Nate has always been a pretty good talker, and for that I am grateful, because if I had to take him to speech therapy on top of everything else, I might keel over. He's been putting simple sentences together pretty well for a few months, but lately he has been really surprising me with his verbal skills. In other words, it's really fun to hear what's in his cute little head.
For example, yesterday he was walking around on his knees and tripped and hit his face on the table. Not too hard, but I held my breath waiting for the scream. He looked at me and said, "I'm not gonna cry, mama!" Wow! Self control and a nice sentence. I couldn't ask for more. It also made me laugh!
Then at dinner, I was asking him a question, he he looked at me very closely and said plain as day, "Your nose is pink." Wha? I looked at Blake, and he said, "Huh, your nose IS pink." (Probably a result of the breathe-rite strip I wore the night before to help me breathe through this cold.) I'm not sure I'm ready for this brutally-honest phase that all kids go through.
Earlier today he was playing with one of his trains, who is named James. He fell a little and dropped James and said so pitifully, "I'm sorry, James! I fell backwards!"
He's a lot of fun right now.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
What a day!
Let me start this by saying that Nate hasn't napped all week. I was starting to get really, really scared that he was calling it quits on naps altogether. I NEED that naptime! But since he hadn't napped all week, today I just went about our day as if he didn't need one.
First stop was a local high school, where we met with Nate's First Steps (early intervention) coordinator, his PT, and a representative from the school system. Nate didn't have to be at this meeting but, um, where else would he be. Nate was pretty excited about this big school and a big school bus in the parking lot, and the big puddle beside the big school bus, and all the toys inside the classroom! Dee, the PT, played blocks with him while I paid attention to what the school system person said.
Okay, so if Nate went to public preschool, it would be 4 half days a week. He may qualify for an IEP, which means he'd get some therapy while he was there (which would really just be a bonus because he'll be getting outside therapy through our insurance too). If he doesn't qualify for an IEP, like if they think he's not delayed enough for it to affect his education, then we would pay a small tuition to send him. I said I was concerned about 4 days being too much for him, but everyone disagreed with me. :) They thought he'd be fine/great with that schedule. But I could always just send him 3 days, they said. There's a school bus!?! It's a regular size school bus but only for 3 and 4 year olds. There are a couple helpers on the bus to keep everyone entertained and in their seats. There are no seatbelts or car seats, but she said that buses have been proven to be safer than a car with a car seat because they are high off the ground ... and big and yellow and all that. I said I couldn't imagine putting Nate on a bus, and Dee told me that no one in my shoes can, but they end up doing it anyway. The school system person said that even if I declined the bus, she guaranteed by the end of the year I'd change my mind. Cause kids love buses and it's so much easier (especially when one also has an infant and it's the middle of winter). He doesn't have to be potty trained, just wearing pull-ups. And I can go observe a class at the school he'd be at. So I'm conflicted. Send him to public school, where it costs less and he may be with kids he'll end up in kindergarten with, or send him to the expensive private school for fewer days a week where he already knows the school and people there. I also have one other private school to tour next week. Such a big decision.
Anyway, by the end of the meeting, Nate was having a fit, needed a nap, and also needed a clean diaper. It was a mess. After I got him cleaned up and in the car, he passed out cold in about a minute. So maybe the naps aren't over!!! But I felt bad for him because we were en route to hippotherapy, so he only got about a 30 minute nap, and Blake was supposed to bring him lunch but got there late because of traffic. But he cheered right up when he got on the horse and did great. His OT, Miss Katie, told him they were going to draw on the chalk board, and Nate said, "Daddy! Choc-wat board!" He thought it was chocolate! Ha! At least he didn't lick it.
On the way home, while Nate ate his lunch in the car, we had to stop by the groomer's. Maggie had her beauty appointment yesterday, and she somehow made it home with another dog's collar. So I had to return that. Then we had to make another stop at the pediatrician's office for them to fill out some forms for one of his therapies. Nate loves going in the pediatrician's office because of their gigantic fish tank with huge gold fish in it. He was thoroughly entertained for the half hour we were there, and we got all the paperwork taken care of. I finally got Nate away from the fish by promising he could play with Thomas at home. Now I'm beat.
By the way, Nate and I are going to Nashville on Sunday. Nate has his 30 month MOMS follow-up (this is part of the study we were part of to have prenatal surgery on Nate) at Vanderbilt on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday morning, he'll have some tests done on his bladder and kidneys to see how they're doing. We may learn more about his ability to potty train there. That afternoon, we were going to see his other doctors, but none of them are available. No biggie--we don't have any concerns. So we'll have the afternoon off. Then on Tuesday (right during naptime) he will have a physical and an IQ test!!! Have you ever heard of such a thing for a 2 year old? I haven't. I highly doubt he'll cooperate, but it should be interesting. Blake can't go with us because of a work commitment, so it'll just be me and Nate for the road trip. Keep us in your thoughts! I'll have my computer with me but I'm not sure when I'll be able to update.
