Connections

Bug has been continuing his EXCELLENT progress interacting with people! This weekend we Skyped with Grandma and Grandpa S. and Bug was far more interested than he's been before! He counted their fingers and we sung them the ABC song from Starfall. :) He did drift away a few times (football was on), but kept coming back, which was great.

Then today I took the kids to a nearby park. Bug did a lot of his usual running from place to place (after getting in a ton of swinging, of course!). He did have a bit of an interaction with a couple of other little boys who were interested in the same rocking horse that he was. I think they had some issues with the lack of language.

The best part was that Bug saw a mom sitting and playing with her daughter. The daughter was piling leaves and woodchips onto the table and they were pretending to eat. Bug went and sat right next to the mom. I went over to watch and help if needed. Bug attempted a little bit of imitation play. Mostly he cozied up to this other mom ;) She told me that he had seen her and was watching her around the playground too, so there must have been something about her that was intriguing and inviting. Our friend M came over and sat next to Bug and he tolerated that really well too. It was a very positive experience!

We have definitely noticed an increase in Bug's social awareness! Kerry, our speech therapist mentioned it too, that Bug gives a lot more eye contact and pays attention to others, even if for brief moments. I've noticed him talking more too, and he's getting good at communicating his needs, even if only using a few words. He definitely wants to interact with us and for us to understand him. Hopefully we can keep up the motivation for him and we can start using longer phrases.

As Wiggle gets more mobile, I think Bug is getting a more frequent stream of interaction. Wiggle is constantly going for Bug's stuff, so he has to always be aware of him. We are trying to teach Bug to use words ("No no. No touch. That's mine.) and not to take things away. Definitely age appropriate stuff going on. :)

We've been working on some songs too. Bug really likes Starfall, and we've all learned a couple of the songs. He likes us to sing them and chimes in with words (no melody) if we drop off. All day today he's been saying "Di-saur traaaaaaiiiiinnn" to the rhythm that the theme song goes.

I'm so proud and so impressed with Bug. He is doing such a good job and it is such a blessing to be able to work with him and watch him grow!

Turning a corner?

After a great OT last week, speech didn't go quite as well. To be fair, Bug was super tired (my boy who used to sleep in til 9 or 9:30 is now up before 7 several times a week!) so I think he wasn't real interested in Kerry and was having trouble focusing. He did let Kerry help him wash his hands and said a few things to her, so there was still progress.

We went to visit friends at their new house on Thursday and Bug did super! He did some good communicating and letting Mrs. W help him. He also had some squabbles over toys--which seems bad except that it's a totally age-appropriate thing to happen! and enjoyed riding on a little push toy. I was really impressed with his calmness and his good listening and communication while we were there.

I feel like we've made some huge strides with Bug "dealing with" other people. He's doing great at nursery, and has been more interactive with his therapists and our friends! It's a great step forward for us. Hopefully we can continue this so that we can do more cooperative play and start looking into getting a babysitter. :)

We have been doing some good sensory activities lately too!

I got some water beads from Zulily. They are these tiny little beads that you soak in water and they expand. Then they bounce and are fun to play with. They are a bit fragile (and so hard to find when they fall on the floor!) but Bug is really enjoying them! We do have to make sure he doesn't eat them though.

We also went to a pumpkin patch for the first time this weekend! Bug got to see a bonfire which he was really excited about, and did a really good job listening to us and being careful around it. He also liked seeing the tractors.

We even went on a tractor ride which Bug liked a ton! He had his little "Scharf smirk" the whole time. He was less into picking pumpkins, but we did manage to get one for everybody. Bug preferred the greener "pums" but maybe just because then Daddy would pluck them off the vine!

Today we went to Jumpology, which is a trampoline arena that is fairly new. I've had this on our to-do list for a while and we finally made it work today! Initially Bug was resistant to going inside. When I opened the door, he heard the music (which was very loud!) and didn't want to go in. I carried him in and got us to the desk. They turned down the music for us and that seemed to help. Then Bug headed up to the trampolines and we had some issues because he had to take his shoes off. (Funny note: These are the shoes that we just bought that are different from the last two pairs we've had for him. The ones I was worried about him wearing. Yeah, he apparently is a big fan of them because we have trouble getting him to take them off, even at home!) He did calm down a little and found a ball, which was a good distraction. He did run around and bounce a bit, but I think it was very distracting to him to not have his shoes on. We spent about a half hour there, which is a very good amount of time really. I'm hopeful that we can go back and keep building positive experiences there! It wasn't too busy, so I think that was helpful.

There definitely seems to be a sound component to his unease at new places. Romp n Roll plays music too, and I wonder if Bug finds it somewhat "accosting." Luckily, the workers at RnR and Jumpology seem very accommodating and don't mind turning the music down for us, especially when I explain. :)

A couple more notes: I am feeling very excited and happy about Bug's progress with words. Strawberry is now "Soo-waw-bee" which is a definite improvement over "soo-waw". And today was the first day that "pizza" had two syllables too! One of our goals is to get Bug to at least say the correct number of syllables for words, and he's definitely making some good changes. It would be so helpful for us if we could get him to lengthen his words even by another syllable.

