Our Journey

Our Journey and Moving Mountains

I don't look at having Autism as a disability but more of a challenge. It makes me work harder to move those mountains that so many times block my path to where I want to go.

Most kids dream of being popular in school, having lots of friends, and joining all the clubs and sports programs they can, but for me, I know with my anxiety and fidgeting habits I needed to understand what makes me happy and look for other kids who have the same hobbies and interests that I have. Socialization is the key to building confidence in a person, kids learn from their peers, and kids like myself with Asperger's have a hard time going out of the box. We are more of rule followers, we like structure in our lives, and making decisions and trying new things is difficult for me even today. I struggle with this, but between my family and a strong support system of friends, every day gets easier.

There are many levels of Autism, it's called being on the spectrum, I, fortunately, fall on the high-functioning level of the spectrum called Asperger's on the other hand, my cousin falls on the other end of the spectrum and is non-verbal. So I consider myself a lucky person because Autism has introduced into my life so many amazing people. 

Thank you so much for helping us bring awareness to others about Autism.

How it all began - (Mom's Notes) Autism Awareness

 The best way for us to show our support was to develop a brand that the kids could relate to and that was when Fetch the Swell was born. The boys put their thoughts together and devised several things they loved to do. That was playing with their dog Bailey, working on computers, and spending the day at the beach. So it was quite clear where this was going to take them. What started as funny dog doodles on a kid's meal place mat from the restaurant went to very nice drawings of a dog sitting on the beach. Then it became drawings of a dog sitting on the beach watching the waves and wondering if he has enough courage to ride one. Then bingo! We had done it. "Fetch The Swell" brand was born.

For a child with Autism, those waves seem impossible to ride, but in reality, to all of us they are really small swells, we want to help kids to dream big, challenge themselves to go out of their comfort zones and realize that they will be all right.

Fetch The Swell is where families can go online and maybe have a couple of good laughs from our fun family stories, they can watch our kids grow and see how we live our lives with our child's Autism diagnosis. 

We also want to dedicate our blog to our niece Samantha who is non-verbal. You are such an amazing girl and just wanted to let you know love needs no words. Love you Sam, just keep smiling!

Please check out our blog section and you can see how our family has grown throughout the years (2014) to now.

The Harrisons