Sam Starts SPEECH!

Yes, I am excited about Sam starting speech.  Since middle of last year, we noticed that Sam was not as clear as we would like him to be.  Joseph has been crystal clear since pretty much birth so it makes Sam's slurred speech more apparent to us.  Last year the speech therapist at Head Start said that she saw what we were talking about but that his speech was still in the normal range and the sounds he was not producing were still age appropriate.  This year though he qualifies for SPEEDY SPEECH!  I love speedy speech, it is a great program because there isn't any paperwork involved. Hopefully he will get the speech help he needs and will be better prepared for Kindergarten!  I can't believe he will go to Kindergarten next fall. 

Two weeks ago Sam had a OT and PT evaluation at our private clinic (Sam does have an OT/PT come do checks on him at school, but they don't see a need for services at this time).  Sam had his last OT evaluation in May and we hadn't had a PT evaluation for a year!  I was really excited and a little nervous to see how he was fairing because honestly we just had a relaxing summer and we didn't purposely work on anything.  Last May Sam was overall two months behind on the OT evaluation.  This time Sam was FOUR MONTHS AHEAD!  He really is doing great, I was so happy to hear that our OT felt like he was just doing so well.  Last year we really pushed his "life skills" because that was an area of concern, I really have to rethink what I do for him, it is a constant struggle.  There was a time where I had four little people that needed me to help them get ready and now to have NO ONE is just a weird thing.  Sam is getting very good at his "life skills".  He can even do buttons now, he uses his chest to stabilize but he does a really good job with buttons. Last winter he needed help with his coat and gloves, so this year I am hoping he can zip his own coat and get that lefty glove on.  Our OT suggested that we come back for a check in May to make sure we were on track for Kindergarten in the fall.  If Sam needs any help then we can use the summer to get his all ready.

I was really worried how the PT evaluation would go.  For two reason; first because I didn't really know what he was supposed to be doing at this age and secondly because our last PT evaluation he was A YEAR behind.  He wasn't jumping, hopping on one leg, doing the balance beam, galloping, skipping and probably lots more I can't remember.  This year he rocked the PT evaluation.  I guess I hadn't really noticed how much he has gained in a year.  He jumps, skips, balances, hops on one leg and is just a really adventurous little man (though I hear almost daily that he can't do monkey bars, and this is SUPER upsetting for him).  I give Joseph and Head Start the credit for him being only 2 MONTHS BEHIND!  This is huge, the typical range for kids is four months in either direction, so we are really pleased that Sam is doing so well.  Sam will hop on his right leg forever, he loves to hop and hop and hop.  But he won't hop on just his left leg.  He tries but has a hard time doing more then a little hop at a time.  This summer he has gotten lots of jumping practice on the trampoline but even just on our stairs, since he turned four he now can jump off the fourth step (1 step per year!  It's my rule or Joseph would have broken his leg by now).  He loves to ride his bike and play outside.  I think just the everyday things have helped Sam so much with his gross motor skills.

Sam still has a UCB insert for his shoes.  We have such a hard time getting him to wear it.  I struggle with the brace so MUCH.  On one hand I know that he needs it.  But he is our shoeless man.  He HATES wearing shoes, he is THAT dirty little boy riding his bike bare footed all summer long, that is Sam.  So it is hard to always remind him to put his brace on in the summer months.  Now that he has gone a few months without wearing the brace he says it really hurts.  I guess standing on plastic all day would be a hard transition from bare footed grass walking or Crocs when absolutely necessary.  If I say anything to our doctor he says suggests duct taping his shoes so he can't take off the brace.  So he parents a little differently then we do, but I do understand the importance of the brace.  We must try harder, as it is cooling down, I think it will be easier to get the brace on.  We also have an appointment at the end of October so we will see if we get new braces then. 

Sam is playing his second season of soccer and as he told my mom last weekend when she asked why he wasn't playing in the game "I hate soccer!"  Daniel is his coach again and we haven't really been pushing him to play.  When he plays he is improving but mostly he likes to sit on the sidelines waiting for snack time.  We are going to keep him "playing" because soccer is a sport that he can actually get good at, and I think it is important for him to play a sport.  Sam is doing MUCH better going to school this year.  We had a little scare that he wasn't going to get to go to Head Start this fall.  We have a new director and since we don't income qualify for Head Start we were worried that he wouldn't get in.  But they have to take 10% of kids with a disability so he gets to go.  We have been so fortunate that he goes to Head Start.  Head Start is an amazing program, and his teachers are wonderful. 

