Want Night-Night Please

Naps are officially a thing of the past.  It's been about nine days since he's actually slept during the day.  I will spare you the boring diatribe about how it happened, but I will say that true to form, every afternoon he says, "want milk... want music."  And, every afternoon, I put him down for about 45 minutes.  In the last nine days, he stays quiet for as long as his Baby Einstein playlist and then is ready to get up.  His bedtime has been anywhere from 5:30-6:00 PM, which is bad news for Daddy, but good news for Momma time in the evenings.  6:00 PM is really pushing it too.  Last night around 5:30 PM, he looked at Dean and said, "want night-night, please..." which brings us to the reason for this post.

Want.  Four little letters that are spoken at least 1,000 times a day lately.  Note to our speech therapist. W-A-N-T.  We got this.  So far today, in no particular order:

Want jellybeans.

Want Wonder Pets.

Want lollipop.

Want outside.
Want bubbles.
Want Momma come in.
Want music.

Want draw something. 

Want Wonder Pets.

Want apple juice.

Want numbers.

Want chocolate milk.

Want Old McDonald.

Want hot dog.

Want Wonder Pets.

Noah has also been throwing around these phrases to help bridge the gap when I don't quite understand the words following the want:

No not this one.

No. No. No.

Want that one.

At this point, I am so happy that he finally has some functional language, but I can see where this want, want, want has the potential to wear me out during the day.  Especially the part about the Wonder Pets.  Have you seen this show?  I am so not convinced. 

Five Things Friday 01.08.10 - Totally Random

1. Brrr... It's cold out there. Houston is seeing some pretty uncharacteristically low temperatures this week. Noah is still wearing his pajamas, and I am feeling comfy and cozy in yoga pants and a t-shirt with no type of physical activity planned for the remainder of the day. The temperature outside is 29 degrees but according to the weatherman FEELS LIKE 18. I am just going to go ahead and take his word for it. In fact, I am seriously considering staying indoors until this front passes. You didn't hear it here, but I may be missing Miami today.

2. Happy Birthday Elvis. Or more importantly... Happy Anniversary to my big sister and my favorite brother-in-law. Today, they are celebrating 17 years. Wow! Let's just put this in perspective. On your wedding day, I was in 9th grade. My bridesmaid dress was drop waist. My hair was coiffured with the aid of a topsy tail. Good times. Happy day you guys! Thanks for all those years of letting me be the third wheel. I like to think I helped contribute to your years of wedded bliss.

3. Cognitive Jump. Noah and I spent a good part of the morning meeting with a couple therapists from the local early intervention program. Today was his annual evaluation, and although we have not been with this program an entire year, only four months, it has been one year since his initial evaluation in Miami. The evaulation was a series of standardized test. Questions are grouped by age and scores for each question are either 1 or 0. Once three zeroes are scored in a section, that particular test is complete. The areas of development being evaluated are cognitive, expressive communication, receptive communication, motor, social/emotional and adaptive. So, how is he doing? Since the first evaluation with the program in September, Noah has either stayed the same or improved slightly in all areas. The one area that he has had the largest jump is his cognitive development... thinking and learning. Four months ago, he tested at a 21 month level, and today he tested at a 31 month level. What a big jump in such a short time, and the one category he scored age appropriately! Way to go sweet boy!

4. Family Moment. Earlier this week, Dean made it home into for some family play time with Noah. Dean and I were trying to get Noah to play with us, and we made a big production about tickling each other. Momma is going to tickle Daddy. Tickle tickle tickle. Noah started really laughing, and joined in on our tickle game, taking turns helping us tickle each other. It was really great. His interaction with us has really improved since the holidays, and we couldn't be happier.

5. Join the Crowd. One of the first things I did when moving here was join a gym, and before this week, I had been... umm... never. So, this week a bunch of girls from my mom's group started talking about how they'd joined the same gym and had started going regularly. I had been using the excuse that I was not sure how Noah would handle the child watch or more accurately, how the child watch would handle Noah. Well, on Tuesday as we pulled away from the parking lot of Noah's not in session school (a whole other story), I made the last minute decision to continue on to the gym with Noah in tow. I dropped him off at child watch, made the nice lady aware of the color in his hand, and made sure they knew that he was indeed only two and not three despite his size. He did fine. And, I did ok. Maybe next time, I can get a complete workout in without having to go and check on him twice.

