Summer Goals

Christian's last day of preschool for this school year will be May 19th. I have gotten very spoiled having so much extra help with him while he has been attending school. He will be out for the next 2 1/2 months and I am going to pick up the slack while he is out. First, I had to figure out what services if any he would receive and what he really needed to be working on over the summer.
First I figured out if I was going to get services for him and where I would get them. I felt as though he needed a break from everything. But I was very scared about him not getting any type of services because he has been receiving some type of therapy since he was 8 months old. It has become somewhat of a security for me. Having people in our life who can help professionally deal with his issues has gave me great comfort, regardless how minor or severe the issue is. However, I also felt giving him a break could push him back. I thought maybe taking him to the rehab center (where he had received PT before) but I talked things over with his SLPA. She felt he still needed services over the summer and told me he could receive them at the school. Which is awesome. I talked things over with his OT and she wants to see him to over the summer if she can get it fit into her schedule. So I know for sure he will get speech once week, still not sure about occupational though. If she feels he really needs it and can't do it, I may have him referred to a rehab center for the summer. But I don't know for sure yet.

Secondly. I had to figure out what I was going to work on with him at home over the summer. I knew regardless of whether or not he got speech or occupational therapy through the summer, I was going to work with him on a issues that still needed to be worked on. Just because I may of allowed him a break didn't mean I was going to let him get lazy!

The things we will be working on for the summer include;

• Yes/No
• He can say no and shake his head no when is asked a question. He can do this very well I might add! But he will say no even if he means yes. His answer is always no. His teacher has been working with him on shaking his head yes which I will continue to do. He can sign yes when prompted so I will continue to work on that as well. I don't care if he verbalizes, shakes head or signs as long as he can answer yes when he should.
• Bottle
• Getting him COMPLETELY off of his bottle. He is still mainly using it when he goes to sleep. But he is 3 1/2 years old and it has GOT TO GO!!!!
• Potty Training
• I hope I can have him going to the potty by the end of the summer, or go outside. He knows when he is wet and has an "eww." I have tried off and on with him over the last year, but he hasn't really been ready. But I think he is now. 
• Communication
• As always, communication is a top priority on my list of things to work on. Considering this is where he is delayed the most. Whether it is signs or verbal...I don't care. I will take whatever I can get. But I will encourage the heck out of verbal!!!
• Sensory
• His two favorite sensory activities are swinging and bouncing on a exercise ball. These are about the only two things he will let me do at home anymore. Which they are great and they do help calm him. But me bouncing him up and down on a ball several hours throughout the day is exhausting. So I am trying to get him into some of the things we use to do last summer, fall and right after he started school. 

I'm going to miss all the help from school. Especially now that I am going to school myself and the extra help is much needed. But, I am excited that him and Graci will be home and we can do things like we use to before school was apart of our life. I know I have got my work cut out for me for the next few months but I am determined to keep working till he is right where he is supposed to be!

Spring Update

1st thing..... in the last 3 weeks, he has gotten about 60% broke from his bottle. One battle that I have been fighting for over 2 years now, but we are finally getting somewhere. He is going without it throughout much of the day....mainly wanting it at nap and bed time. Drinking from his sippy cup is no longer a fight when eating meals or when he just wants something to drink.

2nd thing...he was able to communicate through a situation without one meltdown/tantrum or crying spell.
-He got ski out of the fridge and handed it to me along with the bottle. I got the milk out, put it in his sippy and he shock his head no and said "no, ki" as he handed me the bottle again. I said "NO BABA", poured the milk back into the jug and put ski in his sippy. He took the sippy from my hand, walked off and drank all that was in the cup (1/2 way filled) and then came back, handed me his sippy and got the ski back out and handed it to me. Signed drink and please and then said "ki."
Usually the only communication you get is him only signing please and handing you his bottle. Then a tantrum follows because it wasn't the right drink he wanted. He can sign milk (when he wants it) but he can't verbalize any of the other drinks he wants and I don't know the signs to teach him.

3rd thing...he put the whole back of his head and ears into his bath water!!!! I know this sounds silly to most people but he has never laid back in the tub. He has been trying hard for the last 6 weeks to lay the back of his head in the water, as soon as the least bit touches he gets scared and jumps back up. But the other night he just did it out of the blue and loved listening to the water run into the tub. My husband, daughter and I were praising him like crazy!

4th Thing....We had our first conversation. We were coming home from school about 2 weeks ago and I asked him if he had a good day at school.

He answers, "no."

I say, "why not?"

He replies, "non know ama" (don't know mama)

5th thing...He went to the dentist yesterday to get his teeth cleaned and his check-up. After having 5 of us hold him down (while he screamed like someone was going to kill him) to brush his teeth (with a tooth brush) and have the Dentist look them over. He ended up getting a great report, all his teeth are in great shape! Which is great news and a shock to me considering I have to fight him every night to get them brushed, and I am always afraid I'm not doing a good enough job.

                                                                                                                                    

He is pointing to eyes and saying "eyes."

He is saying "I wike dat" and "I non't wike dat."

(I like that and I don't like that)

He can say "eat" now, instead of just signing it.

He is identifying characters/animals by pointing to them in pictures.

Although he can say "arick" (for Patrick) off of Spongebob.

He can feed himself really well with a fork now!

He has less than 2 weeks of school left before summer break and I am in the process of setting goals, making arrangements/plans until August gets here. I will try to post soon about the summer.