We have conquered the step. He can now get up and down the back step. He has been attempting to get up the back step for the past month. He has looked longingly at the step. He has thrown things up the step in a hope that he would somehow then be able to get up there. Now we have victory!!! A different style everytime mind you but that doesn't matter. He has also managed to climb several times up onto the couch when I have had the cushions off. A week ago this was too tricky and he couldn't work it out.
He is also zooming around the house with his yet again modified bottom shuffle. He loves to jump and gets air. Mind you his jump is from his bottom. He is pulling up to his knees everywhere and starting to pull up to stand much more regularly as he gains confidence and strength.
He is also starting to squat occassionally and push up to make a bridge.
The only downside is that now he is jumping off the potty. Thankfully we have only had one code brown. The other times it has been empty when it has flipped over when he has pushed off. Maybe the big toilet is the way to go for a bit.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Learning to Eat. Week five and seven
The last few visits have been filled with enjoyable play picnics. We have introduced some new snacks which are being tasted. Cheezles, tv snacks (long thin ones), clix, cruskits, soft cream cheese triangles. Sakata rice crackers are also a favourite. Cheezles seem to be a winner as he can put one on his finger then have a lick or scrape his teeth on it. The cream cheese has been swallowed when a smear is wiped on the inside of his cheek. We have to be careful with the size that goes in if we put it in as he has had a couple of gags on very tiny pieces and this is not what we are aiming for.
He also shoved a large piece of soft roast potato in his mouth and had a good gag on it before getting it out. He has taken a bite of a cheezle, a sakata and a piece of Naan bread. He has then stuck his finger in his mouth and got it out. He had to chase the naan bread around a bit before he got it out.
He is sticking more food up to his mouth or in his mouth and is starting to clamp down on it with his teeth. I have also noticed more sideways jaw movements lately while he is playing. Not sure if that is a developmental development. We have had some other major development going on for his gross motor skills so maybe there is a burst of development going on at the moment.
As for swallowing we are still offering stocks, water and chocolate milk (he seems to taste this but not vanilla milk. I am offering sustagen as it has higher calories and if he like it and can drink it then that will be great). he takes a few sips here and there. He seems to be a little more confident. I guess we just keep offering and hopefully it will click that it is ok for him to swallow. Sometimes he will take a sip from an open bottle like a baby bottle or a water bottle and sometimes from a bowl or cup. He is accepting the spout from a sippy cup more often for at least one sip before flinging the cup across the room. He was allowing me to put a teat in his mouth with drops of water coming out the other day. he was very relaxed and sleepy. This was a rare occassion. Normally he wouldn't allow me to have anything like that in or near his mouth for more than a second or two. He lasted about 5-10 seconds before signalling he'd had enough. We had success this past week with the speechie asking him to 'shut his mouth and swallow'. So he did. He did this repeatedly throughout the session. Now we are home I have asked many times and had no where the same success. The requests seem to be ignored and I get stared at quite blankly. Ahh hate it when that happens. Same with face washing- he'll sit so nice and still for grandma and other people and have a tanti when I come anywhere near him with the facewasher.
Play picnics at home have been fun. With the weather fining up we have been able to take a rug outside and make a massive mess without a care in the world. It is so much more convenient being outside than being inside and being concerned about chocolate covered mouths and fingers going all over the couches. we had success with a bit of a chew/suck/lick on a small orange segment, milo yoghurt and again the cheezles. The play tea set was also a hit. So nice to see my son and a little friend playing on the front lawn. She is a fan of picnics at the moment so is making a great picnic companion.
Another joy is that two speechies have mentioned that they think he may have dyspraxia. Not sure what type but they have said he seems to have trouble with his motor planning. as for what we can do? Not much more than we are already doing. Just keep practicing but things may take a bit longer. It also highlights that assisted communication is going to be an ongoing important thing for us whatever shape and form that takes.
He also shoved a large piece of soft roast potato in his mouth and had a good gag on it before getting it out. He has taken a bite of a cheezle, a sakata and a piece of Naan bread. He has then stuck his finger in his mouth and got it out. He had to chase the naan bread around a bit before he got it out.
He is sticking more food up to his mouth or in his mouth and is starting to clamp down on it with his teeth. I have also noticed more sideways jaw movements lately while he is playing. Not sure if that is a developmental development. We have had some other major development going on for his gross motor skills so maybe there is a burst of development going on at the moment.
