Weekend pics

Water boy


Lucy lovin' Daddy

Did I say we weren't getting the house?

Apparently, I was wrong. You heard me--we are now getting the house! We decided we will put our current house on the market (in several weeks, after we've moved to the other place and also done a bit of fix-up work on this house). I packed four boxes tonight in my excitement. (By the way, "tonight" is Wednesday, but I probably won't post this for several days, seeing as I've already said "we might get it," "we're getting it!" and "nevermind, we're not getting it" in a short span, so I'd like to be sure if I'm going to post another change of plan.) Why didn't we do the selling-our-house thing in the first place, you ask? Well, it isn't the greatest market to try and sell and we also think it would be great in the long run to have two properties, but it just won't work right now. But now I'm excited all over again about the new house! Three bedrooms--yay! New decorating--yay!

I have fabric for Lucy's crib bedding, and I sent it to my mom today (now Friday) so she can make the bumper and bed skirt. Here's the bed skirt:


I can come up with the ideas like this, but I have a harder time executing them and figuring out how to get to the end product when starting with just a strip of fabric. My mom's good at that. I have some super cute pink and green fabrics, including the paisley I found several months ago.

Yay for new plans!

Fun with captions

Nate: "Maybe if I smile, Mama won't notice the right hook..."
Lucy: "Go ahead. Make my day."


"90th percentile, really?"


"Ahoy, matey!"

Summer fun

Nate and I love summer! Sun, the hose, and a bucket or two--all you need for at least an hour of fun.

Numbers

Nate's favorite thing lately has been to point to all the numbers he can find when we go on walks (house numbers, numbers on signs, etc.). On our walk today, he saw a 6 on a post. He pointed to it and said his version of "six" (not anywhere close). I agreed. Then he stopped walking and put his hands on the ground so he could turn his head upside down.

"Nine!" he exclaimed. It was so cute.



Here he is being a comedian before his nap today.

News alert

Well.

Big change of plans: we aren't going to get the house. The numbers came back on what our payments would be on the new place. Both these numbers and the numbers on our current house were higher than what we had been expecting based on what we'd been told. We knew doing the two properties was going to be a stretch, and we were prepared for that, but not that much of a stretch. So, when I got home from doing Super Suppers (I love that place!) on Thursday night, Jon told me we aren't going to get the house. I really respect and admire Jon's wisdom and good sense in matters like these. I also really was glad that he was willing to be the one to tell our realtor (I have a real guilt complex and hate having other people mad at/disappointed in me)! :)

Of course, I am disappointed. Having three bedrooms was going to be so wonderful! I was so excited about decorating Lucy's room and about having her in a separate room during the night, as I know I sleep better that way. I was excited about getting to decorate a whole new house. I knew Nate would love having a staircase. But I am also relieved. I was nervous about committing to spending so much more per month on housing. We made a leap of faith when we first bought our current house several years ago, and God really did provide for us. We were trusting that He would provide in this circumstance, too, but we also realized that he gave us common sense and financial wisdom for a reason: we are still supposed to make intelligent decisions as we are stewards of the money He gives us. This would have been more than we could afford, no matter how you look at it.

Thinking we were going to move inspired me into a spring cleaning of sorts; I had already started "purging" on Thursday as kind of a pre-packing thing, gathering about 20 books to give away or throw away (and those were just my own books--Jon has more than I do, but I'll let him choose which ones not to keep). So I am going to keep up the cleaning/organizing/purging, and I may even paint one of our rooms a new color or something to get excited again about living in our cozy, lovely, happy house for a while longer (we don't know how long).

E-mail

I am having trouble with my Cox e-mail address and am only receiving some of my e-mails, so if you have e-mailed me and I haven't responded, I probably didn't get the e-mail. E-mail me at my gmail address for now (and if you don't know that, it's the same as my hotmail address, if that helps).

