Taking the Scenic Route

Haven’t posted much lately.  I have been busy with some projects on the computer.  The main one is making a bunch of PECs cards because we finally got a laminator.  They are pretty much done now, just need to print them up.

The not great stuff that has happened:

• Blew a tire on the car (again).  However, for the first time since I can remember it wasn’t a total panic of ‘how on earth are we going to be able to pay for this?”.  In fact,  we went ahead and replaced the other two older tires on our car so we have new tires on all 4 wheels now.  (one was fairly new because we blew a tire not long ago).
• Zora swung her elbow around and caught Zach in the mouth, knocking out his two front teeth.  This is bad.  Our insurance doesn’t kick in until November 1st, but even that hardly covers it.  It looks like we will have to drive to KC area to get a board certified doctor to do implant surgery, and the price is insane.  We are going to have to try and take out a loan to fix those teeth, and will need to do about 7 or 8 others to keep the same thing from happening.  We were really hoping to hold off on this, but it looks like there is no waiting any more.  He has to have teeth that look nice to do job interviews this spring.
• Both the kids have bad colds right now, and I started getting the symptoms today.  We haven’t been to Zane’s therapies all week.  We haven’t been ANYWHERE all week and it is starting to feel a little overwhelming.

The good stuff:

• Zach got his first real paycheck.  This meant that we were able to deal with the tires, which was great.  We also found and got a great tandem stroller (ironically, the trip home from the store is when the tire blew).  The stroller has a seat for Zora and a little bench seat/stand on area for Zane.  It actually fits in our trunk with room to spare.  WooHoo!  It also meant we were able to go to the fair and enjoy it without having to deal with breakdowns because he is too overwhelmed and can’t cope any more.  He was able to sit and ride and not have to navigate all the people.
• Had a great time at the State Fair last week.  We have pictures and I hope to post some soon.  My mom met us and the extra pair of hands and the excitement of “Grandma!” made it a lot of fun.
• Zane has been making strides in therapy.  He actually asked for help without a verbal prompt for the first time.  Big, big deal and really good! 
• The SN YMCA class went fabulous!  The teacher is one that we have had before and even she was almost giddy seeing how well he listened and followed directions.  There was even a kid right next to us having a total and complete meltdown and he STILL concentrated on what the teacher was doing and responded appropriately.  It was SO much fun for us both.  I hated missing it this week with the cold.
• I am filling out the paperwork to get Zane in the Language preschool I was hoping to.  He will only be part time at first, but it is a start.  This is absolutely perfect for him.  The class is considered “group therapy” and consists of language delayed kids mixed with typically developing peers.  It is staffed with ST and OT students with professionals and professors closely monitoring.  Great!
• The school social worker finally called me back.  They are ready for me to sign the consent forms (I thought I did that already, but oh well).  Since I am wanting him to be mainstreamed with an aide, and they typically don’t do that, they want a note from the Developmental Ped. that she is recommending that.  Otherwise he will probably be placed in an autism classroom.  The main concern with that is that he might lose the gains he has made verbally if he is not in an environment where you need to be verbal.  He would do best in a typical classroom with visual supports.  However, the school district doesn’t like that as much because it is more expensive.  I have a feeling if we do go through the public school district I will be in for a battle.  I am playing nice at this point, but the supervisor of my WSU ST student said she knew of a teacher or two in the district that would be great for him.  They are very experienced and teach typical classrooms, but have talent and training in helping spectrum kids.  Once I have their names, I have a goal to fight for.  I am so new to all of this.  I will soon be burying myself in IEP laws and trying to understand our rights well enough to get what is best for Zane.  I know that if it isn’t right, I will be homeschooling, but I think that preschool would be good for him.  It might be January before it happens in the public school though.
• Zora is crawling well now.  She is also cruising the furniture with more dexterity and pushing around a push toy thing.  Her favorite babble right now is Da-Da-Da-Da and has the sweetest little voice.  Just melts my heart.  She also has enough hair now to actually get a little messy.  She has a little wave/curl in her hair too.  Still not sure of the color, but so far it is a reddish brown.  The feeding problems are just a memory now and she eats with gusto.  She is loving trying to feed herself finger foods, although she often gets confused because the food will stick to her hands and she can’t quite maneuver it to her mouth.  It is so fun to watch.

I am sure I will think of more, but both kids are asleep and I need to follow if I am going to keep up with them tomorrow.