Such a cool kid.
Tags:I love this kid.
He is cracking me up more and more all the time as he seems to be communicating more effectively. Saying things that surprise me and make me do a double-take. These are my favorite types of double-takes.
This photo shows one of his Christmas gifts (or birthday) from last year. It seems that whatever he receives doesn't get tons of love until about a year later (something we are trying to change this year). It is hard to tell with him what he will be in love with, what is developmentally appropriate, etc. What is really cool about this - the hat and the goggles - is that he actually wanted to put them on (got them out of his toy basket on his own and asked for help in putting on the goggles). In the past he has not wanted the glasses on his face...but now, he is all over these guys. And of course, I was all over the camera.
He calls himself "Bob" - as in Bob the Builder - and pretty much what he wants to do is look at himself in the mirror and then take them off. So, so cool.
I had a couple emails from people yesterday wondering what Santa will be bringing Simon. Yesterday I had typed up this whole post about what has been happening with Santa and then I lost it. I hate it when that happens. The just of the post was that we had been back to the same toy store three times trying to decide between an entire Thomas the Tank Engine set-up (moving from the plastic tracks to the wood) and a house from Playmobil.
He loves Thomas. They are his favorite. And we are well aware of this fact. Our worry was that we would be feeding into an obsession rather than encouraging some diversity in his toy selection here at home. And besides all that he loves what he has right now (keeping it simple right?).
As for the Playmobil house, we were hoping to support him more in imaginative play with people. In the end though, I think he may not be completely ready for this developmentally.
After continued deliberation, and leaving the store for the third time without a "big" present we decided to go a completely different route. When we were driving home Santa and I started talking about what else he loves right now, and how what he loves and repeats tends to come from what he watches on video. And right now it is all about Dora and Diego. We like that he seems to be learning stuff from those shows and he is so excited about them. So Santa will be bringing him the Dora house (with a couple accessories, like the backyard) which satisfies Santa's desire to get him working on imaginative play in a home-environment and his desire to have him receive something that he will actually love and play with. And we got the last one at Toys-R-Us. Awesome.
My sister recently sent him the Dora floating bath toy which has been a total hit around here - it has made him become excited about taking baths again.
Another toy Santa brought last year that is finally getting some use is the My First LeapPad. Last year he got the Wiggles and Thomas books and just last week he was starting to get it (pushing the green go button, turning the pages with the sounds, etc.). Santa will also be bringing the Dora book this year.
Other than that there will be little things. A Dora coloring book. Wiggles slippers. A recorder. Bubbles. Hungy Hungry Hippos game. A book about monkeys. And a couple Thomas magnet books.
Excited to see his reaction Sunday morning. Excited to get to share in that overwhelming joy.

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51 comments
Hi Ali - Liam also loves everything Thomas. Last year for his 3rd birthday we took him to 'A Day Out With Thomas'. We drove an hour to Heber City but it was well worth it. I don't know if you're familiar with it, but it is a full-sized Thomas engine that pulls passenger cars and the kids get to ride on it. They also have different activities for the kids - Thomas sets to play with, arts and crafts, etc. Liam LOVED it. He still talks about it. I'm not sure about the schedule for 2006, but I noticed in 2005 they did have an Oregon location. Something you might like to think about. I don't know a kid that age that wouldn't marvel at a ride on an actual Thomas train.
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When my brother's son was 11 months old, they took him with them to the store to try out toys on him, to see what he would respond to. That made presents really easy that year. Too bad you can't do that kind of thing forever!!
Darcie (Elyria, OH)
P.S. I just want you to know that I 'happened' upon your blog when doing a search for Scraptacular in Elyria. I have now read almost ALL of your archived entries. We are actually very similar people in many areas -- down to the influence of autism in our lives. I have good friends with a 12 year old son who has autism, as well as both of my brother's children. Matt is almost 6 and Rebecca is 3. So exciting to see when they 'get' something as I watch their development.
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Hungry, Hungry Hippo??? Are you out of your mind??? LOL! My older two (now 15 & 16) had that, but I refuse to buy it for my 6 year old! It's SO loud!!! LOL! But then, I'm an old fogey now and must have more quiet in my life. You are probably young and tolerant! ;D Sounds like it's going to be a very special Christmas--have a blast! It really does go by sooooooo fast!