As for swallowing we are still offering stocks, water and chocolate milk (he seems to taste this but not vanilla milk. I am offering sustagen as it has higher calories and if he like it and can drink it then that will be great). he takes a few sips here and there. He seems to be a little more confident. I guess we just keep offering and hopefully it will click that it is ok for him to swallow. Sometimes he will take a sip from an open bottle like a baby bottle or a water bottle and sometimes from a bowl or cup. He is accepting the spout from a sippy cup more often for at least one sip before flinging the cup across the room. He was allowing me to put a teat in his mouth with drops of water coming out the other day. he was very relaxed and sleepy. This was a rare occassion. Normally he wouldn't allow me to have anything like that in or near his mouth for more than a second or two. He lasted about 5-10 seconds before signalling he'd had enough. We had success this past week with the speechie asking him to 'shut his mouth and swallow'. So he did. He did this repeatedly throughout the session. Now we are home I have asked many times and had no where the same success. The requests seem to be ignored and I get stared at quite blankly. Ahh hate it when that happens. Same with face washing- he'll sit so nice and still for grandma and other people and have a tanti when I come anywhere near him with the facewasher.
Play picnics at home have been fun. With the weather fining up we have been able to take a rug outside and make a massive mess without a care in the world. It is so much more convenient being outside than being inside and being concerned about chocolate covered mouths and fingers going all over the couches. we had success with a bit of a chew/suck/lick on a small orange segment, milo yoghurt and again the cheezles. The play tea set was also a hit. So nice to see my son and a little friend playing on the front lawn. She is a fan of picnics at the moment so is making a great picnic companion.
Another joy is that two speechies have mentioned that they think he may have dyspraxia. Not sure what type but they have said he seems to have trouble with his motor planning. as for what we can do? Not much more than we are already doing. Just keep practicing but things may take a bit longer. It also highlights that assisted communication is going to be an ongoing important thing for us whatever shape and form that takes.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Pulling up to stand
At age 3 and four months Nathan puled to stand by himself at the couch. Quite an achievement. He did it a few more times that day and the next day and hasn't done it again. We know he can. Not sure if he is not confident or the floor is too slippery for him. Will have to be more intentional about getting him to do it rather than seeing if he'll do it himself. He will do it if a small amount of pressure is placed on top of his hands to help him feel secure.
Looking forward to getting a walker for him soon. I'm sure it will annoy me in the house but will be good to take him out with it to wide open spaces or places where there are things that interest him and give it a go.
Looking forward to getting a walker for him soon. I'm sure it will annoy me in the house but will be good to take him out with it to wide open spaces or places where there are things that interest him and give it a go.
Learning to Eat. Week Three
More Playing Ta games during the week. Still not coming naturally and really need to work to get a response. Lots of other babble and vocalisation though.
We bought a blow up lion during the past fortnight and this is fun for a wrestle and something for him to assert himself with.
This week at the speechy it was suggested to go back to fluids only on a spoon. No puree. Stock or other flavoursome liquid only. He seems to like chicken broth and beef stock so that is good. The other suggestion was Wizz Fizz and red skins. The reason for this and the stock is to increase saliva and to get the swallowing action hapening intentionally. He sounds like he is swallowing but he is not pursing his lips closed. He is sticking his tongue out. need to imitate some more lip smacking action. He doesn't seem to mind wizz fizz if we can get it in his mouth. Haven't tried red skins yet.
Teeth cleaning was the other thing we looked at. He seemed to be pretty calm and allow me to stick my finger in his mouth and run it over his teeth. I did this with and without toothpaste. I held him sitting up, holding one arm and having him hold an interesting toy in the other hand, while the musical bunny he was holding sang and buzzed. Still need to work on routine for this and slowly introduce teh toothbrush as he becomes comfortable with sitting and having my finger in his mouth. Ususally teeth cleaning is a terrifying battle for both of us. He has the look of fear in his eyes, we were having to restrain him and I am sure he thought we were going to suction him or put an NG tube in. He would wriggle so much that it must have hurt or been very unpleasant having the brush in his mouth so hastily. He is enjoying holding onto an electric toothbrush and occasionally he'll pop it into his mouth for a bit but he is also using it as a hairbrush.
We bought a blow up lion during the past fortnight and this is fun for a wrestle and something for him to assert himself with.
This week at the speechy it was suggested to go back to fluids only on a spoon. No puree. Stock or other flavoursome liquid only. He seems to like chicken broth and beef stock so that is good. The other suggestion was Wizz Fizz and red skins. The reason for this and the stock is to increase saliva and to get the swallowing action hapening intentionally. He sounds like he is swallowing but he is not pursing his lips closed. He is sticking his tongue out. need to imitate some more lip smacking action. He doesn't seem to mind wizz fizz if we can get it in his mouth. Haven't tried red skins yet.
