Updates, roll calls, and bears, oh my!
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Updates, roll calls, and bears, oh my!
| Wed, 11-30-2005 - 8:39pm |
Ok folks, we haven't had a cl in like FOREVER so it is time for a roll call and update thread. Who are you, who are your kids, and what are they up too. What brings you here, etc.
Renee


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Fine, no one wants to start then I will.
I am Renee (36) with DH (38) of 14 years. We have 4 kids (who are making me CRAZY tonight). Caiti- 11yo dd with AS, Mike- 9yo ds with AS, Emily- 7yo dd, NT; and Dave-5yo ds with ADHD and PDD-NOS.
Cait is in an aspergers program in middle school. It is considered a special day inclusion program. She had a rough start, started to do better and now is having a rough week. But hey, middle school is hard on everyone. Though in PMS and AS and BAM! Explosions galore. We are having meltdowns like when she was a preschooler again. Not fun. Tonights selection was "my towel isn't rolled right" but the "shower blues". We went Camping this weekend and it was "but I never use soap and I am not bringing any". Yes I am getting punchy. Over all she is a really great kid and has made so much progress since preschool, but heck puberty is h-e-double hockey sticks.
Mike - Just had his annual IEP today. He is in a special day class and mainstreamed about 1-2 hours per day. For the most part the meeting was fabulous and he has made soooooo many gains this past year it was incredible. It was a little tough hearing the mainstream teacher say that he does shut down at least 2 times a week in his class and that he definitely isn't ready for full mainstreaming and needs the 1:1 aide there. I knew this but sometimes it is hard to hear anyway. I doubt Mike will every be able to fully mainstream again. He only has had 2 behavioral outbursts in mainstream this year which is great but over the past few weeks he is participating less and more overwhelmed. It was also hard hearing that he is falling behind in some skills. It isn't from being in the day class, it is from being autistic. It is mostly comprehension, inferencing, writing papers and such.
However, I have a HUGE Mikey brag that I am going to put in a separate post!!!! watch for that.
Emily - poor baby is sick. She started in last night and tonight is puking. I am hoping not to get it myself. I had a doctors appointment for the past month to check out my knee so I could exercise and now that is blown out of the water. I will have to wait another month. She is doing great in school. Becoming a regular little smarty. She is a sweetie peetie too. She is VERY into Food Network and I think going to be a chef!
Dave - well now I had an eye openning week. He is doing well in school and in structured environments, but unstructured - not so well. I have put him in Karate and Basketball. The differences between him and other "typical" children have become glaringly obvious in these situations. I talked to the therapist about it at length today. I think eventually we will be looking at a mild AS diagnosis for him. At least have to say now that the PDD-NOS is accurate and not "borderline/going to be done away with soon"
Myself - well, I have posted here about my new baby. Starting a non-profit ezine with candes. I also have become a surrogate parent on IEP's for kids with no legal guardians. Some interesting and sad situations there. And I have been helping out some local families with thier IEPs.
Thats us in a nutshell. What is up with you all.
Renee
I'm Teresa(33) and my DH is Jason(30). We have been married for 5 years and have 2 kids, Jake(2.5) and Ella(17 months). Jake was diagnosed in June with PDD-NOS and is doing great.It was hard at first to hear that my child wasn't developing "normally" but I think I am on the road to acceptance finally. After many tears and sleepless nights I am now able to see my son first and autism second. This makes me really happy because it has been a long time since I could honestly say that. He has been and is still in E.I since he was 13 months old and will move to the I.U in April 2006 which is scary for me but I have no doubt lots of fun for him.Jake still has trouble with motor planning, pragmatics and eye contact but on the other hand he is a very bright boy with an unbelievable memory.He is a beautiful affectionate child and the apple of my eye. What a gift he is!
Ella Has been in E.I since she was 6 weeks old. At first we were told she had Torticollis then Erb's Palsey and more recently a stroke. We are still as confused about exactly what is going on with her as we were in the begining. Right now she would probably be given an SID diagnosis but I think as she gets older it's quite possible she will be given an AS diagnosis. Her biggest issues are sensory related but she has come a long way. She no longer pulls away when I kiss or hug her and that has meant so much to me because for so long I felt rejected by her.She is a funny, spirited and musical little girl who is always in motion.
My DH and I have had a rough year but thank goodness I think we are going to survive it. For a while there, I honestly thought we wouldn't because I couldn't cope with my DH's denial about our kids. We were in two totally different places about what the diagnosis would mean for Jake's future.Slowly but surely we are starting to unite on this issue. I just wanted to say thank you to you all for all the support all year. You women are amazing!
Teresa
I'm Jennifer (34) married to DH (almost 34) for 6.5 years. We have two children: Sylvia (almost 4, PDD-NOS) and Sebastian (2, NT).
Sylvia was first evaluated through the school district for a speech delay in June. The evaluators suggested that she might have some motor planning issues in addition to her speech delay, so we had an OT eval done a couple of weeks later. She started preschool in Sept -- a special ed class where she receives speech and OT. A month or so ago the OT told us that Sylvia probably would need PT as well; we had her evaluated and were told that she would definitely qualify for PT. We have a meeting with the CPSE a week from Friday to get all that sorted out.