Have a great weekend!
First stop was a local high school, where we met with Nate's First Steps (early intervention) coordinator, his PT, and a representative from the school system. Nate didn't have to be at this meeting but, um, where else would he be. Nate was pretty excited about this big school and a big school bus in the parking lot, and the big puddle beside the big school bus, and all the toys inside the classroom! Dee, the PT, played blocks with him while I paid attention to what the school system person said.
Okay, so if Nate went to public preschool, it would be 4 half days a week. He may qualify for an IEP, which means he'd get some therapy while he was there (which would really just be a bonus because he'll be getting outside therapy through our insurance too). If he doesn't qualify for an IEP, like if they think he's not delayed enough for it to affect his education, then we would pay a small tuition to send him. I said I was concerned about 4 days being too much for him, but everyone disagreed with me. :) They thought he'd be fine/great with that schedule. But I could always just send him 3 days, they said. There's a school bus!?! It's a regular size school bus but only for 3 and 4 year olds. There are a couple helpers on the bus to keep everyone entertained and in their seats. There are no seatbelts or car seats, but she said that buses have been proven to be safer than a car with a car seat because they are high off the ground ... and big and yellow and all that. I said I couldn't imagine putting Nate on a bus, and Dee told me that no one in my shoes can, but they end up doing it anyway. The school system person said that even if I declined the bus, she guaranteed by the end of the year I'd change my mind. Cause kids love buses and it's so much easier (especially when one also has an infant and it's the middle of winter). He doesn't have to be potty trained, just wearing pull-ups. And I can go observe a class at the school he'd be at. So I'm conflicted. Send him to public school, where it costs less and he may be with kids he'll end up in kindergarten with, or send him to the expensive private school for fewer days a week where he already knows the school and people there. I also have one other private school to tour next week. Such a big decision.
Anyway, by the end of the meeting, Nate was having a fit, needed a nap, and also needed a clean diaper. It was a mess. After I got him cleaned up and in the car, he passed out cold in about a minute. So maybe the naps aren't over!!! But I felt bad for him because we were en route to hippotherapy, so he only got about a 30 minute nap, and Blake was supposed to bring him lunch but got there late because of traffic. But he cheered right up when he got on the horse and did great. His OT, Miss Katie, told him they were going to draw on the chalk board, and Nate said, "Daddy! Choc-wat board!" He thought it was chocolate! Ha! At least he didn't lick it.
On the way home, while Nate ate his lunch in the car, we had to stop by the groomer's. Maggie had her beauty appointment yesterday, and she somehow made it home with another dog's collar. So I had to return that. Then we had to make another stop at the pediatrician's office for them to fill out some forms for one of his therapies. Nate loves going in the pediatrician's office because of their gigantic fish tank with huge gold fish in it. He was thoroughly entertained for the half hour we were there, and we got all the paperwork taken care of. I finally got Nate away from the fish by promising he could play with Thomas at home. Now I'm beat.
By the way, Nate and I are going to Nashville on Sunday. Nate has his 30 month MOMS follow-up (this is part of the study we were part of to have prenatal surgery on Nate) at Vanderbilt on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday morning, he'll have some tests done on his bladder and kidneys to see how they're doing. We may learn more about his ability to potty train there. That afternoon, we were going to see his other doctors, but none of them are available. No biggie--we don't have any concerns. So we'll have the afternoon off. Then on Tuesday (right during naptime) he will have a physical and an IQ test!!! Have you ever heard of such a thing for a 2 year old? I haven't. I highly doubt he'll cooperate, but it should be interesting. Blake can't go with us because of a work commitment, so it'll just be me and Nate for the road trip. Keep us in your thoughts! I'll have my computer with me but I'm not sure when I'll be able to update.
Have a great weekend!
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Hello
I've had a head cold this week and have felt pretty crappy, and that has gotten in the way of my blogging. :) I'm feeling better today, almost normal.
Let's see, a recap of cute things this week.
On Monday, Blake went to pick up Nate from his playgroup, and as soon as Nate saw him, he said, "It's Daddy!" and started speed crawling across the room to him. He does love his Daddy.
Nate has a couple new words this week. The first was "ex-ci-ted." That's the way he says it too, enunciating very carefully. He still can't quite use it in a sentence, but when Maggie is running around like crazy, he said "Ex-ci-ted!" or when he himself was crawling around like a madman when Blake got home the other night, he again proclaimed "Ex-ci-ted!"
