One of the great joys of parenthood is celebrating milestones with our children. Some are huge- like first steps, first words and that first baby tooth falling out. Others are ritualistic- like the first day of school or birthday parties. Birthday parties are big business nowadays and it’s easy to drop $500 for 90 minutes of mania. And why shouldn’t we- both parents and kids can have fun and you’ll only get a few when you’re young. Most parents take it for granted, but parents of children with cognitive disabilities like Autism view it in a completely different way. They also want to celebrate their child’s birthday, but the possible limitations or anxiety is a major deterrent. As a father of 11-year-old Autistic twins, we made the decision to have a small play date instead of a big birthday party on several of their birthdays. In years where we saw growth in behavioral development, we went for it. The planning and thought we put into making them successful were monumental. We learne