I'm taking a break (it's 12:30AM) while I wait for the dishwasher to finish it's cycle and another load of clothes to dry and getting in a little blog time. I just finished off two cups of coffee so I should be good to go for awhile.

Michael had a rough night again last night and was awake from 10:30 to 1:30. So far tonight he seems to sleeping much better. He's tossed and turned some but never woken all the way, so that's good. I still haven't figured out what causes the restlessness at night. It seems random and he never really gives me answer when I ask him what's wrong when he wakes up crying. Most of the time he says nothing hurts and when he does say something hurts it's hardly ever the same thing twice.

Today was the busiest day with children so far this week. At the busiest we had ten daycare children ranging in age from 9 months old to 11 years old. But things went smoothly for the most part.

One of our 4 year olds did have a bout of tummy trouble that caused him to throw up three times. After he rested a little while he seemed to be feeling much better and was really annoyed with me because I wouldn't let him get up and play in the play room. Instead I had him stay quietly on the couch in the living room and watch tv. I thought it would be a treat for him because the younger kids rarely get to watch tv, but I guess not.

One of our two year olds recieved his formal diagnosis of autism today. He was evaluated at the Kluge Children's Rehabilitation Center. We all expected this diagnosis and now hopefully more services will be put into place for him. He's been recieving therapy twice and month but needs more. He's a sweetheart but recently more challenging behaviours have been presenting themselves and he and his family need all the support they can get.

It's been really cold and windy here the last few days with temperatures in the teens and the wind chill even worse. Now we're expecting 3 -5 inches of snow tomorrow and I have to admit I will be glad to see it. Brown cold winters depress me. If it's going to be cold I want to see some snow. I've been watching the radar on WeatherBug and the snow is moving up into this area from the SouthWest. It should start snowing here sometime during the early morning hours.

And now it's time for me to go check on the dishwasher and see if I can unload it and start another load of dishes. I got behind today and the dishes piled up.

                                         

                                 ~ Love, Live, Laugh and Learn~

                                                                   ~ Rose~

Autism and Learning with Dolls

L, age 2 1/2, and in the process of being evaluated for autism ( all the signs are there), had a great time learning about body parts yesterday. He never really seemed to care before, at least not when we worked together. But yesterday he found a doll that made sounds and was fascinated.

I found it interesting that when the doll made laughing sounds he laughed as well, and when the doll made crying sounds he hugged it. So cute, and gave a little insight into his perceptions of emotions. As he played I would verbalize that the baby is laughing or baby is crying, baby is sad.

After he had sat near me and played with the doll for awhile he began to interact with me, so I started pointing out the dolls nose, ears, mouth, etc. I would point to the dolls nose and say "Dolls nose" and then tap his nose and say "L's nose." Then move on to ears, mouth, eyes, etc. He loved it. When we moved on to hands, feet, etc. he would double over laughing. For variety we would also point to my nose, my ears, and so on. We kept it light and playful,  laughed a lot and had a great time while grabbing a teachable moment and making the most of it.

More Alike Than Different

It's a little mind boggling to me sometimes that there are thirty different children here on a fairly regular basis. I've been thinking a lot recently about the mix of children we have here and how that works out daily. About how each day is different, each day is a blessing, each day is an adventure (and each day is exhausting). And no matter the strengths and weaknesses, each child brings some something special to our group.

We have so many issues to deal with each day. Within this group there are physical challenges - asthma, acid reflux, tumors, blindness in one eye, migraines, allergies, and seizures. We also deal on a daily basis with ADHD, Bipolar, Nonverbal Learning Disorder, Asperger's ,Oppositional Defiant Disorder, anxiety, depression, global developmental delays, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and one of our kids is nonverbal. And within all of this there are also the kids who have no diagnosis, no major problems, are healthy and "neurotypical."

There are lessons I am learning as I spend each day with these kids.

I am learning that the human spirit is amazingly resilient. That even though there are frequent setbacks, days that are discouraging, long and exhausting and days when it seems there always just one more drama around the corner, there is always tomorrow. We always get to try again. And the amazing thing is, they really do try again. Sometimes it seems like it's two steps forward, two steps back, one step forward, three steps back, five steps forward. But they try.  They get up and try and try again. And on the days when I think there is simply no way I can keep going I realize I can't let them down when they are fighting so hard. And so we all get up together and keep on going.

I've learned that I can function on very little sleep and lots of coffee. For a surprising number of days. I've also learned that eventually it will catch up with me and I will crash. Hard. So now I try to build mini breaks into my days. Even if it's just to read a few blogs that help me not to feel alone, catch up on my twitter friends, sit quietly for five minutes and breathe deeply. These little breaks are invaluable.


One of the most real lessons to me, though,  is how in spite of all the "differences" we are really all more alike than different. We all want to be loved, to be happy and safe, to be valued for who we are individually. We were each created and designed for a special place and we want the chance to fit into that place and grow into the people we are meant to be. And it's such a privilege for me to be able help each of these kids, even if only in some small way, to find that person and place they are meant to be. 

The Sad Story of Zakhquery Price

I've seen quite a lot written about this story recently and wanted to pass it on. I feel very sad for the family and for Zakh. All too often I've seen a child's needs repeatedly ignored or pushed aside because no one takes the time, effort and maybe even money to address these needs appropriately. Sometimes it's a result of a very broken system, sometimes it's ignorance, sometimes it's simply an unwillingness to put forth the effort to provide the services needed .

Please check out these articles and pass them on.

 Fifth Grade Autistic Boy Charged With a Felony .

Zakhquery Price and the Danger of Incarcerating Our Youth

Kudos Kiddo

I just had to share this video and story.

Gabe is a boy that I used to provide child care for and who has, along with his family, remained friends of ours. He is currently attending a private school staffed with teachers and other support staff trained to work with autism and other special needs. I am so proud of him and the progress he's made. He's a very lucky boy to have a mother who has stood up for him and campaigned against all odds to get him the services he so desperately needed.

Check out his story here