Five Things Friday Plus One 11.20.09 - Progress

There are so many changes in Noah these days that I can't keep up.

1. Choices. One of the therapy tools I have long been putting into daily life is picking between two objects. Do you want this one or this one? Encouraging him to choose by words, gestures, eye gaze... something. I could tell he was gradually getting there, and today, he totally got it. It was just before naptime, and I held up two sippy cups. "Yellow or green?" I ask. Pointing emphatically to the green one, "green," he said. I decided to push him a little further, and I opened the fridge grabbed the milk carton and juice box, and said, "juice or milk?" Again, emphatic pointing, "juice." He doesn't usually take juice for naps, always milk (no judgement, please,) but who am I to argue with a talking boy. I am wondering if that is why he didn't take a nap today.

2. Settling Down. Noah is an active little boy. He runs a lot. He jumps a lot. We have started him in therapy with a new occupational therapist. She told me a story about a patient of hers who liked to spin. So, she put him on a swing, and he spun like mad. After that, the patient was totally over the spinning. His sensory need had been met. So, back to Noah. At OT, he jumps on the trampoline. He jumps into the ball pit. He climbs up a big long ramp and jumps on cushy pads. At home, we bought him a mini-trampoline. We put couch cushions on the floor and jump, jump, jump. And, maybe with all the jumping of late, his needs are being met or maybe he's just growing up. Either way, the jumping and running has definitely slowed down. It's amazing the interaction I can have with him now that he is not running away. On a school related note, the teachers are sometimes able to leave the classroom door open without him taking off down the hall. So great!

3. Sitting Down. So, the new calm Noah loves to sit. His favorite spot is at the counter on our new appropriate height barstools. Today, he sat at the counter first thing in the morning for a breakfast of oatmeal and yogurt. Later on, we sat at the counter, lit candles and practiced singing "Happy Birthday." Noah smiles and makes excellent eye contact and sings "dear Mommy" every time. Mommy sounds like "moddy," and I love him even more every time he sings it. In the afternoon, Noah sat at the counter while I chopped onions and seasoned ground meat for a pot of chili. Tonight, he ate a PB&J for dinner sitting right at that counter. Throughout the day, he sat still about 5 or 6 times in 15-30 minute increments. Great time for us to share attention and play. Way to go Mister No. I am so proud of you.

4. Receptive Language. The most exciting change in Noah is he finally understands me. His receptive language has seriously increased. He waits when I tell him too. He runs to the kitchen when I say it's mealtime. He climbs into his car seat when I say he is going to school. He stops jumping on the bed when I tell him too. He holds onto the railing on the stairs when I say, "be careful." All day long he listens and he really hears me and does it ever make parenting so much easier.

5. Rule Follower. He comes by it naturally. He likes rules, and he follows them. He may not like to follow them, but he does. I am sure I've mentioned that Noah has a thing for sticks. He hasn't met a straw, tinker toy, long skinny object he doesn't like. Well, we have a new rule that sticks are not allowed at school or therapy or in bed at night. And, with his new grasp on understanding 90% of what Momma is saying, I don't have to tell him twice. He holds out his arm, opens his palm, and the stick falls to the ground. And, wouldn't it be nice if the story ended there. Once he drops the stick, he totally falls out. He doesn't try to pick up the stick because Momma said he couldn't have it, but the 15 minute kicking and rolling on the floor tantrum sure lets me know that he isn't happy about it. I'm hoping this is just a phase, and I can survive all this striving for consistency.

