Things That Spin

Brian's birthday is only two weeks away- my baby will be six years old!

In years past we've consistently had a Thomas or Disney Cars themed birthday- as they are his loves and I don't see them going away any time soon. This year, we're trying something a little different.

This is his day. It should be the perfect day for him. So what did my crazy mind come up with? We're going to celebrate everything Brian loves. Everything that makes him "happy yell", jump, laugh, spin, rock, and flap. I'm going to let him stim and perseverate. We're having a "Things That Spin" birthday party.

I'm either in for a day that is just plain AWESOME and makes Brian the happiest boy on earth or a day that is full of sensory overload and meltdowns. I think it's obvious which kind of day I'm rooting for.

My big presents for him this year are:

A Giga Ball


and a Fun Roller



Both of these gifts are meant to fit in with our spinning theme and hoping to get him to do some social participation with his brother and cousins while he's outside- rather than just his isolated running in circles or rolling down hills.

As cool as those toys are (or I think they are), we have something that has already beat those out. I bought a Lite Brite Flash Art (an updated, cooler version of our Spin Art we had growing up) to use as our craft at the party. I opened it beforehand so I could present that as just a new toy at the house instead of overwhelming him with too many new things on the day of his party. We tried it out tonight and I'm pretty sure nothing is going to top it! Not only did he stim and stare (check out the video below) he actually stopped and allowed me to put paper in so he could squeeze paint on- which he did. Then we watched his design spin and then he decided to rub his hands all over it to get some more sensory input and then make hand prints on the blanket! It was a great activity for him and I love seeing him enjoying something different (just crossing my fingers the paint comes out of the blanket!).