I fear my youngest son is growing up too fast!

At 3 years old I could already see that D recognized there were some things E needed help with. Autism is not an easy thing for anyone. But at this tender young age, D has become his brother's helper. It's wonderful and heartbreaking at the same time. D is 5 now and I want him to have a childhood, but I can tell he's gonna be the man of the house. E's diagnosis of Autism is high functioning, however some tasks prove to be quite challenging for all of us.  Potty training was the hardest. But he can write his name, he's speaking in sentences, he's enjoying school and is actually mainstreamed into a traditional class room everyday for about an hour.  But sometimes there are meltdowns and tantrums (not as often anymore, yay!). He can be quite excitable and quite loud (usually due to something on tv that he's watching). And when E gets too loud D will sometimes turn off the TV and say, "E, no yelling!" Or when E is dropped off at school, D will remind him "be a super star!", and you better believe he reports to me if the teacher told Grammy that E was not behaving in class
Yes, little D doesn't take this role he's given himself lightly, but sometimes I need to remind him to just be a kid and that I'm the mommy.