Recently, Grammy & Poppy left town for a few days, and rather than disrupt The Boy’s routine, we planned for him to still go to their home after school to hang out until The Man or I could come to pick him up. In preparation for this, I had a spare key made, thinking I would give it to The Boy, show him how to work the lock, and let him practice for a few days. Except that the key I had made didn’t work, and when I attempted to show him, he got frustrated lightning-quick, and didn’t want to try anymore.

We resolved that situation another way, but it has me thinking about all of the things a 14 year old on the spectrum should be practicing for the day when he has a bit more independence. You see, we are both tired after our long days of work, and I don’t push too much at home, especially during the week. Weekends, I ask a little more, and now and then there are certain chores he helps me do. But I know we could do so much more, and work on that lightning-quick frustration level, too.

Planner nerds and Bullet Journal Junkies often have monthly challenges, and the idea is to take something you’d like to practice, like doodling or hand lettering, and do it each day with a guided prompt. You commit to the challenge, you do the prompts, and you share with a special hashtag on social media (and lots of people miss days, or get “caught up” later if they get behind – no worries). I’ve been thinking about doing an Independence Skills Challenge for the month of April, which also happens to be Autism Awareness Month. There will be a list of “prompts,” or specific independence skills to encourage each day or couple of days. I will share more details next week, and I would love it if you would join us with your own kiddos (on the spectrum or not!), but I’m excited, even if The Boy and I are the only ones doing it.