Okay, so pause your Bravo binge for just a sec — Brittany Cartwright (yes, our Kentucky queen from The Valley) just opened up about something major: her adorable almost-four-year-old son Cruz — the little tornado she shares with Jax Taylor — has been diagnosed with autism. And Brittany? She’s handling it like a total boss mom with a heart the size of a Costco cart.
So here’s the lowdown: Brittany says they got the diagnosis back in the fall, which makes sense — fall is when everything gets pumpkin-spiced and emotional.
“Cruz was hitting those baby milestones like he had a cheat sheet,” Brittany told IconicHipster.com. “He crawled early, walked early, and was saying ‘Mommy,’ ‘Daddy,’ and even ‘Hot Dog!’ like he was ready to audition for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Live!”
But right before he turned two, things shifted. His speech started to pull a disappearing act more dramatic than Jax in a relationship argument. “He just stopped talking almost completely,” Brittany said, explaining that Cruz is now mostly nonverbal — but he’ll still toss out a surprise “Mommy” here and there like a little verbal confetti bomb.
And even if he hasn’t said “I love you” out loud yet, Brittany says he shows it in every possible way. He’s basically her little Velcro sidekick, her ride-or-die, her “mommy’s boy” with VIP access to her heart.
“Our life looks a little different now,” she admitted. “But I swear, I was built for this. Like God was up there going, ‘Yup, she’s the one who’s gonna crush this autism mom gig in style.’” And y’all, Brittany is crushing it like it’s a Real Housewives wine glass.
“He’s my better half,” she said, proving that soulmates come in tiny sneakers and may or may not eat goldfish crackers for breakfast. “Even though he can’t talk, I get him. Like, telepathic-Mom-level get him. We are synced up tighter than Jax’s skinny jeans after taco night.”
She kept it real about the emotional moments, too. “Yeah, sometimes it’s tough. Of course I want him to experience the world fully, but he is — just in his own unique, beautiful way. Like, the way he sees the world? Probably in 4K HDR with extra glitter. The rest of us are out here watching life in VHS.”
And she wants the world to understand something super important: Autism doesn’t mean limits. “He could be the smartest kid in his class. Shoot, he might even end up working at NASA — or launching his own space agency called Cruz Control, who knows!”
Right now, she and Cruz are all about that therapy life — speech therapy, occupational therapy — whatever helps her little dude thrive. “This is the time his brain is building itself up like it’s training for the Olympics,” she said. “And I’m just out here doing my absolute best to make sure he lives his happiest life.”
And in true Brittany fashion, she’s not keeping all this wisdom to herself. “I want to help other moms who might be feeling overwhelmed. Like, yes it’s hard, but you are not alone — and your kid is probably secretly a superhero. Trust me.”
So yeah, Cruz might not be giving dramatic monologues just yet (leave that to Jax), but he is showing the world that different isn’t less — it’s just a cooler, more colorful version of awesome.
