We decided to take a vacation this fall. Originally, we wanted to go over the summer when my son, Jake, was home from college, but Jake was working and attempting to bank some money for the school year and we decided to do this in the fall when he was back at school and Katie had a long weekend off from school. Jake would be at school and with his diving practice, he would be unable to take time off for vacation. Anyway, planning a vacation with a child or adult that has autism is probably similar to how NASA plans for a shuttle launch. Every scenario must be planned for and thought out. Plan A, Plan B and Plan C must be ready at any moment.
I waited to tell Katie we were going on vacation until the week before. Katie is like a private detective and can sniff out any change in the “the force”. She found the itinerary and crossed out the dates moving our vacation to March. Unfortunately for her the tickets were already purchased. She then tried to negotiate the days we would spend in Orlando and days at my parents place in Florida; everything is a negotiation for Katie. She would make a great lawyer or interrogator.
We began packing the day before we left. If we start packing too soon, it gives Katie too much opportunity to put more stuff in her bag. Needless to say, about an hour before we were to leave for the airport we threw in the towel and decided to bring another bag because Katie was continuing her efforts to pack her whole bedroom into our bag. Instead of fighting, we brought another bag. She managed to fill every inch of that 3rd bag.
We arrived in Florida last Tuesday afternoon. We got our hotel room upgraded to a 2 room suite and Katie had her personal space which is something she DESPERATELY needs. After years of doing this, we have learned we have to allow her to have her space if we want her to cooperate with us to do any outings!
Wednesday morning started a little later than expected. Katie was fine with us stopping at Walmart since Roy had forgotten to pack underwear. We stopped at Walmart and bought a large pack of underwear and were on our way to Universal Studios. Katie had been planning her wardrobe and her day at Universal from the moment she had accepted that she was going on the trip. She is a HUGE Harry Potter fan. She had on a Harry Potter skirt, a white blouse and a Griffindor headband; she was ready for her Butterbeer! Needless to say, she loved every moment and wanted to spend the day in Hogwarts and Diagon Alley!
Katie with the Durmstrangs and Beauxbatons ~ a dream come true!
The next morning, we got up and out the door with no incidents or missing wardrobe pieces. Katie was dressed in her new Belle dress and was ready to meet the princesses at Disney. We knew this day would be harder because it was hotter and more humid and Magic Kingdom was likely to be more crowded than Universal. We were not wrong. No matter the season, Magic Kingdom is the big draw and everyone seemed to be there that day. We managed to walk in the gate and Katie immediately got in line to take a photo with Snow White with no wait! How perfect is that? Win #1.
We made our way down Main Street and headed for the first air conditioned ride we could find – Pirates of the Caribbean! We managed to make it around the park and hit several different rides without too long of a wait. We did get the disability pass at Universal and Disney which is SO helpful. It doesn’t reduce your wait time, but it allows you to sign in at a ride and then do whatever you want during the actual wait time. You then come back to the ride and immediately get on.
Once we saw that everyone was lining up for the parade AND noticed some massive storm clouds moving in, we knew we had better get to the car. We headed for the monorail and managed to miss a monsoon while riding in our comfortable cabin! Win #2! We headed over to Disney Hollywood Studios and checked out things there. By then, Katie was starting to get irritable as were we. It was HOT. SO hot and incredibly humid. We each got something cold to drink, adjusted our attitudes and got in line to meet Mickey and Minnie. We ended our day at Epcot and headed back to our hotel.
The one thing we have learned is that while a vacation with Katie needs careful planning, it also needs flexibility and a willingness to know when enough is enough. We don’t push anymore. We don’t stop at every tourist trap, because it will turn into a nightmare. If you take Katie into too many shops, she will want something from EVERY shop and have a meltdown because she cannot buy whatever she wants. We remind ourselves that sometimes, less is more and that’s ok.
We headed down to my parents place in Southern Florida and began the relaxation part of our vacation. Katie gets her own room and she immediately unloaded ALL of her electronics – a laptop, 2 DVD players (2 is better than 1), her Ipad, my Ipad, her phone, a surge protector and 2 extension cords. She travels with all of this every time we go out of town. I have learned to not fight it. She also brings several of her stuffed animals. I think it helps her feel more comfortable in her space; or she does it to annoy me. I’m really not sure and have decided to leave well enough alone. She spent most of her day locked in that room watching videos and making bracelets. She isn’t bothering anyone! She is on vacation. While Roy and my idea of vacation is sitting poolside, shopping and eating out, Katie’s is staying in a quiet room with little light and being surrounded by all of her favorite things. We don’t push her to do what she doesn’t want to do. It’s her vacation, too after all.
The Story of Us: Living with Autism 