I'm working on a long post. For now, here is sweet Lucy yesterday afternoon:

Big family update

Nate
Now that he is mostly adjusted to the enzymes, Nate is back to his usually-chipper self and is even doing better at therapy. This morning, he gave his therapist a hug when she came out to get him, and then he walked with her away from me (usually, he wants me to hold him and doesn't want to let go, and then he'll reach begrudgingly for the therapist and often will cry as she takes him away. Sometimes he still waves goodbye to me while he's crying--it's cute but sad). Will, Nate's in-home ABA therapist, mentioned yesterday that Nate is attempting much more vocalization and did really well yesterday with transitions, which have been the hardest thing for him. (Nate doesn't like changing activities, especially if it means he has to stop doing something he likes. In general, he just hates being told what to do.)



Nate's favorite things to do as of late are play with his puzzles, point out any numbers he sees (he knows 1-10 and at least tries to say them all; two is "boo," three is "ee," seven is "asha," and nine sounds pretty close), play with a toy he got for his birthday--cars and a track with a loop-de-loop, go on walks, wrestle with Jon, and kiss Lucy's head.

Lucy
Luce slept 8 hours again last night--woo hoo! She's taking a great nap right now too. Oh, and I've caught her doing this funny thing with her thumb several times. It is exactly what my mom does! Must be genetic.



Also, I've noticed Lucy definitely has the "45-minute intruder," as described in Babywise. She is taking a good nap and then wakes up after 45 minutes. I let her stir/fuss for a while, and then she goes back to sleep and sleeps deeply for at least another hour. I don't remember noticing Nate doing this, but I also hadn't read the book yet then. ;)

The house
It's a deal! (Don't you love how I waited until the third section to tell you that?) Escrow opened today, and if all goes as planned, we'll have the keys on July 11 or so--just before we head to Virginia for a week of family visiting. I already have some boxes, so I'm hoping to get started on packing tonight.

Because we're keeping our current house to rent out, we are doing a 100% loan for the condo. This means a higher payment per month than what we've been doing on the house, so we are going to have to cut down on quite a few of our luxuries. We go out to eat at least twice a week (lunch after church on Sundays and usually one other weekend meal, if not more). We have cable TV and DVR, fast/nice internet, cell phones, gym membership, Starbucks addiction (Jon), eBay addiction (me)... Reevaluating our budget has made me see that we really do live comfortably (especially considering I get to stay at home with the children), even if we don't seem to compared to many of our Orange County neighbors. God has really blessed us! And I am praying that He will guide us through this next phase as we trust in His provision.

Here is some more info on our new house!
- It's in Laguna Hills, just about 5 miles from our current house.
- It is in a pretty condo community that is just behind the church where Jon and I got married (near the intersection of Lake Forest and Moulton, for those of you familiar with the area).
- Jon will have a little bit longer drive to work each day (but tacking 5 minutes onto an already-40-minute-without-traffic drive isn't the end of the world I guess)..
- We are 5 minutes closer to church.
- I think we'll put Nate in the upstairs bedroom and put Lucy in the room next to ours downstairs. Nate is still in his crib (and loves it), so we'll probably set up his crib and his "big boy bed" in the new room and let him choose. If he chooses the crib, we'll probably wait a few weeks to transition him to the bed and then put a gate on his door so he can't go out of his room during the night.

Well, I have just used up all of nap time! :)

House

The deal is looking good on the house. They counteroffered, and we made a few small changes to that and signed our counteroffer last night. I'm hoping that's the end of it and we'll have a deal today!

Two quick updates

We put our offer in on the house last night and should hear back tomorrow morning! I'm assuming we'll receive a counteroffer and then will go from there. If it works out, we're asking for a 15-day escrow, which means we'd be moving soon (early-mid July).

Also, I realized I haven't written much about Lucy lately. She's doing great. She is consistently sleeping at least 6 hours at night, but she has gone as long as 8 and a half. She did 7 and a half last night. And then she is doing much better at going right back down to sleep after the night-time nursing; she sleeps in the morning until 8:00 or so. At her 2-month appointment earlier this month, she weighed 10 pounds 12 ounces (50th percentile), and her length was 50th percentile (I can't remember the inches number though). She is smiley and precious! Oh, and she has started talking and cooing more, which is really cute.

Here's Nate watching his wonderful Daddy do yard work today on Father's Day.

For Kara Johnson

Nate is saying "go" when Jon stops and he wants more. :)

There are no other offers on the house, so we're meeting with our realtor tonight to put one together. I'm already dreaming of how to decorate the place!