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My boys are back into Thomas this year. I don't why. But it has defnitely been the best investment. The doll house was only played with my ds#2 and I'm glad I found a great deal on it.
I find the boys will imitate the play they see on the Thomas videos. It's a start into imaginative play. Enjoy the day whatever it brings.
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8 silly monkeys is a big hit with my little monkey. He will love it.
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Simon is a lucky little boy and you're an incredibly lucky mom. Merry Christmas to you.
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Those toys look cool. Man I miss getting toys for Christmas, and I'm 25!
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Wow...sounds like a very fun-filled Christmas to me! Thanks for sharing. Happy Holidays!
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Simon is the cutest Bob I've ever seen! You'll have to let us know about the Hungry Hippos game...I'm thinking about that for my almost 4 year old son. Have a Merry Christmas!
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How awesome for little the simon dude!! Great stuff for the kiddos this year...
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What an awesome shot, Ali!
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Your post is making me so excited for Sunday! Family time is AWESOME! Simon "aka Bob" looks so adorable!
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Ali, don't forget to get some characters for the DOra house. We bought our DD one last year and all it had inside was some living room stuff and a dora...Just a thought...but my dd still loves her house....
I am very much enjoying reading your blog...you're so inspiring...
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Hi Ali, my first time posting here, but I've kept up with your blog off and on. My dd is 5 and has autism. I found that encouraging her parallel play with tv/movie characters really seemed to help her out in the imagination department. I have been blown away by her progress over the last year! She now actively engages in imaginative play rather than simply only reenacting scenes from shows. So anyway, I just wanted to share that with you :) Have a wonderful Christmas!!!
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I can see why you love that kid -- so cute! We've got a little "Bob" here as well -- although, no goggles or hat, but drilling, hammering, and sawing with anything "real" tool or something he made -- so fun to see.....
As for the xmas toys -- wow he's going to be blown away. So good to think about what type of toys to give and why and what you hope to accomplish with them.
We're getting Victor a wooden stove and hoping my parents and brother get him supplies, such as pots and pans, fruits and vegetables, all wooden he can cut....
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sounds like simon is in for a treat! Anthony still doesn;t know how to play alone and imagine things what he can do with his toys. It is getting better though so there is hope! great to hear that simons speach has improved, do you think it also has to do with him going to his new school?
Well have fun today and by the way that pictue of bob...uh....simon is great!!!
corinnexxx
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it's so cool to hear how he's developing, and to see YOUR excitement. There is nothing better than a devoted parent.
Our kids are getting the dora house too. My Chandler is the same age as Simon I believe, just a few weeks older, and I was going to get it for her right after Christmas birthday last year, but they SOLD OUT. It was a hard to find item. Ebay had them selling for $150, it was insane. She managed to survive, having not known my intentions. LOL So this year, I found it, I bought it right up. LOL Our girls are all huge Dora and especially DIego fans. Diego rocks, saving animals. My oldest just loves that.
Merry Christmas. I hope Simon falls instantly in love with his new things this year!
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I relate to your debate about whether to get Simon toys that encourage new and developmental types of play or those that feed into current fixations. My husband and I debate about that every year with our little guy, who also has a spectrum disorder. This year we managed to find one that was perfect: we expanded his Rokenbok set, which is great for playdates b/c his little friends love it, but we found an elevator set, and elevators are one of his very favorite things.
One other idea for Simon. I saw that you got Hungry Hungry Hippos. Another fantastic first game is Barnyard Bingo http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0000205XS/104-3406017-5837517?v=glance. Josh's ABA therapist when he was 3 introduced this game to him and it started him on a lifetime love of games. Good for learning about taking turns and praciticing appropriate pronoun use, like "your turn" and "my turn". Also, it is a mercifully short game, unlike CandyLand, which can drag on forever...
Merry Christmas, and thank you for sharing yourself with us.
Amy
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sounds like simon will enjoy christmas. my wesley, who just turned five, loves the monkey book! merry christmas.
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Such a cute photo, totally made me giggle! I can completely relate to things taking about a year to get some real use! Miss Alyza has already opened a few gifts this year, among them was Hungry Hippos, and it was a HUGE hit (such a classic too!) I hope Christmas is just magical for your family! --Steph
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