Getting Started

Recently, many people have said I should start a blog about my life in a family of autistic people. I always agree and plan to start, but the over-organizer in my head tries to complicate the process. It's not like I'm writing a book, I tell myself, but I get so bogged down in the details that I might as well be.

I've decided that I will no longer bog myself down. I'm going to write whatever hits my fancy at the moment. A blog, after all, is more like a journal than a book, and should be addressed that way. I'm trying to supress the urge to organize it into sections, chapters and themes. I'll just write, uninhibited.

So, first let me introduce myself and tell you WHY you should even bother reading my ramblings to begin with.

At first glance, I can look very "normal" (I won't even go into the whole "what is normal thing"). Stay-at-home mother of two, scrapbooker who enjoys reading and hiking. Looking beyond the superficial, however, my life is anything but normal, or so I'm told.

My husband and son are both diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a high functioning form of autism. Our autism specialist believes I am an "Aspie", as well, but she agrees it's not worth the high cost of pursuing a diagnosis for me. We all know what I am and I don't need a piece of paper to prove it. When my Also-Aspie mother-in-law moved in with us almost two years ago, that made four of us (spanning 3 generations) under the same roof, out of five members. I only hope we don't drive my poor NT daughter crazy!

As for the REAL me, I am a homeschooling mom who loves science, anime, manga, scifi, fantasy novels, Japanese language and RPG video games. When meeting new people, I'm careful to limit my self-description to the former "normal" one, as the latter always forces raised eyebrows. Ever faking who I am to appeal to the NT population. I'm quite good at that...a pro, really. Putting up a mask is so instinctive, I have no idea how to take it down. My husband was the first and only person who has ever seen the "me" behind the mask. Not even my blood family can make that claim. I am as superficial to them as an oil slick upon the water. Touching and mingling, but never blending.

I believe that Aspies can be happy in their marriages and live full, productive lives. My husband and I are proof of that. We are living our Happily Ever After, and while I can't show you how, I can share our adventure.