Hunting results

We saw six condos last night. Three were automatically disqualified (one because it had no outdoor play space for the kids; the second because it had a large array of "just not right" things about it, including the stairwell's walls that were covered with jutting-out, small rocks, and a set of doors downstairs that opened into what I expected would be the laundry or a closet but ended up being the cavernous underbelly of the house; and the third because it had way too much expensive work it needed done, like a complete kitchen remodel, some new floors, and bathroom remodels). Of the remaining three, two were the same model (about 1250 square feet) and one was a bit bigger (about 1400 square feet). All had three bedrooms. The bigger home had wonderful sized bedrooms, good floor plan (master bedroom on main floor and other two bedrooms downstairs together), and a great living space, but a borderline terrible kitchen, a strange/tiny "eat-in" area that wouldn't fit a table and chairs, and cosmetic ugliness (needed new floors, scraped ceilings, and lighting). The smaller models had a less desirable floor plan (one child bedroom on main floor, with master bedroom and second child bedroom downstairs) but overall were the best choices. We ended up liking the very first one we saw the best. And, incidentally, it was the lowest priced house of them all!

Here's the kitchen, which is much more open than our current one (yay!):


I would want to get new countertops eventually and at least reface the cabinets because they aren't in the best shape. Also, I'm thinking we could perhaps find (or have built) a skinny desk for our computer that could fit in the corner where they have the table/wine bottles. Otherwise, we could do some sort of built-in cabinets there since it is otherwise just wasted space.


Once we saw the second house that is the same floor plan as this one, we realized that this house (the one we like) knocked out the wall between the kitchen and living area, which we love. Here's the (rather terrible) kitchen in the other house (you can also see the front door to the right, and by the front door is the upstairs bathroom to one side and the upstairs bedroom to the other, behind the kitchen):



Other good things about our choice house: a wonderful skylight above the stairs that lets in lots of natural light; recessed lights throughout; scraped ceilings; open kitchen; lots of grassy area behind; an enclosed patio in the front for "kid play"; very close (100 yards or less) to a park with slides, swings, etc.

We should find out today if there are any other offers on the house, which will help determine whether we will even make an offer.

Hunting

Jon and I are going to see several homes for sale this evening. They are 3-bedroom condos (one is a 4-bedroom) in a price range that would make it possible for us to keep our current house (rent it out) and also live in a place that is big enough for our growing family. I don't mind having our kids share a room, but it doesn't really work until the younger (Lucy) is at least a year old. Anyway, I'll let you know if we find anything worth blogging about.

Enzyme update

It has been about two and a half weeks since we started the enzymes, and I think we are through the worst of the adjustment period. Late last week, I found out that the best way to give them to Nate is just get it over with using a medicine syringe instead of sneaking them into his food. He was starting not to trust me when I fed him (seriously), which was sad. Now he knows he just has to drink the medicine I give him (enzyme powder mixed with juice), then I cheer for him and he's done. I had mentioned last week that his "physical symptoms" were better, but I was wrong; his diapers are still worse, which actually is a good sign (means his body is getting rid of all the bad stuff that has been in there). In general, Nate is returning to his happy self, and I'm very hopeful that he'll be even better than his happy self in the coming weeks, perhaps communicating more, obeying when I tell him to do something, and even saying a new word or two (or more?).

Hilarious

Weekend

This weekend (over Friday night), Jon, Lucy, and I went with a big group to some friends' lake house a couple of hours away. Jon went wakeboarding twice (and has the major soreness to prove it), and Lucy showed off in her cute suit. Nate stayed with Jon's parents and sister. I love having family so close by and so willing to watch and love our kids.

Proactive parenting

The first book I read about autism had a section devoted to parents being advocates for their children. I read it but didn't realize how much it would apply to me, even here in affluent Orange County. I'm finding I have to be extremely proactive in making calls and following up to make sure things get done for Nate. Basically, no one else loves my son like I love him.

It was three months after Nate's initial evaluation through the state before he ever started therapy. Now at his therapy, which I am happy with overall, PECS (the picture system I wrote about over two months ago) still hasn't been implemented (should be this month).

