The Curse of the Vacuum

Tyler loves the vacuum, which is kind of funny. A couple of years ago, just the sight of the vacuum would send him into a meltdown. He was scared of the vacuum and did not like the loud sound. It was a sensory issue. Tyler has supersonic hearing, like Superman, and the sound of the vacuum was piercing and painful to his ears. Yesterday, he had off from school and I lost count how many times he asked me to vacuum, but for some reason, 500 sounds about right. Those of you who have a child with autism (or an elderly parent), know that the repetitiveness of the disorder can be quite maddening.

Tyler woke up a little before 6 am on Monday and that is when it began, “Mommy, you want to vacuum?” And I would reply, “Not now Tyler, Luke is still asleep.” Around 8 am, I was talking to my sister Sharisse on the phone. As I was telling her of the constant nagging, I said, “I DO NOT WANT TO FREAKIN’ VACUUM AT 7AM!” To which Tyler replied, “MOMMY, YOU WANT TO FREAKIN’ VACUUM?”

So at 8:15 am, when Luke finally woke up and after countless requests for me to vacuum, I finally gave in. But that was not the end, just the beginning. Later in the day, he wanted me to vacuum downstairs. “Mommy, the floor smells dirty downstairs, you need to vacuum.” He actually sniffed it – the quirkiness of autism! When Geoff got home, I had HAD it with the vacuum nagging. He told me, just blow it off. Easy for him to say, he didn’t get nagged 500 times today to “go vacuuming.” And that may be a low estimate. I needed some quiet time, or surely I would be heading to the nut house, so Geoff took the boys upstairs and bathed them. Meanwhile, I enjoyed the silence.

Today, the nagging began as soon as he woke up. He changed his tune, “Daddy, it’s your turn to vacuum. You want to go vacuuming.” Of course, Geoff told him, “No, not today.” After school, he started with his request again, getting up in my face and giving me some awesome eye contact. So, we brought the vacuum downstairs. But today was different; he wanted to vacuum by himself, so I let him. I asked him why he loved vacuuming so much and he told me, “Mommy, vacuuming makes me happy.” As a parent, that is one of the most important things you want for your child, for them to be happy. I am just overjoyed that he can now answer questions like that and tell me how he really feels. The more and more this year progresses, the more growth I see in Tyler. I am so proud of ALL of his progress, even if it means I will have to indulge him with his nagging.

So that is the blessing and the curse of the vacuum. At least you will always know that I have clean floors – I vacuum almost every day!

Editor's note: No Child Labor Laws were broken in relation to this post. First photo courtesy of Tyler Grumbles.