We had our monthly session with our infant/child development worker today.
I know. How much can actually be achieved when you have one hour, once a month? Seriously. Our worker and I have discussed it repeatedly. But that's what the agency budget (re: tax money) covers so that's what we get.
And in our case it's sufficient. More than sufficient actually as Lauren is soaring. Within minutes of starting our ICDW said, "Where'd all this language come from?" and was pleasantly surprised with Lauren playing a game designed for four year olds. Granted she plays with guidance from me but she matches her colours and makes the patterns about as well as Roman and her colour blind Papa do.
We decided together to move into a maintenance mode where Lauren stays on her caseload but only a few times a year. It means I can very easily call in again if things seem to be going astray.
We also discussed Lauren starting preschool in the fall. We have an extra year before she starts JK but Lauren is much more easy going than Roman ever was. She's much happier to play with new people and do new things. We also don't have many playmates her age so getting into a structured environment away from me would likely be very easy and beneficial for her. Besides, imagine what I could do with 5 hours a week to myself?
It does, however, open a can of worms. Do we approach it as a child with unique requirements and fill out extra paperwork to possibly have a resource person assigned to her? Or do we register her as a regular child and see what happens? My inclination is to keep her syndrome out of the picture and have her treated as such as much as possible. Our ICDW supports this approach as Lauren likely wouldn't qualify for special assistance anyways and it could predispose her to differential treatment. Which is exactly the opposite of what we'd like her to experience.
That said, we also don't want anyone to think we're ashamed of her genetic condition and it's going to be obvious, to anyone with formal training at least, that there is something different about her.
At this point the plan is to enroll her this September giving the information that Lauren has a growth deficiency and will need assistance and possibly extra step stools etc to manage some things other kids take for granted. Everything else we'll keep to ourselves until/unless it becomes an obvious concern.
Until now, I've always been very clear about Lauren's genetic condition. Now I'm keeping it to myself. If I'm asked specifically I will provide any and all information but until that time, until someone knowledgeable notices something specific and brings it to my attention, Lauren will be Lauren alone, not LaurenWithNS.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
The future bounty
The garden is in!
Yes we'll have successive plantings to come but for now... for the next two weeks at least, the garden is in.
Our purchased seedlings this year included leeks, brussel sprouts, jalapeno and thai chillies, dill, fennel, zucchini, egg plants and tomatoes (just a few as we have had a loosing battle with blight). We grew our own tomatillo seedlings and everything else has come from seed.
This weekend's planting included Roman's much anticipated CORN! paired with pole beans, squash and pumpkins (jack-0-lantern pumpkins that is at Roman's request). Next came carrots paired with parsley then bush beans and basil. We also added more plantings of greens, cilantro, chard, beets and spinach.
We've now had a small harvest of greens and a few radishes and our peas and potatoes are very VERY happy.
And so are we.
Yes we'll have successive plantings to come but for now... for the next two weeks at least, the garden is in.
Our purchased seedlings this year included leeks, brussel sprouts, jalapeno and thai chillies, dill, fennel, zucchini, egg plants and tomatoes (just a few as we have had a loosing battle with blight). We grew our own tomatillo seedlings and everything else has come from seed.
This weekend's planting included Roman's much anticipated CORN! paired with pole beans, squash and pumpkins (jack-0-lantern pumpkins that is at Roman's request). Next came carrots paired with parsley then bush beans and basil. We also added more plantings of greens, cilantro, chard, beets and spinach.
We've now had a small harvest of greens and a few radishes and our peas and potatoes are very VERY happy.
And so are we.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
If it's not one thing...
This one is of our own doing.
We've had Lauren on the Lax-A-Day for 10 days now and other than one horrific night I think it's made a difference. We haven't been up in the night with howling. In the too much information category, her bowel movements have been easier too. She's always been able to pass things, most days have required more effort than one would expect from a 2 year old. All around, this change has been good.
Of course we won't know for certain if it's the meds or some miracle stage she's reached (like her last molar FINALLY coming in) until we take her back off them. I'll be calling the GI office this week to discuss the options. I'm not looking forward to the call as I find that department exceedingly frustrating but it needs to be done.
As a consequence of her doing better gas wise, we've started to let some 'forbidden' foods creep back into her diet. Mostly parmessan cheese in left over spaghetti and risotto. We'll likely stay mostly dairy free regardless of the success of the meds because she's used to it and I think healthier overall. Besides? what else would possibly I spend the extra grocery money on? (she says with sarcasm...)
