He's flourishing!

S's verbal language has just exploded recently! What's funny is, it's mainly phrases he's saying, instead of simple words.

1. He loves Welch's fruit snacks. We took him to Meme and Papaw's on Friday and I had a packet in my purse. I showed them to him and asked him what they were. He said "Noot Nacks". He's been saying that awhile. However, when I turned back around to open the packet, he evidently thought I wasn't going to give them to him, so he whined and said "I want noot nacks!"

2. Counting...he's been obsessed with this for awhile. He would point and count, but all numbers sounded the same...something like "Aye, Aye, Aye, Aye". Now he's at least imitating the sound. Three is 'e', Four is 'or' and Seven has 2 syllables.

3. When we're driving in the car, he will say 'gop' when we stop and 'gooo' when we take off.

4. He's also answering Yes or No accordingly. He will shake his head and say 'noooo' and will nod his head for yes.

He also spent the night with Meme and Papaw on Friday and Saturday and slept in a big boy bed. So, today D converted his crib to a toddler bed. I'm assuming we'll have a few sleepless night, since he'll probably get up and try to play throughout the night, but we'll see.

We've also broken out the potty chair. He will sit, but hasn't gone yet. We sing songs and he gets to flush and we say bye-bye the pee-pee. ;) Meme said she sat him on a potty chair at their house before giving him a bath and he didn't go. But, as soon as he stood up to get in the bathtub, he peed on Meme!

Bad Dog!

So, the other day we were finished with dinner and D gave S an Oreo cookie. He got down from the table and put it on his pretend grill on his little kitchen set. Well, Rex the dog decided he was hungry and swiped the cookie. The next thing I heard was "No Wex!". When I turned around, Rex was chewing and S was pointing at him with a pouty face about ready to cry. I said "Bad dog Rex!", which was immediately followed by "No Wex, baa da!" You cannot imagine my pride! He is imitating so well! Oh...and he was given another cookie. ;)

S's 2-1/2 year appt and our zoo trip

S had his 2 1/2 year appt with his ped today. He weighed 29lbs 11oz (50th percentile) and was 39in tall (97th percentile). He did really well holding my hand walking into the dr's office and playing in the waiting area. He kind of had a hard time transitioning into the smaller room, but he didn't throw any major tantrums. He doesn't go back until he's 3.

We also went to the zoo a few weeks ago. Meme and Papaw watched E and we took S along with his ABA therapist. We had a really good time. He loved the giraffes, as he did the last time we went. In fact, we went back twice to see them. He also liked the Desert part with the iguanas, turtles and meerkats. Here are a couple pics from the trip. I think S and the meerkat were communicating with each other. :)

He's not done!

S has his Developmental Therapy on Monday afternoons. He loves the Chunky Flash Cards from Usborne that his therapist always brings. If he gets started with those, it's hard to move him to something else. So, the therapist saved them for the end of the session this time. He likes making choices between 2 pictures (Do you want the sheep or the horse?), then she tries to get him to verbalize before she'll give him the picture by trying to say what it is or the sound it makes (He can do a very good elephant sound...of course, don't stand too close to him when he does it). Then he takes the card and places it back into the box. That seems to be his favorite part. He's very meticulous and careful when putting the cards back in the box (picture the game Operation). Well, evidently he wasn't ready to stop when her time was up on Monday. He started throwing a fit as soon as she started packing up. He followed her to the door and, as she was putting on her shoes, he said clear as a bell "I NOT DONE!". She said "Did you hear that? He just said he's not done!". I wasn't sure what I heard at that point. He proceeded to headbutt me in the leg, then ran to the living room throwing things and repeated it at least 2 more times through tears and yelling "I NOT DONE!" Needless to say, after she left, I broke down and cried. I've heard him try to imitate words and he has a few things he's been saying for awhile now, but a whole phrase just came out of nowhere! I then got him some of our cheapie flash cards to play with. He didn't seem to mind though. He just wasn't finished choosing and putting them away! :)

