October 2019

October was a great month to be outside because of all the colors and nice weather, so we had lots of excuses to take photos and videos. You can see them in our album linked here. And since we had a visitor this month, we have more photos than usual of all three of us. Here are some of the things we've been up to:

Visit from Grandma Burden (Rob)

We got to see Becky's mom Debbie who came to visit us this month. Her timing in mid-October was great because many would say it's the best time of the year around here, and this year the fall colors did not disappoint. Actually, the whole month of October was beautiful with pretty good weather. The colors were more vibrant this year than last year, and really seemed to last.  As you'll see in the photos, we showed Debbie some of our favorite hiking trails and food places in the Binghamton area. Debbie also went with Becky and Alex to the Hudson Valley area for Alex's therapy that week, so she got to see that side of the state as well. We enjoyed her company and having an excuse to figure out how to use our fireplace without smoking up the house like I did last time. We got to hear updates on Becky's little brother Nate who just left on his church mission to Brazil. And Debbie was kind to watch Alex for us so we could go out and enjoy a movie ( a rare event these days).  (Rob)

Becky's Birthday (Rob)

Debbie's visit coincided with Becky's Birthday. They celebrated on the day of with brunch out in the Hudson Valley, and then we opened some presents the following weekend and went out for tacos. We sure love Becky and appreciate all that she gives to our family every day. Alex and I are pretty lucky guys to have her! Next month, we get to celebrate Alex's birthday number three. (Rob)

All Hallow's Eve (Rob)

Unfortunately this year we couldn't all be together on Halloween. I passed out candy at home, and really underestimated the number of trick-or-treaters. Historically, we end up with a lot of candy leftover because no one comes. But there are a lot of kids in our neighborhood, and even the rain didn't keep them away. So after I ran out of candy, I just went and played basketball at the church. Alex got to wear his skeleton costume to therapy that day, and they enjoyed some outings at the library and the mall. Some malls cater to trick or treaters, but I guess this one didn't. But that's ok because Alex is not really aware of the concept of Halloween and we haven't  introduced him to much candy (he gets more than enough sugar from cookies and such that are used as motivators during his therapy). (Rob)

Alex Updates (Rob)

Cars, trucks and tractors continue to be Alex's main focus these days. All of the Pixar Cars merchandise (and there is plenty of it out there) is always a big hit with him. He likes books too, as long as they have cars in them usually. One of his favorite activities these days is to just sit in the drivers seat of our Subaru or Prius, grab the steering wheel and push all the buttons. He's made some steps in therapy, particularly with his ability to respond to instructions. He's also picking up on other things we've been working on, like taking bites out of food (rather than stuffing the entire thing in his mouth), holding our finger and walking with us (rather than whining if we don't carry him, which is like lugging a 31 lb. sack of potatoes at times), kicking a ball, and some imitations. These kinds of things are normal for a lot of toddlers, but small victories for those on the spectrum. 

Random Tidbits and Non-sequiturs  (Rob)

I wrote an article for KSL.com in their family section about the range in availability of autism resources, based on our personal experience and a related study that came out recently; you can read it here.  

It was an exciting month at work because one of the new guys we hired to join my office was also on Jeopardy for a few days during his first week on the job (it was filmed a couple months prior), which brought some local publicity. More importantly, he is someone from another area of campus that we know well, and he has been a great addition to our team. Anyway, his Jeopardy status was quickly overshadowed the following week when one of our faculty members won a Nobel prize for his work on lithium ion batteries, which attracted international publicity. 

Becky is getting ready to start seeing clients in the Hudson Valley area in November. She will also continue to see her two clients in the Binghamton area until probably the end of the year, but it will be a bit stressful during the overlap. She has also been looking for a place to rent out there so we can have a home away from home, but so far it has proven more difficult/competitive than expected. Some people don't want to rent to people with kids. We have been thinking of switching our routine to where I would come out to stay with them in the Hudson Valley during the weekends, and work in Binghamton during the weeks - possibly on a 4-day work week if its allowed. Possibly we could AirBnB our house to supplement our income for the time being. 

I never win anything, but I won a $50 Texas Roadhouse gift card from a credit union drawing. Then I lost it, because I figured fate needed to intervene. But then I found it between the car seat when I cleaned out the car. So anyway, we look forward to a nice meal at Texas Roadhouse in the near future, as fate would have it.