Interestingly, a two-part article came out in the Orange County Register last week about how Orange County's regional center has "the worst complaint record with regards to services provided" in the entire state. Two days after the first installment came out, I received a call from Nate's RCOC caseworker--the first call in six months. (We are having a new IFSP meeting. IFSP stands for Individualized Family Service Plan; these change to IEPs--Individualized Education Plans--when Nate turns three.)

The "private sector" hasn't been any better. The neurologist, who is part of an organization dedicated to helping children with autism in Orange County, diagnosed Nate back in March. At the evaluation, she/the organization recommended Nate get a new speech evaluation (for therapy through our insurance in addition to what he's getting through the state) and get some bloodwork done; they would be taking care of getting the referrals and getting all the information together. Once the end of April rolled around and I still hadn't heard anything, I started making calls. We finally got a speech evaluation scheduled (it happened today after two reschedulings), but, five calls later, I still haven't received the information for getting the lab work. There's more annoyingness and calls and dropped balls, but I won't bore you. :)

Speaking of that speech evaluation, we went this morning to Speech Pathology Associates, which is here in Irvine (which I'm very excited about), and we spent a little over an hour with the head speech pathologist for her to evaluate Nate. It was the same woman who sat in on his neurology appointment in March, and I like her a lot. It is obvious she loves children and enjoyed Nate. She listened to me as if I knew what I was talking about and my knowledge mattered (which, of course, it does, but not all doctors operate that way). She agreed with me that Nate has good receptive language; he identified most of the objects she asked him to point out (but he didn't understand categorizing: when she put a little bed in front of him in addition to a few other objects and asked where we sleep, he didn't know). Nate behaved well and in general is doing so much better with eye contact, referencing (looking up during play), etc. He showed off by expertly completing a puzzle she brought out for him. At the end, the doctor said she'd like to have Nate come in twice a week (I'm not sure if that's two hours or two half hours--probably two hours). She has to complete her report and submit it to our insurance for approval, and then Nate should start his therapy there in two or three weeks. :)

Play time

I love how Lucy wonders what is going on when Nate plays with her and pokes her...





And these are my new favorite pictures of her (they're clickable so you can see them bigger):

Zoo

Today was Nate's first trip to the zoo--and Lucy's first time too, of course. I think Lucy enjoyed it more than Nate did. I'm being facetious, but only a little bit. Nate just isn't himself while his body is trying to adjust to these enzymes.





We did see lots of monkeys, birds, and barnyard animals.



Nate's cousins fed goats and sheep, and Nate finally got brave enough to try it once (though Nate is usually not the shy one in a bunch, he definitely is a bit skittish around animals, and he was especially today since he has been feeling/acting poorly).

Nate and Lucy, compared

I'm noticing some funny similarities and differences between Nate and Lucy. Though I often hear how you aren't supposed to compare your children, I think it's fun and harmless as long as it isn't "A is the good one and B is the bad one."

Nate used to turn his head only one way. He could turn it the other way, but he really preferred the one way (to his right). Lucy does the same thing and it's also to the same side!

Nate at two months:


Lucy at nearly two months:


Nate loved the "fencer pose"--hands in fists with one arm straight out and the other bent with the fist by the head. Lucy does this too. I think it's so cute!

Nate:


Lucy:


Edited to add: I almost forgot one of the cutest similarities! Nate used to do this cute little sigh every time after he sneezed. Lucy does it too, but with a little more gusto. I caught the tail end of one of her "episodes" back on May 22:



Other similarities are interesting but not so funny...

Nate was a spitter upper, as they call them. Lucy is too. Many moms would change their shirt if their child spit up on it; I don't... why would I? The next shirt would probably be soiled by the next feeding anyway.

Nate's eyes were often watery, and I'm finding that Lucy's are too. (Nate ended up with a clogged tear duct for over six months, so one of his eyes was always watery, but I hope that doesn't happen to Lucy.)

Other similarities: both pacifier babies, both good sleepers (Nate especially so, but Lucy isn't too bad), both have sensitive tummies.

As far as differences, I think Nate liked nursing more than Lucy does. She just can't quite get the hang of it and tends to like the bottle better (Jon has been giving her a bottle of pumped milk every night before her bed time). Nate loved being swaddled and slept that way until he was four months old; Lucy was swaddled for less than a week and prefers sleeping on her tummy (don't tell the doctor!).