6. Crib for Life. Last night, Dean had a meeting and I went out with some ladies from my mom's group. I scheduled a sitter for Noah. She was a sweet girl I found through an agency called Seeking Sitters. She put Noah to bed for the night. When I got home, I forgot to move the monitor to my bedroom, and without the sound of Noah to wake me up around 7-ish, I overslept. I rolled out of bed around 7:50AM and went over to get Noah. He was sitting up in his crib, clapping his hands and singing a song he must have heard at school. The amazing part was that his crib side rail was down. I left it down before I went out, and I forgot to tell the sitter to raise it. Noah being the rule follower that he is, stayed put, despite the fact he is an excellent climber and could have easily stepped over the lowered rail. I am fully prepared to keep that little guy in his crib until age 5.

Truck Car Yellow Red

We are in the process of getting Noah set up with the state early intervention program in Texas. All of the therapy is done in house with the idea that by coming into the home not only provides therapy to the child in his environment but also encourages parental involvement. We've talked a lot about specific goals for Noah. Since he is saying anywhere from 70-80 words, one of those goals is for Noah to be able to put those words into two word combinations. For example, since he knows the word sun and he also knows the word yellow, the goal is or him to say yellow sun.

Here is the new nightlight I bought for Noah's room. Noah really likes it, and Dean caught him pointing out all the circles on the stoplight. Daddy decided this was a great opportunity to work on two word combinations. He decided to redirect him by pointing out the truck and car. His thinking was to get Noah to go from saying truck and car. To saying yellow and red. To finally saying yellow truck and red car. The end result. Noah goes up to the night light points to the truck and says truck. He points to the car and says car. Then he points to the truck and says yellow. Then he points to the car and says red. So instead of yellow truck, red car, we get truck car, yellow red. Hmmm... sounds like two word combinatons to Momma.

Limbo

We are officially back in Texas but currently without home. Our good friends Tim and Catherine have graciously opened the doors of their lovely, three-story, Ethan Allen decorated in beige and white home to us, and we hope to leave it fairly unscathed as we depart at the end of the month. Our house is coming along quickly, and the closing is set for the end of the month. We've been out there a couple times, and it looks great.

As for Noah, he has adapted pretty well to the various changes of scenery. He has officially been out of therapy for a month, and I am getting pretty anxious to get things started again. Next week, I am meeting with a private clinic that offers both speech and OT, and Noah will also have his initial evaluation for the state early intervention program. We have also set up an appointment with a developmental pediatrician, but that isn't until October.

The biggest news on the Noah front is that I signed him up for preschool. Sniff. The program is from 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM two days a week. It seems like a long day to me, especially for a little guy who still takes 2.5-3 hour naps a day. The preschool coordinator is probably used to dealing with first time mothers, and she said that they were pretty accommodating if I wanted to pick him up before naptime. I am considering it, but I think I will wait and see how it goes. Overall, I think the whole experience will be very good for Noah and for me as well.

5 Things Friday 7.23.09 - The Explosion

In the past week, Noah has really started talking, and I am starting to think that this is the explosion that everyone is talking about. He is labeling everything, starting to repeat more and more, getting really good at following directions and even starting to communicate things he wants. Here are 5 of my favorite things over the past couple days.

1. I was drying him off after bath and leaning over him drying his hair. He reached out and started rubbing his hand over my face saying, "dry, dry, dry." It was so sweet. I wasn't saying dry at the time, but it is probably something I usually would say. And, the fact that he was imitating me drying by rubbing my face was so heart-meltingly precious.

2. He is really started to be aware of getting hurt when he falls down. It is something I have been working on with him. I'll say, "Ouch, did you hurt your hand/arm/foot? Are you okay? You're fine." All the while rubbing the injured area. So, now when he gets hurt, he'll say one or all of the following: "Owwwhhh. Fine. Fine. Fine. Owkay. Owkay."

3. Want is one of the signs/words that his speech therapist used a lot to teach him to request things. It is something she tried to make him do every session for at least 10 times a session. Well, I think it finally caught on because he signs it constantly, and follows it up with a "wunt, wunt, wunt." At the grocery this week, he even signed/said it on the cracker aisle. He also started saying cracker. I can't in good conscience call it a sentence since they were a little spread apart, but I definitely got the message.