We've had some beautiful moments the last few days too. Roman helping Lauren, "reading" her a story (one he has memorized...) and the two of them sitting with me to read, play a game or watch the birds. Any day that has less than usual fighting is stellar for me.
Lauren's language is REALLY taking off too. Insert chorus of angels here! Some of her sentences and logic are really coming through. Yesterday was Roman's gymnastics class at The Little Gym to which Lauren came along so Kevin could do yard work. When we returned, Kevin asked Lauren if she had a good time and did she go on the high bar. Her response. "No, That Guy." which means, "Not me. Roman did". With all the new language and logic, I can only hope other people start to understand her too. It's tough when a lot of it is contextual. If you don't know that she calls Roman "That Guy" it would be hard to pull it out of her speech.
The other tiny thing that really makes me smile is how we've gotten Lauren to take her antacids. She was starting to refuse no matter what logic or bribery we applied. One day I gave it to her while I was having my coffee and called it coffee for her too. We clinked glasses and poof! down it went. Now she has her coffee every morning just like Mama and Papa.
Oh so to the point of my opening sentence. While Lauren is sleeping better without pain, she's still waking and being up for chunks of time. We're working on the assumption that it's the milk she asks for that's keeping her up so are cutting that out. She can have a sippy of water if she wants but that just doesn't meet her needs. It's only been three nights so we'll keep at it. When she gets mad, she gets mad so it may be backfiring a bit. She's not awake because she's drinking and awake, she's up because she's pissed we won't give her what she wants. Each day I explain that Mama, Papa, Roman and the kitties drink water at night so Lauren can too. We'll see. Funnily enough, parenting books and magazines always talk about "cutting out the night time milk" as a means to help your little ones get through the night better. I've now realized they don't actually tell you HOW to do this or what the ramifications will be.
But then they don't have Lauren for a daughter...
We've had Lauren on the Lax-A-Day for 10 days now and other than one horrific night I think it's made a difference. We haven't been up in the night with howling. In the too much information category, her bowel movements have been easier too. She's always been able to pass things, most days have required more effort than one would expect from a 2 year old. All around, this change has been good.
Of course we won't know for certain if it's the meds or some miracle stage she's reached (like her last molar FINALLY coming in) until we take her back off them. I'll be calling the GI office this week to discuss the options. I'm not looking forward to the call as I find that department exceedingly frustrating but it needs to be done.
As a consequence of her doing better gas wise, we've started to let some 'forbidden' foods creep back into her diet. Mostly parmessan cheese in left over spaghetti and risotto. We'll likely stay mostly dairy free regardless of the success of the meds because she's used to it and I think healthier overall. Besides? what else would possibly I spend the extra grocery money on? (she says with sarcasm...)
We've had some beautiful moments the last few days too. Roman helping Lauren, "reading" her a story (one he has memorized...) and the two of them sitting with me to read, play a game or watch the birds. Any day that has less than usual fighting is stellar for me.
Lauren's language is REALLY taking off too. Insert chorus of angels here! Some of her sentences and logic are really coming through. Yesterday was Roman's gymnastics class at The Little Gym to which Lauren came along so Kevin could do yard work. When we returned, Kevin asked Lauren if she had a good time and did she go on the high bar. Her response. "No, That Guy." which means, "Not me. Roman did". With all the new language and logic, I can only hope other people start to understand her too. It's tough when a lot of it is contextual. If you don't know that she calls Roman "That Guy" it would be hard to pull it out of her speech.
The other tiny thing that really makes me smile is how we've gotten Lauren to take her antacids. She was starting to refuse no matter what logic or bribery we applied. One day I gave it to her while I was having my coffee and called it coffee for her too. We clinked glasses and poof! down it went. Now she has her coffee every morning just like Mama and Papa.
Oh so to the point of my opening sentence. While Lauren is sleeping better without pain, she's still waking and being up for chunks of time. We're working on the assumption that it's the milk she asks for that's keeping her up so are cutting that out. She can have a sippy of water if she wants but that just doesn't meet her needs. It's only been three nights so we'll keep at it. When she gets mad, she gets mad so it may be backfiring a bit. She's not awake because she's drinking and awake, she's up because she's pissed we won't give her what she wants. Each day I explain that Mama, Papa, Roman and the kitties drink water at night so Lauren can too. We'll see. Funnily enough, parenting books and magazines always talk about "cutting out the night time milk" as a means to help your little ones get through the night better. I've now realized they don't actually tell you HOW to do this or what the ramifications will be.
But then they don't have Lauren for a daughter...
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
You win some, you loose some
These lovely ladies are Salma and Poppy - our new kitties.