His other new word is "itch!" Also pronounced very carefully. Suddenly everything itches--his foot, his side, Maggie, everything.
One night this week, Nate was sitting on my lap facing me, and we were talking about something funny or maybe giving eskimo kisses, and something he said made me crack up. Nate imitated me by throwing his head back and fake laughing--Ah ha ha! he said. It was hilarious.
Yesterday our respite care worker, Miss Rachel, came over so I could get some things done and go to Bible Study. Nate was ex-ci-ted to see her, and they played hard the whole evening. She said when 7 pm rolled around, Nate said, "Go to bed." So same as last week, he walked her through his bed time routine and was happy as a little clam to get in his bed. This morning when he woke up, I heard him on the monitor saying, "I'll get it, Miss Rachel!" I'm sure he was thinking about playing ball with her. :)
Just a little while ago, Nate went over to the couch and said, "Climb, Mama!" I helped him climb up on the couch, and he settled back on a pillow and said, "Covers!" I got out a little throw for him to lay there and watch his show. After a few minutes, he said, "Where's Maggie? She's at work. She's with Daddy." I said, "Silly, Maggie is right there on the couch." He said, "Oh, on the pillow!"
Time to get on with our day. Have a good one.
Let's see, a recap of cute things this week.
On Monday, Blake went to pick up Nate from his playgroup, and as soon as Nate saw him, he said, "It's Daddy!" and started speed crawling across the room to him. He does love his Daddy.
Nate has a couple new words this week. The first was "ex-ci-ted." That's the way he says it too, enunciating very carefully. He still can't quite use it in a sentence, but when Maggie is running around like crazy, he said "Ex-ci-ted!" or when he himself was crawling around like a madman when Blake got home the other night, he again proclaimed "Ex-ci-ted!"
His other new word is "itch!" Also pronounced very carefully. Suddenly everything itches--his foot, his side, Maggie, everything.
One night this week, Nate was sitting on my lap facing me, and we were talking about something funny or maybe giving eskimo kisses, and something he said made me crack up. Nate imitated me by throwing his head back and fake laughing--Ah ha ha! he said. It was hilarious.
Yesterday our respite care worker, Miss Rachel, came over so I could get some things done and go to Bible Study. Nate was ex-ci-ted to see her, and they played hard the whole evening. She said when 7 pm rolled around, Nate said, "Go to bed." So same as last week, he walked her through his bed time routine and was happy as a little clam to get in his bed. This morning when he woke up, I heard him on the monitor saying, "I'll get it, Miss Rachel!" I'm sure he was thinking about playing ball with her. :)
Just a little while ago, Nate went over to the couch and said, "Climb, Mama!" I helped him climb up on the couch, and he settled back on a pillow and said, "Covers!" I got out a little throw for him to lay there and watch his show. After a few minutes, he said, "Where's Maggie? She's at work. She's with Daddy." I said, "Silly, Maggie is right there on the couch." He said, "Oh, on the pillow!"
Time to get on with our day. Have a good one.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Bubbles and babies
Nate was so excited to go to Sunday School this morning! When I dropped him off, he waved and said "Bye, Mama!!!!" a little too happily. :) I went around to the window to see what he was doing. (I love that window.) The teacher had put him in a chair to work a puzzle, and after he had taken all the puzzle pieces out, he was done with that. Looked around (probably calling Help!) until someone came over to get him out of the chair and into the floor. I saw Nate very intently talking to the teacher, and the teacher said okay and immediately turned on the bubble machine! Nate had been talking about those bubbles all the way there. He must love it there, where everyone carries him around and starts up the bubble machine at his whim. :)
Back at home when we were singing songs before his nap, Nate was poking at my belly, and I asked him what was in my belly. He raised up my shirt to see. I said, No, you can't see it--what's inside? Still no answer, so I said, "It's a baby! It's in my belly!" And Nate says ..... "YUMMY!" Ha! That is kinda sick and funny at the same time. I guess he thought I ate it?
Have a good week!
Back at home when we were singing songs before his nap, Nate was poking at my belly, and I asked him what was in my belly. He raised up my shirt to see. I said, No, you can't see it--what's inside? Still no answer, so I said, "It's a baby! It's in my belly!" And Nate says ..... "YUMMY!" Ha! That is kinda sick and funny at the same time. I guess he thought I ate it?
