And Then There Was Ashley

I was one of those little girls that couldn’t wait to grow up, and be a mom. I always knew I wanted to stay at home with my babies, until they started school. When I was 24 years old, after a lot of discussion, Jason finally agreed that we were ready to have a baby. We thought we had done everything right. We had been married for a couple of years. We both had graduated college. We both had jobs. I even had a home based business so I could earn an income and be at home with my baby. What could possibly go wrong? I did have fears of infertility, and all those other worries that come with embarking on parenthood. But within a couple of weeks, I was pregnant! And life was wonderful. I didn’t even care that I had severe morning sickness for the entire 9 months because I was finally having the baby I always wanted. On February 14^, 2000, my little Valentine baby was born. Ashley was a few weeks early, but not dangerously so. She was 6 lbs. 6 oz. and so very beautiful. She had risk of infection because I had amniotic fluid leaking, so she was given antibiotics through an IV in her head, and then she had jaundice. But within a week she was completely healthy and perfect. And we were elated! The first 2 years were almost magical. She was a good baby, yet hyper and inquisitive. She hit all her milestones early. Other than a lot of ear infections and some allergies, she was very healthy. People were always charmed by her. It seemed every time we left the house, people would comment about her beauty or ask to touch her. Ashley made parenthood so easy on us; we dove right into having a second baby. Ashley’s little sister, Hailey, was born when she was 18 months old. Having 2 babies under 2 was a little more work, but life was still great. And then everything changed. Right when Ashley was turning 2 years old, she started losing words; she stopped making eye contact, and seemed to be in her own little world most of the time. As she continued to regress, we began to get really worried and started doing a lot of research. It took almost 2 years to get a complete, accurate diagnosis, but shortly before Ashley turned 4, she was pronounced severely autistic. Autism. One word shattered our family. It altered us and our children, completely and permanently. Most people have heard of autism or know someone who has been impacted by it. But have you ever really thought of the devastation it brings to a child’s life or how it affects that child’s family. April is autism awareness month. My blog for the next month will focus on the reality of living with autism. Like us on Facebook Originally posted April 2012