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Wednesday, June 3, 2015

In The Autism World Lately


Spencer

I have a funny story to tell you.  

I've mentioned before that a couple of months ago we 
started having the boys sit with us during church instead of
in the balcony with one of their volunteer aides.
They have a class that they attend with their peers
and then they meet us in the sanctuary for the worship
service.  It's been interesting to say the least!
  They are used to sitting  through the service, 
 just not with us.  But they wiggle, hum, rock and
 things like that which we try to keep under control.

A few weeks ago I glanced over at Spencer just in time
to see a nose bleed start.  I quickly grabbed a tissue,
hoping that it was a short lived one.  We were sitting in
the middle of a pew and it would have been difficult to
get out, crawling over people and I knew Spencer would
drip blood on someone before we were out the door.
But it was not short lived and had quickly soaked the
three tissues from my purse.  Fortunately, the lady
sitting beside me noticed our predicament and slipped
out to the restroom and brought back a box of Kleenex.
After the fourth tissue, The Mister said he would take
him out.  Whew!  They returned a few minutes later,
all cleaned up.  I spent the rest of the service trying to
get Spencer to leave his nose alone....it must have felt
itchy or messy and all he wanted to do was stick a 
finger in it!  Sigh!

The next Sunday proved to be a much better service 
over all for us.  The boys didn't make as much noise
and sat still for the most part.  Although Harry and
Alex do rock.  Not simultaneously, but in opposite
rhythms.  I swear our whole pew will get sea sick!
The two of them seem to close their eyes and just
wait out the time, but Spencer looks around and takes
in the whole room, people included.  I didn't realize
how much he noticed until this.....

Half way through the service he stood up and looked as if
 he was trying to leave, crawling over the people sitting beside 
us.  I pulled his hand trying to get him to sit back down,
but his other arm was long enough that he could reach a man
 sitting in front of us but further down the row!  He pinched a
huge mole on his neck, trying to pull it off!  Oh. My. Gosh.
It all happened SO fast but I managed to pull him back into
 his seat and whisper, "What are you trying to do?"
It was a large black mole, about the size of a dime.

 And then I got the giggles... you know...the kind
you had in church as a kid when the more you tried to be
quiet or think of something else, the more you were tickled
and if you didn't get it under control, you would be rolling
around with tears streaming from your face.  Those
kind of giggles.  Oh the innocence of autism...the
lack of social skills.  Sometimes it just cracks me up! 

The poor assaulted man is in his nineties.  He reached up
and rubbed his neck and glanced back at the poor innocent
couple sitting behind him.  He had no idea it was Spencer.
The whole thing happened in about 3 seconds.
I'm not sure who was more mortified...me or the couple
that got the funny glance from the old man!
Spencer wasn't mortified and The Mister didn't know
what had happened.  And I just concentrated on 
keeping the giggles under control and making sure
Spencer didn't move an inch the rest of the service.
During the benediction, the couple and the elderly man
both left, so there wasn't anyone to apologize to afterwards.
The sermon?  No, don't ask me what it was about.
I have no idea.....ha.

Oh gosh!
See...there is never a dull moment.  Never.




54 comments:

  1. Oh dear Betsy....now I have the giggles. Glad I'm not in church HaHa. Loved this story.

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  2. Replies
    1. We're all going to be in stitches, and not only that but we're going to be smiling if anyone in church has a mole on their neck.

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    2. What was that you said yesterday? That you understood my life was crazy? ha.

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    3. Yes. I did say that. You don't have me fooled, but I love how you are able to laugh (and probably be mortified) at the same time.
      Did I ever tell you how my brother once went into a neighbor's house and the all the middles out of their Oreo cookies?
      Thankfully, they were still friends with Mom and Dad years later.
      :0)

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    4. No, that is a new story to me.....T & L are here and I read your comment to them. lol....that is SO funny.
      Oh my....can't stop laughing!

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    5. Oh that is funny Martha...I love to hear these stories. Makes for a happy day. Maybe this will just be a giggle day.