Have a good week!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Breaking News
Nate can drink through a straw!!!!! I know, I know, he's 2.5. For some reason he's always had trouble with it, but when he was about 15 months I taught him with the help of a therapy cup. I guess we didn't practice it enough after he started because he quickly forgot! This has been one of the little things that I've asked his OT's to work on over time, cause he just wouldn't do it for me. Every time we went out to a restaurant, I had to remember to take the sippy, or else we would have to drop water in his mouth from the straw like a little baby bird because he wouldn't suck on the straw. Well last night, out of nowhere, Blake tried again (as we have done almost every time we've been out for a year) and he just did it! I made him do it twice again today, and I'll keep him practicing all week so he doesn't "forget" this time. I think he's got it! This will make going to restaurants so much easier for us. :)
After soccer and naptime today, Nate and I met Mindy in Frankfort for a little shopping and dinner. At JCPenney, Nate was chasing Mindy around in his walker yelling "Aunt Mindy! Aunt Mindy! Where are you!" We had a nice dinner (well, Nate wasn't very pleasant, but he sure did enjoy his Mac and Cheese), we went to Goody's, and Nate walked straight over to a display of Christmas things on clearance. He said, "Wow, look at all this stuff! Look at all this stuff! Look at it!" ... for the next 20 minutes. He just parked himself in front of that shelf and wouldn't move. A random shopper came up to look at the Christmas things, and he said, "Look at all this stuff!"
By the time we got to Elder-Beerman, Nate was tired and would rather stay in the truck watching Thomas on his little movie player. So I just put him in the stroller and didn't bother taking in the walker. Big mistake. He ended up crawling around the floor for a little while. (I know, gross, but at some point, it's worth letting him down in the floor. However, I do hesitate doing this now after a woman acted like I was a terrible mother for doing this last summer. She didn't know he doesn't walk, but she was just awful. Anyway...) Then I had him walking with me holding his hand until he yelled "Carry you! Carry you!" He gets his "you"s and "me"s mixed up sometimes. I said, "You want to carry me?" Exasperated, he says, "Carry ME!" Mindy and I took turns carrying him, and Mindy taught him the word "Clearance" because we were shopping such a good sale. She really had no idea Nate would say "Clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance" for the next 2o minutes! :)
So, even though we had a grumpy Nate for most of the day, a good time was had by all. :)
After soccer and naptime today, Nate and I met Mindy in Frankfort for a little shopping and dinner. At JCPenney, Nate was chasing Mindy around in his walker yelling "Aunt Mindy! Aunt Mindy! Where are you!" We had a nice dinner (well, Nate wasn't very pleasant, but he sure did enjoy his Mac and Cheese), we went to Goody's, and Nate walked straight over to a display of Christmas things on clearance. He said, "Wow, look at all this stuff! Look at all this stuff! Look at it!" ... for the next 20 minutes. He just parked himself in front of that shelf and wouldn't move. A random shopper came up to look at the Christmas things, and he said, "Look at all this stuff!"
By the time we got to Elder-Beerman, Nate was tired and would rather stay in the truck watching Thomas on his little movie player. So I just put him in the stroller and didn't bother taking in the walker. Big mistake. He ended up crawling around the floor for a little while. (I know, gross, but at some point, it's worth letting him down in the floor. However, I do hesitate doing this now after a woman acted like I was a terrible mother for doing this last summer. She didn't know he doesn't walk, but she was just awful. Anyway...) Then I had him walking with me holding his hand until he yelled "Carry you! Carry you!" He gets his "you"s and "me"s mixed up sometimes. I said, "You want to carry me?" Exasperated, he says, "Carry ME!" Mindy and I took turns carrying him, and Mindy taught him the word "Clearance" because we were shopping such a good sale. She really had no idea Nate would say "Clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance, clearance" for the next 2o minutes! :)
So, even though we had a grumpy Nate for most of the day, a good time was had by all. :)
Friday, February 20, 2009
Yesterday morning Nate wanted a snack, and when he wants a snack, he wants it 30 seconds ago. As I was going to fix it for him, he started whining about it, and I told him "Nate, it's going to take me a few minutes, you need to ..." and before I could finish it, he said, "Be patient! Be patient!" I guess I say that line a lot. :)
Every morning when I shower, Nate watches Dora in our room and plays with his hot wheels. A few days ago, he was playing with his orange truck and gold car, but he was calling for "Mommy car! Oh, Mommy car!!!! Where are you?" He was looking under things, laying on the floor to look under the bed. "Where aaaaarrrreeee youuuuuu?" I had no idea what he was talking about, but I saw a blue car in the floor on the other side of the room and handed it to him. He said, "Mommy car!!!!" So yesterday when we were going upstairs for me to shower, Nate said, "Play with Mommy car!" I said, "Why do you call it Mommy car?" Nate said, "It's bwue." Ooooh, it's blue, just like my car! How cute is that!
