This weekend we went to Grandma’s house. This idea was met with much excitement by Little Bug- all week he had been looking at their picture and signing GRANDMA and GRANDPA. So off we went, with laundry and Frank in tow.
Little Bug had a great time with them. He really loves how rough Grandpa is when they play together- more of that good ol’ proprioceptive input. He also loves Grandma’s cooking and her laughter. He becomes such a comedian when he is there- doing everything in his power to make them laugh. I mentioned Grandma’s cooking, but really there is something magical about it. Little Bug eats and eats and eats at their house. It is unbelievable because normally he fights eating and is pretty rigid about it. But not at their house- Grandparents have magical abilities as they manage to get grandkids to do things that mere mortals- e.g. parents- can *never* get them to do.
Another highlight of the weekend was puddle jumping. Being that we live in the Pacific Northwest, there are plenty of opportunities for it. Ever since we first did that about a year ago, walking in the rain with him is tricky because he doesn’t get that there is a time and place for jumping in the puddles and on your way to school, work, or the doctor’s office isn’t one of them. We had a blast doing it! We found one puddle that went up to my knee- which meant it was at his waist- and just went nuts! DN being the part feline person who *hates* rain watched and laughed on the sidelines. I will have to get the picture of me and Little Bug that Grandpa took when we got home, because we were just soaked. I think about these things and hope that these are the memories that he will cherish later.
Unfortunately, Little Bug got horribly sick on Sunday night. He woke up at 1:00 AM vomiting. He proceeded to vomit every 15 minutes afterward and then he developed diarrhea. I felt so bad for him because he has a really hard time vomiting as he doesn’t quite get how to motor it out of his mouth. We went through 5 diapers, 5 sleepers, and 2 baths before 3:00 AM. But, it seemed like someone flipped a switch at three and he went back to sleep.
He made some really good progress this weekend. He learned to say HALP (help) while signing HELP. He used to say “See, See” when signing it, but Saturday I taught him to say Help. He also began mimicking- something that he has been really delayed on. He and Grandma had a great time doing this.
Our darkest hour- see the vomiting episode above- ended up being our brightest hour for communication. He couldn’t tell us before that he was sick and might vomit, so it was like holding a ticking time bomb of the gastrointestinal persuasion in your arms. Sunday night, although he wouldn’t throw up in the trash can, he figured out that before he puked, if he signed HELP and pointed to it, we would know what he meant. This was huge because it was the first time we were able to know what his needs truly were and be there for them. For most of his life, we have just been guessing- educated guesses, but still guesses. I heart sign language.
We have a new sign- RUN. We also have a couple new words or “word approximations” as his therapists would call them- HALP, Uppee- Puppy, and La Lou- which is Little Buggish for I love You. That last one absolutely warms my heart. I am thinking about getting it tattooed somewhere so that I will always remember it.
There are times when I can’t help but wonder what parts of his every day cute little boy life we miss because of ASD. You know that part of life that doesn’t revolve around sensory issues, feeding challenges, vestibular input, and speech delays? I know, it sounds crazy, but it still exists. We try to every day make sure that Little Bug gets time to be Little Bug- tics and all. I know I have to remind myself not to worry so much and to sometimes just be. That one day without therapy isn’t the end of the world. Again, it’s a fine balance and I can’t say we achieve it always.
Little Bug had a great time with them. He really loves how rough Grandpa is when they play together- more of that good ol’ proprioceptive input. He also loves Grandma’s cooking and her laughter. He becomes such a comedian when he is there- doing everything in his power to make them laugh. I mentioned Grandma’s cooking, but really there is something magical about it. Little Bug eats and eats and eats at their house. It is unbelievable because normally he fights eating and is pretty rigid about it. But not at their house- Grandparents have magical abilities as they manage to get grandkids to do things that mere mortals- e.g. parents- can *never* get them to do.
Another highlight of the weekend was puddle jumping. Being that we live in the Pacific Northwest, there are plenty of opportunities for it. Ever since we first did that about a year ago, walking in the rain with him is tricky because he doesn’t get that there is a time and place for jumping in the puddles and on your way to school, work, or the doctor’s office isn’t one of them. We had a blast doing it! We found one puddle that went up to my knee- which meant it was at his waist- and just went nuts! DN being the part feline person who *hates* rain watched and laughed on the sidelines. I will have to get the picture of me and Little Bug that Grandpa took when we got home, because we were just soaked. I think about these things and hope that these are the memories that he will cherish later.
Unfortunately, Little Bug got horribly sick on Sunday night. He woke up at 1:00 AM vomiting. He proceeded to vomit every 15 minutes afterward and then he developed diarrhea. I felt so bad for him because he has a really hard time vomiting as he doesn’t quite get how to motor it out of his mouth. We went through 5 diapers, 5 sleepers, and 2 baths before 3:00 AM. But, it seemed like someone flipped a switch at three and he went back to sleep.
He made some really good progress this weekend. He learned to say HALP (help) while signing HELP. He used to say “See, See” when signing it, but Saturday I taught him to say Help. He also began mimicking- something that he has been really delayed on. He and Grandma had a great time doing this.
Our darkest hour- see the vomiting episode above- ended up being our brightest hour for communication. He couldn’t tell us before that he was sick and might vomit, so it was like holding a ticking time bomb of the gastrointestinal persuasion in your arms. Sunday night, although he wouldn’t throw up in the trash can, he figured out that before he puked, if he signed HELP and pointed to it, we would know what he meant. This was huge because it was the first time we were able to know what his needs truly were and be there for them. For most of his life, we have just been guessing- educated guesses, but still guesses. I heart sign language.
We have a new sign- RUN. We also have a couple new words or “word approximations” as his therapists would call them- HALP, Uppee- Puppy, and La Lou- which is Little Buggish for I love You. That last one absolutely warms my heart. I am thinking about getting it tattooed somewhere so that I will always remember it.
There are times when I can’t help but wonder what parts of his every day cute little boy life we miss because of ASD. You know that part of life that doesn’t revolve around sensory issues, feeding challenges, vestibular input, and speech delays? I know, it sounds crazy, but it still exists. We try to every day make sure that Little Bug gets time to be Little Bug- tics and all. I know I have to remind myself not to worry so much and to sometimes just be. That one day without therapy isn’t the end of the world. Again, it’s a fine balance and I can’t say we achieve it always.
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