A profile of the Husemoellers... a family with two sons who have Autism.

1. “LIFE IS ABOUT THE JOURNEY.
AND AS LONG AS I HAVE MY
FAMILY WITH ME, I AM HAPPY
TO BE ON THIS JOURNEY.”
-ASHLEY HUSEMOELLER

2. MEET THE
HUSEMOELLERS!
ASHLEY & JAY
TYSON-11
DANE-8
ZOEY-5

3. TYSON- THE
GENTLE GIANT
Tyson is a middle schooler,
who loves to keep things
clean! He is known for his
sweet nature, love of
hugging, and deference to
his little sister Zoey.

4. DANE-THE
FLASH
Fast, wild, funny, a true
middle child! In second
grade, Dane can be very
quiet, very obnoxious,
sometimes devious and a
little “bizarre”.

5. ZOEY-SPONTANEOUS
She is chatty, bossy, in
charge and very
spontaneous! She likes to
keep her brothers in line!
She is the youngest, the
only girl… and the only child
without Autism.

6. CHAOS… MANAGEABLE CHAOS…. BEAUTIFUL
CHAOS
Our Life with
Autism….

7. THIS FAMILY LOVES…
• Veggietales
• Their puppy
• Legos
• Family Movie Night
• Superheroes
• Books

8. “WE DO THE BEST WITH WHAT WE
HAVE”
-ASHLEY HUSEMOELLER
Like every family, the
Husemoellers
celebrate the little
moments… with two
boys who have
Autism… their little
moments may look a
little different.

9. A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH!
• The other day, Tyson was
Face-Timing with my
mom… and he was able to
hold a conversation! He
could look at her and
answer her questions!
And it was not a fluke! He
did it again later in the
day!

10. TYSON WAS DIAGNOSED AT AGE 3…
THERE WERE A LOT OF “NEVERS” THAT HE
HAS OVERCOME.
• “He will NEVER say I
Love you”
• “He will NEVER be
able to talk”
• “He will NEVER be
normal”

11. • “I still
remember the
first time he
called ME
Mama. It felt
great!”
Using the Aristocats, Ashley worked
to teach Tyson how to say Mama….
Every time the baby kittens would
call “Mama, Mama, Mama… she
would respond with a Yes…” Soon,
Tyson began to correlate the kittens
calling mama, and his ability to call
mama….

12. DANE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AUTISM
AT ABOUT THE SAME AGE AS TYSON.

13. • “We just could not
believe this was
happening again…
with Tyson it was much
easier to accept. But
with Dane, we just did
not think it could
happen.”
Dane’s diagnosis was
initially much harder

14. SOON… ALONG CAME ZOEY!
• Zoey has become a huge
supporter and teacher to
her brothers.
• Dane is more verbal
because of Zoey.
• She keeps her brothers in
line even Tyson… who is 3x
her size
• She takes care of them!

15. AUTISM CAN BE TOUGH ON A COUPLE…
BUT THEIR MARRIAGE IS STILL STRONG.
“We are good about talking
about it.”
“13 Years and no secrets.”
“We support each other, even if
we disagree with the
punishment.”

16. “IN MARRIAGE YOU ARE ON A TEAM. AND
YOU CAN’T DO IT ALONE. ESPECIALLY
THIS!”

17. Life is
About
Routine…
LI
F
U
N
Taking over for the other when things
get tough…

18. THERE ARE MANY CHALLENGES AND
SACRIFICES…
• We have definitely had family
members who do not always
understand what we are doing… or
why we are doing it… or questioning
our decisions. We have stopped
going to church. We need to plan
outings. Taking all the kids together
to get ice cream is a major
accomplishment! Especially if they
are all happy there at the same
time!

19. MEDICATION WAS A VERY HARD DECISION TO MAKE.
BUT BOTH THE BOYS HAVE HAD IT FOR A FEW YEARS
AND IT HAS REALLY MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE FOR
THEM.
There are some tough decisions….

20. FAMILY AND FRIENDS ARE A VITAL
PART OF THEIR JOURNEY.
Regular Monday Movie
Nights with Good Friends
who love and understand
their life…
Wonderful Grandparents
who help with babysitting…
and provide love and
support for their family…

21. SO WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD?
JAY AND ASHLEY ARE NOT SURE
YET…AS THE BOYS AGE, MOVING
TOWARD EASTERN NEBRASKA IS A
POSSIBILITY. THERE ARE SERVICES
AVAILABLE IN CITIES LIKE LINCOLN AND
OMAHA THAT WILL OFFER DANE AND
TYSON INDEPENDENCE AS THEY GET
OLDER. WHILE THEY HAVEN’T MADE
ANY DECISIONS YET… THE FUTURE IS
VERY MUCH ON THEIR MINDS.

22. Our
Life is
Our
It’s Not
Easy… but it’s
Definitely
WORTH IT!

23. Autism is our superpower…. What’s
yours?