Sam Update

Well Sam is FOUR now. Can't believe how fast time flies by. At the beginning of the school year he was so hesitant to get on the bus, most days I had to walk him to the bus or threaten he would have to take a nap if he stayed home. Made for some frustrating mornings but now he just gets on the bus like it isn't a big deal at all. Which is so nice, he even says that he misses "Grandma Ceciley" on non-school days. Grandma Ceciley is the classroom Grandma, she loves Sam and Sam loves her. She is 85 and I hope she comes back next year because Sam would be so sad if she "retired". Sam is shy in the classroom (which is surprising!), so we will have him stay in the same class next year.

Last month Sam was re-evaluated at OT. I wasn't there for the evaluation. Joseph had kindergarten round-up, so Daniel took Sam to therapy and I took Joseph to kindergarten round up. Sam did so good, SUPER good. Daniel said that Steph (OT) stopped doing the evaluation when he was doing over 60 month activities. Overall, though he was two months ahead. This has never happened for Sam. I remember when he was around two, he was a full year behind according to the evaluations. Just crazy to see how much he has grown and changed over the past two years. Samuel's previous evaluation he was two months behind, which is very common of even typical children. According to the school if a child is four months or less behind this is considered typical.

The most exciting news is that he doesn't even qualify for therapy. Kind of a double edge sword, but I am going to just look at the positives. He does qualify because of his diagnosis for check-ups, so every three-six months we will go in for reassessments. Which makes me happy because I really want to make sure that he continues to progress and that he is still age appropriate before kindergarten.

Sam know all of his letters besides "K" and "F" but he knows that it is either a "K" or an "F". He will often say people's names instead of the letter, or "Pirate" for P. When we say "NO, what letter is that?" He will say "P". This is how Joseph learned his letters too, which his teacher said is actually a good sign that reading will come easily for him. So I am hoping that Sam will take after Joseph, at least in the learning style. Joseph likes to do spelling with Anna, and asks me to ask him to spell different words (not that they are always right....but he is SUPER ready for school).

Sam is still our "mad scientist". He is constantly conducting experiments at home. One day he filled up the kitchen sink, gathered a bunch of items and was going to see which would sink or float. I had just assumed he did a similar experiment at school, but when I asked his teacher she said NOPE. They say he is always at the science center during play time. He loves to manipulate objects and see how they work.

Head Start has been amazing for Sam. I raved about Head Start when Anna went there, but for a child like Sam it is the perfect program for him. Because he wants to keep up with everyone, he is learning and growing so much. The other day he was showing me how he does the Crab Walk super fast. Instead of using both of his legs he puts his left leg on his right leg and then he can go super fast. At first I was like SAM use both legs, but then I started to think about all of the ways he has learned to compensate for his weakness and it is amazing how his little brain works. I stopped long ago trying to tell him how to do things. I remember two years ago when the therapist were pushing for him to place beads on the shoe lace. I tried to show him over and over how I thought he should do it. He struggled and struggled with doing it the way I was showing him. Then one day I saw him putting all the beads on the shoe lace without any help. He did it completely different then I was showing him, but he put every single one on without any help. Sam does things his own way, but he keeps up and doesn't seem to notice or care that he has to do things differently then the other kids. I pray that will always be the case.

Two things we will continue to work on; jackets and swimming. Sam loves to swim but he doesn't use his left arm at all in the water. Sam really struggles getting his left arm through his jacket. I am constantly saying "LEFT arm first" but he just doesn't seem to remember to do this, so I usually just help him. I am hoping that next year he will be a bit older and this will come. Over the summer we will practice swimming but if things don't improve I will find some swim therapy or swim lessons that hopefully will help him be more comfortable.