Anybody with a kid understands this, but yesterday afternoon I was starting to get frustrated. Around 4:15 pm, I was finally able to grab some lunch, but by 5, I had only eaten about half of it. Between every bite, I had to get up and find something or fix something for Nate. Now my food was cold! Just as I was starting to grumble about this, Nate heard a song he liked (I had the TV on one of those sirius music stations) and started dancing up a storm! It was so cute I couldn't help but laugh with him. It's really hard to get too upset with such a cute kid. :)
Nate is now in a REALLY good mood for it to only be 7:30 am, and I'm still not quite awake. Have a good day!
Every morning when I shower, Nate watches Dora in our room and plays with his hot wheels. A few days ago, he was playing with his orange truck and gold car, but he was calling for "Mommy car! Oh, Mommy car!!!! Where are you?" He was looking under things, laying on the floor to look under the bed. "Where aaaaarrrreeee youuuuuu?" I had no idea what he was talking about, but I saw a blue car in the floor on the other side of the room and handed it to him. He said, "Mommy car!!!!" So yesterday when we were going upstairs for me to shower, Nate said, "Play with Mommy car!" I said, "Why do you call it Mommy car?" Nate said, "It's bwue." Ooooh, it's blue, just like my car! How cute is that!
Anybody with a kid understands this, but yesterday afternoon I was starting to get frustrated. Around 4:15 pm, I was finally able to grab some lunch, but by 5, I had only eaten about half of it. Between every bite, I had to get up and find something or fix something for Nate. Now my food was cold! Just as I was starting to grumble about this, Nate heard a song he liked (I had the TV on one of those sirius music stations) and started dancing up a storm! It was so cute I couldn't help but laugh with him. It's really hard to get too upset with such a cute kid. :)
Nate is now in a REALLY good mood for it to only be 7:30 am, and I'm still not quite awake. Have a good day!
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
New babysitter
Nate's new babysitter/respite care worker, Rachel, came today, and Nate just LOVES her! She is so patient with him and just plays plays plays nonstop the whole time she's here. I was in and out, but I saw them playing ball, playing in his tent, playing with play doh, throwing a book in the air (Nate's idea, and he was cracking up at himself). When I left for Bible Study, Nate said, "Bye, Mama!!" just totally happy to spend more time with Rachel.
I told Rachel that Blake would be home at 8, but I gave her a rundown of the bedtime routine just in case. Nate has at times over the last couple years been very finicky about bedtime, so I was hoping he could hold out until Blake got home. But at 7:30, he was apparently ready.
He told Rachel, "I go night night." Rachel asked if he wanted to stay up a little longer so Daddy could put him to bed. He thought about it, and said, "Night night." So she somehow got him up the stairs (she recently had surgery on her leg and is on crutches, so I know she didn't carry him up. He must have climbed himself.). Just as I told her, she put on his PJ's, read him his favorite "Clown Train" (Little Engine that Could) book, and another book, then sang a couple songs. Then Nate pointed at his crib and said, "Crib." I guess he was walking her through it! So funny. He went to sleep immediately and is still conked out, so it worked great! I'm SO grateful to have somebody who's so good with him.
A couple random things that I want to remember. Every time we tell Nate it's time to wash his hands, he says, "Cold water?" Okay, cold water. I don't ever remember him getting scalded by hot water, but he is very insistent on getting cold water when he washes his hands.
Also, he thinks it's so funny to answer "no" to everything. And he says it so cute, I wish I could write it like he says it. Yesterday, Dr. Haney asked him how old he was, and he wouldn't answer (he really doesn't know the answer to that question). She asked him if he was two, and he shook his head very seriously and said, "Noooo." She asked if he was three: "Nooooo." On and on. He did the same thing with Rachel today. And he gets a cute little mischevious grin when he says it.
I told Rachel that Blake would be home at 8, but I gave her a rundown of the bedtime routine just in case. Nate has at times over the last couple years been very finicky about bedtime, so I was hoping he could hold out until Blake got home. But at 7:30, he was apparently ready.
He told Rachel, "I go night night." Rachel asked if he wanted to stay up a little longer so Daddy could put him to bed. He thought about it, and said, "Night night." So she somehow got him up the stairs (she recently had surgery on her leg and is on crutches, so I know she didn't carry him up. He must have climbed himself.). Just as I told her, she put on his PJ's, read him his favorite "Clown Train" (Little Engine that Could) book, and another book, then sang a couple songs. Then Nate pointed at his crib and said, "Crib." I guess he was walking her through it! So funny. He went to sleep immediately and is still conked out, so it worked great! I'm SO grateful to have somebody who's so good with him.
