We had such a day recently. It was a much needed Good Day, after a very Challenging Week.
We are fortunate to live near the Bay - a childrens paradise with tidal mud flats and sand. I must confess I don't make enough effort to take them out regularly - I should try harder.
The previous week was filled with record breaking autistic meltdowns and an overstressed, overworked Mum. Not a good combination. I again resorted to Google in an effort to determine if I am indeed an utter failure as a parent, or if others have gone through similar situations - of course, many have. My Google topic this week was how to handle autistic meltdowns in public - we had a doozy at an allergy clinic where I dragged the two big boys for testing. A brightly lit, shiny, enclosed allergy clinic full of strangers. Unlike me, despite knowing we'd be there for a couple of hours, I was woefully unprepared with no snacks, bribes, or iPads. It was about 20 minutes before the signs of overstimulation started showing. An hour and a half later, DS2 began stimming in earnest - flailing around and yelling with a vacant expression, much to the horror of the full waiting room and staff. When you're in this sort of public situation (and with your other ASD children), it's really impossible to follow the general rules of meltdown-handling such as 'put the child in a safe place and wait it out', 'offer comfort items that you FORGOT TO BRING', and the top recommendation 'Stay CALM'. What you really need is a tranquilizer blowgun and a wheeled trolley to capture the beast and remove them to the privacy of your car, where a chilled glass of wine is awaiting.
A few days later it was very gratifying to read through these forum posts and see how many others face similar situations on a regular basis:
http://blog.autismspeaks.org/2011/02/22/totw-meltdown/
