“Wilson HAPPY.”  We got to hear this several times in the past few days during our trip up to the snowy mountains, and if that isn’t the best thing in the entire world, I don’t know what is.

This kid is LIVING.

On his own terms, in his way and on his time.

This week, he trusted us to show him something new. With an unbelievable amount of sensory input for him to withstand and communication breakdowns to work through, he did it. He skied!

He climbed higher for each sled ride to go faster, and fell down and got back up more times than I can count. And he loved every minute.

For someone with anxiety that can incapacitate him at times, the stop-the-day kind, I am always in awe of how fearless he is.  Just one of the many contradictions in this world of autism.

Like how he can remember the route to his aunt’s house in the next town over, but when someone says “How are you?” he sometimes gets mixed up and replies with “I’m Wilson.”

He’s always working hard, both mentally and physically. His body and mind are truly only at rest when he is in a deep sleep.

When he’s ready, he’s READY and when he’s done, he is DONE so if you are in for the ride with him, then you better be ALL in and on!

We had a lot of sweat and a few tears (luckily no blood!) Meltdowns triggered by communication breakdowns or unforeseen circumstances are so frustrating. It’s really hard to not allow these tough moments to ruin a good day.

This time, they couldn’t.

We travelled with family and friends that treat us like family (something we don’t take for granted!) I watched him grab their faces and examine them with such intent and love. Not a lot of personal space in Wilson’s world. He climbed into their laps, tickled, chased and laughed.

I loved seeing this boy in his element, in the mountains. I’ve waited for this.

That’s where my heart feels most at home, too, buddy.