Insert Catchy Title Here

A New Word?
Rory has started to say Mlk. Milk, without the "i" sound and glazes over the "l" sound. It often sounds like "Mk". This is amazing! This would be the first new word since he was 16 months old. Yeah Rory!

Anastasia can say Mama, Dada, and baba. She babbles continuously. I can't say for sure but I think I have a chatter box on my hands. Sometimes I think she's here to talk enough to make up for Rory's lack of communication.

Rory's ENT Doctor Appointment
Rory has a slight problem with his eye, it gets goopy every time he gets congested. Sometimes it shuts his eye or makes it look like pink eye (which it's not). 

We took him to an ophthalmologist where he referred us to an ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor). He felt since his eye only gets goopy when he is congested made it an ENT issue. 

We finally had his ENT appointment where this doctor feels like since it's his eye, it's an ophthalmologist problem. The ball is now back in the eye doctor's court. 


The Good Idea
Rory needed to get more fruit and veggies in his diet. But due to his texture aversions it's nearly impossible to get him to eat them. It doesn't matter how I cook / serve them, ALL of it ends up on the floor. 

Well, Anastasia is starting to eat solid food. That's when the idea finally hit me. He can use the stuff she eats. Her pouch baby food! It's filled with weird food combinations that a toddler somehow finds delightful. Honestly; a carrots, apples, and mangoes puree sounds so good to me. NOT! Perhaps separated? Oh, maybe as a nice cool smoothie. But a warm package? No thanks! 

BUT the important thing is HE likes it. How do I know? It doesn't end up splattered all over the floor. He even opens his mouth for more, which Anastasia learned from him. I feel like I'm feeding baby birds when they both open their mouths for more food at the same time. Anastasia is more vocal and will add screeches if she feels ignored for to long. (Which just intensifies the baby bird atmosphere).  

The Busy Day
I should have known it was going to be a busy day today. 
Heidi Anne has a case for her games, she's used to leaving it within reach of the babies because it's a hard case and is zipped shut. 

Apparently, Rory has learned how to unzip zippers. I did NOT
know this piece of information. I had my back turned to him while changing Anastasia's diaper. I look back to him and he is sitting calmly watching her game start up. 

I got a few pictures, because I'm a good mom like that. Then saved the game system from him and got him to watch Amazon Prime on my phone, Daniel Tigers Neighborhood. I used to hate that show, until it helps calm Rory down. As do car/ truck/train videos. 

Anastasia has learned her name. You call her name, she looks for you, then gives you a big toothy grin. Almost every time.

There are times when she's trying to steal Rory's milk from him, she'll start by pulling his hair. Which makes Rory release the cup. Rory on the other hand, will respond to any name you call him. Which resulted in the following incident:

Rory was laying down, drinking his Ma Mlk (More Milk). Anastasia caught sight of his cup and began army crawling to pull his hair. Just as she was about to tug, I startled her by saying "Anastasia, no!" 

Poor Rory looked at me with such confusion and began to cry. He thought I was getting upset at him instead of trying to save him from Anastasia. I got an innocent and adorable look from her. Want to know the ironic thing? Anastasia had a half of a bottle of chocolate soy milk she was drinking from before she saw his cup. 

Today, I noticed Rory was playing with his train. Not just the wheels, but the whole train! He'd push it around in circles around him. He'd even let me play with him a little by pushing the train between us. Normally, he plays alone but today he let me share his world for a few minutes. It was heaven!

As I was tucking Rory into bed I went through our normal routine of saying "Tell (insert name or object) bye bye, night night.", as we walk down the hall and to anyone or anything we see. I've been doing this since he was born and am normally meet with silence. But I keep doing it.  

I was shocked when I said "Tell Heidi Anne bye bye." Rory promptly responded "Bye! Bye!" and even waved bye! We kept this up for 3 minutes. Just letting Heidi and Rory say "Bye, Bye" to each other. I got a little teary eyed when it happened. Afterwards, Heidi Anne was excited, saying over and over "Rory's trying to say he loves me! He said bye to me!!"

Rory's Journey to the Spectrum

After months of waiting we finally have a diagnoses of what is plaguing Rory. He has Severe Autism Level 2. To be severe you need a minimum score of 14, he scored a 21. I know I shouldn't be so shocked. I knew in my gut he had autism, I was expecting him to be mild, maybe moderate. But severe? That threw me for a loop! 

