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Hi mommas. It’s been a minute. Okay, it’s been a LOT of minutes.
The last time I posted here, it was the summer of 2020. Christopher was a toddler, the whole world was in lockdown, and I was writing about pregnancy pillows and birth plans like I had this whole mom thing figured out. (Spoiler: I did not.)
Then I disappeared. I kept meaning to come back. I even started a post called “Where I have been for the past 3 years…” and never finished it. Honestly? The story wasn’t done yet.
Now Christopher is 7, and I’m finally ready to tell you where we’ve been. Grab a coffee (or a tissue, or both). This one is long, and it’s close to my heart.
A Baby, a Pandemic, and a Move to Omaha
Christopher was born on January 18, 2019, in Los Angeles. He made me a momma exactly one year before COVID turned everything upside down.
In May 2020, right in the middle of all that chaos, we packed up our life in LA and moved to Omaha, Nebraska so I could attend Creighton School of Law. A new city, a new school, a pandemic, and a toddler. Looking back, I’m not totally sure how I was functioning. Coffee, probably. A lot of coffee.
“I Think He Needs Speech Therapy”
Just after Christopher’s second birthday, I asked his pediatrician for a speech therapy referral. He wasn’t talking the way I expected him to, and something in my gut told me not to wait.
I was given the phone number for our school district, and I called. And honestly, mommas, this is one of the things I’m most grateful for: he started speech therapy almost immediately. If you’re wondering whether to make that call, make it. You can always be told everything is fine.
A few months into therapy, his speech therapist recommended an autism evaluation. If you’ve ever heard the word “autism” said about your child, you know how fast your brain starts spinning.
We saw a pediatric psychiatrist, who diagnosed Christopher with an expressive/receptive language disorder and referred us to an ENT to rule out hearing loss. His hearing test showed that his middle ears were flat. So he got ear tubes. His hearing improved, which was a huge relief, but his speech stayed delayed. I kept waiting for the words to come, and they just… didn’t.
Florida, and a Diagnosis
In 2022 we moved again, this time to Apollo Beach, Florida, where my parents had moved. Los Angeles was still dealing with lockdowns, and being close to family mattered more than ever.
Christopher still wasn’t speaking. In August 2023 he had another evaluation, and this time he was formally diagnosed with autism. He was four and a half.
I want to be honest with you about how that felt, because I think a lot of mommas reading this have been there or are about to be. It was a lot of things at once. Scary. Overwhelming. But also, in a strange way, clarifying. After years of “let’s wait and see,” we finally had a name for what we were working with, and that meant I could stop guessing and start learning.
Please hear me on this: an autism diagnosis didn’t change who Christopher was. He was the same sweet, funny boy he was the day before. What changed was me. I went into full momma-bear research mode.
What We Tried: Our Family’s Path
Before I go any further, a very important note: I’m a mom, not a doctor. What follows is our family’s personal experience. It isn’t medical advice, and I’m not telling you any of it caused or would cause a particular result. Every child is different. Please talk to your child’s pediatrician and care team before making changes to their diet, supplements, or treatment.
A complete diet overhaul
Also in August 2023, I completely changed Christopher’s diet. Out went artificial flavors, dyes, refined sugar and preservatives. In came a clean, whole-foods way of eating. I also started him on various supplements for brain and gut support.
Was it easy? Ha. If you’ve ever tried to take goldfish crackers away from a preschooler, you know. But we did it. (I’ll be sharing a lot more about clean eating, and what it looks like in our kitchen, in future posts.)
Stem cell therapy
I had been researching stem cell therapy, and we decided it was something we wanted to try. In October 2023, Christopher had his stem cell treatment.
I know stem cell therapy is a big, and sometimes controversial, topic. It’s still considered experimental for autism, and it’s not a decision anyone should make lightly or because a blog post said so. It was the right choice for our family, at that moment, after a lot of research. Your family’s choice might be completely different, and that’s okay.
“Mommy”
A couple of months later, Christopher said “mommy” for the first time.
I need you to sit with that for a second, because I still do. My almost-five-year-old looked at me and said “mommy.” I had waited years to hear that word. I will never, ever forget it.
I can’t tell you exactly what made the difference, and I’d never claim to. Kids grow, therapies add up, and time does its thing. What I can tell you is that from there, his speech started developing, slowly. A new word here. Two words together there. Every single one felt like a party.
Back to California
In October 2024 we moved back to California. (If you’re counting, that’s Los Angeles to Omaha to Florida and back to California in about four and a half years. I am a professional box-packer now.)
Since we’ve been back, Christopher has done 40 hours of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) and ABA therapy. Again, mommas: this is our story, not a prescription. HBOT and ABA are each their own conversation to have with your child’s doctors and therapists.
And today? Christopher speaks in full sentences. His behaviors are age appropriate. He is thriving.
Why We Homeschool
School has been its own journey. Over the years, Christopher was in several different schools. In general education, he fell behind. And I learned something that really frustrated me: the system doesn’t really serve kids who are too advanced for a special day class but not quite ready for general ed. Kids like Christopher can fall right through that gap.
So I pulled him out and started homeschooling him. And mommas, he took off. He has skipped through two grade levels and is now close to his peers’ 2nd-grade level. I am so proud of him I could burst.
Homeschooling isn’t for everyone, and I’m definitely not here to tell you it’s the answer for your kiddo. But it has been the right fit for ours, and I’ll be sharing what our days look like soon.
He Is Our Miracle Child
When I think about the little boy who wasn’t speaking, and then about the boy who now tells me about his day in full sentences, I don’t have any other word for it. He is our miracle child.
If you’re at the beginning of this road, if you’re sitting in a waiting room or staring at a referral number or Googling “late talker” at 2 a.m., I see you. I was you. Trust your gut. Make the call. Ask the questions. Celebrate every single word. And be gentle with yourself, momma. You’re doing better than you think.
So, What’s Next for All Things Christopher?
I’m relaunching this blog with everything I’ve learned since that summer of 2020. Here’s what you’ll find here now:
- New mom life: the real, honest stuff about pregnancy, birth, and those first months. My older posts on pregnancy must-haves and making a birth plan have both had a refresh.
- Newborn must-haves: what you actually need (and what you can skip), by season and stage. If you’ve got a baby coming this winter, start with my Newborn Must-Haves for Winter checklist. Christopher was a January baby, so I’ve been there!
- Baby toys by age: simple, developmental toys that actually fit your little one’s stage.
And coming soon, the topics closest to my heart:
- Autism parenting: our story in more detail, what’s helped us, and resources for mommas walking a similar path.
- Homeschooling: how we do it, what works for Christopher, and what I wish I’d known.
- Clean eating for kids: how we cleaned up our kitchen and what a real day of eating looks like at our house.
New here? The Start Here page is the best place to begin.
Thank you for being here, mommas, whether you’ve been around since 2020 or you just found me today. I’m so happy to be back. 💛
Has your little one had a “first word” moment that made you cry? Tell me about it in the comments. I read every single one!
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