We had an appointment with a developmental pediatrician last month, and while I was less than blown away by him (we were only in there for 45 minutes, it didn't seem like a very thorough evaluation) we did receive a PDD-NOS dx (although come to think of it I haven't received the formal paperwork from his office yet...) We were expecting that dx -- it really does fit Sylvia -- and are somewhat relieved now to have it over and done with, although it's never easy to hear.
Sylvia LOVES her preschool, and I think it's a really great place for her. She made some incredible gains in just her first month there, although the pace of her improvement has since slowed down, which I suppose makes sense. We've had a rough couple of weeks recently -- she just seems more cranky, a bit more high-strung, less willing to talk about school or have conversations that move out of her comfort zone (her comfort zone being defined as a conversation where she already knows the "script" -- if I try to push her beyond that by asking her different kids of questions etc., she immediately shuts off and snaps, "I'd like to be alone!") I'm wondering if all of the chaos surrounding the holidays has thrown her already... She's had lots of days off from school in the past month for Veteran's Day, parent-teacher conference days, Thanksgiving, etc., and it seems like forever since she's actually had a full week of school. I know that's got to be hard on her, since she is the queen of routine. I also wonder if she's working on some kind of developmental leap that is sapping her energy right now... I guess only time will tell.
Sebastian is... well, he's two years old, which should sum it up! Seriously, he's a hysterical kid, just the best sense of humor, but with his burgeoning sense of himself has come a real dictatorial streak. I'm wondering where my nice, easy, mellow baby went to, and when he'll be back! We actually had some concerns about his language development -- he spoke VERY few words until just before he turned 2, wasn't putting two words together by his second birthday, etc. -- but just a few weeks after he turned 2 he had a language explosion. I still have my eye on him, but in general he doesn't have any of the social or physical issues that Sylvie has, so if he has anything it's just a minor speech delay.
Although Sylvie had a *really* difficult time when Sebastian was born (and especially once he became mobile), they're actually kind of pals now, and I think that it's been really good for Sylvie to have Sebastian around. He's taught her to be a bit more flexible because, well, sometimes he loses toys, or grabs the exact book Sylvie was planning to read, or whatever. This used to completely throw her, but now she can tolerate it. And I have to say, the first time I saw Sylvie actually *playing* with Sebastian -- they were chasing each other around the house, giggling -- I actually burst into tears, because it was the first time I'd ever seen her play with *anyone*. So, there is progress!!!
I'm Michelle (37) married to TJ (36) for 17yrs. We have 2 boys, Tyler 9 NT and Nathan 6 1/2 HFA. I started staying home after Nathan was born, and probably won't go back to work since my boys take up alot of my time...all 3 of them! lol My dh works long hours and we just bought a new home this summer, which is twice the size of our old house!! So I have alot more cleaning to do!!
Nathan was dx'd when he was 5. We got the ball rolling when he was 4 and in preschool. He attends a regular 1st grade class and receives speech therapy and spec ed services. He also has an aid that he shares with another boy. First grade has been challenging for him, so much to learn this year. But he's doing well, and progressing slowly.
Tyler is in 3rd grade. Not liking school that much this year. Too much responsibility!!! lol Otherwise, doing well too. His brother's dx has had a huge impact on him. And dealing with everything has been difficult. But he's always been a great big brother and he tries hard to help Nathan when he can. But he's also 9....so he enjoys teasing him and torturing him like any typical brother would!!! lol
Dh is in the car business. He's been doing this since he was 19. LOVES his job. Very stressful, but he wouldn't be happy doing anything else!!! He's been in management since before the boys were born, and loves doing this rather than pounding the pavement doing sales!!! He had a hard time with Nathan's dx. But has started coming around this past summer....so that's nice, especially for Nathan. Now that he's learning new skills on how to interact with Nathan, his relationship with Tyler has also improved. Patience seems to be paying off for him!!
As for me, I love to cook and bake, garden (love my flowers!), and I spend alot of time at the craft stores!!! (I love making arrrangements and such for the house). I love coffee and chocolate, especially mochas!! And doing things with my boys. We bake cookies together, decorate the house for the holidays, and next week we're tackling our first gingerbread house!! YEAH!!
michelle
I am Tina(34) and have been married to Bob(40) for 7 yrs.
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I'm Crystal. I'm married to a carreer soldier. We have 2 sons. CJ is 9 and was diagnosed with Asperger's in January...the reason he was diagnosed so late is because military doctors refuse to listen to the mom. But anyway.... Matthew is 4 and is NT.