Nate:


Lucy:


Nate:


Lucy:


Lucy today doing what infants do (not much):


Bye!

Small picture (today) and big picture (five years)

Today has been another hard day with Nate so far. He is beginning to refuse the enzymes, no matter what way I give them to him. (At first he did fine with the applesauce, but it does make it taste funny, and he noticed. I've also tried juices; baby food fruit; peanut butter; and just today I made a chocolate wafer by melting chocolate chips, putting the enzymes in, and freezing the chocolate. I thought he would love this, but he threw a fit and wouldn't eat it or any of his lunch instead.)

On a much happier note, today is Jon's and my fifth anniversary. It's funny how life's circumstances sometimes take over and things like anniversaries get lost in the fray, but I do think Jon and I are going to go out to dinner tonight (one of my very favorite activities). Here are some of my favorite memories from the past five years...

- Our second anniversary trip to Solvang, where we went wine tasting and took leisurely drives in the countryside.
- The births of our children and getting to experience them together. Jon is terrific under pressure and a great support. During my labor with Nate, Jon wiped my face with a washcloth and held his breath at the same time I did while I pushed. With Lucy, we didn't have time for a washcloth, but Jon did nearly hyperventilate while breathing with me.
- Working on our house together when we first bought it in January 2003. This is one of those things that was mostly terrible when it was happening, but looking back on it is nice, and it reveals the growth and togetherness it fostered. We scraped the ceilings (I sprayed water and Jon scraped) and painted nearly every paintable surface before we even moved in.
- Our trip to Germany to visit Nate and Louise in September 2004.
- Jon's 27th birthday, when I surprised him with a racecar driving package (he got to take a racing class and drive a stock car at the California Superspeedway).
- The weekend cruise we took with Neil and Casey in October 2004.
- 4th of July 2005 in Virginia and the fireworks show Jon, my brother, and my cousin's husband Adam put on for us. Nate was two months old and slept through the night for the first time while we were on this trip.
- There are many more wonderful memories, and I am so thankful we have more time to make many more!

Update

I kept Nate's fever controlled with medicine today, and he seemed fine for most of the day. I'm praying he's much better tomorrow.

It's hard to know how much of his behavior yesterday and today was from being sick and how much might be "regression" spurred by the enzymes. I've noticed quite a bit more stimming and repetitive behaviors, both things that had improved over the past month or two. Today he wanted to watch one of his videos over and over again (I didn't let him; I kept trying to divert his attention all day by playing other things with him, going on a walk, etc. He would play with me for a few minutes but then run back to the TV to ask to watch the video again. This happened well over a dozen times today. My saying no yet again to the video this evening started a long meltdown). This regression is to be expected if I go with what the book says, but it also means that it should get markedly better before too long (yay! and can I add, quickly, please?). If I knew for sure that it would get better and on exactly which day, it would make this current phase much easier! If I knew I just had to survive, say, two and a half weeks of meltdown-filled days, I would be much more sure than I am now. All of that said, I do still think this is going to work. I think Nate's physical signs are good (his diapers already seem more "normal"--TMI). It's just time for me to pray and trust in Him. :)

Asleep

It's 9:15 a.m. and Nate is still asleep. Normally this would make me jump for joy (or, more accurately, roll over under the covers for joy), but he's asleep because he's sick. He came down with an all-of-a-sudden fever in the nursery during AWANA last night. Jon gave him some children's ibuprofen at 5:30 this morning, which is why he's still asleep. Anyway, I'm hoping he has the same thing his two cousins had last week, which seemed to be just a 24-hour thing and included no throwing up (please, please no throwing up). All of this shouldn't be enzyme related (though, speaking of enzymes, I'm seeing signs that they are working well).

Lucy needs me, so I'm off!