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    6. I'm still laughing about the oreos this morning!

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  3. Oh dear...great story Betsy! Thank goodness you are so quick!
    Enjoy your evening!
    Cheers!
    Linda :o)

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    1. lol....better not ever skip the coffee in the morning or I might not be!

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  4. Oh Lord, I am laughing out loud!!! Can you imagine what was going through the old man's mind when he turned to see who was pinching him and he saw that couple. Imagine what was also going through his mind when you started giggling because the couple in front of you pinched his neck or so he thought. I bet he thought, "this church is dangerous". Hahaha! I bet the sermon was....turn the other cheek. And the only thing Spencer wanted to do was get that bug off the man's neck. Lol!!

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    1. The whole thing was hilarious on so many levels...the man, the innocent couple, Spencer....oh gosh. I giggled silently....I was mortified at the same time. But I was shaking our pew, I'm sure....maybe the shaking wasn't noticed because of the sea sick rocking...haha....

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  5. What with the boys and fifteen cats you certainly lead an interesting and varied life! Do you ever wish you were could lead a normal boring life like an average American housewife? Ha!

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    1. You know that list of annoying things you like to do in church? Well, you have nothing on my boys! ha.

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  6. oh my gosh,, is right,, I can relate to this completely!!

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    1. It's just so awful....and so funny at the same time!

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  7. lol he was just trying to help the poor guy out
    Getting rid of that while he was out and about
    Maybe with a quick yank
    It would walk the plank
    But to no avail
    The couple probably wanted to quickly hit the trail haha

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    1. We had enough blood the week before.
      It that happened, they'd show us the door! lol...

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    2. lol maybe that was his plan
      Get to go home and stay home by picking it off the man

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    3. Banned from church because we draw blood...
      our reputation dropped with a thud. lol....

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  8. Oh how funny . . . passed the initial embarrassment. The word mole will never be the same to me again . . . The 90 year old man must have been totally confused as to what had caused that . . . and I can just see you trying to suppress the giggles . . . . and fancy not being able to remember the sermon . . . " a mole for a mole" no doubt , , , lol . . .:)

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    1. Nope, can't remember what it was about and it couldn't end soon enough!

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    2. I need to borrow him to get rid of one of mine . . . lol

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    3. . . .and my mum told me she had a fit of the giggles when I was little boy and sat in a lady's hat in church . . . lol

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    4. Oh dear! Yes, that would make me laugh, too....unless the lady gave a dirty look...lol..

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    5. The lady did give mum a dirty look . . . I don't think I did the hat any good whatsoever , , , lol

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  9. That mole needed some investigation! Spencer knows!

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    1. It probably really does not that it's been tugged on! lol....

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  10. Oh Betsy...oh my oh my! That's hilarious...you have such a great way of explaining it so I can easily SEE everything you're talking about. Good thing I wasn't there...we'd have never stopped giggling. Oh you are a gem! Another chapter for the book you're going to write someday. =)

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    1. It is a very good thing you were not sitting beside me! haha....:)

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  11. Oh God, I am laughing. I know about the suppress-the-church giggles. Have had some funny ones over the years, especially when I was in the choir loft. It's horrible when you can't let it out and you think you just might have it under control when it starts up again. Good thing we weren't sitting together. Haaa! Thank you for sharing your autism world with us... the good... the bad... and the hilarious!

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    1. I'm almost scared to go back! haha. If that man ever sits in front of us, we will have to move....for his protection! lol.....
      I can see how sitting in the choir could cause some giggles...for one thing, you're looking out over the congregation and can see everyone and what they are doing! When I was young sitting in church with two sisters we had some major giggle attacks....it's almost epidemic and unstoppable. So crazy! :)

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    2. Exactly. I don't think people realize how much we can see from the loft. They think they are invisible, I guess. I can only imagine the giggle fits with three sisters! Oh my.

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    3. And there's something about trying to be quiet that makes it so much worse!