Besides that we are all doing great. I am almost done with school for the semester. I am not taking any classes over the summer. Next semester is my final semester before I apply to the nursing program. I am just trying to get super good grades so I get in. The program is competitive and a really good program. If all goes according to plan, I will start the Nursing Program when Samuel starts kindergarten. (and Lillian goes to middle school! CRAZY!) Will be a crazy year, but I am excited to be getting closer. I was talking to Daniel one night about my class schedule and about applying for the program. He was like OH we have lots of time before that, I was like NO only one semester. Just has gone by fast when I think about it. I will have a crazy semester in the fall. Last Chemistry, last Math, Anatomy, Physiology and Communications. Definitely my hardest semester, but got to just keep plugging away. We all are very excited for summer!!! Everyone starts soccer next week. I will post pictures of Sam playing. I think it will be really cute to see him play. He is aggressive by nature so I think he will have an easy time with it. A couple of our other kids I am not too sure how it will go over!!! Joseph has such a soft heart and Anna has her head in the clouds.....will make for some interesting games and practices. Daniel is coaching the boys team and Anna's team. He is very excited!!!

I know I rarely update this blog, with school and everything I just don't have the time I used too. But Daniel is constantly updating our family blog. So please stop by over there to see what things Samuel is up to.

School Update

Sam is really liking going to school. For the first couple months he would say he didn't want to go, and could he just stay home with me. I told him that he needed to go to school and that his teacher would miss him. He runs off the bus with a huge smile on his face, he loved going but was just reluctant to leave in the morning. Finally he loves school and wants to go in the mornings. He loves the food, loves the toys and even is making friends. We had his conference last week and his teacher said he is doing really good. He needs help getting his coat on but his teacher said that many of the three year olds do. She was really impressed with his adaptive measures. All of my concerns that I told her about in the beginning of the school year. Like toileting himself, washing hands, carrying his plate and cup to the sink he is doing all by himself.

Since going to school he has been able to take himself to the bathroom. We had been taking him because he was "too little". Now he tells us that he needs privacy and that he can do it all by himself. That alone has been such a HUGE difference. He has been much more independent and that has been nice.

One thing that he has struggled with is the first step on the bus. He was doing very good with his fall clothes on. Now that we have our big jacket and boots, he just can't seem to step high enough. The rail is on the left side, and he just can't seem to reach and step at the same time while wearing his jacket. When I ask him about getting on the bus he says OH NO I don't need help but he clearly does and can't get on without help. Coming off the bus he just jumps off that big bottom step. So if anyone has any suggestions please let me know!!!

STAIRS

I started this post two months ago. Sam had a physical therapy evaluation and the therapist mentioned that age appropriate stair stepping would be putting only one foot on a step at a time. Of course, I mentioned this to Sam's home based therapist, Daniel, and he went to work. After a couple of times practicing, Sam took to it right away.

Sam's Summer

I can't believe how fast this summer has gone by. As some of you that follow our family blog know we had a fabulous vacation in Delaware. Came home to a fire in our home. We lived in a hotel for three weeks while the house was being fixed and cleaned. We are getting settled into the house again and we have spent hours organizing, recleaning and shopping for the house.

Sam has had a great summer. He is for the most part accident free. The summer after being potty training has proven challenging for all of our kids. They get so busy playing that they just don't want to come inside to pee. Well, Sam solved this problem by peeing on our trees. I am the crazy mom yelling out the window "DON'T PEE ON THE TREE!" Sam thinks he is so funny for doing this.

Sam loves to ride his bike, catch bugs, jump on the trampoline and swim. We took a break from therapy this summer again, and I couldn't be happier with Sam getting the chance to just be a regular kid. One nice thing that has happened this summer is that Sam has gotten some individual finger isolation on his left hand. At church they sing lots of songs with hand movements, and this has helped him a TON with using his fingers. We still have a LONG way to go, but he really has made improvements.

The summer has not been without struggles. Sam LOVES to swim but he does not use his left hand/arm to paddle. Thankfully Sam's left leg is so minimally affected that he kicks both legs great, but he will not (unless prompted) use his left arm/hand to swim. He is all over the pool in his life jacket and will even jump into the pool without us helping him or catching him. Sam is in the stage where he wants to do everything by himself. SO we don't wear shoes a lot of the time and when we do have shoes on they are most likely backwards and of course that is how they were supposed to be put on. The only thing he wants us to do these days for him is pulling down his pants so he can go to the bathroom. For some reason he needs help with this because he is still "so little". Yes, we pee all by ourselves when we are peeing on a tree. Sam has been struggling more with supination, I actually don't think he is doing worse or has lost any range of motion. It is just becoming more noticeable as he gets older and is trying to do more big boy things. Just last night he was holding his flashlight with his right hand and didn't want to hold it with his left hand so he was trying to use his left hand to open the door. I couldn't figure out why he was crying in his room for us to open the door for him. Washing his hands is another area where supinating is hard for him. I think that supination will be something that he will work on for many years. It does not come easily for him.