I won't lie I've shed many tears and am a little heart-broken since I've gotten the news. Heidi Anne was inconsolable after she heard the results. Her first words were "You mean he'll never say I love you to me?" Followed by "Will people be mean to my brother or treat him like he's stupid? Because he's NOT!"     

Despite these sad feelings, I'm confident in the results. We took numerous surveys, had three different assessments, with three different people, on three different days. Which had a total of 8 hours of observation of Rory with and without us, in various situations. 

Being non-verbal is one of the key things that pushed him from moderate to severe. Another element is his headbanging and biting of his hands that he does when overstimulated. Nothing can prepare you to see your child bang their head against a wall, table, or floor repeatedly, and you can't do a thing to stop it. Right now I can pick him up, but he'll still try to bang his head in the air or headbutt me. I know a day will come when he'll be to big for me to pick him up. 

Right now Rory's getting as much help as we can get him based on where we live. Which makes the need to move to a bigger area more imperative then ever. We went ahead and got him on a few waiting lists for ABA Therapy in areas of Utah we hope to move to. 

IF he gets accepted before we move, I'm looking at 2-3 sessions a week for 3-5 hours per session (with Anastasia in tow). Once we move we can get him into private speech therapy, in addition to the 12-15 hours of ABA therapy, and the local Early Intervention's services. SO we're looking at over 20 hours a week of various therapies for the next few years. That will be my part time job until Rowan starts school.   

While I don't question the diagnoses, we're all still reeling from the gravity of it all. All my hopes of a "normal childhood" for him have gone up in smoke. But I have a feeling something much better then I could imagine lays down the road for him, I just have to help him get there. 

Dads N' Doughnuts

Heidi Anne's school had a special breakfast called "Dads and Doughnuts". It's just for kids and; dads, grandpas, uncles, ect. There was a little interview for the dads and children to work on together. Here are Char's answers in Red and Heidi Anne's answers in Blue.

Favorite Color: Blue and Red, Blue
Favorite Number: 7, 42 
Favorite Subject: Reading, Science
Favorite Food: Doughnuts, Pizza 
Favorite Dessert: Ice Cream, Brownies 
Favorite Sport: Dodge Ball, Skiing 
Favorite Animal: Cheetah, Liger (Lion & Tiger Mix)
Favorite Holiday: Halloween, Heidi's Birthday (Because he can't say Halloween, too). 
Favorite Season: Fall, Autumn 
Favorite Restaurant: Costa Vida, Wendy's
Favorite Candy: Kit Kat's, Almond Hershey's Kisses
Favorite Hobby: Playing in the Snow, Reading
Favorite Place: Home (with Mommy there), Home
Favorite Cartoon: Simpson's, Simpson's 

All About Anastasia

Lately nothing much has happened, another slow week (minus the fact that Heidi Anne had a second snow day). Therefore, I wanted to do a little post, with lots of cute pictures, of just Anastasia. Anastasia is now the same age Rory was when she was born. I can't imagine having another baby right now. More power to those who can do 3 under 2! Heidi Anne loves to pick out Anastasia's clothes for me, her baby sister is a real life, living doll to her. 

Anastasia loves to try to steal Rory's chocolate soy milk. She will roll close to it, then army crawl the rest of the way to get to that cup. Sometimes, she'll pull Rory's hair to make him drop his cup so she can steal it from him. Her clothes have many chocolate milk stains. 

She is super close to really crawling. She gets on all fours and rocks back and forth. Sometimes, when milk or another forbidden object, (for example, the lap top cord) is near she will lunge herself forward like a little seal to grab it. You can see Rory's puppy in the background, it goes with him everywhere. I once found Anastasia fast asleep and curled up next to "Doggie". 

Anastasia has to have her mobility! Here's a picture of her trapped by a Boppy. As you can tell, she is NOT amused. She's probably thinking "Don't take pictures! Save me!" I thought her face looked rather regal. Now she hates her once beloved swing because she can't move, even if she's swinging. She's had her taste of freedom and loves it.

