My claim to fame today has been taking all three on my Autistic kids grocery shopping. Everyone did really well and I couldn’t be prouder or more grateful for their cooperation. I often feel like I’m in over my head but today, they made a challenging situation a bit more manageable. ☺

We ended up at Walmart because major grocery shopping is usually cheaper there. We buy a lot of frozen fruit and veggies for smoothies. It’s definitely cheaper than Giant Eagle, even though I prefer them over Walmart.

The most challenging part of the trip was deciding on air fresheners. When Lizze was here, we couldn’t have anything fragrant because they triggered her migraines. Now it’s just a matter of agreeing in what we want the house to smell like. We probably stood here for a solid twenty minutes. Emmett smelled everything he could, as did Elliott. Gavin didn’t care one way or the other, cause that’s just how he rolls. 😂

Mr. Emmett was stressed out because I spent $220 on groceries today. He panics over things like that. Truthfully, I was over budget but we needed nonfood items that we don’t have to buy very often and that pushed the cost up a bit.

It’s challenging to make sure we always have food on hand that everyone will eat. Sensory related food proclivities are very common in Autistic kids and can be difficult, as well as expensive to manage.

Thankfully, Gavin eats pretty much anything. It’s Elliott and Emmett who are very sensory oriented. Gavin used to really, really struggle with food. He was so sensitive that I would have to literally pick the tiny specks of seasoning from his pasta sauce before he’d eat it. Thank God that’s behind us now. Two sensory eaters is difficult enough. Three would be a nightmare. 🤯

Unfortunately, we never made it walking. By the time we were done, weather had blown in and these guys do not like getting wet. They’ll go swimming but not walking in the rain. I’m not sure I understand that but I guess I don’t have to in order to respect their limits.

I’ll try again tomorrow.