All in all he is doing really well. In September Samuel will go to head start. We are super excited for him to have this experience. We go for a screening on the 25th. I am hoping that we find out what therapy services they have to offer him. I know that they have OT/PT there and I hope that he qualifies to receive the services. I know in the past they have said to qualify for an IEP he has to have a delay in two areas and since he only has delays in motor function he doesn't qualify. However, they talked about a 504 that he could receive services under if he qualifies. I really hope this is an option for him. No matter what happens with therapy at head start it will be a great help to him. He picked out a backpack and of course it has spiders all over it and he is SO excited to ride the little bus. Poor man had to watch Joseph get on that cute bus everyday and now he gets to go too. Joseph is excited that Sam is coming with him this year and is hoping that they can sit together. They will be in different classes though. Joseph is too protective of Sam and I want Sam to have to defend himself. Even if I am yelling at Sam, Joseph gets upset and just can't handle it. Sam will hit Joseph, bite Joseph and Joseph never will hit him back.

I am always sad when school comes but this year I really do think that it will be nice to get back into a routine. I am sure by October I will be wishing everyone was back home, but right now I think it will be a good change of pace.

This will be my first semester taking on campus classes and full time credits. That will be a new experience for me. Last night Daniel took me around campus to show me where my buildings are located and the fastest way to get to them. He graduated with his MBA from the university that I am going to as well, so he knows the ins and outs. One thing that he never had to deal with was student parking, he had a faculty parking pass during his time there so he was helping me figure out what lot to park in as he made me carry my backpack to practice! Crazy man. As we were walking Lillian said "Mom you don't really look like a college student." I was like "I KNOW! I am old. Don't remind me." She did say I didn't look too old but made me a little more nervous. Daniel said that kids think everyone is old. Lillian was like "NO DAD, mom isn't old but she doesn't look like a college student either." RUDE. Maybe as I am walking around everyone will think I am a grad student not the second semester freshmen that I am. I keep just thinking about the end. I really want to be a nurse. I know I will be good at it. I would never of wanted to be a nurse when I graduated from high school, so being old is good. Life experiences change us. I am so grateful for my husband . I am taking a pre-college algebra class this semester. Basically you have to take the class or test out. When I was registering Daniel thought I should test out. I basically said it has been 12 years since I took a math class I would never pass the test. After I went to get my books I looked at the first page of the algebra textbook and didn't understand one thing on that page. Daniel looked too, now Daniel had to take many college math classes. Luckily, I have only two. He said well I hope you use the math lab on campus for any questions because I can't remember a whole lot. That is just like him though he thinks I can do anything and I really appreciate that about him.

Riding a Bicycle

Sam has really caught on with riding his bike. One of Sam's therapist gave Sam this super cute trike, and he LOVES it. This bike fits him perfectly. It is nice to see him riding with all the other kids. Yes, he is riding bare foot. This child is all boy, from not wanting to wear shoes to peeing on the trees in our yard. He certainly has been keeping us on our toes this summer!

Plastic Pant Punishment

As I have talked about before Sam has had some poop issues. I wish I could say that I was more patient but I was getting very close to my breaking point. Two things cause me to loose it, kids not going to bed and poopy pants. The kid can go pee by himself no help needed, but was still pooping his pants. A friend of mine suggested getting those training pants for him because they are not comfortable. Well it worked! I told him that anytime he poops in his pants he would have to wear the plastic pants, because we had no more pull ups in our whole house (if you ever saw my stockpile this is SHOCKING....I think I had 60 packs at one point). You should of seen his face!!! He was completely grossed out. Here is how the conversation went:

Mom proceeding to put on plastic underwear "Sam we are all out of pull ups. Now if you poop in your pants you will have to wear these plastic pants so I can wash them."

Sam totally disgusted "Mom, these hurt me. I don't like these."

Mom "Well we can't have anymore poopy underwear so these we can wash."

Sam "I think my poop is coming right now."

Mom "OH GREAT!"

That was that a HUGE success!!! I hope it keeps up.

"I'm BIG now!"

Here is a video of Sam putting on his pants.