We started using Gemiini about a month ago now, and I have to say that my whole family loves it. You might remember from my first Gemiini Blog that, when we initially signed up, I was pretty overwhelmed by the size of the program and was relieved to start with a few Quick Start Language and Quick Start Reading videos while I attempted to figure it out. One of the wonderful bonuses that you receive when you sign up for GemIIni is a phone call from a customer service representative... Link to blog: Getting in the Gemiini Groove

This is my monthly post on Jacob's speech progression using Gemiini. We started a few months back and he's progressed from using signs and a series of grunts to babbling with consonants, and even trying to use words. This last week he pointed to an object and said "there!" (which sounded more like 'dehyr', but whose complaining?), and last night he was doing the da-da-da thing. What a leap from absolute silence. 4 1/2 YEARS we've been trying to get Jacob so say SOMETHING, and now it's happening. Is it bad to say there are days I want to shed tears of joy at this development.....Link to Blog:

Imagine what hearing your son say "hi" feels like for a parent of an non-verbal, autistic child.

Starting out with GemIIni

Speech, language and communication are huge concerns for most autism parents. They have surely been enormous concerns of mine. I vividly remember the sense of sheer desperation when Danniah (pronounced Dah-nn-ya) was 18 months old ....Link to blog: GemIIni Series: Part 1– Getting on the GemIIni Wagon

For those of you who know me, or have spent any significant amount of time with Jacob, you know that at nearly 4 years old, he is still pretty much non-verbal. No seriously. Not a word. Barely a syllable. Or a SOUND.

For a child who is at, or above age in nearly every other aspect of his development, his speech has been the bane of my existence.

Now, don't get me wrong. The boy communicates JUST FINE. He just doesn't talk. He nods and shakes his head for yes and no, uses several dozen signs, grunts or screams when he wants my attention - depending on where in the house he is in relation to me, and he will come, grab my hand, and direct me to anything he wants - pointing to the offending object.

But me, being the crazy stickler that I am, insist on wanting him to talk. I understand how important speech is to his development, and his ability to communicate with the general public as he grows. In my book, stubbornness and laziness are not a good enough reason not to talk.

I have worked tirelessly with the speech therapists over Jake's little lifetime to get the boy to say..Link to Blog post The Holy Grail of Speech Therapy - Gemiini.org