Autism Awareness Blog Hop

Welcome to the Autism Awareness Blog Hop!
We are so glad you are joining us!!

The cause of this Blog Hop is very near and dear to all of us, and we all need to be aware that Autism is rapidly increasing in numbers in our children. Current statistics indicate that 1 in every 100 children is diagnosed with autism.  Autism is a neurological disorder that typically presents during the first three years of life, affecting one's ability to communicate and interact with others.

Today, on the 4th Annual World Autism Awareness Day, we are joining  prominent buildings across North America and the world — including the Empire State Building in New York City and the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada — who will turn their lights blue to raise awareness for autism and to commemorate World Autism Awareness Day.  Light it up Blue is aiming to light the world blue all throughout April — city by city, town by town — by taking action to raise autism awareness in our communities.  Help us LIGHT it up BLUE this month!

If you have already started the blog hop, you should have arrived here from Marianne's blog - Paper or Fabric Crafter. If not, please feel free to start at the beginning of the hop at Pink Cricut.

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As my regular followers know, my son has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.  Fortunately, as my husband and I are both teachers, we knew the signs of autism and were able to get him the support and help he needs.  This has not come without its challenges though, and the journey has been painful at times, especially with respect to  rejection from others.  However, with a change in schools two years ago, our son has come a long way and we are so thankful for the support given to him and to us as parents.  Our son is a treasure with many, many gifts.  There is something big in store for him in this life and there is a special purpose just for him.  I am blessed to be his mother and cannot imagine life without my precious little guy.  Although I wish I could take away his struggles, I would never want to change who he is. 

Today we will attend our local Autism Association's World Autism Awareness Celebration.  For this celebration, I made a candy jar using My Community, Mickey Font, Alphalicious and my Cuttlebug.   

I am DELIGHTED to have TWO sponsors for this blog hop! 

Kimberly from My Craft Spot has very generously donated 5 spools of Bakers Twine and a set of Crinkle ribbon for me to pass along to one lucky blog hopper.  I have made a few projects using Crinkle Ribbon which you can view here, here and here.  It is wonderful to work with!  It's so easy to order from My Craft Spot and Kimberly is quick to ship.  You can choose from a variety of baker's twine and hand-dyed Crinkle Ribbon.  Plus, shipping to anywhere in Canada and the US is FREE!! Here are a few of Kimberly's projects:

I'm also thrilled to be giving away TWO Cricut for Beginners DVDs, generously donated by Cricut for Beginners.  The DVD lessons are geared to a variety of learning styles and contain information on every feature of your Cricut machine, with each lesson clearly laid out and functions applied multiple times to help you master skills.  Whether you are just starting out or skilled at using your Cricut, there is information in these lessons for you!  In addition to the Cricut tutorials, Cricut for Beginners contains numerous bonus features - including over 50 project "cheat sheets" - complete with .cut and .gypsy files!!

Here's the Cricut for Beginners trailer to give you just a taste of what's available:





To be entered in my blog hop giveaway, just leave a comment on this post!  Also, if you are a follower, feel free to leave a SECOND comment letting me know to get a SECOND entry!!  I will announce the winners on Friday, April 8. 

Thanks so much for hopping along with us on Autism Awareness Day!

Here is the full line up for the blog hop:

Sarah at Pink Cricut  

Joy at Obsessed with Scrapbooking

Elizabeth at 217 Creations

Paula at More Than Favors 

Michelle at Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker

Alma at Alma's Pink Life

Marianne at Paper or Fabric Crafter

Kate at Small Bits of Paper

Looking for some fun Autism Awareness Gear?  Check out CircusBaby!