E's 6 month appt

It's still beyond me how she can be 6 months old already, but alas...she is growing up way too fast...well, in my eyes anyway. She's still 'petite' according to the nurse. She weighed only 13lbs 3.5oz and has dropped to the 10th percentile. Her length was 25.75in, which is in the 50% percentile. Because she dropped from the 25th percentile to the 10th percentile in weight, her pediatrician wants us to start supplementing her with formula at least a couple times a week. He also gave her a prescription for a Vitamin D and flouride supplement. We've been mixing 1/2 formula and 1/2 breast milk and she's been taking it fine. She also enjoys the baby food and is doing really well with a spoon. So far, she's had sweet potatoes, bananas and applesauce. I've even given her some rice rusks and she likes chewing on them. She goes back in 6wks for another weight check. Hopefully, she starts catching up! S was 16lbs 2oz when he was 6 months old.

Overdue S Update

Sorry all! I know I've been slacking when it comes to posting. For some reason, there doesn't seem to be enough time in the day for therapies, housework, schoolwork and playing. LOL!

S has been in ABA therapy for a couple weeks now. He goes 5 days a week for 3 hours in the mornings. Originally, they were going to come to the house, but they're training new therapists, so he's been going to the center. They pick him up and bring him home which is nice. I receive his 'progress reports' daily and he's been doing so well! He loves working on the computer doing DT Trails. An example can be seen on www.dttrainer.com. Anyway, it shows pictures of shapes, animals, numbers, etc. and he gets to point the correct ones out (receptive language). They're also working on getting him to say the word (expressive language). We're looking at getting a touch screen for home and D may be able to write a program something like this. S has been much more verbal and is getting syllables and most times the first letter of what he's trying to say. This morning, as we were eating breakfast, he pointed to the circles on our placemats. He was saying something to the effect of "what deen id dat". Since I was guessing, I assumed he was asking what colors the circles were. So, I pointed and told him "This is an orange circle." He proceeded to point to the next one in line and say the same phrase "what deen id dat"..."That is a brown circle" and so on. I kind of guess on some things. However, whenever the phrases he's saying stay the same, I know he's trying to ask the same question...it's my job to guess what question that is. So far, he hasn't thrown a fit if my answer doesn't seem to match 'his question'. ;)

They've also been working on his throwing at ABA. He's not too happy about that obviously. Whenever he throws something, they will ask him to pick it up. Until he does, he cannot proceed to play with the therapists. They will continue playing without him and ignore him until he picks up what he has thrown. If he tries to play with another toy, they will block him from doing so. They do not hand-over-hand lead him to the toys to get him to pick them up. They said this will only lead to him always looking for someone else to pick up what he's thrown. Once he's picked up the toy he's thrown, they praise him and begin playing with him again. This was probably just a fluke, but last night as I was making dinner, S was on the couch watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I put his drink beside him on the table. For some reason, unbeknownst to me, he picked up his cup and chucked it to the floor. I looked in from the kitchen and didn't say a word. He looked back and saw me looking. He immediately got down from the couch, picked up the cup, sat it back on the table and jumped back on the couch. I ran in, gave him a hug and kiss, and told him what a good boy he was for picking up his cup! He seemed proud, although annoyed that I was interrupting Mickey Mouse with my hugs and kisses. :)

Tomorrow night, D and I are taking both the kids to "Parents Night Out". It's put on by Easter Seals Crossroads. It will be our first real 'date night' since E was born...if not before that. We occassionally get out separately, but hardly ever together without the kids, so that will be nice. We have tickets to the Bodies Exhibition, which should be a learning experience for me since I'm taking an Anatomy class this semester.

I will make sure to update periodically on ABA and S's progress.

6 months already?!

How can baby E possibly be 6 months old already?! I just had her yesterday. :*) Tonight, we're getting her pictures taken. She's still itty-bitty to me, but I'm sure once I compare her 3 month to her 6 month, I'll see the changes. She's a major chatterbox and flirt and on track for all her milestones. Now, she just needs to start crawling. Wait, I didn't just say that! ;)