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  12. Oh Betsy I love this story! It's so hard to suppress those giggles. I once warned our pastor that he shouldn't be too surprised if a shoe came flying at him. That was something my son would do..if I wasn't quick enough that shoe would go flying. So many embarrassing but funny stories we could tell:)

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    1. Oh, you have a good story, too! A shoe? Too, too funny! Yes, kind of embarrassing, but you just can't make this stuff up.....and you just have to laugh because they really are hilarious. I'm going to have to watch Spencer like a hawk now. The rest of the service he could barely breath and I'd react. lol....

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  13. I've had those kind of giggles in church - it's impossible to stop! And I'm giggling now - I can just picture this. :)

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    1. Something about having to be quiet just makes it worse!

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  14. Haha, thanks for sharing that story, Betsy. It has been years since I've had uncontrollable giggles... maybe I'm too stressed to see the humor in situations when I'm in the moment. Great that you're still having the boys sit with you... they're forcing you to stay alert during the service, though not necessarily to what is being said in the sermon. :)

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    1. Yes, I was alert....and tense! haha....but what he did was so crazy...and then the couple getting the dirty look...it was just too much not to laugh. You need to laugh, Yuji......it's a stress reliever. :)

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  15. If I were sitting near you, I would of been giggling along with you. I have no control when something as unusual as that happens. And if I see someone else loosing it, I join in! I love to laugh. Don't even get me started when someone falls down!
    If that were video taped and shown on AFV, you'd of won the million dollar prize!!

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    1. Isn't that soooo crazy? The poor couple behind him wasn't laughing, though. I don't know how they could not. Maybe they were mortified that they were assumed guilty. haha...Still, it's just not something that happens every day...how could they not laugh? lol....

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  16. Maybe he thought it was a huge tick and was doing the fella a favor ....lol
    I'm thinking anyone who knows you and your incredible young men, are always on the look-out for entertainment when in church.
    They have pure hearts, and just what comes naturally to them.
    I'm still smiling :)
    ~Jo

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    1. I think you're right...he thought it was a big bug and just didn't belong there! I wonder how long he stared at it before he just couldn't take it any longer...lol....he might have been the most surprised when it didn't come off! lol....

      We purposefully sit in the very back as not to distract anyone behind us. It would just be too much! :)

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  17. Oh dear Betsy,you are my hero, you know! For some reasons I feel like Spencer really wanted to make the old man a favour ... I do relate very much to the uncontrollable crazy laughter that builds up and there is nothing to do but to accept it and go with the flow ... right? ;-) happy days Betsy!

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  18. Oh gosh is right! I'm not sure what part of this story would make me laugh or cry, but it reminded me of a story from when I worked at Curves. Somehow the subject was skin tags...yes, we covered all topics during the workouts. Well, one lady said she froze them off, one said she went to a dermatologist and one chimed in she just pulled them off. Well, later that week, a lady came in with this story. She was in church and found a skin tag on her neck...the first one she had experienced. She remembered the conversation from the week and absentmindedly, pulled it off, in church without thinking. Well, apparently no one mentioned they can bleed. Profusely. So she describes climbing across the pew with her hand on her neck to try and stop the bleeding. Several people jumped up to help her. I'm sure Spencer would have too. Just hearing the story made me crack up...I'm glad I was't at church that day! Thanks for sharing your story!

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    1. Oh, that is hilarious...people probably thought she had been stabbed or something! haha...

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  19. You need eyes in the back of your head with those three! Funny story though and there is nothing worse (better?) than getting the giggles in church. :)

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  20. I was trying to read this to "My" Mister and was giggling so hard with tears rolling down my face that he could not understand me. I had to re-read it to him three times before I could do it so he could understand!! Thanks for sharing. I love catching up on the boys through your blog. I think of them often and cannot believe they are 21 now. I also LOVED seeing your post about Alex at Christmas. So amazing!! Again, thanks for sharing.

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    1. Hi Cindy :) Nice to hear from you! This might be my favorite all time memory of the guys....it is still impossible to think about it without laughing even now! Hope you are doing well.....

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