She's doing so much better about sitting in her bumbo by herself. She hardly slides out from the side anymore. But we're still a ways off from her sitting up unassisted. My goal was for her to sit by Christmas, which then came and went. Then my new goal was by my birthday. Which again, came and went. Now the newest goal is her birthday in February, we'll just have to wait and see.

Anastasia is teething 6 teeth at once! They are super sharp, a lesson I learned the hard way, twice. She broke the skin and made me bleed both times. Don't worry, I've finally learned my lesson, don't let her put my fingers near her mouth. On the plus side it's given her an adorable toothy grin. She can say Mama and Dada, as well! 

She likes apple baby food, but adores sneaking bites of Rory's breakfast yogurt the most. He's kind enough to let her get away with it. She's not picky on the flavor, as long as it's his. 

She may not be the easiest baby, but she is sure a happy one. She loves the time when the others go to bed and it's just her, me, and the unlimited access to all the toys. 

Heidi Anne's Week at Grandma's

Heidi Anne spent a week at Grandma's, between Polar Express and Christmas Eve, Eve. Here are her adventures at Grandma's that week, as she remembers them. So the actual day and activity maybe slightly off. I guess this would be her first blog post! 

December 19-I helped Grandma watch Cousin G and wrapped presents. 

December 20-Grandma and I got our hair cut. There was an Elf on the Shelf at the saloon kicking a snowman's carrot nose. (Which Heidi Anne thought was super funny.) 

We went and saw Aunt S at work and peeked at the gingerbread house she made. Then we went to the Corner Bakery for lunch. I spent the rest of the day making crafts and wrapping more presents. 

December 21-I shoveled the driveway! I went to the post office and bank with Grandpa. Then we meet up with Grandma at Subway and had Subway for lunch. Then we went shopping. I spent a lot of time outside and played in the snow trying to build a fort. 

December 22-Grandma had a doctor appointment so I stayed at home with Grandpa. After the doctor's appointment Grandma and I went shopping at IKEA. It was a maze of a store. 

I made some more crafts for people as gifts. I also helped Grandma watch Cousin G. 

December 23-You (Mommy) and the babies came to Grandma's (and I quote) "You know what happened that day."

Happy / Post New Years

So time, time got away from me. I don't know the exact days something happened like usual. Oh, well. Here are the important things that happened. 

New Years Eve & New Year's Day
For New Year's Eve Char had the day off (he worked New Years Day). Thus 9:00 pm became the new midnight! I'm honestly impressed Heidi Anne made it that long, she's an early bird not a night owl. 

During the day we played a fun game called 5 Second Rule. You pick a card that has a request like "Name 3 things you need to make cookies" or "Name 3 African American Actors", "Name 3 types of butterflies." It sounds easy, right? But it's so hard when you're put on the spot and only have 5 seconds to come up with the answer. The game is really fun and older kids can play, too. We are so bringing this game to the family reunion this summer!

That night we watched "Storks" the movie. Which was kind of cute. We started "The Secret Life of Pets" but only made it half way because everyone started to drift off to sleep. Per tradition, we had some sparkling cider, which we chilled outside in the snow. Hey, if you have a ton of snow why not use it? 

The Day of Doctor Appointments
On Tuesday the 3 we had a doctor appointment for Anastasia in Salt Lake and Rory had one in Bountiful. 

Anastasia has been outgrowing her helmet due to a growth spurt. The prosthetic doctor tried to shave off as much foam as possible to give her a little more time in the helmet. But for the first time, she HATED the helmet. She'd tug, push, pull, rub her head and helmet. She was also abnormally fussy. (She's cutting 6 teeth at once, which means she was constantly unhappy).  

Her doctor appointment was with the cranio-facial plastic surgeon. He checked her head and made sure her eye socket was circular. While her head is still 10 degrees off, everything is growing normally. So she'll just have funky pig-tails. He gave the all clear to go helmet free. If we had caught it sooner, it would have resolved even more. SO from now on, if I think something is off, I won't delay getting help. It is comforting to know we did act as fast as possible, but were stonewalled by the insurance. Here she is enjoying her new found freedom. 

The next appointment was for Rory to determine where on the autism spectrum he falls. We won't get the answer until the 19th. The pediatric developmental psychologist watched how he played and interacted with her and myself. She would try to engage him in pretend play, which he wouldn't do. She witnessed his laying down on the floor to play with cars or other toys. She said she's never seen that behavior before, and thinks he does that to view things from a different perspective, to see how objects operate. 

