Good Bye to DDI ....

Today we say good bye to all the great people at DDI Vantage . Zach will be going to the district preschool after the Christmas break . I just wanted to take a moment to express my eternal gratitude to everyone at DDI . When I think back over the last 10 months and all the progress he has made as a result of this amazing program I get emotional . It has been a really busy and sometimes stressful road , but I wouldn't change a minute of it . I turned to DDI for help when I felt like I had tried all the tricks in my tool box and nothing was changing . I now feel like I have a tool box full of tricks and resources to move forward with great success ! Thank you to all ....

Heather , Christy , Molly , Jamie , Megan , Karen , Chrissy , Shea , Nichole .... You have all been so helpful , You have given me my little boy back and for that I can never say thank you enough!

We are thankful for .....

This year we are thankfull for alot of things , I thought I would post some of the things the kids came home from school with ..... prepare to giggle !

Peyton is thankful for.....
" My friends because they play with me ."
"My freedom because I am free from Jell ." [ you should see the illustrations ! ]
"School because I have Teacher "
"I love my friends they Play with me "
"I am a ideein { Indian} my dad is one too "
"I love Ham '
" I love my Buthr his nams Zach too"
"I love my mom and I like my dad "
"I love my sisdr too She is in Prospeck . I love hr too."
"I love the wrld { world}
" Dear Mom thank you for giving me medsin whi I am sick . Love Peyton "

Zach is thankful for ....
Mirrors
Jumping
Playing
Mommy
His teachers at school wrote these items down since when they asked him what he was thankful for he was licking the table and trying to eat the paper they were writing on .

Mommy and Daddy are thankful for ....
Our health [ minus the mental side ... sanity is fleeting in parenthood ... ]
Family
Having a job in this crazy economy
DDi Vantage and all of their wonderful people and services !
Usdb , and Molly Mooseman .... she is the best !
Weekends

We hope that your Thanksgiving is a great one !

Pictures from Zach's school party .

This is the keepsake photo that they hand out at all of the DDI Vantage events . Zach was in the process of getting down and running away and Madi as snow white looks more like the Queen Of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland ..... " Off with their heads !!!! " .

Happy Halloween !

After school on Halloween we went outside to pick up the yard toys a bit . I did not want a law suit from a trick or treat er because they had tripped over any of the toys that were part of the great toy migration . We always have toys that belong outside, inside and toys that belong inside, outside .... I am pretty sure this phenomenon is linked to the disappearance of socks in our house , Moulder and Sculley will not return my calls to help me confirm my suspicion .... BUT the truth IS out there ! Anyway back to my subject at hand , the kids were playing while i was picking up the yard and Zach found the leaf piles under the oak tree . He really liked the sound the leaves made when he ran through them , eventually Peyton and Keily got in on the leaf action . They played out there for quite a while . They had a lot of fun , Zach kept trying to lay down in the leaves like Peyton , but as soon as one would touch his neck he had to sit up .

Zach was a Pirate for Halloween , and Peyton was Silvermist the fairy [ from the new Tinkerbell movie ] . Zach REALLY enjoyed trick or treating ! He was running from house to house trying , saying " Keily wait !" , " My turn to knock " , " Follow Sissy " [ repeating what everyone around him was saying ] . Grandpa Wolf dressed up as a Pirate too , he and Zach would take turns saying " I'm a Pirate !" , " No , I'm a Pirate !" ... it was a fun night . Peyton finally got over her shyness and knocked on doors and said trick or treat loud enough for people to hear her .

Zach started his new class at USDB , on Halloween too . That unfortunately was not a success , he cried the whole time , so much so that he threw up on his Pirate costume ..... Poor kid . He really does not do well with changes in his schedule . We will try again next week . We also had Zach's evaluation with Granite school District this week . They officially labeled him as Educationally Autistic . This label as much as the Stigma is still bothering me , will contribute to him getting the services he needs and that was the goal in the evaluations . So he will most likely be going to the Autistic preschool class , but that is not set in stone yet .

Lonnie FINALLY got hired !

We have been waiting for months for Lonnie to be hired on full time with Burton Lumber . His supervisor has finally sealed the deal with the HR department , and was even able to back date his hiring by a few weeks so that the health insurance would start a bit sooner [ although we still have to wait 90 days ] . Unfortunately he did have to take a pay cut to secure full time employment .... which I think is just a sign of the times . So we are now looking for part time work for either one of us, to replace the lost income . We feel very blessed that he now has a career with a good company , and hope that as the economy improves so will his pay .