I can't tell you for certain who is who though I think Salma is in the front and Poppy hiding behind her. We haven't actually seen very much of Poppy yet. She's a timid sort who prefers to hide under the bed. I'm starting to see a bit of success luring her out with treats but it'll take time.
On the loosing front, this weekend's storm took out half our pear tree. This is a huge frustration for me though now, as I think about it more, it's not as frustrating as it could be. We called an arborist last fall for a large tree in the back lot that didn't look well. I also wanted him to advise us on how to manage our pear tree as it has a LOT of upward growth.
Unfortunately, Kevin forgot to ask him. We arranged that he'd come by the next time he was in the neighbourhood and have a look. It never happened and I never called.
Kevin wonders if the tree would've been damaged if it had been pruned back properly. I, just now, am thinking, "thank goodness we didn't pay to have that puppy fixed then loose half of it!!"
We're leaving it to nature. Hopefully the balance of the tree is healthy enough to withstand the trauma and we'll still have a crop of Clapp's Favourites for canning. If not, I guess we have more firewood, less hornets in the fall and need to find something that grows quickly to fill that space.
For now, we'll watch, wait and play with the kitties.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Cheque Please
I paid for my wonderful day last night.
Hubby and I had a nice dinner and watched the movie he bought for my birthday. Lauren slept til the movie was just about finished and it went downhill from there.
At 4 or 5 I took over for Kevin in Lauren's room. After nearly two hours of howling, crawling on and off mama, a sip of milk now and again, brief moments of sleep quickly followed by more howling and flailing, she finally fell asleep around 6.
Since she got up at 8:20 (which is really late for her but necessary given the above) she's been a complete basket case.
We've now given her tylenol and Kevin is putting her back to bed.
Most of her time up during the night was gas related. Some is cold related and I can only guess that this morning is a continuation of both plus being exhausted.
Let's hope a bit more sleep helps reset her system for the day.
Hubby and I had a nice dinner and watched the movie he bought for my birthday. Lauren slept til the movie was just about finished and it went downhill from there.
At 4 or 5 I took over for Kevin in Lauren's room. After nearly two hours of howling, crawling on and off mama, a sip of milk now and again, brief moments of sleep quickly followed by more howling and flailing, she finally fell asleep around 6.
Since she got up at 8:20 (which is really late for her but necessary given the above) she's been a complete basket case.
We've now given her tylenol and Kevin is putting her back to bed.
Most of her time up during the night was gas related. Some is cold related and I can only guess that this morning is a continuation of both plus being exhausted.
Let's hope a bit more sleep helps reset her system for the day.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Feelin' Groovy
The last 24 hours has been amazing. I'm sitting now at the computer watching Lauren at her computer. She's starting to really connect how the mouse moves the arrow and how clicking on the button makes it play. She moves the mouse with one hand, clicks with the other then sits with her hands together to watch the song she picked.
AND (and I'm sure I'm jinxing it) she spent the night in undies last night and stayed dry. Seriously! We've been keeping her in pull ups just in case but the last three nights, since we've started the Lax-A-Day, she's been drinking a lot less at night and making it through without getting up to pee. (Yes. My 2 year old gets up in the night if she has to pee. How insane is that??)
AND this morning we went to the local market - Mosborough Market - which is open every day for the season now to get local asparagus and hoop tomatoes and hooray hooray they had local strawberries too! Strawberries! in MAY!!! By 'local' I need to specify that they're from a town about 90 minutes away but still within the 100 mile diet if you go for that sort of thing.
So... strawberries, undies, computer skills... what else...
OH! We'll be picking up Salma and Jenny tomorrow after Roman's class at The Little Gym. The current family has paid to have them spayed and their vet gave them their rabies shots and treated for ear mites for free. The stitches need to come out in about two weeks and our vet has offered to take them out for free too.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE our vet? I think they might feel bad because our two visits there have been to say good bye to Billie and Blue.
All this and the kids didn't fight yesterday or this morning AND it's my birthday.
Oh.. and there is one more thing. Kevin wasn't going to be home for dinner tonight because of a studio session. Well, the client and the video guys couldn't get it all together in time so the session has been pushed to Monday.
Yesterday after wrapping my presents with Kevin, Roman said, "Tomorrow's your birthday Mama. Who are you going to invite?"
I said, "Oh... you and Lauren and Papa."
"That's it??"
Yep. It's been a pretty good day so far. Fingers crossed. It's starting to rain so picking Roman up from school might be a bit soggy but it's not freezing so all is good.
