The Photo Blogging Challenge prompt for November was “Give Thanks”.
Boy, do I have a lot to be thankful for.
Let’s start with my daughter, Elise.
I was having Elise developmentally tested & we got an Autism diagnosis 2 weeks ago.
I’m really happy to have a name for the difference I see between my daughter and her 4 year old peers.
I’m also super lucky to already have a great group of Autistic friends – all thriving as adults. Positive is my only reference point!
I’m thankful for family!
My brother has been overseas for work (Qatar and Greece) so it was wonderful to see him on Thanksgiving.
Elise is obsessed with dinosaurs. Dave flipped each page and asked Elise to tell him the dinosaurs. I have cute video too.
I’m thankful for Mass Audubon Wildlife Sanctuaries and that our family was gifted a membership from Grandma on Dad’s side.
Our family of 3 can often be found exploring Mass Audubon sites on the weekends.
I’m thankful for the kindness of strangers.
A few weeks ago, my family and my in laws visited the Whydah Pirate Museum on Cape Cod. (The museum is very worth it and I recommend it.)
The museum goes over the history of the ship “Whydah” from origin until today – a wreck of Cape Cod that’s actively being searched for historical items.
Barry Clifford is the explorer who found the Whydah wreck.
Barry is also the man in the photo above. He was at the museum the day we visited and noticed my daughter investigating the cannons. While Elise was talking to Grandma, he hid 2 plastic coins in 2 different cannons for my daughter to find!
I cried tears of joy. Here I was worried Elise was getting bored and his kindness made my day.
Finally, I’m thankful for the beauty of New England nature – especially on Cape Cod.
You can find our family on Cape Cod at least 1 weekend a month, if not more. (My in-laws live mid-cape.)
Did you enjoy my photos? Looking forward to seeing what everyone else is thankful for – and their creative photos.
Getting Fit in Massachusetts 
I very much enjoyed your photos and your words warmed my heart. With so many resources for autism now, I hope your family will be able to take advantage of the many advancements in therapies for autistic children. Two of my neighbors have autistic children and they are thriving, Thank you for sharing the thankful things in your life.
Thanks Lisa!
Lots of awesome resources that I’m able to work with ones centering the voices of those who are autistic.
I was already a disability justice activist so I live Nothing About Us Without Us in who helps my daughter too.
Thanks Lisa!
Lots of awesome resources that I’m able to work with ones centering the voices of those who are autistic.
I was already a disability justice activist so I live Nothing About Us Without Us in who helps my daughter too.
Great job this month. And so much to be thankful for. The photo of your brother and daughter is outstanding. I love images like that as it really puts life into perspective when you see something like that. I feel like many kids love the allure of dinosaurs. Cameron is the same way.
That last image is great. I’ve never been to the cape … always have said I should. But images like that can be found throughout New England, that’s for sure. I love exploring the coast, though I’m a tad partial to Maine! 🙂
If you come to MA, let me know. I love playing tour guide in the Boston area, and for me as far down as the Cape Cod for me. My work, Dogs for Better Lives, has a campus training center on the cape too
Cap Cod is always worth a trip.
That was very nice of Barry to hide a surprise for Elise to find!
How is Elise different than other 4yo? From what I perceive her, thanks to your blog and Facebook, she seems to be a clever and curious young lady?
She’s super clever and curious. For her, it’s a language delay and not knowing how to interact with other kids (or wanting to).
I really noticed it when she was around kids her age for school. For example, she had a classmate who is 2 days younger than her. On Wednesday’s they had a class without parents and on Friday a parent & me class. If I wanted to know what happened on Wednesday – I had to ask the classmate. Elise wouldn’t tell me.
Telling me what happened in class in getting a little better but you still have to give her extra time to process that you asked her a question. We get a lot of stories about what she did days and week after it happened. Still talking about a trip to the aquarium with her grandparents on Veterans Day.
My boy (and I understand most of his classmates) barely tells me anything about his day. Hasn’t ever. Sometimes I learned about stuff from the neighbor girl 😉
You seem to epitomize an “attitude of gratitude” – it’s amazing how you responded to your daughter’s assessment and how your life to this point has you so well-situated to take everything in stride. Thanks also for sharing your nature photos this month – those always resonate with me. 🙂
Thank you. It really is a relief to have a diagnosis because that opens doors. She’s already getting weekly at home therapy working on expanding what foods she eats. Things like that are so exciting. It was a sensory issue – not a stubborn kiddo!