Apr 11, 2013

Puzzle Hearts by Lizy B

Hi All!
I'm Elizabeth and I blog and bake over at Lizy B!
Not only do I get to share some cookies with you here at the Cookie Puzzle for Autism Awareness Month, but I get the incredible honor of posting on Kim's son's actual birthday!!!
Happy Birthday Collin!!!
Alright, so I took this honor of helping spread autism awareness pretty seriously.
The last thing I wanted to do was share incorrect information or be insensitive.
After reading every single post Kim has ever written....I moved on to some other sites:
Autism Speaks
Great general info as well as fund-raising activities, screening information, resources etc.
Autism Society
An organization dedicated to 'Improving the Lives of All Affected by Autism'
Here's what I found.
According to The Autism Society:
  • 1 percent of the population of children in the U.S. ages 3-17 have an autism spectrum disorder.
  • Prevalence is estimated at 1 in 88 births.
  • 1 to 1.5 million Americans live with an autism spectrum disorder.
  • Fastest-growing developmental disability; 1,148% growth rate.
  • 10 - 17 % annual growth.
  • $60 billion annual cost.
  • 60% of costs are in adult services.
  • Cost of lifelong care can be reduced by 2/3 with early diagnosis and intervention.
  • In 10 years, the annual cost will be $200-400 billion.
  • 1 percent of the adult population of the United Kingdom have an autism spectrum disorder.
  • The cost of autism over the lifespan is 3.2 million dollars per person.
  • Only 56% of students with autism finish high school.
  • The average per-pupil expenditure for educating a child with autism was estimated by SEEP to be over $18,000 in the 1999-2000 school year. This estimate was nearly three times the expenditure for a typical regular education student who did not receive special education services.
  • The unemployment rate for people with disabilities was at 14%, compared with 9% for people without a disability. Additionally, during the same period, only 21% of all adults with disabilities participated in the labor force as compared with 69% of the non-disabled population.
Those are the important facts and statistics, 
but that doesn't tell me much about people and families living with autism everyday.
What's it like?
How do they cope?
What would they like to tell everyone in the world?
I did what every good blogger does....
hit the blogs!
Top 30 Autism Spectrum Blogs of 2013
My favorites:
Adventures in Extreme Parenthood
Sunday has two sons who have autism (she calls them the trouble brothers), 
 and tells their stories with a sense of humor.
Adventures in Asperger's
A Dad so dedicated he makes Skylander's wall art for his kids!
Flappiness is...
Leigh is the mom of a boy with autism and is also an educator.  
She has great practical advice for families.
My favorite post-Dear Relative, What Are You Waiting For
last, but not leas...
Aspie From Maine
Kate writes about being 20-something with Asperger's.
She's amazingly honest and gives such great insight into her daily life.
.....and....
there's one particular post in which she wrote about attending a social gathering 
because there was a promise of....(wait for it)....Cookie Decorating!!!!
A Hanukah Miracle
So these extra special cookies are for the birthday boy, Collin,
who shares this crazy cookie obsession with his mom.
I know how much she adores him, 
and her heart is full of pride when she see's how far he's come.
They are also for Kate,
and all the other bloggers who share their experiences with their 
readers, as a way to better explain what it's like to live with Autism.
(but totally mostly for Kate because she loves pretty cookies!)
Most importantly, they're for Kim,
Collin's mom, baker, friend, teacher, cheerleader and advocate.
Thanks so much Kim, for giving me,
 and all your readers an opportunity to learn more about Autism.
And thanks for creating this little corner of the
 internet to celebrate your cookies and Collin!

15 comments:

  1. This brought tears to my eyes. Beautiful post Liz! Your cookies rock! Thanks for sharing the blogs. I'm going to check them out.

    Happy birthday Collin! Love ya!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks sweetie-pie! I hope you'll stop by Kate's blog and say Hi!

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  2. That did bring tears to my eyes too....Wonderful job....Every single day I have read these and they all have been Awesome!!! My daughter works in an Autism Class, every day I hear wonderful stories about all 8 of those kids, I hear the joy of one of them saying their first words at 6 years old, or the joy of them learning colors, singing songs, and also the heartbreak of them breaking down. I am truly inspired by all the work that you are doing to help educate people on Autism!!! :) Thank you

    HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY COLLIN!!! Hope he has a spectacular, fantastic day!! :)

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  3. First of all I want to wish Collin a very Happy Birthday!! I hope your day is filled with all kinds of special surprises.

    What a great post Liz! These cookies are so cool!! I love everything about them :)

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  4. Excellent post Elizabeth - and happy birthday Collin!

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  5. These are AWESOME! I love puzzle cookies and she literally made a puzzle cookie puzzle cookie! :)

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  6. Wonderful post!! You've listed some great blogs! Adorable cookies...those little faces are too stinkin' cute!

    Happy Birthday, Collin!!

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  7. LOVE these puzzle heart cookies!!! Great job Elizabeth!

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  8. Beautiful cookies and post!! And Happy Birthday Collin!!

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  9. I love your post and your cookies! Two of my children are on the autism spectrum, so I really appreciate those who try to learn more about autism. Thanks for caring! :)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for being such a great mom to your munchkins Robin! There should be a special day for all moms and dads who have kids on the spectrum! You are all heroes!

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  10. So adorable, Love the post and the cookies :)

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  11. Love both the post and these cookies, Elizabeth! Many birthday wishes to Collin, too!

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  12. Thank you for this information and wonderful cookies too. So important to raise awareness of Autism and Asperger's.
    http://missbbobochic.blogspot.co.uk/

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  13. Perfect cookies! I LOVE them. I first read about autism in my early twenties(LONG time ago), through a book called "Son Rise" dealing with a set of parents that took a very proactive approach in helping their son deep in the throes of autism. It was an eye-opener, especially since autism was seemingly not very prevalent then. How wonderful that now there are so many resources available for help, and so much more understanding is extended.

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