THE JOHN AND ROBIN KIRTON INTERVIEW

So the time has come, It’s time for the big Interview. This Month I have John Kirton joining me. He and his wife Robin are the only parents in America who have six children on the autism spectrum. WOW. This Interview is a great insight into the lives of a family with six amazing children. Welcome to the Big Interview. ENJOY 🙂

Hi John it’s really great to have this chance to chat with you today.

How are you?

I am doing FANTASTIC, thanks for asking.

 

And how is your wife and the children?

 

We have had a really good winter this year.  The last few years one of the children would bring home a cold or the flu from school, then another would get it. The next couple of weeks it would go through the entire family.  And that happened 3-5 times during each winter season.  It wasn’t much fun.  This year?  Just once and it affected only a few of the children.  We feel that taking supplements and a special diet have helped quite a bit.

 

So John for those that do not know! Why is it that you understand so much about Autism spectrum?

Well I’m no expert on Autism itself, but I am learning all the time.  

Is it true that all six of your children are on the autism spectrum ?

 Yes, it is true.

 

How is life for you and your wife?

 Well, six children were as much as we were counting on. However, when Autism came into the picture it added to the time and emotional requirements.

My son has ASD ( Aspergers ) He can be a little bit of a handful at times! But having Six children on the spectrum wow I’m guessing family life can be a little hectic.

 Very true, people do not know the half of it unless they have an Autistic child.  I read somewhere that having an Autistic child was the equivalent of having 3-4 “normal” children. If that’s true, we have 18-24 children!  No wonder we are a little crazy at the end of the day.

 

So Where along on the spectrum are your children?

 

Bobby (15), Emma (11) and Nephi (10) are all Aspergers.  Sarah (7) and Ammon (5) are classic or the most severely Autistic.  And Mary (4) is PDD-NOS.  We have had a number of people ask about the origin of the children’s names.  Some are because of my English heritage and some are from the Book of Mormon.  My Great-Grandfather, John Kirton, joined the Mormon Church in the 1890’s and immigrated from Wallsend, England to Coalville, Utah.

 

How does autism affect each one of your children?

 

Whoa! I can write a book on that question alone.  Bobby is very quiet, does very well in school (mostly A’s), has no real friends and has few social skills.  Emma varies from being quiet to very emotional, she does OK in school, she will have emotional ‘meltdowns’ but has done better with the diet, and she is a fantastic artist, writer and likes to design clothes for her Barbie dolls. Nephi varies from being quiet to very emotional as well, and is a more outgoing male version of Emma. Instead of Barbie dolls, he likes Bakugan and Star Wars/Clone wars.  Sarah is very happy and bounces and moves around a lot. One of our many nicknames for her is ‘Tigger’ from Winnie the Pooh. Her favorite ‘stim’ right now is tearing and ripping any kind of paper.  She’ll sneak away with a roll of paper towels or dinner napkins and we’ll find her bedroom ankle deep with the shredded remains. She has just a few words that we must coach her to say. And she is not potty-trained.  Ammon is much like Sarah in many respects.  His favorite ‘stims’ are flapping his hands, bobbing his head and watching doors that he can open and close (see him at the Zoo on my YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbdkstTZhOE).  He can climb anywhere and up and over most everything.  He has NO fear. He too is not potty-trained.  Mary is our child that is the most ‘normal’ of the bunch.  We thought the Doctor would say she was not Autistic, but she was diagnosed as PDD-NOS.  She talks well, has friends at school and is just a bit delayed right now.  However, at 4 years, 4 months she too is not potty-trained.  But she is at least working on it.  Looks like I did write a book.

 

Are any of the children home schooled? 

 No.  Robin says, “What, do you want me to totally lose my mind? LOL.

 

I love your site Autism Bites , I’m a big fan. Where do you find the time to add to this fantastic site?

I do it in spurts and usually when the children are in bed.

 Do you get much time for anything other then parenting?.  

To get anything else done, Robin and I take turns keeping an eye on things. Much of the time we are both on the job and rely on each other a lot.  During the times that we take an eye off of things… well that’s when we find surprises the children have created for us. Without one another we would never make it.

 

I am in the UK but I have still seen some of the shows you and your family  have appeared on. Good morning America and Larry king being a few of them. How do you find all the media attention? 

