During the process of getting all the photography done with Bodie modeling the new Snugfits colors, Gavin has become intrigued by cameras. He's just thrilled by the idea of capturing an image and keeping it, going back to it and looking at it again and again. He and Garrett got their own little kid digital cameras back at Christmastime, but right now the interest is really booming. I think he's seeing the practical use of the camera, as he "sits in" on Bodie's photo sessions. To be honest, Gavin can't just sit in on anything. He has to be smack dab in the middle of the action, so he gets his little Mickey Mouse camera and starts snapping away! He actually helps the process because Bodie is distracted by him, and Gavin can always make the baby laugh.

The camera is great. It's the red Disney one sold at Target for $56, not the "Discovery Kids" camera sold at Kohls. We bought that one first because it was on sale for $26, from $80. We thought surely it must function a lot better than the less expensive Disney camera, but it was terrible! The screen was so blurry you literally couldn't tell where the camera was aimed other than color and shape. It didn't have an automatic shut-off, so it went through batteries like Garrett goes through a box of Dunkin Donuts. That camera was a real piece! The kids were pretty bummed.

These Disney cameras, however, are incredible. Most importantly to me, they don't drain batteries on a daily basis. The pictures are mostly well focused, and the kids can even add graphics to them! They really get a kick out of taking my picture then adding honeybees buzzing all around my head. They're pretty durable too. Bodie has proven that, as he treats most objects he gets his hands on as either a hammer or a projectile. At least he hasn't tested the camera's buoyancy yet. (Knock on wood)

Scrolling back through the shots on Gavin's camera is hilarious. He's got about 30 pictures of various street signs and traffic lights, lots of different colored Jeeps, tons of his brothers, another couple dozen shots of his favorite t.v.  show, Peppa Pig, and then a few of Sara and me working around the house. I notice that I look angry a lot. I need to be more camera wary, and less "scowly".  There's one random shot in there of a huge "number two" floating in the toilet. He must've been pretty proud of that one, nice tapered ends and all. Its a shocking and repulsive image, but to him its something to take pride in, I suppose! Being potty trained is still a big achievement in this house, and something to be commemorated!

Yesterday there was a bulldozer clearing a lot near our home, very loud and violent work. It was a huge machine, mowing down 30 foot trees and pushing them into a gigantic pile by the street. Gavin (of course) wanted to get a snapshot of it, so we walked up the street to see it. As we neared, Gavin became more and more nervous, covering his ears and grinding his teeth. "DADDYDADDYDADDY" he kept repeating, and I knew he was really thinking about turning his tail and bolting back to our house. But he didn't. We found a good vantage point at the edge of the street, Gavin uncovered his ears, raised the camera, and took one quick shot. Then he turned his tail and ran back home. I was pretty proud of him for that act of bravery! Overcoming autism is all about pushing the limits as much as possible.

This blog post has sort of turned into an unsolicited review/endorsement for the Disney cameras. They really do work well, and because of that Gavin's new passion for photography is starting to flourish. It's like a unique little window into his brain. He's a kid with autism, and he's pretty quirky, and sometimes a real challenge to keep up with. This camera has been an exciting, creative outlet for him to show us the world through his eyes.

Now that the boys are in a bunk bed, bedtime is a little easier. It is a lot more fun now. For some reason they both get pretty wound up right before bed, but reading a book with them can usually get them to settle down. While the top bunk officially started out as Gavin's, they take turns being up there. I still end up falling asleep with a book on my face on the bottom bunk with Garrett most nights.

Every now and then Gavin will have a nightmare and walk through the house looking for me, and if I'm in the bunk already, he just crawls in. He's been having more nightmares lately, and I think it could be just stress from school. He doesn't have the ability to tell me about his dreams in great detail, but I can make a few intuitive assumptions. It isn't "Where the Wild Things Are". Thank God he's over that one. He has a lot of stress in his Kindergarten life, being a child with autism in a class of 26 "neuro-typical" (normal) kids.

