Blog Award and Unusual Olfactory News
Last week, Angela from Memoirs of a Chaotic Mommy nominated my blog for the Brillante Weblog Award. Thank you Angela! I have to nominate seven other blogs but that is going to have to wait a few days as I have added several new blogs to my Google Reader.
Now on to some unusual olfactory news from the Mindless Mommy household. My youngest daughter is part canine. She is always smelling or sniffing something or someone. Once she started stringing words together spontaneously we were elated - but with that new skill came comments like “he smells like smoke” or “she’s stinky.” Don’t hold back Ava, tell us what you really think.
So the other day we were in the grocery store and her olfactory senses were on high alert. Several times throughout our trip we’d turn down new aisle and she’d stop and ask “What’s that smell?” She’d then walk down the aisle slowly, walk up to a food item and smell it, say “nope” and then go to the next item. Once she’d get to the item she smelled she’d exclaim “That’s it!” My son was with us and asked me to make her stop but I explained that she wasn’t hurting anyone and she could continue but inside I shared his sentiments. Later that day we did some good heavy work activities and she’s since gone back to a more reduced level of sensory seeking.
August 28th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
Little Man does this kind of thing, but in an opposite manner. He’s repulsed by smells. Smells that nobody else can even get a whiff of. It can be embarrassing as we go through a mall and he’s saying, loudly, “What’s that disgusting smell, Mommy?” Or, “I think somebody pooped their pants, Mommy.” And so on. Aren’t our kids lovely?
August 28th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
OMG! This reminded me of my son. I stopped using perfume and banned all “scented” products in my home because they sent his sensory system into overdrive. He would sniff people (pretty much like a puppy which was really weird for newcomers to our family….) and all invitations to my home would come with a “please do not wear perfume”. After years of living fragrance free I can now pick up the subtle scents that annoy him and that I never even realized were in the same room as us. Just one of the many things I have learned from my autistic son. =)
August 28th, 2008 at 10:31 pm
Brenda - Yup, just like a puppy! My daughter sniffs people or she’ll rub the back of her hand on them. Definitely part canine.
GEM - Embarrassing for sure - everytime I think I’ve got thick skin, she’ll say something else.
September 2nd, 2008 at 7:37 am
My son uses smell alot too!
October 4th, 2008 at 7:07 pm
I just posted a blog that mentions my ASD/ADHD son’s revulsion of animal smells, but it is my daughter who is visually impaired who uses her nose a lot. When she was younger she would sniff almost everyone and then say, “You smell like watermelon” if she liked their smell. Unfortunately, if she didn’t she would say, “You stink”.