 Well, I put the ‘media ball’ into motion.  We went through a lot of grieving, emotional lows and soul searching as we found out about our new lives with Autism.  By having our story told we hope that we can help other parents with their trials. We blog, belong to various Autism groups, do TV, radio and Internet (wink!) interviews.  We get many emails though our website and so far have answered every one.  I’ve just been accepted as an Internet reporter for Autism on examiner.com and will be posting there a number of times each week.  People that ask or need more answers or help, we will contact by phone.  We have a number of Autistic adults that we talk to quite often.  We hope that our experiences can help others with their journey on the road of Autism.

 

And tell us a little about autism 6 on the Discovery Health Channel.

 

I got a call on my cell phone one day from the president, Bill Hayes, of the production company, Figure8 Films.  He told me that Discovery Health had been looking for a family that had multiple children with Autism to do a story about.  They discovered us from a local newspaper story in Salt Lake City, Utah.  They especially liked the idea that we have the entire Autism spectrum in one family.  Robin and I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to increase Autism awareness and acceptance.  We were of course concerned about how we would be portrayed. Bill said we would be able to see the show first before it was broadcast to insure we were happy with the final product.  We are.  The film crew started shooting every month for 2-4 days, from December 2007 to May 2008.  The crew was four people, the Producer, cameraman, soundman and crew assistant. Some people have expressed concern about our children being exploited or being put through undue stress.  We are a very loving family and our children just do not have much of the change of routine problems we hear that other families do.  Ammon would climb on the camera tripod and want to be picked up and hugged by all of the crew.  He was very persistent and got in the way of filming much of the time.  Sarah was going through a ‘sniffing everyone’ stage and did.  All the time.  When the crew followed Nephi at school, he introduced them to everyone they walked past, “This is MY film crew!”  The crew got a big kick out of that. The story is a piece on each of the children, with mom and dad comments throughout.  We have teachers from the schools and one of the doctors from the University of Utah’s Autism Research Project talk about their Autism.

 

As you know like yourself I’m a member of model me kids ( A great social network for autism ) Do you find it important to meet other parents of children with ASD and raise awareness for the condition? 

 

I really do.  It’s great to be able to find someplace that you like and are accepted.  Model Me Kids is the best I’ve found and I’ve been all over the Internet. (Thanks MT!)  There are too many places where parents fight, call names and are just plain nasty.  No one needs that, especially parents dealing with Autism already.  I just wish I had more time to be available to give comments or suggestions, but sometimes just getting up in the morning is a great day.

 

As it’s Autism awareness month would you be so kind to give us one reason to love and embrace autism. I know there are plenty but I only have the one blog:)

 

Love and embrace your Autistic child, advocate for them and get you and them out into the world so the rest of the world will know and love them too.  I’m not saying it will be easy, but I am saying it will be worth it.

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to speak with me John. I know you’re an extremely busy man and I thank you very much. Look forward to learning more and more about yourself and wonderful family. 

 

Thanks Claire.  Please ask your readers to be my friend on Model Me Kids (http://modelmekids.ning.com/profile/JohnKirton) and to visit and comment on our blog (http://autismbitestheblog.blogspot.com/). 

COMING SOON TO A BOY WITH ASPERGER’S

The next Big Interview with John Kirton.

Wow I’m really looking forward to the next Big Interview.

The last two Interview’s have gone down a Storm and I hoping all the readers will enjoy the next one just as much. 

With it being Autism awareness Month this April I fault who better to Interview then John Kirton. For those that may not of heard about John or his wonderful family then Please don’t miss this fantastic Interview. John and his wife raise six children on the Autism spectrum. As well as appearing all over American television on shows like Good Morning America and Larry King they also have there show autism 6 on the Discovery Health channel. John talks to me about his life raising six children on the spectrum, the highs and lows ups and downs. It really is one not to be missed. Catch the Interview on Friday the 24th of April. Want to learn more about the Kirton family visit Autism Bites Now:)

KYRA & FLUFFY ON THE BIG INTERVIEW

TODAYS THE DAY:) 

This is the Big Interview with Kyra Anderson from the blog This Mom and her wonderful, bright amazing 8 year old son Fluffy. Kyra shares her life on parenting a child on the spectrum ( Fluffy has Asperger’s ) And Fluffy shares a little about his life, his likes, dislikes, his blog, house rules and much more:)

When Kyra sent the interview back to me last week, It was such a joy to read. I hope you all enjoy this fantastic interview as much as I have

Kyra…… your Fluffy’s mom is that correct? I understand Fluffy has Asperger’s! When did you find this out and how do you find it being a mother to a child on the autistic spectrum?

We got Fluffy’s diagnosis a little over four years ago after Fluffy got kicked out of a private preschool program. The local school district’s assessment results pointed to an autism spectrum diagnosis and they referred us to a specialist who confirmed he had Asperger’s a few months later. By that time, we had been researching and reading online and were not surprised. 

