Oct. 30, 2009: Miggy at 7 yrs/2mos: Looking out the window, he said: "Wow, it's spring." "The birds are singing, the grass is green."
Note: We live in the Philippines and we don't have spring here. However, Miggy learned the four seasons: winter, spring, summer and autumn in one of his educational videos.
*Miggy has an American accent which he learned from educational videos. Anybody who hears him talk would think that he grew up in the U.S. Oftentimes, we are asked if he is a "balikbayan". The only Tagalog words he knows are pandesal, lumpia and butong-pakwan which he says in a funny way.
Miggy: "The yellow cat is playing the piano. The brown cat is playing the accordion. The gray cat is playing the trumpet and the blue cat is playing the big guitar." Mommy: And what are you doing? Miggy: "I am reading a book."
Photo 1: Inside Miggy's new tent (a Christmas gift from Ate) Photo 2: Playing with Troll dolls Photo 3: Miggy and Clarisse: studying and having fun. Hi-fives! Photo 3: Miggy tickles his Ate. He loves it all the more when he hears his Ate shout and laugh.
*These are moments that I thought would never ever happen.
Yesterday, Miggy and 16 other special children attended the Colors of Autism Spectrum Photography Workshop (a helping hand project of Autism Society of the Philippines, Play and Say Therapy Center and Baguio Photographers Club), held at the Botanical Garden, Baguio City.
My deepest and sincerest gratitude to Mr. Boopsie Erana who sponsored for Miggy, Mr. Martin Valeriano for being very kind and
patient in teaching Miggy the art of photography, Mr. Cess Garcia for the soulful prayer (he made us cry), Mr. Nelson Alavanza for generously lending his expensive and delicate camera to Miggy, Mr. Lino Tabangin for his support and warm acceptance, Mrs. Belette Viscocho,
Baguio City Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr., ABS-CBN Baguio Newscaster Pia Guttierez, and all other photographers, "special parents" and their very, very special children.
Of course, this event could not have been possible without the endless help and unwavering support of
Play and Say Therapy Center and the Autism Society of the Philippines. You have all made us very proud of our SPECIAL CHILDREN. Thank you very much. May God continue to bless you always and in all ways.
A big thank you is not even enough for what you have made of my son... perhaps a future photographer? Why not?
Out of bits and pieces, Miggy created this animal magnet without any assistance or guidance from me. He is becoming more independent, discovering and creating things on his own.
06 January 2010
End of the Holiday Season and all our visiting relatives had gone home: Miggy said : "Miggy look at the bedrooms." He checked every bedroom: "Oh, no! What happened? The bedroom is very empty. The cabinets are empty. The people are gone."
*Although the Holidays had ended, it left Miggy a social experience that he will carry on through the rest of his life. Enjoy these pictures as much as I did when I took them. Miggy engaged in social interaction with Yanni and Tamtam. "Baby, throw me the ball."
Dear Readers: Miggy wishes you: "Merry Christmas, everyone!" (He learned that from Hi-5 Christmas video. I still have to teach him the Happy New Year greetings.) We wish you all the best this Yuletide Season. This is Miggy's 7th Christmas and every year, his excitement for Christmas increases, unlike before when he didn't care about gifts, fireworks and Santa Claus riding his sleigh, entering through the chimney and leaving gifts under the Christmas Tree.
Dec. 24, 2009 It was already 10:30pm. I checked on Miggy, he wasn't asleep yet. He asked, "Mommy, where's the girl?" He was referring to his cousin, Ate Inah, whom he just met that day.
*They watched the Polar Express movie that day; they acted out some scenes from the movie, with Miggy leading the scenes. Miggy knew the movie by heart since he had watched it probably close to a hundred times already. He had memorized every scene, every dialogue, and every music played with all scenes.
*That's how Miggy is. If he likes a video, he will keep watching it over and over again for maybe a month, from morning until night. The only way for me to stop this routine is by hiding the dvd and telling him that the dvd is already broken. And he will always answer back: "Mommy, you fix it." or "Daddy will fix it." or "Mommy, you buy a dvd."
Dec. 18, 2009 Christmas Party of Ridgeview Academy *At the party, Miggy waited by the door, grabbed all gifts of arriving guests and neatly put them under the Christmas tree. He ran back and forth the room, always checking on the little chocolate cupcakes with frosting and sprinkled candies. Thanks to the school staff, parents and schoolmates of Miggy. They all warmly accepted my son's disability. It was nice, for a change, not having to explain to everyone that my son is special. No apologies made, no discrimination seen...just full acceptance of my son's uniqueness. I knew Miggy felt the warmth, he just couldn't express it.
Miggy and his friends participated in the fun and games. Look at them. Who would even notice and say that they are a little different from the regulars? The way I see it, they are lucky to have two worlds: their world and our world. Who could ever be so lucky and special to have the best of both worlds?
FLASHCARDS: These are some of the flashcards that Miggy used. These helped him increase his vocabulary and develop his language skills. What's this?, I asked as I showed him every card. How do you jump? kneel? sing? (action words flashcards). What's the color of the apple? the corn? (fruits and vegetables flashcards). What sound does a cat make? Can a dog say meow? Can a bird fly? (animal flashcards) E-E-Egg begins with the letter ____. P-P-Parrot starts with the letter ____. (with Mommy always stressing on the first beginning letter). What shape is this? How many sides does a square have? What color is the triangle? What shape is the pizza?
PUZZLES: Through the completion of these puzzles, his imagination developed and his attention span increased. He started from 6-pc puzzles and later he was able to complete more complex 100+pc. puzzles . Miggy, where does this go? Look at the color, can you find the other part? What's next? Look at the picture on the box.
At Stac-5 Therapy Center, when he was four, he completed the Philippine map puzzle for 20minutes, and when he was even younger, he could even complete the back of any puzzle (back as in back! the brown empty back of a puzzle!) That was his splinter skill.
This disability card is a must-have for all special children. This entitles the child to a 20% discount on medical & dental services, purchase of medicines, transportation, admission fees, in all establishments and educational assistance. Just imagine the 20% discount you will get at Jollibee, Mc Donalds, Pizza Hut, Greenwich, KFC (Miggy's favorites), plus discounts on vitamins and medicines, entrance fees at Enchanted Kingdom and at the movie theaters. Wow, that's a lot of savings! And what's more? There's no tax! So, if your child still doesn't have this card, get one now.
Pictures 1 & 2: (Dec. 10, 2009) Crying and in pain Picture 3: (the following day) Swollen right eye
Reason: This was what happened when I left him all by himself playing with his dusty stuff toy animals. A more-than-an-inch fur was what I extracted from his right eye on the 3rd day of the inflammation. From day 1, he was crying and whining non stop, up to the time I removed the fur from his eye. I applied anti-bacterial ophthalmic drops (as usual I played doctor again).
Miggy has sensory issues and couldn't feel minor pains. The fact that he cried only meant that the pain he experienced was severe.
Mom: You look in the mirror, Miggy is ugly. Miggy: "Pretty!" Mom: Are you going to rub your eyes again? Miggy: "No." Mom: Do you want your eyes to bleed again? Miggy: "I don't like." Mom: Complete sentence. Miggy: "I don't like blood in my eyes." Mom: What will happen if you rub your eyes again? Miggy: "Go to the hospital." Mom: And if you go to the hospital, what do you think the doctor will do to you? Miggy: "Put the gamot in the eyes." (gamot is medicine) "I don't like sew my eyes... needle and thread."