A couple random things that I want to remember. Every time we tell Nate it's time to wash his hands, he says, "Cold water?" Okay, cold water. I don't ever remember him getting scalded by hot water, but he is very insistent on getting cold water when he washes his hands.
Also, he thinks it's so funny to answer "no" to everything. And he says it so cute, I wish I could write it like he says it. Yesterday, Dr. Haney asked him how old he was, and he wouldn't answer (he really doesn't know the answer to that question). She asked him if he was two, and he shook his head very seriously and said, "Noooo." She asked if he was three: "Nooooo." On and on. He did the same thing with Rachel today. And he gets a cute little mischevious grin when he says it.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
The dentist appointment!
Yesterday I called Nate's PT and told her that we now have some units available with early intervention and would like to get a recommendation for an occupational therapist who is very knowledgable about sensory integration issues. She was able to give me a recommendation, but she also told me about a conference she went to this weekend about the same subject. She said she was reading about one kind of sensory issue dealing with the "proprioceptive" senses, and she said it was like reading a description of Nate Payne--doesn't like putting weight on his feet, doesn't like being off the ground, has problems with any kind of resistance, even like biting a chicken nugget. That's Nate. So she spoke with some others and came up with a new plan for him. The main thing is that I have to follow this brushing routine ... indefinitely. I have tried doing it before and have been unable to keep up with it for more than a week. It involves me using a little therapy brush on his skin every 2 hours during the day, and it's supposed to line out his system. We need to do it until all his symptoms go away. Could be months. But I really think this will be the key to getting him walking. So I'll figure out a way to do it. We'll also have this new OT who is an expert at sensory stuff coming to our home once every week or two, and we're trying to add another day of PT--this time in the pool! :)
Anyway, I was really dreading this dentist appointment today. But I did some sensory stuff with Nate this morning to help him feel more in sync, and I read him a story about Elmo going to the dentist, and he took a long nap and ate a good lunch. I took him to the UK pediatric dental clinic, which is 1.5 hours away, because that's where Lucas (my brother) works and he recommended a dentist there. Unfortunately, Uncle Lucas wasn't there this afternoon, but Nate got to meet his coworkers. Dr. Haney was his dentist, and she was AWESOME! She knew all the right things to say and how to make him feel at ease. Everything that could possible scare him--from the mask to the gloves to the instruments--she was able to make it fun for him. He cried some when she had to scrape his teeth, but she said he did better than most kids his age when she has to do that! Wow! He loved her. She said his teeth are healthy, so that's great. Even though it was a pain to get there and was an all-day event, she's worth going back for.
He walked all the way back to our car, which was quite a ways through the Kentucky clinic, and got lots of attention in his walker. Some girls were looking at him and smiling and waving, and he flirted big time. He walked around a column and peeked out the other side and said, "SURPRISE!"
So it was a good day, and I'm really proud of how Nate did at what could have been a nightmare of a day. Tomorrow is another big day--It's the second and last meeting of my spina bifida committee meeting, and Nate's new respite care worker, Rachel, is going to come play with Nate while I go to Bible study. I think I need to go to bed now. :)
Anyway, I was really dreading this dentist appointment today. But I did some sensory stuff with Nate this morning to help him feel more in sync, and I read him a story about Elmo going to the dentist, and he took a long nap and ate a good lunch. I took him to the UK pediatric dental clinic, which is 1.5 hours away, because that's where Lucas (my brother) works and he recommended a dentist there. Unfortunately, Uncle Lucas wasn't there this afternoon, but Nate got to meet his coworkers. Dr. Haney was his dentist, and she was AWESOME! She knew all the right things to say and how to make him feel at ease. Everything that could possible scare him--from the mask to the gloves to the instruments--she was able to make it fun for him. He cried some when she had to scrape his teeth, but she said he did better than most kids his age when she has to do that! Wow! He loved her. She said his teeth are healthy, so that's great. Even though it was a pain to get there and was an all-day event, she's worth going back for.
He walked all the way back to our car, which was quite a ways through the Kentucky clinic, and got lots of attention in his walker. Some girls were looking at him and smiling and waving, and he flirted big time. He walked around a column and peeked out the other side and said, "SURPRISE!"
So it was a good day, and I'm really proud of how Nate did at what could have been a nightmare of a day. Tomorrow is another big day--It's the second and last meeting of my spina bifida committee meeting, and Nate's new respite care worker, Rachel, is going to come play with Nate while I go to Bible study. I think I need to go to bed now. :)
Monday, February 16, 2009
Fun weekend
Saturday morning we went to soccer, where I somehow knocked Nate down flat on his face (in astroturf) TWICE! I promise it wasn't on purpose. He still has 3 scratches on his nose. But he did have fun playing a game where they ran down the field, kicked a goal, yelled "GOAL" and then did a little dance. :) I have to say that Nate had the best victory dance of the entire 2 year old class.
