A Moment in Time...
JP
COLOR:
My favorite color is blue like Thomas the Tank Engine. And brown like Curious George and red like Thing 1 and Thing 2 and yellow and orange for Pooh and Tigger. Wow, that is a lot of colors! Yeah, I know. Do you like one of those best? (no response) Or do like them all? Yep.
BOOK :
My favorite book is about Thomas an d the magic railroad. That is a good book. Isn't there purple train in that one? Yes, his name is Lady. Is Lady a boy train or a girl train? A girl train. So her name is Lady, right? Yes, I know. Lady lives in the magic railroad.
MOVIE:
My favorite movie is Thomas and the magic railroad but in the real circus Thomas will be in trouble. Thomas will be in trouble? Yes. Why is he in trouble? Because he crash into the bricks. Ouch! That has to hurt! I think there will be another way to save. What is that? I don't--It could be a rope a ladder and a rope. What would you do with the rope? I'll use the rope to catch Thomas and pull him back up and put him on the track. Oh, good thinking! Is that what they did in the movie? Yes. What could we use to pull him up if we didn't have any rope? So if we don't have a rope we could use a shooting rope. Cool, a shooting rope. Yes! It could be red. We'll rope it and well have a black box. Good thinking! It will be a long rope.
FOOD:
Zingers. My favorite food is zingers. Are those crackers? Ha! No! What are they? They're cupcakes! Oh, yeah that's right.
DRINK:
My favorite drink is strawberry limeade. Still limeade, huh? I think it is called "Strawberry limeade" not "still limade". Did you get one earlier today? Yeah. Did you buy it? Yeah. We buy it at sonic. Who is we? (silence) You and mommy? Yeah. Or you and Daddy? Or me and Daddy! Your Daddy kind of spoils you, doesn't he? Yeah. Do you like orange juice? Yeah. Do you like apple juice. Yeah. Which one do you like best orange or apple? Fruit punch. Do you like lemonade? Yeah. Do you like pink lemonade or yellow lemonade? I like pink lemonade. Do you like pink lemonade or fruit punch best? Fruit punch. Did you know that when you go to Kindergarten they let you keep a bottle of water with you all day! Yes. Strawberry water? Well, I don't know about that. I'll have to ask Mrs. A if you can have special water. Most of the kids will drink plain old yummy water. Do you think you can drink plain old yummy water? Yes. (doubtful since he wouldn't during JumpStart) But at lunch you get to drink milk! You get to pick between white milk or chocolate milk. (He doesn't like milk. We've pursuaded him to drink some when we mix strawberry flavoring with it.) I have strawberry milk. We'll we do have that sometimes at home but I don't think they have strawberry flavored at school. Would you like white or chocolate? Like white. (I guess we'll see!)
TOY:
My favorite toy is cars. Do you have particular car you likes best? Yes. We have a friend who is a car. His name is Lightning McQueen. Cool, I've heard of him. Isn't he a race car? Yeah. Does he have friends? Yes. His name is the King and Chick Hicks and they race. They race each other! Yes. Chick knocks in to McQueen and he got back on the track. That was super trick!
LETTER:
My favorite letter is Z. Z! Cool. I like Z! Z goes zzzz when we sleep!
NUMBER:
MY favorite number is 10. 10! That is a super duper number. Can you count to 10 for me? 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
SONG:
My favorite song is about Thomas. What song is that about that? A song about Thomas? The thomas theme song. I'm not sure how that goes can you sing it to me. Ha. I think I can't it comes from a movie not my mouth. But I don't know the words. Can you use your mouth to tell me the words? Yeah. (fake yawn) So what are the words to Thomas? There were T and h and o and m and a and s. That is the words that spell thomas. (SMARTASS!) Well, those are the letters to spell Thomas but I was meaning for you to tell the words that make the song for Thomas. Ha! That is kind of crazy. I gotta go take a bath. (That is true avoidance! He was just mad a few minutes ago that it was almost bath time. He absolutely hates singing and dancing these days. Songs in the movies are okay but not singing by people!)
My additions:
JP has had a fabulous month! He just seems to be getting so old. He is surprising us with questions every once in awhile. I know that our communication skills have grown tremendously these past few months. He is sustaining the back and forth better but I think the biggest thrill I get is when he occasionally takes the lead. Just last night at supper, he was talking to his Dad about riding the Thomas (train) at the zoo next week. I had brought up that we were going to go next week and JP chimed in telling his father that Thomas was his favorite. Then he shocked us by asking his Dad who his favorite was!!!!! I've tried teaching him to ask others but he just never does it unless prompted. Dad played along and I swear they carried on a conversation for 8 or more rounds! I actually got teary eyed!