4. The counting is something he does a lot throughout the day. His therapists seem to think that he is using it as sort of a regulatory tool when he gets upset or bored or whatever. Their suggestion to me was to try to use the counting as a way to encourage interaction. The key also being to make the counting functional. He has a small toy with a crab, some fish and a starfish on it. He always goes over and counts them, so I started repeating after him with "one fish, two fish, one crab." Now he will still count them, but say, "one crab, two fish, three fish, four star."

5. I find that a lot of the things he is starting to say regularly are things that I say to him pretty consistently. The most recent that makes me laugh the most is "yay!" He started it yesterday, and any time we finish doing something or playing something, he will look at me, pause, and say, "yaaay!" It is really cute!

No More Speech

Noah is done with speech therapy in Miami... and it is all HER fault.

Meet HER. Baby Emily.

She was born last Wednesday. And, she has taken up all the time of Noah's speech therapist, Mrs. Silvia. Silvia shared the news last Wednesday via text. I quote: Emily... 6 lbs, 9 oz, 19in... Cute! Noah? Nice age difference... Signed Matchmaker Mom.

Me: I'll make sure Noah looks her up when he comes to Miami on spring break 2030.

Noah and I are going to miss Mrs. Silvia so much. 3 days a week for an hour each time. I think Noah and I have spent more time with Mrs. Silvia in the last six months than we have with Daddy. She has done so much for Noah, and I have learned so much in the process. I can definitely say that I now know what I am looking for in a speech therapist. Thank you Silvia. You will be missed!

Shapes and Numbers

Noah is starting to say more and more words and even starting to use them functionally. The more things he comes out with, the more I am starting to realize... he knows a lot of stuff. Here are a couple videos from bath time tonight.

Shapes.

Numbers.

The Sign Says Stop

Through therapy, I've learned that Noah is a very visual child. He gets the message much clearer with signs and gestures and pictures. Noah loves to play in our bed. It is pretty high off the ground, and he can get on it without any help. I usually keep the door to our bedroom closed, so he only goes in there when I'm with him. Well, he and Daddy must have had a field day while I was out of town last weekend because on the Monday after I got back, he only wanted to climb on the bed. He would not listen to "no," so finally I grabbed a sheet of paper, drew a stop sign in red crayon, and taped it to the door. He was not happy. He would go to the door, point to the sign, protest a bit and walk away. This went on for a little while, and then he decided that he had a enough. This is what I found.

I guess he technically followed the rules. He didn't open the door until the stop sign was down. Too bad he was the one tearing down the sign. Do I have trouble on my hands or what?

5 Things Friday 7.3.09

Noah has had some trouble sleeping this week. I remember hearing someone say or reading somewhere that when kids have trouble sleeping, it means some sort of growth spurt. I am not sure where I got this little nugget of information, and I am really not sure how true it is, but it has stuck with me. In Noah's case, I am having a feeling some growing pains are indeed happening. He was such a chatterbox today. He did lots of talking, lots of great interaction and even some repeating. Here are five things that Noah said today.

1. Squish (sscuuu-wish): said while playing with Play-doh this afternoon.

2. Caroline (cur-liii-n): said while looking through pictures on my iPhone. He was referring to our little friend Caroline.

3. ZZZZ (snort-shhhh, snort-shhh): mimicking me while pretending to take a nap on the floor.

4. Push/Bye (puuuu-uush/bye): said while pushing me with his finger through the bars of his crib. He was trying to tell me to go and get him some milk.

5. Seven (seb-in): sandwiched in between 1,2,3,4,5,6 and followed by 8,9,10,11,12,13. Oh yes, Noah can count. Seven is by far my favorite number, and the way he says it, it almost sounds like two numbers.

I guess it would be much more fun and exciting if I actually had some video accompaniment, but I don't. Happy Independence Day!

Five Things Friday 5.22.09

I've noticed my post count for May is a little low. So, in an effort to beef it up and get back in the blogging habit, I introduce "Five Things Friday."