Teeth cleaning was the other thing we looked at. He seemed to be pretty calm and allow me to stick my finger in his mouth and run it over his teeth. I did this with and without toothpaste. I held him sitting up, holding one arm and having him hold an interesting toy in the other hand, while the musical bunny he was holding sang and buzzed. Still need to work on routine for this and slowly introduce teh toothbrush as he becomes comfortable with sitting and having my finger in his mouth. Ususally teeth cleaning is a terrifying battle for both of us. He has the look of fear in his eyes, we were having to restrain him and I am sure he thought we were going to suction him or put an NG tube in. He would wriggle so much that it must have hurt or been very unpleasant having the brush in his mouth so hastily. He is enjoying holding onto an electric toothbrush and occasionally he'll pop it into his mouth for a bit but he is also using it as a hairbrush.
Learning to Eat. Week One
Seeing a new speechy. Thought I would write down what we are doing and document how we are going. This is for two purposes. One to help me remember what I am menat to be doing and two to see if we are making progress.
Week One.
Getting to know you. Time was spent playing witht he speechy assessing where nathan is at.
She was pleasantly surprised at him putting a spoon in his mouth by himself and taking some small tastes of puree. This was more than was anticipated due to new surroundings and a new person.
Getting to know the big bad wolf. Nathan didn't like the big bad singing wolf and was quick to learn to tell it to go away. He began to assert himself and show that he was in control and that he felt powerful in this situation. A positive in terms of play and increasing self confidence. In terms of his eating, this has been out of his control for so long that by refusing he is having some control over the situation. He has since been refusing nearly every feed by trying to whack the tube out of the way and getting upset at each feed. He's obviously not happy about having the food but not 100% sure why as he is showing hunger signs when doing this. Guess he thinks it makes him uncomfortable. He has been ill with croup and so there would be greater respiratory pressure. Maybe he is uncomfortable or the increase in retching following feeds (about 20 min after) is upsetting him. May need to try water bolus feeds again? Not sure on how much water he can have now with increase in formula volume.
Learning Ta. We have had some success with saying Ta previously but I hadn't heard him use it for a long time. By refusing to give him what was wanted until a response was made he soon began using it again.
Week One.
Getting to know you. Time was spent playing witht he speechy assessing where nathan is at.
She was pleasantly surprised at him putting a spoon in his mouth by himself and taking some small tastes of puree. This was more than was anticipated due to new surroundings and a new person.
Getting to know the big bad wolf. Nathan didn't like the big bad singing wolf and was quick to learn to tell it to go away. He began to assert himself and show that he was in control and that he felt powerful in this situation. A positive in terms of play and increasing self confidence. In terms of his eating, this has been out of his control for so long that by refusing he is having some control over the situation. He has since been refusing nearly every feed by trying to whack the tube out of the way and getting upset at each feed. He's obviously not happy about having the food but not 100% sure why as he is showing hunger signs when doing this. Guess he thinks it makes him uncomfortable. He has been ill with croup and so there would be greater respiratory pressure. Maybe he is uncomfortable or the increase in retching following feeds (about 20 min after) is upsetting him. May need to try water bolus feeds again? Not sure on how much water he can have now with increase in formula volume.
Learning Ta. We have had some success with saying Ta previously but I hadn't heard him use it for a long time. By refusing to give him what was wanted until a response was made he soon began using it again.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Summer 09
It's hard to believe that autumn is almost upon us. We've had a great summer. Nathan's health has been good and we've seen progress in many areas.
Our time away at the beach wass lovely with time and warm weather to go for swims at the beach and have a play in the sand. I'm glad we purchased a little wetsuit for Nathan this year as it made his time in the water more enjoyable.
After spending time with extended family members Nathan has learnt many new party tricks. Beating his chest like tarzan, blowing raspberries on his arm and making grunting noises and imitating us playing tennis on the Wii.
The bottom shuffle has developed. He's now getting quite mobile around the house. A small step stops him from getting out of the back room and into the rest of the house but he has no problem going down this step.
We had out first escape the day. He was playing at the flywire door which I thought was shut. I was in another room when I heard the door bang. I ran to the door and found him sitting at the top of the stairs that go down to the lawn. The drop is a bit over a metre. He was so quick getting out the door. I'll have to make extra sure the doors are shut or even locked!
Our time away at the beach wass lovely with time and warm weather to go for swims at the beach and have a play in the sand. I'm glad we purchased a little wetsuit for Nathan this year as it made his time in the water more enjoyable.
After spending time with extended family members Nathan has learnt many new party tricks. Beating his chest like tarzan, blowing raspberries on his arm and making grunting noises and imitating us playing tennis on the Wii.
The bottom shuffle has developed. He's now getting quite mobile around the house. A small step stops him from getting out of the back room and into the rest of the house but he has no problem going down this step.
We had out first escape the day. He was playing at the flywire door which I thought was shut. I was in another room when I heard the door bang. I ran to the door and found him sitting at the top of the stairs that go down to the lawn. The drop is a bit over a metre. He was so quick getting out the door. I'll have to make extra sure the doors are shut or even locked!
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