That evening we had a little get together for Blake's 30th birthday!! We had some friends over we hadn't seen in awhile and ate some good food and great cake. Nate especially loved the cake. He had a small piece of his own and then said, "cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake ..." incessantly until I gave him some of my piece. I think he ate more than I did. I finally had to take it away from him, and he was so upset. When I was putting him to bed, he was still talking about cake, so I told him to dream about cake. The next morning I heard him on the monitor talking about cake as soon as he woke up. :)
Our friends Jenny and Kevin went to church with us Sunday morning, which was nice. When I picked Nate up from Sunday School, the teacher told me that they had a 12 year old boy volunteering in the classroom that morning, and he had made it his personal project to carry Nate all over the room wherever he wanted to go. Ha! I'm sure Nate just ate that up. The boy carried Nate out to us and said, "It was a PLEASURE taking care of Nate today!" I thanked him for taking such good care of him. He asked what happened to Nate's back, and I told him that Nate had surgery on his back because he has something called spina bifida. The boy said, "I will keep Nate in my prayers." How sweet is that! I hope Nate turns out to be such a caring kid.
The fun continued yesterday evening at Nate's friend Brock's birthday party at Chuck E Cheese! Nate had just woken up from a nap when we went, and he was completely overwhelmed by all the kids and games and flashing lights--I was overwhelmed myself, so I don't blame him--but he warmed up to it after a while. I told him that Chucky, a big mouse, would come out and dance after they sang happy birthday ... to warn him because Nate is not a fan of people in big costumes! Well, we didn't even get that far. Nate also freaks a little when anyone sings happy birthday (how weird is that!) so I just had to take him to the other side of the room where he could observe from afar. After we got him playing skee ball and he got to eat more cake, he was having a great time!
Today I took him to his playgroup, and as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, he started saying, "I fell backwards, fell backwards, fell backwards." Aww, that really stuck in his head from last week. After much coaxing, he refused to walk up the sidewalk so I had to carry him in the building. Then we found out because of conferences, his class was meeting in a different classroom, which totally threw off him and his two classmates. He almost wouldn't even go in the room. It's funny how kids get so used to a routine. But he did fine in there.
While I was there, the director of Carriage House (the place where Nate goes for playgroup) was talking to Nate and asked me where he was going for preschool next year. I told her we were looking at all of our options right now. She said they'd love to have him come there--in addition to the developmental playgroups, they have a preschool and a special preschool for autistic children. I told her my concern was that I knew they did 4 half days a week for 3 year olds, and I really only wanted him in school for 2 or 3 half days a week. I just think 4 days will be too much for him and for all of us with a new baby in the house by then. Not to mention, 4 days is way out of our budget. She said for Nate they would make an exception and do 2 days. There will be another kid that goes 2 days also, so they could do the same schedule. She told me they have classes of 14 kids, and four of those kids are special needs (could be physical delays, Down syndrome, speech delays, some highly functioning autistic, etc.), and there are 3 adults in every classroom. I will be taking a tour of one other similar preschool in town in a couple of weeks, and we'll make a decision then. But since we know our insurance will cover therapy, we no longer have to think about sending him to public preschool (they probably wouldn't offer therapy anyway), so we're looking at private ones. I think he'd do great at either, and he will REALLY like it.
Tomorrow Nate will have his first dentist appointment, so keep us in your prayers! It's NOT going to be fun for him, me, or his dentist. :)
That evening we had a little get together for Blake's 30th birthday!! We had some friends over we hadn't seen in awhile and ate some good food and great cake. Nate especially loved the cake. He had a small piece of his own and then said, "cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake ..." incessantly until I gave him some of my piece. I think he ate more than I did. I finally had to take it away from him, and he was so upset. When I was putting him to bed, he was still talking about cake, so I told him to dream about cake. The next morning I heard him on the monitor talking about cake as soon as he woke up. :)
Our friends Jenny and Kevin went to church with us Sunday morning, which was nice. When I picked Nate up from Sunday School, the teacher told me that they had a 12 year old boy volunteering in the classroom that morning, and he had made it his personal project to carry Nate all over the room wherever he wanted to go. Ha! I'm sure Nate just ate that up. The boy carried Nate out to us and said, "It was a PLEASURE taking care of Nate today!" I thanked him for taking such good care of him. He asked what happened to Nate's back, and I told him that Nate had surgery on his back because he has something called spina bifida. The boy said, "I will keep Nate in my prayers." How sweet is that! I hope Nate turns out to be such a caring kid.
