Happy Easter! Hope all of you had a wonderful holiday. We missed having Jeff home. We saw the Easter Bunny at the autism playgroup that meets monthly, and Travis loved him! He says "yunny" now for bunny (along with many other words) and he was so taken with the bunny that he would cry and tantrum whenever we guided him away so another child could have a turn. It was kind of funny, but eventually we had to leave so that other kids could have their picture taken with the Easter bunny (without Travis in it!)
It's been an exciting month for me - I attended the Son-Rise Maximum Impact training course at the Autism Institute of America March 29 - April 2 and it was AWESOME! Thank you so much to all of you for all your help and support in getting me there. I thought I had understood the program pretty well after the Start Up training Jeff and I attended in September, but this time I really got a deeper understanding of the Son-Rise attitude underlying the program and more confidence in how to be with Travis in the room, train volunteers, ideas for our team meetings, etc. Not to mention the wonderful connections I made with other parents who are doing Son-Rise at home as well - hopefully we will be able to support each other as we continue on our journeys with our children. I am definitely more excited than ever about working with Travis and supporting his development, and I can't wait to attend the next Son-Rise training, called New Frontiers. That program focuses on developing new curriculum as our kids progress, and should be wonderful for me since Travis has already met many of our original goals (improvements in eye contact, joint attention, and starting to make words). I'm hoping to attend in November later this year.
Travis also started attending his Bridges program on Mondays, so is now attending 3 mornings a week. It doesn't look like he'll be able to add the 4th morning (Wednesdays) until summer since there's not a slot available until then, but he loves it there when he does go. It is fun to watch him be excited to see his three therapists, Erica (speech), Alison (Floortime), and Michelle (occupational), all of whom say he's making good progress.
More next month... hope you all are enjoying spring!
Fund Raising For Travis
Hello! We are Travis’ parents, Laura and Jeff, and have set up this web page in response to family and friends who have been so loving and generous in wanting to help us on this journey. We appreciate all the love and support you give us, and your well wishes are a most valuable resource for all of us!
Travis is a beautiful, sweet boy with an adorable laugh and twinkle in his eye. After developing normally for the first year of his life, Travis stopped babbling around 12 months and became delayed in other areas of development. At 18 months, he was diagnosed with autism. Autism is a developmental disability resulting in challenges in language, communication, cognition, and social interaction. While there are many things that are still challenging and frustrating for Travis, he also gets a lot of joy out of life. He loves to climb and play outside, run around with his big sister Julia (5 yrs old), and play in his "Son-Rise" playroom with family, volunteers, and therapists. At 4 yrs old, he has progressed over the last 2 years from communicating with signs and sounds to speaking in multiple word sentences, and developing much more interaction with others.
Travis’ parents are helping Travis overcome his autism with a home-based, child-centered Son-Rise Program® in combination with biomedical interventions and other therapeutic options. The Son-Rise Program® has helped thousands of children move towards recovery, using an optimistic, loving approach that is based on the belief that all children have a limitless potential for extraordinary healing and growth. Funds raised initially were used to help Travis’ parents attend the Son-Rise Program® Start Up, a five-day group training course at the Autism Treatment Center of America™ in Sheffield, Massachusetts, in September of 2008. Additional funds were used for Laura to attend the advanced Son-Rise training programs Maximum Impact (in March 2009) and New Frontiers (November 2009), as well as to support his enrollment in other therapeutic settings such as the Bridges Program at Texas Children’s Hospital, where he received Floortime, speech, and occupational therapy for a year and a half. Current donations are being used towards continuing private therapy with his former Bridges therapists following the closing of the Bridges program in September 2010 due to budget cuts . To find out more about The Son-Rise Program® visit the website: www.autismtreatmentcenter.org/.
To send a donation for Travis, you can send a check to our address below, or click the "Donate" button on the right to donate with a credit card using PayPal. Please note that this donation will not be tax deductible since we are not a non-profit organization, as the funds raised will help one particular individual. Any amount is most appreciated and helpful, but nothing is as valuable as all your positive thoughts and prayers! We are amazed at the generous outflow of kindness that has already come our way in response to starting this journey. Everyone seems to know someone who is willing to share their story, experience, advice, or information about a new therapy, dietary intervention, educational program, etc. This support has been so very helpful by both providing us information and also letting us know that we’re not doing this alone. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!!!
- Laura Licato and Jeff Meier
Travis Meier
4607 Rainbow Valley Ct, Missouri City, TX 77459
For more information, email: travismeier@sbcglobal.net
Travis is a beautiful, sweet boy with an adorable laugh and twinkle in his eye. After developing normally for the first year of his life, Travis stopped babbling around 12 months and became delayed in other areas of development. At 18 months, he was diagnosed with autism. Autism is a developmental disability resulting in challenges in language, communication, cognition, and social interaction. While there are many things that are still challenging and frustrating for Travis, he also gets a lot of joy out of life. He loves to climb and play outside, run around with his big sister Julia (5 yrs old), and play in his "Son-Rise" playroom with family, volunteers, and therapists. At 4 yrs old, he has progressed over the last 2 years from communicating with signs and sounds to speaking in multiple word sentences, and developing much more interaction with others.
Travis’ parents are helping Travis overcome his autism with a home-based, child-centered Son-Rise Program® in combination with biomedical interventions and other therapeutic options. The Son-Rise Program® has helped thousands of children move towards recovery, using an optimistic, loving approach that is based on the belief that all children have a limitless potential for extraordinary healing and growth. Funds raised initially were used to help Travis’ parents attend the Son-Rise Program® Start Up, a five-day group training course at the Autism Treatment Center of America™ in Sheffield, Massachusetts, in September of 2008. Additional funds were used for Laura to attend the advanced Son-Rise training programs Maximum Impact (in March 2009) and New Frontiers (November 2009), as well as to support his enrollment in other therapeutic settings such as the Bridges Program at Texas Children’s Hospital, where he received Floortime, speech, and occupational therapy for a year and a half. Current donations are being used towards continuing private therapy with his former Bridges therapists following the closing of the Bridges program in September 2010 due to budget cuts . To find out more about The Son-Rise Program® visit the website: www.autismtreatmentcenter.org/.
To send a donation for Travis, you can send a check to our address below, or click the "Donate" button on the right to donate with a credit card using PayPal. Please note that this donation will not be tax deductible since we are not a non-profit organization, as the funds raised will help one particular individual. Any amount is most appreciated and helpful, but nothing is as valuable as all your positive thoughts and prayers! We are amazed at the generous outflow of kindness that has already come our way in response to starting this journey. Everyone seems to know someone who is willing to share their story, experience, advice, or information about a new therapy, dietary intervention, educational program, etc. This support has been so very helpful by both providing us information and also letting us know that we’re not doing this alone. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!!!
- Laura Licato and Jeff Meier
Travis Meier
4607 Rainbow Valley Ct, Missouri City, TX 77459
For more information, email: travismeier@sbcglobal.net
Thursday, April 16, 2009
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