He wouldn't play with toys the usual way, for example, cars he wouldn't crash together but would spin the wheels. She tried to get him to play with an airplane waving it in the air, he played with the propeller. She pretended to smell fake flowers, he rubbed the different fabric textures between his fingers. She brought out a toy dog, which he loved. She noted every little thing he did.   

We still have some more online assessments to do. I just wish we could get the results sooner than the 19th. I try to remind myself that some people wait years to get a diagnoses. Waiting 2 more weeks isn't terribly bad. 

The Snow Day
The day before a snow day was called, Heidi Anne's bus got stuck in a snowbank. They had to call for a rescue bus to take the children home. 

The following morning (at 5 am) we got a phone call and a text informing us the school was taking a snow day. Char couldn't get back to sleep, so he went and shoveled the driveway in -3 degree weather. I made him some hot chocolate as a thank-you and to help warm him back up. 

Heidi Anne worked on her first sewing project, she got a sewing kit for Christmas and I just haven't had the time to teach her. But today, I had the chance to work on it with her. 

She is very proud of completing her first sewing project, (which is a little stuffed fox), like a big girl. 

She also went sledding down the hill in the front lawn, made snow angels, and played with her friend. I read "A Snowy Day" to the little babies, (I think Heidi Anne was listening in as well). A pretty good Snow Day if you ask me. 

Christmas Week End!

December 23- Our Friday started out at 5:00am! Anastasia had two doctor appointments in Ogden then Salt Lake that morning. So we got Rory and Anastasia up and ready to go. Anastasia was wide eyed and bushy tailed. Rory was less then happy to be up so early. 

We drove down to Ogden for Anastasia's first doctor's appointment.  Since she was a preemie with respiratory distress syndrome and still weighs less than 20 pounds she qualifies for the Synergis shot. This shot gives her an immunity boost and lowers her risk for getting RSV. She'll have to have one shot every 28 days until May to be effective. The three of us had to wait there for nearly a hour after the shot to make sure she didn't suffer an allergic reaction from it.  (Which she didn't). So from now on, we can just get the shot and go. 

Next we drove to her helmet appointment. She's gone from 20 degrees off down to 10 degrees off. She's gone through a bit of a growth spurt. Which is a double edge sword, on one side yeah, she's growing. On the other side, she's outgrowing her helmet before it's had time to fully repair her head. If we keep this one on much longer it could impact her brain growth. If we don't get a new one her skull could remain deformed. We have to wait for the Cranial-Facial Surgeon to see if her occipital bone (eye socket) is still flat, which could cause her eye to pop out. Fun things to think about, I know. 

After that we went to grandma's for the weekend. Rory had fun playing with Cousin G. Grandma bought a pack of mini balls. I put them into a box, then placed Rory into the box full of balls. Ta-Da, mini ball pit. He LOVED it! 

After we got the babies settled, Grandma watched them while I took Heidi Anne to go shopping for presents. She got socks for Rory and Anastasia and a movie for Char and me. It was packed! I'm never shopping the day before Christmas Eve / before a big snow storm again!

After we got back to Grandma's house, Heidi Anne ran some errands with Grandpa and brought back pizza for our traditional Pizza Night Friday! The kids went to sleep not to long after dinner. 

December 24-The kids all got up super early. Call it a dry run for Christmas morning. Grandpa made a special breakfast of Eggnog French Toast. Heidi Anne helped Grandpa make it. By the time we all sat down to eat, Char came in from work. It was 6:30 am. There we all were sitting down ready to eat. (Good timing on his part). 

After breakfast, Char went down to sleep and the kids went to play. Rory found one of the cousins presents and feel in love with it, it was a stuffed animal dog. 

He kept petting it and repeating "Doggie!", which is amazing. But sadly, it wasn't his present, so we put it away before he became anymore attached to it. He then found a spatula and played in the ball pit again. Anastasia just rolled around. She did a LOT of rolling. She run into a wall or a piece of furniture and cry until she rescued herself or someone moved her back to the middle of the living room.