1. Last night when I was putting Noah down, he wanted more milk. I knew this because he shoved his empty sippy cup at me. I asked him, "Noah, do you want more?" Not only did he clearly articulate the word "more," he also perfectly signed it, and then made the sign for "drink." I had kind of given up on signing "more," and have been using "want" more. So, it has been at least a couple weeks since I've used it consistently. So, obviously, he's been holding out on me.

2. I love our speech therapist, and I can only hope that when we move back to Texas, we can find someone as great as her. Noah sees Mrs. S three times a week for an hour, and I tease her that Noah and I see her more than we see Daddy. She works at an elementary school, and there is a huge play area covered with mulch where we wait for her. Noah always come into her room holding at least one stick. Today, she pulled out a toy for Noah, and when she opened the box, there was one of Noah's sticks inside. She said that she knows she will find these from time to time after we are gone, and think of and miss Noah. So sweet.

3. Noah was in desperate need of a haircut this week, and I finally took him on Wednesday. I figured since it was summer, and he will be two in a few weeks, that it was about time I let them use the clippers. He looks like such a big boy with his short haircut. I mean I know it grows but, every time he gets a cut, it just kills me.

4. As mentioned, Noah was such a sweet boy on our househunting trip to Texas. He did however have trouble going down at night. I blame it on him being overtired and in a new place. On the first night, we got in really late, and I didn't want to wake him, so we put him in bed with us. Noah has never slept with us, and this time very well may be the first and only time. A king sized bed has never seemed so small. The second night, he was having none of his pack n play, and he kept trying to climb out. I told him no and assumed he'd listen. He didn't and the next thing I heard was a boom. He had climbed out and fallen on the floor. I laid in the bed next to him while I put him back in the pack n play repeatedly telling him "no, no," and "time for sleep." He finally got the point and went to sleep. He woke up in the morning waging his finger at me, and saying "no, no." I am not sure who I am most proud of... Noah for being such a good listener or me for my successful disciplinary skills. All I know is that climbing out of the pack n play just leads to climbing out of the crib, and I am so not ready for that.

5. And a non-Noah related thing, I flushed my bodybugg down the toilet. Dean told me I shouldn't tell people since it reflects poorly on my reflexes and quick thinking skills, but all you mom's know that giving birth causes those skills to decline anyway. So, yes, I flushed my bodybugg down the toilet... on accident, and I didn't even try to reach for it. Before I knew it it went all the way down the drown. And, I had to fork over the money to buy a new one, because seriously, this thing is keeping me honest and on my weight loss goals. It is really weight loss for dummies, and I highly recommend it. You may have seen it on The Biggest Loser.  You wear it on your arm, and it's small enough to go down the drown.  Humph.  

What He Knows

The thing with early intervention is that for a child as small as Noah whether he has some type of label or not, the therapy is the same. It isn't until the child is much older and you can understand how they learn and socialize that you can really determine what, if any, the underlying cause is. Noah has been in therapy since late January, so roughly, 3.5 months, and it is hard to believe the changes in him.

At 18 months, he babbled constantly, but said no specific words. He didn't point or mimic. He had very little receptive language and even less expressive. His eye contact was good with me, but minimal with most others. He ignored his name being called and pretty much ran circles around me.