I'm so glad that we're in a positive place right now! I am immensely proud of my boy and the strides he is making. I feel like we're able to have a lot more fun as we build understanding on "what makes him tick!"

Best therapy session so far!

We had OT today. Lauren, our therapist, brought a student named Kelly. Apparently Bug was quite taken with her, because he was in amazing form! We had, by far, the most engaging, productive session we've ever had! :-D

Bug was very excited when the therapists came up and he was immediately very talkative and active. I showed Lauren the new game we play that involves holding Bug and twisting around very fast while saying "vooo" (who knows where these things originate.) He absolutely loves it and would do it all day if we would let him. We also did squishes and swinging and he kept asking me to do it again and again. He was communicating with all of us, asked Lauren to stand up, asked us to come. After a good amount of play, he brought over a book and sat in my lap to read it. Lauren came and sat by us and did some firm squeezes on his feet. She tickled him and he repeatedly asked her to tickle his belly! She also colored on him with chalk (he does this to himself sometimes) and he really enjoyed that too.

At about 45 minutes, he decided he needed a snack, so we all sat at the table. Lauren went to get her computer, and sly little Bug went over to her to get a peek and press some buttons. Then he asked to sit in her lap! She said that she had to let him, since he never ever asks her for stuff like that. :) He kept trying to give her a book so he could type. It was very funny. 

The whole time Lauren and I were just astounded (and THRILLED) at how engaged Bug was. Such a far cry from last session!! Lauren suggested that we continue doing as much sensory stuff as we can, as obviously Bug enjoys it and it's a good way to motivate him to work on language and playing with us.

I also found out about a weighted vest pattern that will be going on sale starting tomorrow, so I'm planning on making Bug one. Lauren was really supportive of this too. Assuming he doesn't mind wearing it, she said it could be very beneficial. She said we might have to start just by putting it on for a minute or two, then taking it off and slowly working our way up. Weighted vests help kids with SPD or autism get more input so they can focus better. Basically the vest is weighted with poly beads or washers sewn into the vest. They also make weighted blankets and lovies with the same concept. If you buy them, they are quite expensive, but not hard to make, so I'm excited to give it a try!

I'm so glad we had a great session today! I'm hopeful that last session was a fluke and that we can continue having good, productive therapy sessions. Here's hoping speech tomorrow goes just as well!

Rocks, chalk, and schedules.

So wow. I didn't realize it'd been quite that long since I updated. I guess I have a lot to catch up on!

Therapies:
Speech is usually pretty successful. Bug doesn't do a ton of interacting with Kerry, our therapist, but he's pretty tolerant of her and he does display skills for her to see. He even was mimicking her when she was here last week, repeating to me what she said. We're still trying to get him to do cooperative play, that seems to be our biggest hurdle. Kerry also encourages us to keep things "fresh"--that we don't repeat things exactly the same every time, that we change up what we ask him to point at or look for in books, so he doesn't get stuck in a pattern (which he is inclined to do, for sure).

Occupational, well, is just not going as well. I really don't think it helps that we only see Lauren every couple of weeks, but Bug is just not as comfortable with her. Last week, he said in a high chair, with an apple slice wedged in his mouth almost the entire session. He wouldn't tolerate her touching him. I've also felt, and discussed with Lauren, that I didn't feel like we were seeing any benefit of the sensory activities we do. While he enjoys them, he doesn't seem more focused or "less-sensory". Lauren suggested that he could just be that low-sensitivity (that it takes A LOT of sensory to get through to him) or it could be that it's more of a hyperactivity issue rather than sensory-based.

OT was pretty frustrating. I was really disappointed with the feedback I got from Lauren, and Bug's behavior was not very inspiring either. We're going to give it another go, but might pursue private therapy if we really cannot get anywhere with the Early Intervention stuff.

Social:
We've been outside a lot lately, taking full advantage of the beautiful Virginia fall. Parks are a good place for Bug to get a little social interaction with peers, without it being too stressy. He does like to swing, but usually after we've done a good long swing he'll go play on the rest of the playground for a little while. He's been getting braver about going down slides (he was nervous about them for a while I think because he had gotten scraped up on one going down awkwardly). And every little interaction, little negotiation he has--taking turns, navigating the same "space" as another child--provides him another opportunity to learn.

Church has been going awesomely. I spent a lot of time in nursery with Wiggle and did some chatting with Sarah, the lady who's in charge, and she said that you can tell Bug's anxiety level is way down. She said he does some communicating too, which is great!