Winter is coming !

This is a picture of both the swing and hanging bar , obviously we would only use one at a time. This is Lonnie's genius mounting system, very versatile !

With winter coming and a VERY active little boy on our hands , we had decided to construct a large motor / sensory area for Zach . Lonnie is so great when it comes to building and designing stuff that he was able to make this swing that is very similar to the one at Zach's school , with only my verbal instruction [ in woman- ese / aka = man - jibberish ] and a picture from the Internet . He also made a hanging bar , and we are looking into a hammock swing of some sort .... sounds like an excuse to make a trip to Ikea !And perhaps a small plastic slide . So far it has worked wonders for Zach to get his wiggles out , and has reduced aggression some .

In other news Zach has been moved up yet again in school . He will be starting in November in the Play and Learn class at DDI Vantage . This new class is structured more like a "regular" preschool and is an "inclusive " classroom , which just means it is for kids of mixed abilities . Although I am very excited for him to be advancing so well , I am nervous to see how he will do in a more "mainstream " peer group and environment. It is however a necessary evil , he is getting older and will be going to preschool at Peyton's school after Christmas break .... so this will help us decide what type of classroom will suite him best when he "transitions" to big boy school.

Peyton's last T ball game is tonight , and the weather is going to be COLD ! I am going to try to remember to get pictures of her playing ...[ Sorry Julie , I keep forgetting . I am so busy coaching I have missed alot of her playing ] Or maybe just a picture of her in her Jerzee , because honestly why does a girl play sports but for the cute outfit !?

Zach's new favorite song .

These are the lyric's from a song that is on the ending credits of the "new " Charlotte's web dvd .
Zach & Madilyn can sing the entire song ! Sadly when Zach sings it you can not understand what he is saying , but can identify the melody .

A place in the Sun
Originally performed by Stevie Wonder

Like a long lonely stream
I keep runnin' towards a dream
Like a branch on a tree
I keep reachin' to be free
movin' on , movin' on

'Cause there's a place in the sun
Where there's hope for everyone
Where my poor restless heart's gotta run
There's a place in the sun
And before my life is done
Got to find me a place in the sun

Like an old dusty road
I get weary from the load
movin' on , movin' on
Like this tired troubled earth
I've been rollin' since my birth
Movin' on , movin' on

'Cause there's a place in the sun
Where there's hope for everyone .
Where my poor restless heart's gotta run
And before my life is done
got to find me a place in the sun

When times are bad
and your feeling sad
Always remember that ,
There's a place in the sun
where there's hope for everyone.

Dry Sensory Play

Beans


Wheat

Today being Tuesday , is my "light " day as far as the schedule is concerned . I always try to get in a few sensory activities on tuesdays . We have wheat , beans, rolled oats , flax seeds , flour that we play with on a regular basis . Today is was wheat and beans . Zach really enjoys the beans and he will touch them and play with little hesitation . However, the wheat because it has a smaller hull , tends to more of a sensory challenge for him so you see alot of "tools" in the bin to hopefully encourage him to touch . The sensations proved to be too much for him today , he got OVER stimulated and became aggressive so that was the end of that .

Zach will be starting in a preschool class at USDB [ Utah school for the deaf and blind ] on Fridays . This will hopefully expand his functional vocabulary , whether through sign or speech . He will also be able to choose the communication method that is most comfortable for him to use . The class is for kids between 2 1/2 and 3 , with mild to profound hearing loss . We are very excited for him to have the chance to explore different peer groups .

Peyton is still is T ball and having fun building sand castles while she is supposed to be catching the balls . Lonnie and I have had a ball as the coaches , we have a great team .

Peyton and Madi's special day .....

On Friday Sept 26th Peyton was out of school ..... I don't know why and frankly after this day I am against the whole no school idea . So I tried to be the "fun Mom " [ I have made many attempts at this .... and all have back-fired ! This day was no exception .... ] , my plan was to have the kids play with the water tubs , play in the tunnels and tents , make pudding pies and then have a really long nap . Sounds like a good plan hah? They did enjoy the water tubs and shaving cream play , Peyton and Madi played in the tunnels .... with a bit of arguments and screaming and tattling, the occasional time out for hitting ... a normal day .... I should have stopped there . I made the pudding pies since they seemed to be having fun , they ate the pudding pies okay ... Peyton didn't really care for the pudding . Madi and Zach did take short naps ... [ so much for my long nap idea ... ] .

