We became parents at an early age but like most young parents we had no idea what we were doing but with the help of family we learned quickly. It wasn’t until Logan was about one and a half that we started noticing delays in his speech and some temper tantrums when certain things wouldn't line up the way he wanted them too, that we thought to ourselves that maybe we should talk about it with our doctor. When we took Logan to the doctor and we expressed our concern and the first thing that came out of the pediatrics mouth was "well we can't drug him he is too small but I can refer him to early intervention" as mad as I was about the 1st thing she said the second part wasn’t so bad at all. After I gave her a piece of my mind we were referred to Early Intervention and it has been a true blessing; because of this program we learned that Logan is Autistic. Logan isn’t verbal but he communicates with us by using sign language. He listens to us when we call him and understands when we tell him little everyday tasks like "put on your shoes". He is so smart especially with electronics, he learns by watching us do things, he is simply amazing and our biggest blessing. He has become more playful with us but is terrified of some people. We had no idea how strong we were until God tested us. Because of our little boy we found our way, I came to realize that I wanted to help other children develop so I decided to go back to school to become a Developmental Therapist. So the reason why I am sharing our story is so people can learn about Autism, ask as many questions as possible and so young parents like us can know that IT’S OK to hear the word Autistic, don’t be ashamed to say it, say it proud because after all every child is a gift from above. We love you Logan for always.

Zaida B.
Chicago, IL