The fun continued yesterday evening at Nate's friend Brock's birthday party at Chuck E Cheese! Nate had just woken up from a nap when we went, and he was completely overwhelmed by all the kids and games and flashing lights--I was overwhelmed myself, so I don't blame him--but he warmed up to it after a while. I told him that Chucky, a big mouse, would come out and dance after they sang happy birthday ... to warn him because Nate is not a fan of people in big costumes! Well, we didn't even get that far. Nate also freaks a little when anyone sings happy birthday (how weird is that!) so I just had to take him to the other side of the room where he could observe from afar. After we got him playing skee ball and he got to eat more cake, he was having a great time!
Today I took him to his playgroup, and as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, he started saying, "I fell backwards, fell backwards, fell backwards." Aww, that really stuck in his head from last week. After much coaxing, he refused to walk up the sidewalk so I had to carry him in the building. Then we found out because of conferences, his class was meeting in a different classroom, which totally threw off him and his two classmates. He almost wouldn't even go in the room. It's funny how kids get so used to a routine. But he did fine in there.
While I was there, the director of Carriage House (the place where Nate goes for playgroup) was talking to Nate and asked me where he was going for preschool next year. I told her we were looking at all of our options right now. She said they'd love to have him come there--in addition to the developmental playgroups, they have a preschool and a special preschool for autistic children. I told her my concern was that I knew they did 4 half days a week for 3 year olds, and I really only wanted him in school for 2 or 3 half days a week. I just think 4 days will be too much for him and for all of us with a new baby in the house by then. Not to mention, 4 days is way out of our budget. She said for Nate they would make an exception and do 2 days. There will be another kid that goes 2 days also, so they could do the same schedule. She told me they have classes of 14 kids, and four of those kids are special needs (could be physical delays, Down syndrome, speech delays, some highly functioning autistic, etc.), and there are 3 adults in every classroom. I will be taking a tour of one other similar preschool in town in a couple of weeks, and we'll make a decision then. But since we know our insurance will cover therapy, we no longer have to think about sending him to public preschool (they probably wouldn't offer therapy anyway), so we're looking at private ones. I think he'd do great at either, and he will REALLY like it.
Tomorrow Nate will have his first dentist appointment, so keep us in your prayers! It's NOT going to be fun for him, me, or his dentist. :)
Friday, February 13, 2009
Today is going better
We went to hippotherapy today, and I spoke with the billing manager. Turns out our insurance DOES pay for hippotherapy, so we just need to pay off our deductible, then it's only $14 for coinsurance per session! Yay! So he can keep going to hippotherapy and stay with his horse and his great therapist!
This is actually a really good thing, as it turns out. In early intervention, we have a certain number of "units" we can use every 6 months. PT and OT/hippotherapy were taking up all his units. Now that hippotherapy is not under early intervention, that frees up some units for something else! We're hoping to get some aquatic therapy! If we can't get in that (waiting lists and such) then we'll have a traditional OT come to our home.
This also tells us that our insurance does in fact pay for therapy. That's good to know for when Nate can no longer get early intervention. But I'm going to go ahead and try to add some more PT to his schedule, under the insurance. We may go to hippotherapy twice a week--once for PT, once for OT. Or we might do something different. But this gives us lots of options. Yes, I'm trying to willingly sign up for 5 days of therapy. :) The more, the better, in my opinion. Nate gets so much out of it.
And then we came home and there were flowers delivered for me! Blake and Nate got me roses and chocolates for Valentine's Day! I was so surprised. It made my day. :)
This is actually a really good thing, as it turns out. In early intervention, we have a certain number of "units" we can use every 6 months. PT and OT/hippotherapy were taking up all his units. Now that hippotherapy is not under early intervention, that frees up some units for something else! We're hoping to get some aquatic therapy! If we can't get in that (waiting lists and such) then we'll have a traditional OT come to our home.
This also tells us that our insurance does in fact pay for therapy. That's good to know for when Nate can no longer get early intervention. But I'm going to go ahead and try to add some more PT to his schedule, under the insurance. We may go to hippotherapy twice a week--once for PT, once for OT. Or we might do something different. But this gives us lots of options. Yes, I'm trying to willingly sign up for 5 days of therapy. :) The more, the better, in my opinion. Nate gets so much out of it.
And then we came home and there were flowers delivered for me! Blake and Nate got me roses and chocolates for Valentine's Day! I was so surprised. It made my day. :)
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