Enzyme update

I'm holding Lucy in one arm and typing with the other, so this will be short. So far, the enzymes seem to be going well! Nate's diapers have seemed a bit worse, which means the enzymes were needed and are working (cleaning out his system). His behavior has also seemed worse; however, there has been something non-enzyme-related (trip one day to Hesperia where we stayed in a strange place; 30-minute nap one day) each day that also could explain the behavior. Today we're up to a half capsule of Zyme Prime at breakfast and a full capsule at dinner. We'll be up to a full capsule at all three meals by Saturday, and then I'll start Peptizyde (half capsule with dinner) either Saturday or Sunday.

Enzymes

The enzymes came today. I gave a half capsule of Zyme Prime to Nate with dinner tonight (but he had no idea--I mixed it into his applesauce). That's how the manufacturer recommends starting--do enzymes with dinner for a few days, then breakfast and dinner, and eventually all meals. I'll probably wait a week or so before starting the Peptizyde the same way.

Cute girl

I have taken a few pictures of Lucy that make her look like my sister! I think this one does:


What do you think, those of you who would know (Mama, Nannie, etc.)?

I love this little outfit and her sweet smile (and Nate's humongous hand).

Enzymes 101

I finished reading Enzymes for Autism over the weekend and ordered two types of enzymes for Nate last night. I am really excited about the possibility that these are going to help Nate a lot.

Here is a basic rundown of how I understand enzymes. Enzymes are catalysts in our bodies, and one thing they do is aid in digestion by breaking foods down. Our bodies make them, and raw foods contain them too. There is a trend that many (most?) people with autism and similar conditions also have digestive/gut issues. DeFelice writes, "This may be due to a real unidentified biological issue which is manifesting in problematic behavior." Because of these gut issues, many people with autism are put on a gluten- and casein-free diet (no wheat or dairy), and this seems to help when followed 100% (though strict adherence to the diet is very difficult, as many, many items contain gluten). However, what if, instead of removing food after food, you instead supply the person's body with the enzymes it needs to break down gluten, casein, and the other foods that have caused problems?

DeFelice found that a large majority of people (over 85%) with autism/PDD who began taking enzymes and participated in her study saw a marked improvement in/disappearance of "autistic" behavior: increased eye contact, increased language, increase in foods tolerated and foods accepted by child's choice, improved transitioning (changing activities/unexpected change in schedule), improved socialization, increased awareness. What is the connection? How can sprinkling some enzymes on someone's food every time he/she eats lead to changes in behavior? Here's what DeFelice writes:

"A fundamental issue is the fact that there is an extensive nerve network (the enteric nervous system) running along the entire gastrointestinal tract. So anything that affects the gut directly affects the nerves. This leads to digestive enzymes having a direct impact on neurology. In addition, the largest part of the immune system in our body is in the mucosal lining on the frontlines of the gut.... Many people with neurological difficulties also have general digestive problems, leaky gut, inflammation of the gut, yeast overgrowth, or other conditions that result in insufficiently digested food and poor absorption, which enzymes may help improve. Some, not all, children with autism exhibit behavioral problems that lessen with the removal of certain foods. Enzymes help break down foods more sufficiently so they will not be in a form that is problematic or causes an immune system reaction. At the same time, they may help heal the fundamental gastrointestinal issues" (349).

DeFelice goes into much further detail in the book; she also gives practical suggestions on how to get children to take the enzymes and what to expect when starting on them. They come in capsule form but can be broken apart and sprinkled on food or in a drink. I can also open a capsule and freeze the bad-tasting enzymes into a chocolate wafer. Also, I know to expect that the first one to three weeks on enzymes might make Nate seem worse physically and behaviorally, since 1) the enzymes will be cleaning out his system and 2) "the use of enzymes that break down casein, gluten, or any other 'addictive' substance may cause a withdrawal effect [for those not already on a casein-free, gluten-free diet].... This is because of the decrease in peptides in his or her system" (347).

I ordered Peptizyde and Zyme Prime for Nate. Peptizyde is for the breakdown of proteins, which means it works directly on casein, gluten, and other "problem" foods. Zyme Prime is a "broad spectrum" enzyme product, so it contains lots of different kinds of enzymes, and it works on carbohydrates, fats, starches, and proteins.

I will be sure to report on when the enzymes come, when I start Nate on them, and if he makes any progress!