Romp n Roll has not been as good of an experience. We tried going to a different one and Bug just could not calm down, so we headed back home. Our best guess is that it's similar but not the same and that's distressing. I really hope we can get back there and have a positive experience so we can have it as a good, indoor playground. We also want to try a place called Jumpology, which is all trampolines. I think that could be a really good time!

We've had a few playdates too and Bug's done a pretty good job, even feeling sad when his friends leave!

Home:
Bug is still a big fan of his trampoline. He'll head in there a few times a day and has explored jumping on his knees or bouncing while he sits. We do have a "no food or drink while in the trampoline" policy that he's not too crazy about ;)

I also put together a schedule board for us so we can plan out our day using pictures.

In the top right corner is a "feelings chart" which we haven't had to use at all. It has pictures illustrating various emotions. The idea is that Bug can point to how he's feeling.

The rest of it is devoted to pictures of what we're going to do each day. While Bug obviously cannot tell time, the idea is that we can get him into understanding "first we do this, then this, then finally this." It also gives him a framework for when we're going to do things he's less comfortable with--therapies, Romp n Roll, etc. I still need to get used to using it and get a few more pictures of common things, but I'm hopeful that it'll provide some structure to the day and also empower him to help decide what we do.

I did just read a book written by a boy who has autism who doesn't like the use of visual schedules, but Bug doesn't seem too distressed when we have to change plans, so I think it's ok to use still.

I mentioned last time that Bug used chalk on a chalkboard at a friend's house. I remembered that Grandma S. gave Bug a little box that had a chalkboard on it, so we put a few pieces of chalk and a piece of felt for an eraser. Bug is a pretty big fan! He likes it when we draw on it, but he's done some good work on it too, which is seriously fantastic!

Yesterday he was saying letters as he was writing, which made me so very happy and excited! Bug has been doing really great with his letters. He now points them out occasionally while we're out and about. He also likes going through his foam letters and saying what they are. We do Starfall a lot too. I've been trying to show him how the letters combine to form words, since he knows so many and what they "say". He is just so drawn to words and books!

He also now will repeat the words from songs we hear on the radio and sometimes we think he tries to sing. I know with the ABCs he can sing a little of it. We are still trying to get him to understand that you can sing something or say something at the same time as someone. He is very used to us dropping off so he can "fill in the blanks" so it's definitely a work in progress.

So far Bug is pretty inconsistent about taking his omega supplement. Sometimes he doesn't mind at all and other times he just refuses. We do break it open into yogurt and such. I think it's more of a typical two-year old control thing rather than a taste or sensory thing. We also have not had much luck introducing new foods. He did taste (lick) a piece of chicken that Adam put on a fork, so that's really good, but mostly he won't try new things. I have a recipe for lentil tacos that I have planned, so maybe that will pique his interest. We have found that if we put it on a fork for him, he's at least somewhat interested, even if he won't taste it. The boy does eat a ridiculous amount of peas and beans and dairy, so I don't think his protein is in any way lacking! :)

Bug has also been soooooo into rocks lately. Everywhere we go we have to find a rock or two to hang onto. Mostly I don't mind, at least until he decides he needs to taste them. I remembered a box of rocks and shells I got from my sister, and I pulled out some of the bigger ones for him to play with and it's been a huge hit!




















He loves to hold onto them and place them on his belly. Adam will rub them on Bug's arms and he gets a huge kick out of that! In general though he really likes it when we draw attention to his arms and legs by running cars or rocks on him or massaging with lotion. He always gets this little smile on his face and you can tell he really enjoys the feelings. I think we need to do more of that, it's just a matter of getting him to slow down a bit!

Another REALLY cool thing we had happen yesterday: I was give Wiggle his lunch at the table and Bug spilled water. I told him to get the towel off the stove and pointed to it. He went over, looked for and found it, and brought it back and wiped up his mess! That is an enormous improvement! He definitely is catching on to us pointing at things and following simple directions which is super important and super awesome to see happen! Yay Bug! 

The other major thing for us is that with the fall weather brings some changes to clothes. So far we've made a pretty good transition into wearing pants. We also went up to 4T (seriously, the kiddo is a monster! Must be all that protein!) so we're still figuring out if there are certain clothes he doesn't like. He is handling the "some days it's cold and we wear pants, some days it's warm and we wear shorts" thing pretty well, a little less so at night, but there haven't been any huge meltdowns. We also bought him a new pair of shoes. I had been able to get the same shoe in a larger size the last time, but this time they didn't have it, so we got a pretty close style. He hasn't put them on yet, but I'm hoping that they fit ok and he is alright wearing them. Admittedly, I'm nervous about it. It's funny what worries you when you have a sensory kid. :P

I guess if I had to sum up, I'd say things are going really well. We're hearing a lot of speech, even if we don't fully understand. Bug seems willing to try new words and really does try to get us to understand. We're seeing him explore his world more and learn how to be a polite little man. I'm still hopeful that we can make some progress on the sensory side of things, but I think we are, even if it's not yet noticeable to me. Baby steps. :)