Later on in the day Char woke up and family started arriving to Grandma's house. The kids played with cousins and had a fun time. Everyone made their own little personal pizzas, which took some time given there were 20 people! 

After dinner, the kids (with the help of the grown-ups) did a nativity play. Heidi Anne was Joseph this year, (she was Mary last year) and Anastasia was baby Jesus. 

Then we had a gift exchange for the grown ups. The kids opened up pajamas. Finally, everyone shouted up the chimney to Santa. This is a British tradition where on Christmas Eve, you shout up the chimney to let Santa know what you want for Christmas. This year, half of the children made last minute changes to their wish list. Seriously, the very last second they changed their minds on us. 

 Oh, well! I told Heidi Anne Santa had already left the North Pole with the wish list she had written at school. Also, he was coming to our home in Wyoming and not to Grandma's house. So no need to get up ridiculously early. 

December 25-They got up ridiculously early. They did the thing!

We opened what presents were at Grandma's house and some stockings. It finally snowed over night and into the morning. Grandpa shoveled the walk, while Char dug out and loaded up the cars for the drive back home. 

Little Anastasia was out like a light. Exhausted from the lack of sleep the night before (not even 1 year old and knew something was special) and the getting up early part. 

By 9:00 am most of the family was back at Grandma's for a family breakfast. Rory and Cousin G were snacking while everything was cooking. 

After breakfast (more like brunch...well, more like 11:00 am) we headed home. It took me over 2 hours to drive back home though the snow. 

The kids were excited to see their Santa presents and unwrap their presents. Rory went straight for Anastasia's gift of a stroller / walker and baby doll, he couldn't be separated from it. 

Until she went for his Santa gift. Then he was all over his present. 

We spent the rest of the day playing, watching a movie, until Daddy had work at 5:00 pm. Then we played some more. 

Slow Week

December 11-We got at least a foot of snow from a recent storm. One of our neighbors was super nice and shoveled our driveway for us. Char is still fighting his illness and is very exhausted from the lack of sleep due to the constant coughing. 

December 14-Language therapy or physical therapy today, both therapist had strep today and didn't want to spread it to the babies. Anastasia got weighed and is now 14 pounds, 15 ounces. Slowly making progress.

 December 17-Heidi got to go ride on the Polar Express with; Grandma, Grandpa, Cousin A and Cousin H. This is probably the last year they'll ride the Polar Express because they're getting older. 

 The morning started off with a special breakfast of French toast. (I know, the crust looks like onion rings at first sight.)

They had fun riding on a train. Taking in the winter scenery. 

All the kids received jingle bells. They sang Christmas Carols and drank hot chocolate. 

Finally, they got to see Santa and tell him what they wanted for Christmas. 

Finally, Heidi got to spend the night at grandma's. 

Not much happened on the home front that day. I did start watching "The Man in the High Castle," I'm betting the book is much better. I'll have to put that on my wish list. 

December 18-Today we went down to Grandma's house to celebrate Aunt L's birthday. It was fun to see everybody. Heidi Anne decided to spend the rest of the week at Grandma's house. 

Anastasia had a ball rolling all over the place. I could hardly get a picture of her because she was moving around so much. Rory had fun exploring with Cousin G. Around 5:00 pm everybody else come to grandma's house. Aunt S made a great triple caramel chocolate cake. I should have gotten a picture. 

Felt Christmas Tree and Making Strides

December 3- Char relapsed. He's super sick, again. 

December 5- Today we drove down to Riverton to have Rory's hearing double checked (per the first audiologist). It was a 3 1/2 hour drive back and forth. Since this was Primary Children's it was a lot more kid friendly. 

Rory had to sit still for the first test, which checked that his eardrums are functioning (they're perfect). The second verified that his nerves were working properly (again we got the all clear). 

The last test we had to sit in a booth with speakers on opposite sides of the room. Then different tones and sounds came out of the speakers, which he would turn his head to the side which produced sound. As a reward the speaker would light up with a little toy spinning around. He loved that bit. Again, he passed with flying colors.

So it's official, he's hearing is perfect and not the source of his issues. Not surprising but reassuring to know it's pure autism and not autism with hearing impairment. 