 

When I found out I was pregnant, someone said to me, Strap yourself in and get ready for the ride of your life.Having a child on the autism spectrum, for me, has been like that: a wild ride. A wonderful, exhilarating, surprising ride that has been, at times, terrifying, isolating and confusing but incredibly illuminating in the most profound ways imaginable.

 

Fluffy… Hi great to meet you I have read lots about you on mommy’s blog and I see you have your own amazing blog. Is that fun to write?

Sometimes. Sort of, like maybe when I’m in the mood to write and by the way did you read the first one that says that my real name is Wyatt? I just want people to know my real name.

 

 

Kyra… So your a really busy mom! As well as being a wife to Dave and mother to fluffy, your a writer and you home school Fluffy is that correct? How is this for you? Do you every get some mommy time?

Fluffy is getting more and more responsible and aware, more involved in the household. The homeschooling is becoming a bit more intuitive and manageable. We now have two fantastic sitters that Fluffy adores, one of whom just started being able to put him to bed so Dave and I initiated regular date nights. So, yes! I actually am getting some mommy time these days! I’ve even gone away for a night or two on my own.

 

What I need now, what Fluffy and I both need, are some friends! Our life is still too solitary.

 

 

Fluffy… What are your best school subjects? Is their any subjects you really love and any you don’t like?

I really love the math school subjects but then cursive can be hard. I don’t really NOT like it but sometimes it can be hard.

 

 

Fluffy… I hear you have some favorite foods, french-fries being one of them. tell us what you love to eat?

Do you mean other than French-fries? Now, let’s see…corn dogs, tacos, popcorn, baguette, everything bagels, cotton candy but that’s not really a food. It’s a desert. Oh! I like many things. I like pizza, salad–but that’s not one of my favorites but salad can be really high up there and … that’s all I’m going to say.

 

Kyra …. Do you find dinner times hard with Fluffy?

Not really. Family dinners have been a sweet time for us, most of the time. Up until the last six months or so, Fluffy’s been a good eater. I’m not sure what’s up with the food lately–he seems to be restricting his diet more and more, having a lot of sight aversion/sensory issues.

 

A few things we do: Fluffy has a great chair with an adjustable foot rest, a bumpy cushion to sit on and a thera-band tied on the table legs by his chair so he can push against it with his feet. All those sensory ‘snack’ strategies are important. It also helps to make sure he doesn’t get too hungry (it’s always the first thing I think about when his behavior gets out of whack—what and when did he last eat!) As a general rule, we try to make sure he eats every two to three hours, preferably with protein at every meal/snack.

 

Kyra… Has Fluffy got any sensory problems? Do they affect his everyday life? And have you found ways around them to make both yours and Dave’s life more easy and most importantly Fluffys? I know as a parent to a son with Asperger’s this can be one of the hardest things associated with the condition.

My guess is that the sensory piece is an enormous part of the social struggle for Fluffy. I have this feeling his body and mind get ‘flooded’ in social situations, a kind of bombardment that makes regulation and frankly, thinking, very difficult.

 

He’s had OT for over three years, but it’s only been in the last six months that we’ve great strides. I think it’s a combination of a great new therapist and Fluffy’s own maturity.

 

We’re at the point where he’s able to recognize when his body ‘energy’ is off. We’ve worked really hard on this in lots of ways with self-talk and day-to-day strategies to create an ever-evolving sensory diet. We have ceiling hooks for all sorts of indoor swings, bean bags, hippity-hop balls, sensory stuff all over the house!

 

Where did the name Fluffy come about? I understand it’s his nick name ( very cute )We call our son little man! which I refer to him sometimes in my blog. Reason being is sometimes he really acts like a little man not a child.

We have million nicknames for our son. My husband Dave loves to sing made up words to various tunes, Joy to the World. Ever since Fluffy was a tiny baby, he’d march around the house rhyming nonsense words to that tune, singing something like, “Fluffy McBee, is four times three. He’s eleven times six plus eight times two plus three!” going on and on in the most inane fashion imaginable. It’s been both wonderfully entertaining and annoying for ages. It’s the nickname that others found the most appalling and so, for some reason, it cracked us up the most. And, there you have it!

 

Fluffy….I see you love star wars! Tell us some more of your favorite things! I have also seen some fantastic videos of you, mommy and daddy. You play the keyboard and piano! Is that fun? You very good.