Here are some links with more information:
www.enzymestuff.com
Enzymes and Autism Yahoo group - I just joined
Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew - PDF file

Edited to add: Every time I reread this post, I think of more things I should write about (e.g., information on why some with autism might be "addicted" to gluten and casein, more on what I read in the book about how enzymes heal the gut and thereby affect behavior). But hey, I have two kids and no more time! :)

The kids

At my parent meeting for Nate at the therapy center yesterday, the head therapist told me how much better Nate is doing. He isn't crying during his sessions at all (only cries now for the initial goodbye with me and then if he happens to see me at all during the morning, which I make sure to avoid), and he's making good gains toward his goals. Yay!

Here's the closest thing I could get to a smile on camera from Lucy last night (but she did smile for real at Jon):


All that smiling makes a girl tired!

Pics

Lucy this morning...




Nate last week (smart boy!)...

Six weeks

Lucy is six weeks old today. She should start sleeping even better at night soon (I hope--though she sleeps pretty well already--6 hours last night) and smiling socially any day! She almost smiled at Jon yesterday. :)

Today

Well, I didn't get another 7-hour night from Lucy last night, but I will gladly take her going straight back to sleep after she nurses (which she did).

Today has been kind of a frustrating mothering day, mostly because Nate has been unexplainably whiny. However, he is now sitting here in my lap, looking into my face with his big brown puppy dog eyes, and I forget everything that has happened today 'til now! He's my boy.

(Lucy's asleep in the next room, and she's my girl!)

Hallelujah!

Lucy slept for 7 hours last night! I'm not a superstitious person, but the three nights over the past couple of weeks that Lucy has slept the best, she has been wearing the same pajamas (picture from a month ago).


Coincidence? Last night, though, I gave her 3/4 of a dose of gripe water with her last feeding at 10:30. When she woke me this morning at 5:30, I rejoiced!

Also, here's Lucy helping me with laundry this morning while Ray took Nate to therapy.


And then later getting a bath.

Baby steps

Though Nate has had no "amazing breakthroughs" with his therapy or developmental progress, I can't overlook the small steps he has taken. Those small steps really add up!

- Yesterday, Nate brought a book to me so I would read it to him.
- When he finishes a puzzle, he claps for himself and/or looks to me for praise.
- He signs "more," "please," "all done," and "thank you."
- He is now quite adept at using a spoon to feed himself.
- He understands and will sometimes obey when I ask him to pick up an object and give it to me.
- He also understands and follows (the "follow" part is key, since he understands a LOT but doesn't necessarily do) a number of simple commands like "put in" or "give Mama."
- He waves hello and goodbye to people with little or no prompting.
- Just now, Nate came across the house from his room to ours with a puzzle piece (a snake) to show it to me and show me how he can say "snake" (it sounds more like "nah"). Sweet boy! So now I'm going to take a break from writing and go play with him. ;)
I'm back.
- At therapy, the therapists say, "Ready, set, --" and try to encourage the kids to point or make some sort of gesture for "go" if they can't say it. I do this at home too. Nate has started waiting for the appropriate time (after the person has said the first two words) and then saying an enthusiastic "gah!"
- He makes much better eye contact.
- He responds much more often when his name is called.
- If he needs help with something (putting in a puzzle piece, getting a toy unstuck), he says "buppa"--"help." Sometimes he needs to be prompted/reminded to do this (he whines/cries first), but he's getting better!
- Just this past week, he began nodding his head to answer "yes" to questions.
- He likes to "tickle" Jon. He wiggles his fingers on Jon and Jon laughs and squirms as if it tickled. Nate loves it. (This is another good social/interactive thing.)

These are all things Nate wasn't able to do months or even weeks ago.

Here are some cute things Will, Nate's in-home therapist, told me this morning:
- When they are playing a game, Will will purposely look away to see if/how Nate will try to gain his attention. He said Nate did the sign for "more" but realized Will couldn't see him. So Nate moved into Will's line of sight and did the sign again. (Trying to gain an adult's attention is a great social step, even if Nate didn't try tapping Will's shoulder or something like that.)
- Will has also done an exercise with Nate where he will put three cards/pictures in front of Nate and request one of them in particular. Will said he has to keep a total poker face, because Nate will put his hand over one of the cards and then look up at Will's face to see if it's the right one; he'll keep his eyes on Will while he hovers his hand over each card. Will has to keep a straight face until Nate actually picks up the correct card on his own and gives it to Will. (This is also an indication that Nate's making gains in social development, as he's paying attention to facial expression.)