AND (and I'm sure I'm jinxing it) she spent the night in undies last night and stayed dry. Seriously! We've been keeping her in pull ups just in case but the last three nights, since we've started the Lax-A-Day, she's been drinking a lot less at night and making it through without getting up to pee. (Yes. My 2 year old gets up in the night if she has to pee. How insane is that??)
AND this morning we went to the local market - Mosborough Market - which is open every day for the season now to get local asparagus and hoop tomatoes and hooray hooray they had local strawberries too! Strawberries! in MAY!!! By 'local' I need to specify that they're from a town about 90 minutes away but still within the 100 mile diet if you go for that sort of thing.
So... strawberries, undies, computer skills... what else...
OH! We'll be picking up Salma and Jenny tomorrow after Roman's class at The Little Gym. The current family has paid to have them spayed and their vet gave them their rabies shots and treated for ear mites for free. The stitches need to come out in about two weeks and our vet has offered to take them out for free too.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE our vet? I think they might feel bad because our two visits there have been to say good bye to Billie and Blue.
All this and the kids didn't fight yesterday or this morning AND it's my birthday.
Oh.. and there is one more thing. Kevin wasn't going to be home for dinner tonight because of a studio session. Well, the client and the video guys couldn't get it all together in time so the session has been pushed to Monday.
Yesterday after wrapping my presents with Kevin, Roman said, "Tomorrow's your birthday Mama. Who are you going to invite?"
I said, "Oh... you and Lauren and Papa."
"That's it??"
Yep. It's been a pretty good day so far. Fingers crossed. It's starting to rain so picking Roman up from school might be a bit soggy but it's not freezing so all is good.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Fresh Spring Air
The air has been especially vibrant this week. It may seem an odd phrase to use but I can't explain it any other way. I've had excuses to get outside each evening (to get the mail, to put away kid toys, etc) and the scents, moisture and breath of the air have been intoxicating.
The smells of earth, grass, maple, rain, sun and just a hint of dandelion all carried on gentle (and some not so gentle) breezes. When the wind is warm, it's like a brilliant summer day. When it's been cold, it's the promise of change to come.
The clear skies have been brilliant blue and in the evenings, a dusky rose with tints of yellow.
This is why we moved to the country. This is what makes all the mowing, laundry and home business stuff worth while.
I wonder if Roman and Lauren will savour these smells? Some day when they're older, living in some city, changing the world?
The smells of earth, grass, maple, rain, sun and just a hint of dandelion all carried on gentle (and some not so gentle) breezes. When the wind is warm, it's like a brilliant summer day. When it's been cold, it's the promise of change to come.
The clear skies have been brilliant blue and in the evenings, a dusky rose with tints of yellow.
This is why we moved to the country. This is what makes all the mowing, laundry and home business stuff worth while.
I wonder if Roman and Lauren will savour these smells? Some day when they're older, living in some city, changing the world?
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Lax-A-Day-sical
After a rough week of horrible nights (and what seems like the onset of a nasty head cold for Lauren) we've decided to give mild laxatives a try.
It was one of the GI's suggestions to combat Lauren's gas pains. The intention is to have her small intestines move things along faster so bacteria doesn't have time to ferment.
I spoke with the pharmacist and once I explained the thinking behind the prescription, he was right on board. He suggested we cut Lauren's carb intake as well - all carbs, not just the simple sugars - as well as talk to the dietitian about lacto-bacilis. So far cutting carbs has not happened as we're carb junkies but one thing at a time.
The kicker is, one of the potential side effects of the laxatives is bloating and gas. Great. Let's just make it worse before it gets better. At bath time, Lauren was more bloated than I've seen her in quite a while but it may have been the spaghetti last night or the grapes today or... I'm also not thrilled about getting Lauren onto something she'll become dependent on especially since we're not needing the meds for regularity, just for speed. I am however confident that it will at least point us in a direction. If things improved in the two week trial we'll have a pretty good indication that gut motility is an issue. If nothing changes (or it gets worse... shudder) we're back to square one.
Of course I'm the first to admit that everything is circumstantial. She might be having a horrible week because she's getting her last tooth. She might be having a horrible week because she has a cold or a virus. She might be having a horrible week just because it's May 4th, 2010 on a Tuesday.
Regardless, tonight she went to bed early at her request. Finished her bath, skipped all the usual playing and tooth brushing, even skipped her sippy of milk, a story and turning out the light. We crawled into bed, she climbed onto me, asked for her blankie and a song and poof. She was asleep.
In those few moments of her sleeping on my chest I chose to savour the moment. It really is one of the best things in life. Snuggling a sleeping child truly is top on my list.