 

I really like playing laser tag. And there’s a game called Monopoly Deal that I like, too. My favorite game is Spore where you start as a single cell organism and there’s no real goal in the game other than to have fun. I likeCivilization IV and Crazy Machines–that’s really fun. I like funny cartoons, reading them like Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbs and watching them on TV like Tom and Jerry. I like all kinds of things.

 

I like to play the piano.

 

Kyra… Your blog This mom is fantastic! When did you first start writing it and for what reasons?

 

I started in January, 2005, right around the time of Fluffy’s diagnosis as a matter of fact. I was feeling incredibly isolated and overwhelmed, profoundly worried about how to provide what he needed to really thrive, disillusioned by the lack of support and helpful information available to us, horrified by the double message of Hurry up and get busy with therapies! Don’t miss the magic window! AND the waiting list for assessments and services that were 6 months, one year, up to two years long.

I needed to carve out a tiny place for me to have my voice, my mother-voice and all it’s glory and mess. I wrote for my own sanity during a time of groundlessness and then slowly, through the writing, found my footing and then other mothers out there in the blogosphere, writing about their lives. A real community developed, one I still feel connected to four years later!

 

Fluffy… There is some fantastic Art work on your blog. Do you do Art a lot?

Sometimes I can like drawing when I’m in the mood.

 

 

Kyra….How is Fluffys behavior? I see you have some family rules that you displayed on your blog! Would you mind telling us a little about them and how there working out?

 

I cannot say enough great things about the Nurtured Heart Approach! We’ve  been using it at home for the last few months and it’s been transformative.  It’s been called a social curriculum and I can see why. It’s helped Dave and I be a real team in our parenting. It’s helped Fluffy with self-image, episodic memory, impulse control, and self-regulation. It reminds me of RDI in that it’s a way of being with your child rather than a discrete period of therapy.

 

Fluffy…Do you like the new rules? Are mommy and daddy sticking to them?

I LOVE the new rules! Mom and Dad are completely sticking to them! Boy! Are the new rules great!

 

Kyra…. Has Fluffy got an interest that he is obsessed with? If so how do you deal with that. And what are your hopes and dreams for your son as he grows up?

Fluffy is most passionate these days about Spore, a new computer game he got about a month ago. All roads lead to Spore! He’s been passionate about other things in the past and I’m quite sure his passion will shift to something new in the future.

I try to approach it as I would with anyone who’s wildly into something: respect his interests, do my best to learn about them, to have real conversations with him about them, give him opportunities to play with whatever the latest fascination is, and create some boundaries around it.

For example, he only gets a certain amount of computer time a week. And if we’ve been talking about Spore for a while, I’ll just say, “You know, I’m getting a little bored talking about Spore now. Can we talk about something else?” Or I’ll simply tell him that I love that he loves it but that my mind can’t keep all the details in! “It’s like a bowl full of water and I don’t have room for any more drops,” I’ll say. He gets this now and sometimes he’ll say, I know, Mom! For me, it’s great. For you it’s like an attack of word bullets!

 

Kyra….To finish up would you be willing to give one tip or small piece of advice for other parents that may be reading this and have just found out they have a child on the autistic spectrum?

Well, my advice is general and also specific!

 

The general: I’d say, find someone who you can talk to about the WHOLE process. It’s emotional at first. All parents want their kids to have big juicy lives. When we find out our kids need more than the basic stuff, especially when the news is reported in dire language, it can be terrifying.  Find someone who will let you go through a PROCESS, to take you from here to there. Find someone who will listen and also give you hope. Trust that you will move through your feelings and the details of finding out what your child needs and how to provide that for them.

 

The specific: I think RDI (Relationship Development Intervention:  http://www.rdiconnect.com) is a powerful program for the whole family and absolutely mind-blowingly helpful for kids on the spectrum. I think finding a greatsensory integration specialist is key. Once you build a foundation with those two things, or at least make some headway, you might find Nurtured Heart can offer guidance in how to navigate the parenting/discipline piece, especially if you have what you might call an ‘intense child’.

 

I will say, there has been a significant shift in our lifestyle in the last year that comes Fluffy being in a whole new place. And from me being in a whole new place. It hasn’t come overnight. It’s been bit by bit but it seems to have its own momentum now. I don’t look at him as needing this or that thing to fix this or that issue. I look at him more holistically, like the whole child he is with things he’s good at and things that come more slowly, and try to support his development the best way I can, his whole development.

 

I don’t worry so much now. Well, okay, I’m alive and I’m a mom so I think it’s safe to say, we all worry. But not in the way I used to. Mostly, I trust that Fluffy’s on developmental pathway that will take him where he needs to go.

