What's Up

• Today is Mamacakes birthday! Happy Birthday, Mom!
• Apparently I have not been eating right and getting enough calcium because I ended up in urgent care over the weekend with symptoms of hypocalcemia. Doing better now. Must remember that man can not live on Nutrigrain, coffee and McDonald's alone. 
• We got our vision insurance info this week which means I am one step closer to getting new glasses.
• Things have not been exactly smooth with Early Intervention. My verse of the day on Monday was “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2 NIV.  All I can say is I am trying. 
• We re-signed for 7 more months here at the apartment. We haven't had time to look for a place lately and Ross is still gun shy from what happened back in IL so heck, we'll stay put for now. We're happy here and I'd miss my view of the Sheep Range Mountains if we moved! 
• In some areas Remy is doing better, in others he is doing worse. Or maybe I should say "more differenter."  It is not an illness, it is simply another way of being and we want to help make things easier for him but we accept him for who he is.  
• Can you tell how scared I am? I have to keep reframing things, bringing things back into perspective, or I start to panic a bit.  I am not losing him and I will not lose him. He is right here and his development is not going to look like other kids development but everything is going to be fine.  

How to Wear Out Your Welcome

In addition to cleaning up baby poo and cat poo, I am now responsible for this guy's poo.  And believe me, he poos A LOT.

Rest

By the end of a week full of sickness, way-too-early mornings, and various disappointments I was feeling burnt out, so Remy and I took our Sabbath rest a day early. Yesterday we did everything the easy way. I forgave myself if I gave him a toy without prompting for the word. If he gestured for his binky, I gave it to him. I didn't set the timer for mandatory floor play once the whole day. We watched Toy Story three times. Mom and Dad came over and I didn't make them coffee. I didn't do laundry or dishes. Instead, I lied on the couch and Remy, delighted at the sight, came and sat on my stomach.

Thankfully, I feel so much better today.  I think Remy feels better too. Today, the actual Sabbath, we are getting back on task - but it is nice to know that we can take a break and the world will keep spinning.

Tory, She of the Great Fuzzy Belly!

Rollercoaster

I started this week feeling so positive because of Remy's progress in imaginative play and attempts at naming things but by the end of the week (after his therapist cancelled twice due to illness) I am feeling overwhelmed. We have been trying to take him off the pacifier except in designated spots like his pack-n-play and crib and, while he is vocalizing more, he is also stimming a LOT more and seems much more sensitive to what should be minor distresses like being touched unexpectedly or getting snot on the back of his hand.  He is also more intolerant of me trying to engage him and share in his play. Sometimes I cheat and give him his binky but then I wonder if I am being flexible or if I am making things worse. Heck, I think I am being flexible. As his Mom, I know when he has had too much and at the point learning is not happening anyway. Well, his therapist says she will be here Monday, Tuesday and Thursday next week so hopefully she can see what I am talking about and tell me what the heck to do!

Remy's Table

I got Remy a table and chair set this week. I love everything about it, except that it fell apart the first time I tried to move it. Yeah, the hardware was junk and when I lifted it the bottom completely dropped off, crashing into one of the chairs and knocking off some paint. So I need to go to Home Depot and buy some new hardware, but in the meantime the table top is sitting loose on the base and I lift from the bottom to move it. Remy doesn't mind. He loves the little benches and the roll out storage bin and the table is the perfect height for his vacuum cleaner!

52 Week Challenge, Week 3 and Week 4

Week 3, An Item I Love. If this one looks familiar it's because last week I was really sick and was too tired exhausted to do the assignment and instead used a picture from last year. It's my great grandmother's coral necklace and I love it.

Week 4, Self Portrait. Sadists. Why does every photography project have to have a self portrait? I hate doing it. I tried to keep this as simple as possible. I took it at 7:30 am, no make-up, hadn't even brushed my hair yet. Found the lightest room in the house, held out the canon with the 50mm (thus the close-up) and snapped a bunch.  This was the one that managed to include my whole face (well, except a sliver of chin, but my chin is too big anyway.) Self portrait, done.

Piper and Tory

My two most intense cats.

Kalanchoe

Just wanted to give a shout out to the Kalanchoe. It's a popular flowering succulent that does well in arid climates.  I got this one at the grocery store for eight bucks and it has been flowering for well over two weeks, I've only had to water it once, and it is doing fine without a lot of sunlight. When it gets warmer outside I will pot it and put it out there and continue to enjoy it!

Snowy Morning on the Sheep Range

So I finally looked it up, the mountains that my apartment looks out on are called the Sheep Range. How perfect is that? Their highest peak is the Hayford Peak at 9,912 feet above sea level. I wonder if it is possible to see any of the range's namesakes, the desert bighorn sheep, through my telephoto lens!

Remy Update

Yesterday we met with our service coordinator for the first time. She is going to be coming out once a week to provide "special instruction." I think that means to teach me how to work with Remy to reach our goals. But she is going to teach me by modeling with him, so he will still get a lot of one-on-one time with her. Yesterday she showed me how to push him without getting him to a point where he is too frustrated to learn. She recommends only prompting two or three times for the sign or the sound and then providing the object. She also introduced bubbles to his world and he loved it! She reworked the goals set up by the original service coordinator so now we are working on the starting sounds of his favorite toys (b-uh for ball, t-uh for train etc.) Once he can correctly identify three objects with three different starting sounds, mission accomplished and we formulate a new goal. She also asked me to email pictures representing his routine activities and favorite toys so she could make magnets that can be arranged as a schedule or that he can use to learn to ask for those things. Super excited about doing this!

Since last week we have made a little progress with the sign for "more." He has done it correctly with me a couple of times and I think he did it for her once as well. He still takes a lot of warming up to get to that point but he has definitely made progress. We also think he may officially have a real word (no, for real this time!) He is saying UH! now when he wants to be picked up and when he wants help putting his vacuum on the table (don't ask.) Even though it sounds similar to the noise he makes for letters and numbers it is definitely a command and not a label and he uses it appropriately - for example he doesn't say UH! when he wants to get down or when he wants a toy. He is also starting to make a noise that sounds like down, so we'll see if that is his second word, lol! (Poor Mommy and Daddy, not so good for our egos.)

So here is the official break down of services:

• Special Instruction 1x week
• BAT Consult 1x month
• Instructional Aide 4x week
• Speech Therapy 2x month
• Team Meeting 1x every 6 weeks

In addition to that we also have the Autism Clinic to go through, which is going to consist of:

• Bayley II-Scales of Infant and Toddler Development A one hour thirty minute evaluation that assesses four areas: sensorimotor, emotional and social, communication and language, and cognition.
• ADOS-Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule or the Transdisciplinary Play-Based Assessment If the Bayley determines a cognitive level over 15 months he will do the ADOS and if it is below 15 months it will be the play-based option.  They are designed to measure communication and social behavior and will also last about an hour and a half.  
• Comprehensive Medical  Evaluation After reviewing all medical records and test results an Early Intervention pediatrician will evaluate him and determine the diagnosis. 

So that pretty much sums it up! I will let you know how it goes!

Thursday Morning Sunrise

Being a mom can be a thankless job at times, but when I get to see a sunrise like this it is like God is putting a tenner in the mommy tip jar or something. Thank you God for turning tedious morning routines into a time for wonder!