It was one of the GI's suggestions to combat Lauren's gas pains. The intention is to have her small intestines move things along faster so bacteria doesn't have time to ferment.
I spoke with the pharmacist and once I explained the thinking behind the prescription, he was right on board. He suggested we cut Lauren's carb intake as well - all carbs, not just the simple sugars - as well as talk to the dietitian about lacto-bacilis. So far cutting carbs has not happened as we're carb junkies but one thing at a time.
The kicker is, one of the potential side effects of the laxatives is bloating and gas. Great. Let's just make it worse before it gets better. At bath time, Lauren was more bloated than I've seen her in quite a while but it may have been the spaghetti last night or the grapes today or... I'm also not thrilled about getting Lauren onto something she'll become dependent on especially since we're not needing the meds for regularity, just for speed. I am however confident that it will at least point us in a direction. If things improved in the two week trial we'll have a pretty good indication that gut motility is an issue. If nothing changes (or it gets worse... shudder) we're back to square one.
Of course I'm the first to admit that everything is circumstantial. She might be having a horrible week because she's getting her last tooth. She might be having a horrible week because she has a cold or a virus. She might be having a horrible week just because it's May 4th, 2010 on a Tuesday.
Regardless, tonight she went to bed early at her request. Finished her bath, skipped all the usual playing and tooth brushing, even skipped her sippy of milk, a story and turning out the light. We crawled into bed, she climbed onto me, asked for her blankie and a song and poof. She was asleep.
In those few moments of her sleeping on my chest I chose to savour the moment. It really is one of the best things in life. Snuggling a sleeping child truly is top on my list.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Cricut Contest and Kitty News
Now "cricket" in this blog would normal refer to little black chirpy insects we love to listen to in the early summer evenings. In this post, I'm increasing my chances to win a Cricut Expression which is a die-cutting machine used for scrapbooking, cardmaking, fabric projects, you name it.
A blog called Everyday Cricut, which I've really come to enjoy, is having a HUGE contest in honour of National Scrapbooking Day - which is today. Technically I suppose I should be requesting a change to the name to be International Scrapbooking Day but I'm too Canadian to raise a stink about it. If you like making cards or doing layouts, it's worth a peek...
On the family front, the kids and I met a wonderful family today with more cats than you can count. The newest five are 6 weeks old and ADORABLE! The little ones will NOT be coming to our home but the family also had two 6 month old girls, all black, who will very likely be coming to live with us in the next couple weeks.
This family is so generous to the strays that have some to them. They have 5 of their own that live in the house. Strays that come are not turned away and the family tries to find places for them. I didn't even get a chance to count how many were outside lounging and playing. The two we'll be adopting are scheduled to be spayed next week and the couple are upfront about paying for it. The hubby said today that whether the girls are adopted or not, they're having them spayed. If no one takes them, they'll have to be outdoor only (right now they're in the garage and outside) because the family simply can't afford to feed everyone especially as the five new kittens grow.
We'll be talking on Thursday after the vet appointment to make sure there are no complications and set up something for bringing them home.
It may seem too quick to some after the departure of Billie and Blue but the house just isn't right without some furry independent four legged family members. Billie and Blue won't complain and for once, I am going to be selfish. I want kitties again and these two need a new home.
A blog called Everyday Cricut, which I've really come to enjoy, is having a HUGE contest in honour of National Scrapbooking Day - which is today. Technically I suppose I should be requesting a change to the name to be International Scrapbooking Day but I'm too Canadian to raise a stink about it. If you like making cards or doing layouts, it's worth a peek...
On the family front, the kids and I met a wonderful family today with more cats than you can count. The newest five are 6 weeks old and ADORABLE! The little ones will NOT be coming to our home but the family also had two 6 month old girls, all black, who will very likely be coming to live with us in the next couple weeks.
This family is so generous to the strays that have some to them. They have 5 of their own that live in the house. Strays that come are not turned away and the family tries to find places for them. I didn't even get a chance to count how many were outside lounging and playing. The two we'll be adopting are scheduled to be spayed next week and the couple are upfront about paying for it. The hubby said today that whether the girls are adopted or not, they're having them spayed. If no one takes them, they'll have to be outdoor only (right now they're in the garage and outside) because the family simply can't afford to feed everyone especially as the five new kittens grow.
We'll be talking on Thursday after the vet appointment to make sure there are no complications and set up something for bringing them home.
It may seem too quick to some after the departure of Billie and Blue but the house just isn't right without some furry independent four legged family members. Billie and Blue won't complain and for once, I am going to be selfish. I want kitties again and these two need a new home.
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