Now, at 23 months, he babbles with inflection, expresses dislike (more often than not), wags his finger to emphasize the emphatic babbling. He signs want and all done. He listens pretty consistently to the word "no." He labels tons of things like keys, glasses, show (tv), snack, car, swing, stroller. He understands things like, "let's go," "time for bath," "put on your shoes," "wanna watch a show?" He can identify and label most animals and can make their sounds, although several of our animals go "doo doo do doo doo." He mimics mannerisms like "hmmm..." while putting his finger to his mouth. He copies some of my speech like saying "okay" (k) after almost any statement. He totally gets "ready, set, go," and he always sounds out the "g" on go like "g-g-g-go!" He can count to ten when prompted. He knows all his shapes and colors and definitely shows a preference for circles and the color red. He recognizes letters of the alphabet, A, B, C, O, S, Z. When he feels like it, he can wave goodbye, blow kisses, give high fives, follow simple commands. He is still very fast, but activities hold his attention for longer periods of time. He stills loves to hold things in his hand, but the rake has become much lower priority to sticks and bubble wands and random Mr. Potato Head pieces. You wouldn't believe the collection I have going on in my car. He can put together simple puzzles and has stopped throwing all the pieces on the ground. His actions are much more purposeful and to borrow a comment from our speech therapist, he is becoming very "put together." His eye contact is improving, and he definitely acknowledges people before he ignores them. He sings tons of songs like Old MacDonald, Oh Grizzly Bear, Here Comes the Sun, and the "la daa daa's" on Jack Johnson's Bubble Toes, my personal favorite. He still refuses to point to his nose, but he will point to other body parts like his head, toes, mouth. He is starting to get pretend play and will put just about anything up to his ear, and say "hello?" There are so many other little things that he is doing, and I feel like finally his little personality is coming out. He is so sweet, and although he is starting to throw a few tantrums, he never hits or bites or throws things. He is becoming such a big boy before my eyes, and I am so proud of him and all his hard work.

What a Mess!

For once, I am not talking about our apartment. Dean must have sensed my desperation last week, when I said, "our house is a disaster, and I need help!" A maid showed up today, and after 5.5 hours of work, our home is spotless. I am so happy. Anyone want to come visit? Now is your chance.

OK... so back to the mess. After Noah's foray into painting at OT last week, I decided to try out the finger paints at home.

Momma, isn't this where I usually eat?

Are you sure this is okay?

Eeehhh! This is so messy and fun!

My Little Picasso

Noah's funk continued into the afternoon. During his OT session, he was not interested in participating in any of the activities Mrs. V suggested.

I'm just going to sit here in this cozy chair, if you don't mind.

Red. My favorite color. I'll just hang onto these, thank you.

Being a trained professional, Mrs. V had a great (and messy) idea to perk Noah up.

Squishy, messy hands. I love this.

Noah's work of art.

What's the Point

I don't know for sure, but I think that most mothers probably take for granted that their little ones point at things. According to the developmental charts, I think it should happen somewhere about 15 months. Noah was never a pointer. I was pretty good at the guessing game, so it never really bothered me because I pretty much knew what he wanted. It wasn't until we started therapy that I realized how big of a communication tool pointing is, and how important it was for Noah to do it.

And now at 22 months, he is finally pointing, and I love it. I am so proud of him.

And everytime he points to something, I am very quick to acknowledge what he is pointing at.

And of course, if he is pointing to something he wants, whether it is something he usually gets to have or not, I almost always give it to him.

Because really, shouldn't good communication be rewarded?

You know, he's a pretty smart boy. I wonder how long until he figures it out and starts using this to his advantage.

All Done

Noah woke up yesterday feeling much better. We still headed to the doctor just make sure. After some blood work revealed it was a virus, we headed home sans meds to continue our weekend of rest and relaxation. Noah is feeling much better, and I couldn't help but share these pictures of the yumminess that is Noah communicating.

I think I mentioned that the speech therapist is trying to teach him a few signs, and he doesn't really seem that interested in using them. There have been a few times that he has begrudgingly done them, but only because he realizes that she will not let him go until he gives her something. We have been laughing at his attempts to sign "all done." The sign she is teaching him is to swipe his hands together in front of him. It reminds me of the motions made by the blackjack dealer during a shift change at the casino. Noah has put his own twist to the sign, and I was so happy to catch it on camera today.

All.

Done.

I wonder where he gets his flair for drama from?

A Day of Rest

After Noah's initial testing, I decided not to be that mom who said, "nothing is wrong with my child." I also didn't want to be that mom who totally freaks out either. And, although I did have a week or two of panic over Noah's delay, I'd like to think I settled somewhere in the middle.