Update on CJ. Last year at this time, he was not reading, was wearing bi-focals and was extremely Aspie. A lot of stimming and melting down. Fast forward to now. No more glasses, he didn't really need them, it was just the "quick fix" to try to stop the squinting. The squinting is a tic and with quite a bit of OT, it is getting better! He is reading almost at grade level!!!! HOORAY!!!! He is doing all grade level work, with very few modifications. The modifications being that he is assigned fewer math problems, as he gets tired quickly. The processing just seems to take a bit longer. As long as he is grasping the concept, the teacher is fine. He no longer goes to special ed on a daily basis, the sp. ed. teacher comes in to his room and does spot checks. If he falls behind, then she pulls him out for some re-inforcement.
He earned his green stripe on his yellow belt in Tae Kwan Do last week. He just started this summer. It has helped his coordination so much! He can SKIP! DH takes the class right along with him in order to help explain things to him. And there is a black belt that has taken a special interest in CJ. He tries to work with CJ on a one on one basis during class.
He is an active participant in Cub Scouts (daddy is the den leader, so that helps.)
Best of all, the stimming is way down and the meltdowns are more manageable and he has a FRIEND!!! There is a 9 year old boy next door. They share similar interests (game cube and SpongeBob). He has been invited to 2 birthday parties so far this school year. This was a first for us.
His Sp. Ed. teacher was supposed to retire last year, but she came back for 4 children and one of them was mine.
We were so blessed to fall into this school district. The teachers have been wonderful. They have guided me through how to better help him read and they have worked so hard. And you can see it.
But let's see how we get through the break for Christmas and the break in routine. That will be rough.
All in all, life is good.
Crystal
We currently reside in Orlando FL. I work part time and spend weekdays as a stay at home mother. We are in the process of getting an exact diagnosis for Peyton. I love this group thus far... helps me realize there are many other children out there with the same problems my son has. Helps me to know I am not alone!
Hi, I'm Sara married for over 10 years to DH Cliff, son Malcolm has dx of PDD-NOS and is now 8 years old and super tall and beautiful, with curly brown hair, big green eyes and tan (mixed) skin. Husband (definitely a functional aspie of sorts) is freelance computer software designer and hobbyist pilot, I work as personal trainer, fitness instructor, theatre actor, script writer and director, and even sometimes as a runway model (but as a fitness model, NOT an anorexic). Our household is chaotic and somehow we manage it all, even with a steady stream of Malcolm's buddies over here constantly...
Malcolm had language delay, strong sensory issues and is delayed socially but catching up nicely on all fronts. Due to difficulties in NYC public schools special ed, i.e. lack of appropriate placements altogether, we have always had him in small private special ed schools for super bright high-functioning kids, paid for by the Board of Ed that has the lack of appropriate placements. He has almost every therapy possible and continues to make great progress. He is way ahead of grade level in most subjects and just now is working with typing program at home, as his dad explained he will need strong fast typing to be an author...
He is doing great, has many many friends both ASD and NT and many interests and activities --- basketball and swimming, Tae Kwondo (also just got his green stripe on his yellow belt), horseback riding (6 lessons and trotting), writing books (he has written quite a few, plans on being a children's book author), of course video and computer games, and now even girls, well, one girl who sadly moved to TX, they are "engaged" and write and email and call each other.
He can have his rough times, but it has been a pleasure to watch him learn more and more about self-regulation, observing others, withstanding anticipation and learn how to handle competition. Sky's the limit!
This board is a great place for support and information.
Sara
ilovemalcolm
ok, I've been trying to post, but mostly I'm lurking these days cause we're just so busy.
I'm Betsy, wife to Michael for 16+yrs, mom to Warren 14, Amelia 12, Weston 9, Martha 6, Owen 3 (will be 4 on Tuesday). We live in South Carolina.
I come here for support and info, I try to lend/send a little of both out as well. Weston has been Dx w/ HFA, he is doing much better in school this year. He's mainstreamed for all acedemic classes and is considered gifted in math and goes to an accelerated math class. He gets pull out services for speech, social skills and OT. To make his social skills training more specific to what he needs the Resource teacher is doing 1/2 of his social skills training during Wee Deliver. He is on the team that sorts the mail, delivers it and makes decisions on how they will run the post office. He's discovered football this fall-- it's becoming his new obsession-- he watches college football on Saturday and NFL on Sunday. He reads the stats and knows the players and coaches. He's learning plays as well. His accelerated math teacher and the assistant principal play football w/ the 4th graders at recess so this is how it started. He has decided he's the best hiker in his class (everybody else wants to be the reciever so he doesn't).
Warren has a ADD-NOS Dx. We wonder if Asperger's would be more appropriate, but right now we do what we need to for him to keep up at school and try to help him through all the difficult social things having to do w/ middle school.
Owen doesn't have a Dx but we're pretty sure he fits in the ADHD area, but will wait until school to see how it affects him. He also shows lots of signs of SID, so we practice a varied sensory diet for him and we're slowly getting him to be able to be in a crowded room or noisy place. He's starting to eat more varied meals and wear other things besides sandals, shorts and t-shirts.
Our girls are NT, but quirky in their own ways. The Lord gave me neat kids that walk to the beat of their own drums.
Betsy
“Always Unique Totally Interesting Sometimes Mysteriousâ€
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