We are sort of in limbo about appropriate play skills. T is not the best model right now for JP to practice. Unfortunately, when JP uses his words, T ignores him. So then it escalates and JP yells for T to go to timeout. On one level it is pretty cute, but I fear JP trying to put his fellow Kindergarteners into time out. I don't think that will go over too well!
Kindergarten. Eeek! What to say about that. I guess I should preserve my thoughts because I'll never be in this position again. But I think that probably deserves a post of its own. I guess I have 13 more days to get it done!
I am having trouble reflecting on what JP has done this past month. He really took to the home videos I burned onto a DVD. He has watched them over and over again. We have had to re-enact many of the scenarios. This was a bit odd at times since the video was from April. Easter egg hunts in July are a little weird. Otherwise he has really been into playing with his trains again. He has built elaborate tracks in pretty much every room of the house. I think Thomas will forever be a presence in our lives.
We have spent more time outside on the trampoline and the pool. The highlight has been JP doing the slip and slide. Previously he would never slide on it. The cold water turned him off but he also couldn't get the falling down part. He wouldn't even try last year. This year he took to it pretty well. Dad modeled a tummy slide once and JP was off and running. I would say the slip and slide is his favorite activity outside. We still have to have the water turned really low as he doesn't like the cold water.
We had a pool party for our local autism support group. It was a good night. The highlight for me was JP posing for a picture with the policeman we had visit and he even sat inside the police car. He actually had his hands clasped over his ears but he got in it!!! Another spectacular event that night was the fact that he went down the slide into the pool. He clutched the sides the whole time to keep from picking up speed and then just hopped into the water so he never actually got his hair wet but he still went down it several times! Right there he showed that he is overcoming some of his fears. He is trying new things!
He continues to call me Mom sometimes. It is so weird. He is just growing up so fast. I don't think he gets that big kids use "Mom" and little kids "Mommy". He just seems to be doing it. I think it is from some Pooh "Growing up" videos because he has a bit of Christopher Robin twang to his voice when he says it. He has also managed a few other adult mannerisms. I mentioned them on my last blog. There have been a few times lately when he calls us by our first names. It is often just out of the blue. I think it is partially that he is getting better about people in general. In fact, this week was the first time he could actually tell me the name of his buddy at camp. Perhaps people are starting to captive his attention more!
Bed time books:
Yep, this one has not changed for a long time!
Baby T
FOOD: cottage cheese, fruit snacks, cheese, chicken fingers, ramen noodles, macaroni and cheese, Hamburger Helper Cheesy Beef Taco. He is showing more willingness to eat some fruits. He is loving the fork! He will stab everything! In fact the fork has gotten him to eat his green beans again. However, he is still pretty picky. He seems to be not liking crunchy items. He will put a chip in his mouth and then spit it out. The same for goldfish crackers. He is still willing to eat meat but hamburger tends to get chewed up and spit out. We joke that this is a "California Diet". This is in reference to a Sex in the City episode when they visit california and their friend orders a huge steak. He chews and then spits it out so that he won't gain weight! Needless to say, that won't fly here in cattle country!
DRINK: Juice. Typically fruit punch. Absolutely will not drink milk. We've been watering down juices to try and prevent the water phobia his older brother has.
MOVIES: #BooBah and Teletubbies seem to be emerging. He will watch some Elmo on Sesame Street. He loves the Caillou them song but the show doesn't hold his interest. Same thing for Curious George and Barney. He is still a fan of the Wiggles and any Baby Einsten video's. Lately we've been listening to Lion King Sing along songs in the van.
TOYS:
-Climbing doesn't really seem to be an issue anymore. He is pretty capable of getting on the couches and not so interested in getting on tables anymore.
-Fascinated by paper and any sort of writing utensil
-Likes to climb up the rope ladder but has decided he doesn't really care for the slide. I think it gets to hot during the day and he doesn't want to sit on it.
-Is a natural with the baseball tee in the backyard. Any ball works--football, basketball, baseball...shoe.
-Loves to drop the basketball through the hoop.
-Seems to have fallen out of love with the trampoline. I think it is because JP is bouncing more than running and it is hard for T to stay on his feet. Last month JP wasn't quite so tiggerific and T was able to run around the edges with the net. Now when he gets on he just goes flopping down. Still he won't get on without JP.