I mentioned earlier that the state funded program had us on a waiting list. But as a mom, when someone tells you that your child needs this, this, and this, waiting lists are not what I want to hear. Dean and I decided to start right away with private therapy. Because really, when you sign up for having kids did anyone say that they would be cheap? So, we enrolled Noah in both private speech therapy and private occupational therapy (OT). Now for those of you who have met Noah, you may be wondering why he needs occupational therapy. While Noah is quite adept at any and all types of motor skills, the occupational therapy is there to help him attend better to tasks. So, with referrals in hand, off we go to speech for an hour three times a week, and OT for an hour twice a week. After a week of sessions, Noah is really starting to improve, and I am learing so many things to help our play at home. After about a month, the state funded services finally kick in. This means that while we already have something 5 days a week, we are now adding an additional speech for 30 minutes one day a week, an additional OT one day a week, and a teacher that comes to our house once a week. Confused yet? My IPhone calendar is overloaded, and it is the only way I am able to keep our schedule straight. Good thing I don't have anything else to do in Miami.

So, here is how we fit everything in.

• Monday: Speech Therapy (1hr) 1:00 PM
• Tuesday: OT (1hr) 2:00 PM
• Wednesday: Speech Therapy (1hr) 1:00 PM
• Thursday: Teacher (1hr) 8:00 AM, OT (30min) 11:00 AM, OT (1hr) 3:00 PM
• Friday: Speech Therapy (1hr) 1:00 PM
• Saturday: Speech Therapy (30min) 9:30 AM

Somewhere in the middle of this schedule, we manage to fit in a few meetup playdates, My Gym classes, naps in his crib, naps in the car, lunches on the go, and somehow, we get it all done.

Today is Sunday. A day of rest. A day of reflection and pray. And, a day to thank God for this beautiful little boy who has blessed and enriched our lives in so many ways, and although our weeks are now full, I am so happy and proud to be able to offer our little guy the help he needs to be the best person he can be.

What He Does

Blows kisses with a big "maa" sound. Sings "Old McDonald" - the "E-I-E-I-O" and cow sounds. Finish the verses to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" - "star," "are," "high," "sky." Climbs into his highchair by himself for food. Does the hand motions to "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Open Shut Them." Matches colors. Knows A B C and 1 2 3. Rocks shape sorters. Says "more." Signs "all done" - very dramatic using his full body. Makes eye contact really well. Uses food as a vehicle for ketchup. Loves to be tickled. Says "tickle, tickle." Says animal sounds - "moo" (sounds like "baa"), "tweet, tweet," "urrhh (for elephant with arm to nose for a trunk), "meow." Plays trains with sounds - "chugga, chugga." Loves to play in his Thomas tent. Examines new toys before deciding whether or not to play with them. Approves bites of food with a look before taking a bite. Shares his snacks. Repeats words and sounds - "Pa Pa," "Outside." Babbles constantly. Runs really fast. Says "uh, uh" for no while shaking his head. Protests when corrected. Holds out his foot to put his shoe on. Climbs really well. Climbs into his stroller when I say "let's go." Wrestles on the floor. Definitely not a comprehensive list, but Noah is doing so well with therapy that I really wanted to jot down some of the new things he does.

Keep On Keepin' On

We are knee deep in therapy over here, and I finally have a good reason to put my IPhone calendar to use. Noah is doing well and aside from the days when therapy coincides with naptime, he is really enjoying it. What’s not to love… bubbles, coloring, play-doh, blocks, and a nice lady to meet his every need? I honestly think that Noah’s favorite part of going to sessions is playing in the school’s playground before and after. There is a huge sandbox with tons of toys, and you definitely know where this is going. I am having to be pretty diligent that he doesn’t take off with one of the rakes, and more than once, I have had a preschooler come up to me and say, “he’s not sharing,” only to look over and find Noah hoarding an assortment of about 5 rakes and shovels.

Last week, Noah had a hearing test to rule out any hearing loss as the cause of his speech delay. There was no loss, but the audiologist did find some fluid in his ears. We went to the pediatrician this morning to make sure that the fluid was from last week’s cold and not something that was still hanging around. His ears were clear, and it was nice to chat with the pedi about what is going on with Noah. She was really supportive of the speech therapy and told us that it can only help and to keep doing it.

