A BLOGGER who writes about her life as the mother of an autistic child has been nominated for two national awards.

Claire Parkinson of Southend Lane, Bellingham has only known for two years that her 10-year-old son, Giovanni Sarcone, suffers from Asperger’s syndrome – a type of autism which makes it difficult to socialiwse and communicate.

The 29-year-old said: “We found out in 2007 that Giovanni had Asperger’s, but he wasn’t formally diagnosed until 2009. I started blogging before the diagnosis just because I was so angry and found it therapeutic to put my thoughts down.’’

The Mum and Dad (MAD) Blog Awards celebrate the best blogs written by British parents and are nominated by the public.

Miss Parkinson has been shortlisted for "Mad blogger of the year", voted by a judging panel, and “Most inspiring Mad blogger”, which is voted for by the public.

Speaking on her nominations she said: “My son is the inspiring one as it's due to him that I'm here. We have our ups and downs and I write about both the good times and the not so good times. I share everything.”

“People may see us as being a bit dysfunctional, but I know no different.”

“It can be frustrating. I am not a mind reader so how am I supposed to know what’s upset him when he starts screaming for no apparent reason? ”

Miss Parkinson has two other children, eight-year-old Alice and Harley, aged 18 months. She said that Harley is too young to notice what is going on, but is woken up by Giovanni all the time and never gets to have a nap.

“There are some nights I get no sleep either and those are hard. It can be exhausting, but he is my little man and I just have to get on with it.”

“Alice on the other hand is a different story, she just puts up with it. He is very demanding and controlling of her. The other day she said to him ‘I wish you weren’t my brother’. It’s hard to deal with, but is just one of those things.”

To read 'A boy with Asperger's' visit aspergersinfo.wordpress.com, or to vote visit the-mads.com. Voting closes on June 14 and the results are expected in September.