Recently, it seems as if A. has matured a great deal on an emotional level. The other day, as we were pulling out of the driveway to go to school, she realized that she'd forgotten to pack her drawing notebook. In the past, such a realization would lead to a meltdown -- or, at the very least, high-pitched squealing -- and a desperate plea to let ...

In this entry from the archives, I have an adorable conversation with my daughter, who gives me some insight into fashion choices. September 8th, 2005: A: Isaiah is my boyfriend.Me: Your boyfriend?A: Yep.Me: Why is Isaiah your boyfriend?A: He has long hair.Me: ...A: Isaiah has a Spiderman shirt. That's what Isaiah has.Me: A Spiderman shirt?A: ...

In 2005, we borrowed a kitten from a friend who'd recently adopted a pregnant stray cat. Here it is, almost eight years later, and we still haven't given her back. Pantoufle (as this kitten would later be called) has been A.'s constant and loyal companion ever since. This is the story of how she came to live with us, along with some really cute ...

Ever since the holidays, A. has been in the most amazing mood. As I mentioned before, A. always perks up over the holidays. She really enjoys Christmas -- she loves all of the little things, like making Gingerbread houses, and listening to Christmas songs, and making Christmas cookies. Like any American teenager, she also enjoys getting presents, ...

In this entry from the archives, A. and I go to the movies, and I'm amazed again at the way her brain catalogs everything. February 17, 2005:On Tuesday, I have a 15 minute presentation on late 18th / early 19th century radical politics due in my 600-level Blake class. I also have a paper due in my 505 analyzing and contextualizing a ''historical ...

This small entry from the archives might be one of my favorites. It's short, but it talks about a lot of things I was learning at the time about parenting, autism, and life.   February 15th, 2005: Every morning, when I take A. to school, I park in the parking lot, and walk her directly to her classroom. We parents have ...

I was so, so very proud of my little girl this past weekend. I decided early on Saturday that I really wanted to do a Family Movie Night that evening. Thomas and I had spoken earlier about how we really needed to introduce A. to the work of Miyazaki because we both enjoy his work and we had a feeling A. would like it, too. So, I decided to ask A. ...

It would be an understatement to say that things have picked up at work. We have several training classes in the next couple of months, and all of these classes demand a great deal of preparation, organization, and hard work. I've been putting in some long hours this week -- especially today, where I somehow managed to work 14 hours. Tonight, I ...

In this entry from the archives, my friends, A., and myself take a trip to the Knoxville Zoo. In the process, we capture many adorable pictures of A., and many cute videos. November 10th, 2004: First, the pictures:Excited to see the bears! A., Ely, and Striped Donkeys... er. I mean, Zebras.Everybody climb into the gorilla beds!Standing on ...

Back in 2004, I created a video to the song ''Two of Us'' by Aimee Mann & Michael Penn after watching the movie I Am Sam. I thought this video was lost forever, but I recently found it and decided to upload it to YouTube. Click here to watch many different scenes of A. and I playing together to the song ''Two of Us.'' It's so hard to ...