Patrick with Flair!

Patrick and I have had the chance to spend a lot of time together overthe last week...more than usual. What an interesting time it has been for me. Patrick has been enjoying FaceBooking over my shoulder and LOVES looking at everyone's pictures. He *caught* me sending flair to some friends a couple of mornings ago and demanded that I allow him to review the options available. After scrolling through several screens of selections, he stopped, signing EMPHATICALLY that THIS was the flair he wanted to send to Tina & Shasta:


One of my most fervent prayers is that I would be able to understand the mysterious Mind of Patrick--that someday, I'd be able to communicate with him on a deeper level. After this little flair foray, I'm not so sure I want to.

Shortly after that jaunt into scary weirdness, he stopped at this one, asking that I send it to several people:
Now THIS I understand. Patrick has had a long-standing love affair with large red buttons. Have you ever noticed that, in our ADA world, big red buttons are at toddler height? Patrick's attraction to shiny red buttons has led us on several adventures:

• locking up the elevator at Suburban Hospital
• Setting off fire alarms in kindergarten (until he saw that the end result was the arrival of MANY firetrucks--of which he is afraid!)
• Buzzing the nursing staff incessantly while hospitalized (um, yeah...see the post on August 17th, 2008 about enjoying having his vitals taken!)
• Locking up the elevator at Johns Hopkins Hospital
• Calling fire & rescue staff to our home via the alarm system (try explaining to the 911 operator that the screaming in the background is really your deaf autistic son howling in delight!)

If ever the amazing inner workings of his mind are revealed, what a conversation that will be! I think my first question to the Patrick-man will have to be: Who or what is CAT 569?

(Flair borrowed from Facebook--THANKS!)