Ohmer House. Mia loves cartoons. Even as I write this I can hear her shouting with excitment as she's watching Monsters, Inc. I feel that I probably let her watch too many movies. It's such an easy respite for me. I know that I can trap her in her crib and she would watch movies all day. I need to spend more time with her. One on one time. She and I both struggle with sitting down and doing something together.

When we first started going to therapy, I really tried to sit at her little white table and do puzzles, fingerpaints, stacking blocks. She would give up and walk away before I did, but I didn't try that hard to get her back on track. I have a hard time being really attentive to children's activities. I attended a one week workshop called the SonRise program. It was at the Autism Treatment Center of America. They recommended that we remove all TV's from the house. When I heard this my heart sank. I don't watch TV. I spend my day's listening to podcasts on my phone. But for Mia, to not be able to watch TV. That would mean that I have to be on all day. Everyday.

I selfishly want her to watch cartoons. Not all the time, but when I'm cleaning, or writing my blog or making lunch. It's so much nicer to not have to constantly be checking in on her to make sure she's ok.

Now she's so conditioned to watch cartoons, every time she sees our living room computer she leads us to the mouse so we will put something on for her. I want us to break away from this bad habit, but I don't have a good solution yet. I was told that watching too much TV can inhibit a childs creativity. A movie has everything laid out for them, there's nothing left to the imagination. She will have enough obstacles in life, I don't want to contribute to more.