Raising Eli with Gutz

Raising Eli with Gutz Welcome to our family's journey with Eli. Eli is a sweet, loving little boy navigating life on the autism spectrum.

This page documents his growth, our family's experiences, and the small wins that mean the world to us.

27/05/2026

To celebrate Eli and Lola’s birthdays this year—only two days apart—we decided to go on a special family trip to Cebu 💙

And of course, one of the highlights of this trip is for Eli to finally meet his idol… Pororo 🐧

We’ll be staying in Cebu for 4 nights and 5 days, creating memories together as a family.

For Day 1, it was mostly all about the journey—traveling from home to Cebu for our afternoon flight.

A slow start… but the excitement was already there.

This is Cebu Trip: Part 1 ✈️

Small steps. Big Gutz.

26/05/2026

Happy 3rd Birthday, kuya Eli.

I hope you enjoyed your day, our little pororo boy!

We will always do our best to give you everything you need. We will never get tired of understanding you and helping you express yourself.

In this world full of judgement, we will be your safe and open space. With us, you will never have to adjust or pretend.

Mahal na mahal ka ni Mama and Daddy and so many more around you.

Happy happy happy birthday! 🎉🤎

For Eli’s birthday this year, we chose memories over a big party 💙So we’re flying to Cebu to visit the only Pororo Park ...
25/05/2026

For Eli’s birthday this year, we chose memories over a big party 💙

So we’re flying to Cebu to visit the only Pororo Park in the Philippines—Pororo Park Cebu.

And honestly, we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate our little Pororo fan.

As parents, we realized that we’d rather spend birthdays creating experiences together—
travels, adventures, and moments we’ll remember for years—than throwing a grand celebration.

Because in these trips, we get to see more sides of Eli and Isaiah.

Their joy.
Their curiosity.
Their growth.

And those moments are priceless to us.

Here’s to a week of adventures, memories, and celebrating our kuya Eli the way he would truly enjoy 💙

Small steps. Big Gutz.

23/05/2026

Since Eli’s diagnosis, we stopped bringing him to the barber.

From our previous experiences, haircuts would usually end in crying, discomfort, and overwhelm—and as much as possible, we never wanted the experience to become traumatic for him.

So for months, Mommy has been the one cutting his hair at home.

But with Eli’s birthday coming soon, we wanted our little boy to feel extra pogi for his special day 💙

So we decided to try again.

We prepared ourselves mentally, ready to stop anytime once he cried or became uncomfortable.

But to our surprise…

He didn’t cry.
He didn’t whine.

Not even once.

We even offered him videos to watch for distraction, but most of the time, he was just looking at himself in the mirror and making funny faces with Mommy.

Somehow, this time felt different.

We don’t know exactly what changed—maybe growth, familiarity, trust, or simply readiness.

But this time, he was comfortable.

And we were able to finish the whole haircut peacefully.

Such a simple thing for others, but such a huge achievement for our kuya Eli 💙

Small steps. Big Gutz.

22/05/2026

Lately, Eli has been wanting to do more things on his own 💙

And this time, it was something simple but special—holding his own glass of juice and drinking independently.

No prompting.
No assistance.

Just confidence, curiosity, and another little sign that he’s growing up.

These quiet everyday moments may look small to others, but for us, they mean so much.

Because every bit of independence is a step forward.

Small steps. Big Gutz.

There was this one time when we were at the hospital for Eli and Isaiah’s check-up.We arrived early as usual so we could...
21/05/2026

There was this one time when we were at the hospital for Eli and Isaiah’s check-up.

We arrived early as usual so we could get a lower queue number and finish earlier.

While waiting, a little girl approached Eli and tried to play with him.

At first, he avoided her.

But after a while, she approached him again… and to our surprise, Eli responded.

Not with a full conversation yet, but with his own little gibberish words.

And eventually, they played together.

Moments like this are extra special to us because these are the kinds of experiences we cannot teach through books, therapy sessions, or structured activities alone.

Seeing him socialize, respond, and actually entertain a child he had only met once made us both surprised and genuinely happy.

Small steps. Big Gutz.

Eli rarely smiles in pictures or videos.Maybe because he still doesn’t fully understand the concept of posing for a came...
20/05/2026

Eli rarely smiles in pictures or videos.

Maybe because he still doesn’t fully understand the concept of posing for a camera yet.

That’s why every genuine smile we capture feels extra special to us.

Because it means one thing—
he was truly happy in that moment.

Not smiling because someone said “smile.”
Not smiling because there’s a camera pointed at him.

But smiling because that’s genuinely what he felt.

And despite all the challenges he faces every day—
the therapies, lessons, routines, activities, frustrations, and struggles in expressing himself—

there are still moments when he simply feels joy.

Real joy.

And as parents, those are the moments we treasure the most.

Small steps. Big Gutz.

18/05/2026

One of the things we’re focusing on in Eli’s therapy right now is patience and focus 💙

One activity we recently tried was coloring inside shapes made from popsicle sticks.

And for his very first try—
he immediately understood that the coloring should stay inside the shape.

That alone was already a great start.

We still struggled a bit with filling all the spaces completely, but that’s okay.

Activities like this are rarely perfected in one try.
What matters most is that he’s learning, trying, and improving little by little.

And we’ll celebrate every small progress along the way.

Small steps. Big Gutz.

12/05/2026

From July 2025… to April 2026 💙

The growth is easy to see physically.
He got taller. Bigger. More independent.

But beyond that—
there’s also the silent progress.

The little changes that happened slowly over time.
The confidence.
The routines.
The understanding.
The small things that once felt impossible.

Looking back at these clips makes us realize just how far Eli has come.

Slow progress is still progress.

Small steps. Big Gutz.

Address

Catmon
Santa Maria
3022

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Raising Eli with Gutz posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category