The short story

Brady had his evaluation today at the University.
I am putting the short story here so that I can quickly pass the info along to everyone who is kind enough to be wondering.  We are all tired.  The girls missed us and are beat after playing with friends all day.  Brady and I took a short nap before we picked the girls up but are still beat.  Brad is back at work but I am pretty sure he too is beat. The day was a long and exhausting one with a positive ending however.


We left with a diagnosis of severe speech delay and sensory processing disorder. They were reluctant to give him an ASD diagnosis. They felt that had they seen him a few months ago that probably would have been the case but he seems to be making great strides in his pretend play and socialization and various other areas of concern so they really feel that with continued work he will catch up. They will see him again in a year just to make sure he is still on track.

I am happy with this information. Funny because it is pretty much what thought/hoped for in some ways. Yes there are areas of concern but he really seems to be doing better so let's just keep doing what we are doing and watch to make sure he keeps it up.

Thanks for all the thoughts....it means a lot.  I have to go start dinner now...the natives are restless.  I will be back sometime soon for a little more on the story.

Holy Crap!

(my apologies because I think this post title was used by a friend for the same reason but I know you will understand why I also used it...)

Brady just said "apple" while using the sign. 
As if this was not enough he just put together, through sign and words, "apple, more, please", in that order.  Using BOTH the signs AND the words.  and he was pretty darn clear with all those words as well.

I absolutely cried hearing that from him.  We have gone through almost 4 apples in the process as well.  lol  Kind of like the bubbles...if he wants apples he will get apples.  I am just over the moon right now.

Me!

So yesterday was Brady's appt. with the SLP, "S".

I took the girls to a friends house which proceeded to throw Brady into a terrible meltdown. It was awful. We got back home, they are only about 5 minutes away, and he cried until S showed up. I was worried he would not be able to get past it and be able to have his therapy but he did.

What an awesome job he did too! He was being very social with her. Some of the things he did that just excited the hell out of me...
1. he was taking turns sharing bubbles with S. Brady would hold the wand out for her to blow a bubble and then he would just giggle and giggle at her attempt. This is awesome stuff. I started crying watching him.
2. tear jerker number two...in the process of them taking turns she started modeling for him to touch his chest and say "me" when asked who wanted a turn. He did it a few times with prompting and then started to spontaneously answer that way. I seriously started to cry. I was so happy to see and hear him trying and learning. His me was not super perfect but damn he sure was trying.

Overall it was a great session and I was thrilled with him. He was trying. and he was just Brady and man I love that kid!

I did talk to her some about his sensory issues. Here is the deal...he has started toe walking. every few days or so. He also spins and will stand with his head on the ground and look at things upside down. S has noticed he is very aversive to having his mouth touched or hands near his face in general and there are some other sensory red flags. The oh-so-tricky thing is that ASD-sensory issues-speech delays-neuro symptoms-hearing and such...all of these things are linked. in a complicated way. At his age it is hard to say for sure if it is ASD, sensory integration problems, dyspraxia or other language disorders. again...this is my understanding.

I asked S about getting him into OT and she said it could be helpful, it is hard to predict. I am not too sure that our insurance would cover it without a diagnosis and we have to wait until June to get into the University for testing so we will wait on the OT until then.

The tough part of the ST is the wait. Brady saying "me" is huge for him. wait..not just saying "me" but understanding that he is "me", that is the huge part. Overall though it is a small step of a long journey. I am trying my best to just enjoy this journey, as I try with any other journey I am on, but there are times when I cannot help but want to speed things up and just hear him "talk". Soon enough I hope...soon enough.

So here is a funny for you guys...my husband is king of teaching the kids mildly inapprpriate things. Mostly these things are not what I would teach but they are funny. So this morning I go in to change diapers and he picks up the book 101 Dalmations. He points to the female character and asks Lucey what that is. I am expecting her to say dog or maybe even dalmation. nope.
"Beach" she says. it takes me a minute. I think about it and then shoot Brad a mildly scathing look.
"Did you teach her to call that dog a 'bitch'?" I ask him under my breath.
He sheepishly grins at me, the look that one makes when they know they are "in trouble", and says, "I told her that was a bitch and that one(the male) is a stud."

I wanted to be mad but first off...those terms are right, not what I would teach my 2 year old necessarily, but accurate. Secondly it was beyond adorable to hear her say it.

Right now she has no idea what she is saying and it will now fade from memory. I think for both of us to push her verbal skills to their limits is just where we are at. Making sure she is ok where she is since B is working so hard to catch up.

ah...a glimpse of the household in which we live.