You guys are the best...

When I made my "Taking Time Off..." post, I never expected the outpouring of support that I've received. The posts and emails have been simply wonderful and so helpful. As many of you know, first-hand, getting a diagnosis like this can be difficult to cope with. So many mixed emotions and changes to your lifestyle... it's truly an emotional roller coaster.

So, thank you! Thank you everyone who had a kind word or inspirational story to share with me. Thank you for making me feel a little less alone in all of this. I've been pretty depressed off and on this past month and all of your support has really meant the world to me. And thank you Robyn for nominating me for the lemonade stand blog award! (I'll be making another post for it shortly.)

On a positive note, my son is doing really well. He's in developmental and speech therapy and has been given a trampoline to help with his sensory issues. We've started PECS and he's making wonderful progress with it. We're able to make all of the cards that he needs through a local autism center that he will be starting therapy with his fall. He's speeding through phase I and we're starting to ease into phase II and it's only been a couple of weeks since he started the program. It's wonderful to see him picking up a means of communication so fast.

Unfortunately, my writing time has been replaced with reading up on treatments and learning everything that I can about autism. Instead of finding five minutes here or there to write up a scene, I'm using that time to do PECS trials to help my son thrive with this program. I really do miss writing and blogging about my writing and hope that one day soon, I can get back to work.

My novel is still in the back of my head, just itching to be finished. In a way, I'm hoping that this whole life-changing experience will add depth to my story and characters. I know that I'll get back to it, once things settle down a bit. (On top of everything else, we're getting over a few rounds of the stomach flu in our household...) (Oh, and once I got over my turn with the flu, I caught some vertigo virus... lucky me.)

So, the main thing that I'm trying to get across with this post is that we're doing all right. Sure, things are different now, but not a bad different... just different, ya know? We've been lucky to have so many people to support us, both off- and on-line. So... thanks!

Until I blog again...
Talk 2ya later...

~Willow

Taking time off, for a good reason...

As the subject states, I will be taking some time off of writing and blogging. I haven't given up on becoming a published author someday, there have just been some changes in my daily life that need to be addressed first. Right now there simply isn't enough time or free space in my brain to accomplish everything and my family has to come first.

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This past week, my two-year old son was diagnosed with autism (yeah, ironic considering April is autism awareness month...). Now that we officially have a diagnosis, my days are filled with doctor appointments, therapy sessions, and learning how to implement treatment programs. Oh yeah, and going through the stages of accepting this diagnosis. While this whole ordeal is difficult on our son, he's always had it, we just never knew. Us, as his parents, on the other hand, are having to learn everything about this disorder while trying to come to terms with what's in store for him in the future. Right now it feels as if everything is speeding by so fast and I'm struggling to learn everything I can to help my son thrive in spite of this condition.

So, until things settle down and we develop some sort of regular schedule that our son is thriving on, the second draft of my novel will have to wait. Providing the day-to-day support that he needs in order to one day develop some form of communication is truly a full-time job (but worth every minute of it knowing how it will help him later in life). It hurts to think how close I am to being done, but I know my priorities and Family > Writing.

Thank you everyone for your support and advice in my journey into writing my first novel. I'm not giving up on writing and I won't be gone forever, but I do need to take some time off. Maybe I should consider this as time away from the novel so I can return to it at a later date with fresh eyes... Maybe it's just wishful thinking...

Either way, until I'm able to blog again...
Talk 2ya later...

~Willow