We started a new tradition this year, it's our felt Christmas Tree. Now the babies can play with the Christmas Tree to their hearts content. Rory can move the ornaments around all he wants, no harm done. Just try to keep him away from the lights of a normal tree. We discovered that his rule of "nothing can be on a flat surface" extends to trees. It was a disaster trying to keep him away from the ornaments. 

December 6-Each of the kids has their own special song that I sing to just them, frequently before bed. 

Heidi Anne's song is "You are My Sunshine", she always lights up a room with her smile. She tries to make new friends and be nice to people. She was also our Rainbow Baby, and we thought we'd never have another child. Her nickname for years was Sunshine.   

Anastasia's song is "This is My Fight Song", perfect for a NICU baby where everyday was a battle to survive. I loved the lyrics, they just fit her so well. There was a Piano Guys version which had bagpipers playing Amazing Grace in the background. It would make me full on cry, because that's my tiny baby, a little fighter, and most importantly, a survivor.

Rory's song is "Carry on My Wayward Son", It just seemed fitting since we named him after the Rowan tree which according to legend would guide weary travelers on their journey. But now with his autism it has more meaning when you read through the lyrics with autism in mind. Especially since wayward can mean-hard to control or predict due to unusual behavior.    

December 7- It's the 75th Anniversary of Pearl Harbor.  I had a great uncle that survived the attack on USS Arizona. He sadly passed away just before I was born. I think I would have liked him. In case you didn't already know, I love WWII history / stories. It could be about; the home front, the European or Pacific theaters, life behind the axis lines, ect. Pretty much anything regarding WWII fascinates me. Wow, that was a tangent. 

Well, Anastasia is making great progress with her physical therapy. She's starting to do some of the neck stretches all by herself, as long as you give her a reason to look in that particular direction. She's getting better at rolling around, it seems like she thinks "Why crawl, when I can roll around to where I need to go?" 

We had a goal of getting her to sit up by herself at Christmas, but she doesn't have the core strength just yet. Here's to hoping and working more with her on her daily physically therapy. (As of today I have 18 days left before Christmas, who knows?)

Rory had a huge breakthrough with his language therapy. Today he got off my lap and interacted a little with Ms. L (the therapist)! She's been coming once a week for 3 months and this was the first time he got off my lap to play the game she laid out for him to play with. She had an empty wipe container and little cards. The game is played by Rory, who opens the container lid, put a card in the wipe opening, and closing the lid. Now repeat for as long as he wants to play. 

He even made a few babble sounds. This is the first time he's babbled for her. Rory normally won't make a sound or do his mouth closed, muffled talking. But he actually opened his mouth and made sounds for her.  

December 10- It's been a slow latter part of the week. Filled with keeping a close eye on Rory and Anastasia while Char is still trying to get better. Anastasia is rolling all over the place, (which is technically a form of crawling). You have to watch her closely because she will get under the rocking chairs, find wires then tugs at them, and finally everything goes into her mouth. 

Anastasia got weighed on Friday. She's now 14 pounds, 11 ounces. The nurse said babies tend to stop growing so rapidly around 9 months old, she's now 10 months old. I can hardly believe she's almost the same age Rory was when I had her! Time does go by quickly! 

Rory's been obsessed with some boxes and wrapping paper. He loves to walk on the paper, making crinkle sounds while grinning happily. Anastasia likes to roll over to where Rory is playing and tare pieces off. (She's practicing for Christmas morning). Rory keeps trying to protect "his" box from Anastasia, even though I found another identical box for him to play with. Nope, he wants box 1 and only box 1. I don't know how he can tell the difference but he does. It's been more entertaining then it might sound. 

Sick, Sick, Sick

November 27-Rory is still sick from yesterday. I've been mostly taking care of him. He only wants to be held while I walk around. He won't settle for sitting and rocking in a chair like usual. No, he has to be held and walked. 

November 28-Rory is very ill. If he doesn't keep fluids down we may have to go to the ER. This is the sickest he's ever been, poor guy. 

November 29- Today was Char's and Heidi Anne's turn to be super sick. I believe they caught it from little Rory, who has finally stopped throwing up. I feel like this post is starting to look like the diary in the old Oregon Trail game. "Charlie has dysentery". Remember getting to play that game at school if you were good? Or having it at home on your computer on CD if you were really lucky? (Side Note-I got that game for my birthday last year, call it 90's nostalgia. But it won't function on these new computers. Go figure).  