Noah has definitely become more verbal and is babbling nonstop. He has also become more aware and his receptive language is definitely improving. I am not sure if it is a result of the therapy or just a part of him closing in on 2, but I’ll take it.

Here are a few things worth noting:

• Noah is cutting his first set of molars with one out. So, that’s nine teeth out, and how many more teeth to go?


• He loves to color and sat at the kitchen table today with crayons and coloring books. It was so precious.
  
  
• He is making some animal sounds. Tweet, tweet for bird, meow for cat, and doo-da, doo- da, doo-da, doo for penguin. OK… so penguins don’t really go doo-da, doo, but he mimics me, and it is adorable.


• He fills-in-the-blank to twinkle twinkle little star and sometimes to the EIEIO in Old McDonald.


• On the count of three, he calls for Daddy. It comes out soft and sweet like a “Da,” and I love it.

Busy Learning

Not much blogging lately since 1. my camera is in the shop and 2. we have been quite busy playing and learning. Noah had an evaluation with the Early Intervention Program last week to address his speech delay. The test results weren’t really that big of a surprise. He excelled in both fine and gross motor skills. He also did really well in personal/social skills. It was definitely no surprise he did poorly on both the communication and cognitive parts of the eval. He qualified for therapy services, and the program is trying to expedite our case (there's a waiting list), but they still said it would be about 30 days. With knowledge in hand, Dean and I decided to not delay, and Noah just completed his first week of private lessons with a speech pathologist.

So, what are we doing? Right now, Noah and I meet with a speech pathologist three times a week. Sessions pretty much consist of lots of playing for Noah and a good bit of homework for Momma. Some of the “homework” we are practicing at home is introducing activities, anticipating words and actions, closing out activities, some simples signs (more, all done), and noisy and symbolic play. He is doing really well with the word anticipation and sound effects. Just yesterday, while playing cars, we took turns moving the cars, “up…up…up…up” one side of the ramp, and “dooowwwnn” the other. After showing him the action with the verbal cues several times, I started to pause after the final “up,” and wait for him to respond. I was hoping for merely a smile showing me he was ready for the next part. Not only did I get a smile, I got a “down.” Well, it didn’t really sound exactly like “down,” but there was a d-sound in there, and I definitely knew what he meant. What a great start for our first week. I am so proud of my sweet boy.

My hardest thing at home is keeping Noah to focus on activities for a period of time. We are working on it, and I am finding that he is enjoying coloring, playing trains and trucks, and reading books the most. This is definitely a parenting adjustment for me. I am not totally a pushover, but in some areas (like toys and playing), I let Noah rule the show. My sister likes to remind me of this story from when Noah was just a newborn.

When he was a mere three days old, I was holding my sweet baby boy after one of his many daily feedings. I struggled to get him to burp. I was having very little success, and with the innocence that only a new first time Momma can, I held him up to eye level, and said in a sing-song voice, “this is a no-pressure household, if you don’t want to burp, you don’t have to burp.” Seriously, those were my exact words and then I cuddled him against my chest. Just my luck, Nanny Aunt Mo was visiting her sweet little nephew at the time and witnessed the whole thing.

Well, the whole “no pressure” thing has now come back to bite me on the butt. That is the way I’ve handled the toys and playtime. No pressure. The toys were previously spread out all over the apartment with no cleanup required. And, playtime, well, it was whatever toy Noah wanted to play with at whatever time. He could play his heart out. Well, at least until the next best thing came along, and for Noah that is pretty quickly. It has never been more evident to me than it has in the last three days as I’ve tried to rein him in during playtime. Man, he jumps from activity to activity. So, I ran to Target on Monday and purchased some adorable DIY shelving. Now, the majority of his toys are picked up and organized. Let the playing begin.

So, Dean and I are feeling really good about all the positive steps we are taking to improve Noah’s speech and communication. I am working hard during the day, and I have enrolled Noah back in a gym program. I plan on attending more meetups with my mom’s group and getting him around more kids. Dean is also making it a point to head home in time for some playtime most days. With all our efforts, we should have our little man talking in no time. Wish us luck!