It seems like it should be so easy.

I was a little anxious about our weekend activities, Leo was going to go to his first day of Sunday School which required sitting still and a birthday party for a friend turning four which involved playing with other kids. It seems like it should be so easy. Leo doesn't like people, especially kids, in his face. The birthday party was kids he knew...Sunday School was a few kids he knew but mostly strangers. I knew things were going to be tough when right after we got in the classroom, a little girl took a toy away from Leo. Of course, he wanted to immediately take it back. My parenting style is this, just because that little girl acts like an asshole doesn't mean you get to act like one too. I tried to redirect but he would not let it go. So, we took a break. He went to hang with Ms. Jojo until Mom could come get him and I went back into the Sunday School class. I have agreed to be a Sunday School teacher only to be with Leo (seriously, who am I?). Don't think I didn't shoot that little girl dirty looks for the rest of the class. I was kind of worried about Leo sitting through church after the Sunday School debacle but he was a champ. We then hit the birthday party (although we got there late) and he did great. He got in the bounce house which he has never done before and although he spent some time playing by himself, he interacted with the other kids and had a great time. We are lucky to have a group of friends who have kids around the same age who treat Leo like every other kid. Some parents keep their kids away or avoid him altogether. I promise autism is not contagious. Also, we're not worried because most of those kids are assholes like their parents.

This is the stuff that is the hardest. The stuff that most people take for granted. Is someone going to be mean to my kid because he's different? Do I have enough cash for bail money when I murder that person for being mean to my kid?

Here's the thing I want other parents to know. Ask questions. If your kid is coming to my house to play, I'm going to ask things like does he have allergies, is he scared of clowns (because I am), or is he going to bite me. Ask us don't just ignore him. Leo doesn't talk but he does communicate really well if you take the time to listen. Kids are usually really good, they have a lot fewer preconceived ideas about autism. If we could all spend more time thinking like children, we might all get along so much better.