Rory had his first of three evaluations for autism this afternoon. I really liked his psychologist, she was very nice. Rory had a bad day and was way out of his comfort zone. The psychologist caught some things we had over looked. 

For example, he likes to get on my lap and make me clap my hands, which he did during the session. (Every time he does it I think of the song "I Can Make Your Hands Clap"). Apparently, it's a form of stimming. Stimming is a way to help manage control over fear, anxiety, or from being over stimulated.

She saw his "nothing shall remain on a flat surface" rule. Rory did his shoes can only be on the right foot as well. Both of which she attributed to his personal autism quirks. Also, he did his drunken sailor on land, side to side walk. Which she said is a sensory overload thing. 

By the end of the session the psychologist wrote "Autism" in big red letters across his paper work. She then said, "Yes, he does have autism, now we need to find out how severe he is". The psychologist believes he's mild, but being non-verbal may push him to moderate. She's going to see if we can be fast tracked so he can start ABA therapy right away. She suggested we give PECS therapy a try. Which is a form of speech therapy. 

November 30-Well, everyone is still on the mends but no one stayed home from work or school today, I call that progress. 

Today Anastasia had physical therapy. She is doing great! I've noticed that Anastasia is improving and progressing well when it comes to her upper body, but her lower body is lacking. She has started to army crawl, dragging her legs limply behind her, (like a beached mermaid). The therapist gave me some stretches to help strengthen her legs and back. She advised me to keep pushing her to sit up in the bumbo more. 

 Shortly after that Rory's language therapist came over. He still won't talk for her or make any sounds. But he did interact with her more this week! They played a game where he had to open a wipe container, put in a card, then close the lid, and repeat. He loved it. 

He sat still long enough for her to read a story to him. Then she brought out a sensory bouncy ball for him to keep, which was very nice of her. He loved playing with the ball. We talked about maybe trying the PEC System with Rory, she's going to talk with her supervisor about it. 

Here's a picture of Rory playing with his busy box. It has objects that light up, different types of switches that make that "click" sound, wheels for him to spin, a phone for him to play with, and lots of doors with different types of locks for him to open and close to his little heart's content. 

Later, a nurse came by to weigh Anastasia. She weighed 14 pounds and 4 ounces. Meaning, no weight was gained in the last 10 days. But she didn't lose any. We'll see next week if she gains anything.    

Tonight a lady from our church came to visit me. Heidi Anne asked if she was here for Anastasia or Rory. You should have seen the look on her face when I said the lady was here to visit with me.

December 1- How do I feel about getting a diagnoses? I feel a sense of relief. I've accepted that it's autism (we just need to have the evaluation to find out where Rory lands on the spectrum). I could be in denial, but that would waste precious time. I think I may have been in denial when he was 16 months old, and that delayed the help we needed. Bargaining is useless and again would just waste time. I think things slowly built up for me that something was off. I just didn't have a name for it. 

I guess I could be angry. I never really thought about that one. Grrr, Anger, Arggg! Nope, not me. 

I want him to have friends, though it may take years for him to develop those skills. I want to be able to go out in public without him suffering a meltdown. I'd like to be invited to gatherings (so I know people still want us around) but with the understanding we might not be able to make it based on Rory's day / mood. Or if we can come, I'll be focused on Rory so much (plus watching the girls) I might not be a social butterfly. But happy to be around. 

There is one thing I want, acceptance from others. Acceptance of his diagnoses, of Rory, and even his little quirks. I want him to be treated like any other 2 year old, but with some extra understanding of his unique needs. I don't want him to be treated like a freak, slow, or someone to be feared. While yes, he's delayed now, he may not be in a few years time.

December 2-Rory is still sick but I think he's turning a corner! He kept down the Pedilite mixed with a bit of Sprite. The nurse told me that as long as he had tears he wasn't that dehydrated. Despite him only having 3 wet diapers 2 days in a row. (Shaking head and sighing). 

He even ate a little bit today, which stayed inside his tummy. Rory started getting that spark in his eye just before bed. He gave me a tiny giggle with a smile. But he was still super cuddly, which is abnormal for him. We'll see tomorrow how clingy he is. 

What a week!