The rest of the day the girls spent either escaping the play room , ignoring any sound resembling my voice , or in time out . Madi even got a swat on the butt , after I had put her back in time out about a dozen times .... which she responded to by looking me in the eyes defiantly and swatting her own butt ! Obviously very effective form of discipline .

By the end of the day I was ready to take Zach and run away , Peyton and Madi wouldn't have noticed my absence since my voice was inaudible anyway ..... they would have gotten hungry eventually . I wonder if hunger could be considered a form of discipline ? .....

Baby food finger painting .

Today our sensory activity was baby food finger painting . I gave them each a tooth brush to paint with , in hopes that they would taste the foods . My plan was mildly successful .... the chocolate pudding was a big hit !

Zach has found himself !!!!

This morning Zach was playing peek-a-boo , and said "Where is Zachy ? " .... this is the first time he has said his own name . His therapist were all very excited about this new development ! His next step will be to identify himself in the mirror , since he still likes to show his brothers all of his toys . He used a few new signs today too , want , my turn , drink , stop and go !
Zach also was able to say "Good-Bye " spontaneously and appropriately to each person he saw today ! He even said "Good-Bye , tomorrow " [ Good-bye see you tomorrow ] to Heather , who is his favorite therapist . He did VERY well in class today , and if he does well on Wednesday he will graduate to the advance class !
For Peyton this is the 3rd week of 1st grade , and the first day of carpooling with her new best friend Breanna who lives 2 doors down from us . Peyton loves the fact that she now has a friend in the neighborhood .
Yesterday Peyton and Daddy made tie dye shirts with her kit that Grandpa Rock sent her from Oregon . I will post pictures of her creations when they are ready . She will also be starting T ball on the 16th of this month , which will be good for her to have an outlet .

Our GIANT Cucumber !

This is an Armenian Cucumber .... and boy is it huge ! We have estimated it weight at somewhere around 10 lbs [ scales were outlawed in our house ... lol ] . Peyton is loving 1st grade , and even has a friend in her class that lives just 2 doors down !

Sensory play ....

Peyton LOVED this !
Madilyn did NOT!

For Zach this was a HUGE deal , I would have been happy that he would just touch it one time .... But he just kept touching and touching !

As part of Zach's therapy we do alot of sensory activities . We have played with shaving cream [ which Madilyn thought was torture !] , and then the water play with bars of Ivory soap , and bath fizzy tabs that change the water color , and more shaving cream [ or islands as peyton calls them ] .

Our garden ....

This is mostly Tomatoes , but we do have pumpkins , cukes , peppers , melons [ that didn't grow] ,purple cauliflower [ which tastes like a cross between purple cabbage and cauliflower] and broccoli .

May '08 [before] July '08 [ after]

As different as Lonnie and I are , we both have a great love of gardening . Lonnie calls this his Zen garden . Putting in the garden this year actually helped Lonnie in his quest for sobriety . He would disappear for hours in the garden , drinking his O'douls and coffee .

Peyton lost her 3rd tooth !

Peyton and Elisabeth were playing and somehow Peyton's mouth and Elisbeth's knee came together . So her tooth was hanging on by a thread . She came running to me dramatically screaming ," take it out, I want it out " ! I did what any cool headed mom would .... I sent her to daddy . Lonnie told her to just pull it out .... and after a bit of hesitation and a whole lot of drama [ she is a 6 year old girl after all ], she reached up and pulled it out . She is so tough !

The long summer of "08

We have had many ups and downs over the past few months . First, with the slowing economy Lonnie was without work for about 6 weeks . However with every door that closes another one opens . He is now working in the design departments at Burton Lumber , although he is still considered a temporary employee we have high hopes that will soon change . Zachary FINALLY said "Mommy" on July 21st , and used his sign language to say "eat please" on the same day ! Zach had surgery on July 23rd , to have his tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in his ears + have an ABR [ auditory brain response ] hearing test done . The recovery was long and he was such a trooper . The hearing results did say he has mild hearing loss , so we have a consultation with a hearing specialist next week . Peyton has had a great summer she enjoys crafting of any sort and painting .... she has a very active imagination ,and is VERY ready to go to 1st grade ! She starts school on the 25th of this month . Peyton is getting so big , 6 going on 16 ! I am very excited to have Peyton in school all day , as that will be 1 less person who feels the need to say "mommy , mommy " for no apparent reason . [ although Peyton and Madilyn are really the only ones that say it ... they say it LOUD! ]