-Loves swimming in our backyard pool.
-Loves anything to do with the bathtub!
Thomas and friends are probably our biggest fascination. Whenever he gets the change he gets into JP's bedroom to play with the train table. Of course he always knocks down the bridges and all of the little men in the house get upset!
T will push the buttons and dance to the music. He is not really using it to hear the animal sounds yet.
BOOKS:
T loves books! Particularly stuck on a book about baby Grover going potty.
POTTY TRAINING:
T went poop in the potty! On Tuesday July 17th he was grunting and groaning so I sat him on the toilet and he did it! Of course, I have been too late to get him there since. Dad had a little success before bath the other night and then yesterday we had some success. We sat on the toilet right after we did a #2 and managed to pee. He seemed to get a kick out of it. He would start and stop and start and stop and then look up at me and smile. He was quite proud. I think he was making some connections during that episode.
WORDS/ACTIONS:
(against my better judgment I will include these...I'll try not to over analyze)
It is kind of hard to document words. There are a lot of words that he gives us once and then doesn't repeat (for example, "mommy"). He often babbles like he is talking to us but they aren't formed words. Often these are angry babbles so we are probably lucky we don't know what he is saying. Also, a lot of his "words" are just a part of the word. For example, he will always say, "Fly" when he sees a butterfly. He will always say "side" for outside.
The language is coming. I still don't see him as a social conversationalist but then I don't know what to expect for a typical language level at 21 months. He is doing fine. I guess I just wish his development was so over the top that I would recognize it as different that JP's was at that age. But honestly at 21 months I think JP might have had more words. It scares me to say that but I think it might be true. By this point JP could identify a lot of animals and letters. At 2 he was singing the alphabet. Now granted he couldn't ask for juice or for more to eat but he could label items. At this age, his language was there but he didn't use it to communicate or share with us. I would just feel so much better if I heard a "what's that" coming from T. (big sigh)
Words we have heard:
Daddy, BaBa (bottle), ball, I did it!, Bye Bye(with a finger wiggle), baby, straw, bath, puppy/dog, all done, Mama, head, backpack, cup, peek a boo, noisy/sloppy kisses, blows noisy kisses, touches head during "monkey jumping on the bed", wags finger no during the "no jumping on the bed" part, bike, pig, banana, 1..2.."3", ready, set "go", JP, T, fish, cheese, star, moon, train.
Commonly used:
Car, cow, moo, dog, woof woof, cat, meow, read book, night night, butterfly, one two three, ready set go, straw, ball, duck, Daddy, potty, bye bye, bath, hat, outside, NoNoNoNo! More, more chips, mine, sky, Bob (Bob the builder doll), eye, nose(no), mouth(mow),ear(eah), hair(air)
Can point to eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hair, head
If you say bath he will practically run upstairs and climb in.
If you say juice or drink he will head to the refrigerator.
If you say snack he will had to the pantry.
If you say go (or if he wants to go) he will get shoes and try to put them on.
Will give you his feet if you have his socks and shoes to put on. (unless he is in the mood to run away). May even try to put socks and shoes on himself.
Will bring food from the pantry to Mom. Usually goldfish or fruit snacks.
Will run from you (with the naughty item) when you tell him no.
When you upset him he will start babbling at you with lots of inflection. I don't think he is using nice words and I dread the day I figure out what he is saying.
When you sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star he will say the last word of each sentence when you pause.
Shamefully I will include these...I hope they are nothing but collective moments of paranoia but I need to document them for reference.
Fear of the parachute at YMCA class (now will sit on it. Has been under it-under protest)
Fear of the tunnels and forts at the YMCA class. I put him inside them and he just stood there screaming. (now will climb through the little tunnel at home. Did finally do one tunnel at Y)
Fear of the plastic bubble wrap all the other kids were jumping on at the YMCA class
Huge tears during JP's OT when he tried the "flying apparatus". It is very noisy.
Fear of the trampoline in our backyard. (Then he loved it and now he doesn't again.)
Won't look in the sky when I point at an airplane. They are very noisy yet he is oblivious. (still oblivious...it is the weirdest thing! These planes are LOUD and yet he still won't look up into the sky.) - Finally got his attention with one. Now he will look up and say "sky".
Seems really bashful around other people. (Yet will interact and play along side other kids) Sometimes if an adult talks to him he will shun them and burrow his head into Mommy.
No comments:
Post a Comment