 

Now, my job is far from done. He’s only eight! But I can take what I’ve learned from RDI, from the sensory integration work we’ve been doing and will keep doing, from the Nurtured Heart Approach and my good old gut and hope that over the next ten or fifteen years, he’ll go out in the world with enough confidence and competence to begin the journey of creating a meaningful life that feels good to him. I can’t know for sure.

 

But who can know anything for sure? The universe is mostly made up of something called dark energy and dark matter, stuff that no one has ever seen. And yet, it’s out there.

 

We all have to believe in something we can’t yet see. Even if it’s a tiny bit, a pin prick in the black fabric of the night sky. Sometimes that’s all the light you need.

 

Fluffy… And my very last question for you as I guess you may be getting bored now is what would you like to be when you grow up. And what is the one thing you would like most in the world?

I would like to be an astronaut/space scientist when I grow up the whole idea of black holes and worm holes andwhite holes are very fascinating to me and I want to study them.

I want to be the one to invent a Worm Hole Generator because it is going to help NASA explore space. Worm holes are like time and space teleporters. I’m not sure if the one I invent will be a time AND space one but I would want it to be but maybe just a tele-porter would do. A tele-porter moves someone from one place to another place anywhere in the universe, immediately.

What I want is to figure out what my destiny is in this life and then do it!

 

Thank you Kyra and fluffy. It’s been great speaking to you both and thanks again for taking part in the Big Interview.

LIKED THE INTERVIEW THEN WHY DON’T READ MORE ABOUT KYRA AND FLUFFY OVER AT THE FANTASTIC BLOG THIS MOM! YOU WILL FIND SOME GREAT POST, WONDERFUL PICTURES AND BEST OF ALL THE LINK TO FLUFFY’S BLOG:)

WANT TO BE PARK OF THE BIG INTERVIEW? EMAIL ME AT parkinson.claire@yahoo.com.

UP AND COMING.

Oh yes, It’s drawing closer to my favorite time of the month. 

THE BIG INTERVIEW 🙂 

As many of you know last month was my first big Interview! It was a great, really enjoyed the interview with Cale Irwin a 20 year old with Asperger’s. 

This months Interview is going to be just as great. I was extremely pleased when Kyra Anderson contacted me. Mother to Fluffy and writer of  the fantastic blog  This Mom agreed to a joint interview with her amazing 8 year old son fluffy. Fluffy has Aspergers and is the same age as my little man so it was wonderful to be able to hear what life was like for fluffy and his mum. I received the interview back from Kyra today and I must say it is a fantastic and wonderful read that you really must read. 

THE BIG INTERVIEW IS NOW TAKING PLACE ON THE  20th OF MARCH, NOT ON THE 30th AS PLANED.

GREAT NEWS FOR APRIL !

John kirton will be joining the fun in the month of April ( Autism awareness month ) to take part in the Big Interview.  WOW I’m so looking forward to it.

For anybody that  don’t know John, he and his wife are the parents of six children on the Autism spectrum. This amazing and remarkable family have been featured in People magazine, appeared on Good morning America, inside edition Larry King. There newest project a documentary Autism x6 is currently being shown on the Discovery health channel. Check out the families website Autism Bites 

DATE FOR THE JOHN KIRTON BIG INTERVIEW TO BE ANNOUNCED

IN THE  FIRST FEW WEEKS OF APRIL.

Monday finds drawing to an end.

Today and next week will be the last of the blog feature Monday finds. Don’t worry a great new Monday feature will be started in it’s place. So watch this space, updates will be added through this coming week. Thanks to everyone that supported the Monday finds. I hope you all enjoyed it 🙂

THE SIBLING SUPPORT PAGE.

Yes it’s almost ready!  The sibling support page is still in the process of being created. Some great features are in the pipe line It’s a page that I hope will help many. There will be information and related links for siblings of autism, A problem page, listed events and more.

ARE YOU A SIBLING OF SOMEONE WITH AUTISM? IF THAT’S A YES WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR YOUR IDEAS FOR THE SIBLING SUPPORT PAGE. TELL US WHAT YOU WANT AND WE CAN TRY AND MAKE IT HAPPEN.

RE..THE BIG INTERVIEW

I had the most enjoyable time doing the big interview with Cale. I’m looking forward to the next one which will be scheduled for the end of march. Stay tuned to find out who is up next. Let me just say it’s gonna great. Look out for the big Interview poster which will list the name of the next guest participating in the interview. Post will be up on the site within the next week and again a week before the event.

Interested in taking part? Then leave a comment with a contact email or email me at parkinson.claire@yahoo.com

IT’S ALMOST HERE