-based interventions provided online- right in the home.
To learn more about the service, visit www.rethinkautism.com.

On a personal note, I found a magazine recently right here in Jackson at
Books a Million called THE AUTISM FILE. I found it full of hope and
inspiration as well as great articles!

Ang.