Tips on Tuesday: Team NATHAN Thanks You

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! With all of your help, team NATHAN raised over $400 for the Autism Society. We are proud of him and his spirit. My "tip" for today would be to tell you to be grateful for the mundane things in life. We saw many of our autistic friends this weekend who don't have mundane things. When your child says "I love you" or gets in trouble for talking in class, be grateful for normalcy. Our non-verbal friends have parents who might never hear "I love you" and our non-social friends will never be caught talking in class because they don't have friends to talk with.

The Autism Society is working with families who have children in every range of the spectrum. They help with advocacy, and provide support for the families. Without the things we learned from them, we wouldn't have known where to turn to help Nathan out.

There were all sorts of activities going on during the morning. The Therapy Dogs were there to talk a little about what they do and to meet the kids. Rebekah fell in love with each and every one. I didn't get her picture with the Newfoundland dog. Wow, he was HUGE!! He was taller than her and resembled a miniature pony, but hairy.

Rebekah loves the Storm Troopers, but is still a bit shy around them. She wanted a photo with them...but not if her big brother wouldn't be in it, too. Then she kept following the baseball mascott around. Managed to get Nathan and her in this photo.

It wasn't hard to find Nathan most of the day. Just check the bounce houses. I finally  managed to get a photo of all three kids in one bounce house. Rebekah is yelling like a monster.

This year was the biggest turnout ever---maybe because it's the first time our family went? I'm thinking they came to see us...what...you don't think so?

Please don't interrupt my fantasy. :-) And don't tell me it's because it was the first year without rain.

There were over 700 people at the walk and we're waiting to see if the final numbers got us to our 800 person goal.

It was a beautiful day in a beautiful location.

Here's the photo that is my favorite and least favorite all at the same time. Nathan was having so much fun with sidewalk chalk...but alone. At an event with 700+ people, he's peacefully alone. I know he was happy to take a quiet break away from the crowd, but in some ways, it sums up many of the challenges we face.

Thank you for your support. Your kind words and financial contributions mean more than you can know.

We love each one of you!