I've been looking into the gluten-free/casein-free diet for Nate but am quite overwhelmed with the huge amount of change and work that would take. (I'm not unwilling to work, but if I can find something else that will work, like enzymes, I'd like to try that first.) I do think there is a biological/intestinal component to autism, at least in Nate's case, and so I expect we would see results if we tried some of these things in addition to the therapies we're already doing.

Outdoors

One of Nate's favorite backyard activities these past few weeks has been finding roly polies. He picks them up, waits for them to turn into balls, then throws them.


He also likes his new bike from Nannie and Pop!


He got another new outside toy for his birthday from my parents, but I haven't put it together yet. When I do, he is going to love it. It's a table with big compartments for sand and water (a.k.a. a mess factory!).

This video cracks me up. He didn't really get hurt, so it's OK to laugh, right?

Look who's 2!

My little boy is two years old! I am so thankful for the mild, funny, smart (speaking of smart, he just memorized an entire puzzle faster than I did yesterday!), happy son God gave us.

We had a little get together at Ray and Colleen's house on Sunday afternoon for Nate. He didn't care too much about opening presents, but he had a good time. He was very impressed with the whole group singing:



Happy birthday, son!

So sweet

Don't know why, but I'm feeling like carrots for lunch

I actually am more used to the color today, especially as a lot of the fluorescent-ness washed out in the shower this morning.

Mistake

I think I made a hair mistake today. The mistake wasn't deciding to dye it red (which I did, and yes, I'm serious), but I think it was not telling the hairdresser what kind of red I like. As in not carrot. I'm getting used to it, but I think I'll go back to him so he can darken it into the more auburn-y deep color I had imagined but not vocalized.

Lucy's going to end up being pretty tough

Oh, the things that amuse children

Nate loves when one of us chases him with his toy train (you can sort of see Jon with it in the background of this picture).

I thought I would never do it...

It seems exponentially more difficult to get out of the house with two children (not just twice as hard). Lucy doesn't really complicate things all that much (just have to time the nursing), but having a non-talking toddler who doesn't like to hold hands or be led anywhere does. And now I really can't carry Nate into the store or therapy or wherever it is we are going, because I have to carry Lucy in her carseat. Casey and I met at Starbucks today, and though I was able to get from the car to the Starbucks carrying the carseat with one arm and (forcibly) holding Nate's hand with the other, it was difficult. So I'll admit it... I broke down and bought a harness. A child leash. I haven't used it yet, but I probably will. Poor kid. ;)

Poor Lucy caught Nate's cold! She is still able to nurse OK, and she slept pretty well overnight, so it isn't affecting her too terribly. Speaking of sleep, I'm definitely starting to miss my full nights of it! I can't complain too much, though, because Lucy does pretty well.

Adjusting

Things are going pretty well here. Nate is getting more used to his sister and always rubs her head when he gets a chance. :) He has been acting out a little bit less for the past couple of days (or maybe I'm figuring out the warning signs and am getting better at heading him off). Lucy had her two-week well check today and is doing great. She now weighs 7 pounds 8 ounces. She's sitting with her daddy watching the Dodgers right now. :)

Here's Nate today.

Nate's version of the sign for "please"

All by myself

My mom went back home today, and I'm definitely wondering if I can do this mom-of-two thing by myself... Nate has been particularly challenging this past week, as he realizes the new creature in the house isn't leaving and as he gets more and more frustrated not being able to express himself. A couple of his therapists and I talked this week about implementing a picture system for communication (essentially having a board of pictures of different objects like his water cup, favorite video, food, milk, etc., and if he wants one of them he has to go get the picture and bring it to me, then I say the word and immediately get him what he has asked for), and I think that will help a lot with the meltdowns we've been experiencing. I know he wants to be able to communicate, so anything we can do to help him along will be good.

So far, I'm doing wonderfully at mothering two children by myself--it has been three whole hours (and either Nate or Lucy has been asleep the whole time)!