by Marguerite Elisofon | Apr 24, 2015 | Asperger's Syndrome, autism, autistic spectrum, Broadway, cliches, dogs, London, Mark Haddon, math, neurotypical, pet rats, puppies, SATS, sensory processing, small talk, tantrums, Temple Grandin, touch, trains
If you haven’t seen the Broadway play “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” hurry over to the Ethel Barrymore Theatre and get tickets. This not-to-be missed show is based on the 2003 award-winning mystery novel by British writer, Mark Haddon. What...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Oct 31, 2014 | candy, cats, costumes, dogs, Ebola, empty nest, Equinox, Ever Ready battery, flamenco dancers, Frozen, Halloween, hazmat suits, Maltese, Michael Jackson, ninjas, Ricky's, Rocky Horror Show, The Addams Family
Just because your kids leave for college doesn’t mean you have to stop celebrating Halloween. You can still put a pumpkin outside and decorate your door with cottony spider-webs or a cardboard skeleton. Greeting trick-or-treaters can still be fun long after your...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Mar 7, 2014 | boarding pass, car services, career opportunities, dogs, essays, Hobo Pancakes, humor, jump ropes, Kennedy, Los Angeles, Newark, packing, San Francisco, sprained ankles
As of Sunday morning, the men in my family had—temporarily—flown the coop. For me, their same-day departures were strangely unsettling, lots of commotion around packing for different cities, arranging to be picked up two hours apart: one going to Kennedy, the...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Jan 23, 2014 | ADHD, autism, cancer, canine lymphoma, chemotherapy, dogs, drug side effects, heart defects, lymph nodes, Norwich Terriers, oncologists, remission, steroids, veterinarians
Only three weeks ago our 11 year old terrier, Sparky, had a full health exam, check- up and blood work. Shockingly, our pooch—who, in the past, had unrelentingly devoured food and non-edibles like face cream and Kleenex—had not eaten his dinner or breakfast....
by Marguerite Elisofon | Nov 8, 2013 | aerobics, aging, arthritis, baby boomers, Belmont, biking, dogs, exercise, gym addicts, joints, knee braces, menopause, orthopedists, osteoporosis, running, unemployment, zumba
If you are a still-youngish baby boomer like me (or if you think of yourself that way), it comes as a shock when body parts start to wear out. In my case, it’s my knees. (My left hip clicks occasionally, but I don’t want to think about that just yet). How dare...
by Marguerite Elisofon | Oct 25, 2013 | apartments, Beanie Babies, bicycles, boxes, clutter, CVS, dogs, exercise bikes, film equipment, friendly fire, handbags, history, hoarding, hobbies, Salvation Army, soldier collections, sports memorabilia
If you’re like us and you’ve lived in the same New York City apartment for over 20 years, eventually you run out of space—especially if your adult children move back home during or after college. It doesn’t matter how many...
Marguerite Elisofon is a New York City writer and the author of My Picture Perfect Family, a memoir about how her family navigated life with a child on the autistic spectrum before the internet and support groups existed. She also blogs about parenting young adults and disability related issues in The Never Empty Nest. Her writing has been featured in a variety of publications, including Time and NY Metro Parents magazine, and her family’s story has been featured by the NY Post, Fox News, The Daily Mail, and on Jenny McCarthy’s Dirty Sexy Funny radio show. A Vassar graduate, Marguerite was born and raised in New York City, where she still lives with her husband, Howard, in their mostly-empty nest. She is available to speak about a wide variety of issues relating to twins, parenting, and autism. 