They are both great at sleeping. I would bet a large sum that they could sleep through a category 5 hurricane! Unlike the baby, Bodie. He wakes up at the slightest squeaky door hinge or cat meow. When he is taking a nap, the house has to be in deep silence mode - ringers off, t.v. muted, etc. When he is awake, nothing gets accomplished around here. All productivity occurs at naptime and very early morning!

I took this picture the other morning when I woke the boys up for school. I thought it was so sweet. Apparently Gavin had one of his nightmares and just crawled into the bottom bunk with his little brother during the night. Garrett doesn't realize it yet, but he'll probably be his big brother's protector throughout their lives. Gavin is lucky Garrett was born with a compassionate soul, a comforting aura, and an optimistic attitude. 

I took the boys to see 'Where the Wild Things Are'. It was a bad idea. It turned out to be way too scary for Gavin. I was more worried about Garrett, being the younger bro. The shaky camera shots, loud booming bass, and the dark undertone proved too much for Gavin's senses. He has autism, but he can handle certain situations a lot better than others. This event fell into the "others" category.

He was uneasy from the very beginning, before Max even reached the place where the wild things lived! I felt bad for him, but I wanted him to try to tough it out. He had been so excited about going to see this movie. We had watched the trailer on YouTube about a thousand times (which, by the way, barely hints at how dark and scary 75% of the movie really is) and I was sure Gavin would be fine. He wasn't fine. He clung to me like a spider monkey, his eyes wide and watery, nervously munching popcorn and asking me if there would be any more scary parts. He would say "Daddy, if there another scary part, I will never watch it!" Then, inevitably something "scary" would happen on the screen causing him to shout out "I will never watch this! I have to get out of town right now!" He was very concerned that those huge monsters might try to eat Max, which was a valid concern since that subject does come up in the book.

"Daddy, are they going to eat him up?"

"No Gav. Remember in the book he goes home to his mom and has a warm supper?"

"Okay. I will shut my eyes for the scary part," he said nervously.

Garrett was the complete opposite. He barely seemed to notice the movie at all. It was just a side show to his main event: Skittles. He has an incredible sweet tooth, and after I gave him that giant box of Skittles nothing else mattered to him. He sat in his seat slowly savoring each single Skittle, one at a time. He goes into a trance-like state when eating anything like candy or cake. In the dark of the theater, he couldn't distinguish the colors of the candy so he frequently had to ask me. It was pretty cute. His little hand would hold each piece up to me and he would whisper "Daddy, what color is this skiggle?" I had to reply "I can't see it either. Taste it to find out." So he would pop it in his mouth, then about thirty seconds later he would say "It tasted purple."

We made it nearly to the end of the movie. I really wanted Gavin to see the end, because Max does make it home safe and sound. I wanted Gavin to at least see that it was all okay in the end. However, just as Max is leaving the island to escape the monsters, he is forced to crawl into one of the (friendly) monster's mouths to escape the others - very freaky. That was the "over the top" moment for poor Gavin. He jumped out of his seat and yelped in a shaky voice "I will not stay here! I have to get out of town right now!" So he started down the dark theater steps toward the exit, and I turned to Garrett who was by now fast asleep, his tiny hand still stuffed inside the huge "Skiggle" box. I  plucked him from his seat and we made our way down the steps. Gavin was at the bottom waiting for us, his face a portrait of terror. "This is not a good movie! I will tell mama it was not for kids! I am angry at mama!" I heard chuckles from several of the other theater patrons. Gavin is always very forthright and blunt with what's on his mind. I'm glad he can express his emotions like that, especially in a high stress situation. He used to just scream and completely melt down. To me, that's another milestone.

So in the end, we escaped the monsters, nobody was eaten. Unfortunately for Gavin, the experience was absolutely spine-chilling. His greatest fears for Max actually came true. To him, the movie ended when Max was sitting inside the monster. I still want him to see how it really ends. I guess we'll get the DVD when it comes out.

The only real victim of consumption was the box of Skittles, as evidenced by the rainbow of colors all over Garrett's sticky face.

"I thought the movie was really fun," he said enthusiastically.

"What was your favorite part, Garrett?" I asked.

He looked at me like I had two heads. "The skiggles, Daddy."