Update on Caleb's evaluation

Well the school said Caleb only qualified for the 1/2 hour 1 time a week.  Said he scored in normal range for language.  He has no spontaneous language though and he only uses one word at a time when speaking.  No sign of apraxia eventhough he has been working with 2 different therapist who both definitely think he has it.  How can the school say that when apraxia cant be diagnosed until several months of interaction with him?  By the way the week he went to be evaluated he was having a good week not overgeneralizing sounds or using much of "mmm" and not strugging finding sounds and the week after he reverted back to all "mmm" again and couldnt seem to find any correct sounds.  Anyway, Scott and I dont believe the 1/2 hour a week will help enough to make it worth me taking him. We hated that program with Bekah bc her therapist only worked with her 15 min of the time with another girl and only did K and G the entire year until we quit bc she was doing so much better without their help.    Maybe St Francis can get him into 2 days a week and we can drop out of school program.  He definitely talks so much more the more therapy he has, but looses so much when a long break.  So Id like him somewhere 2 days a week that is beneficial!  I do understand that they simply went by the "test" which obviously didnt show his true struggles.  I know God has a reason and we just arent supposed to be in the weekly class setting for a reason. But I just wanted to stand up and defend my son when they said, oh he doesnt talk much bc he has 3 sisters who do it all for him." If they were with him long enough they would see that the little guy wants to talk so badly but cant for some reason!!  He tries so hard with his therapist and uses his eyes and "mmm" to tell stories.  Breaks my heart! But he is the most joyful little guy you'll ever meet. 

Adelyn Mae!!

Our "little lady," "bugga boo," "buga wugas," "Addie Pie," "bugs," and anything else that comes to mind when we see that sweet sweet smile and hear that sweet squeel when we greet her in the morning playing with her favorite friends Baby Lala and mini Curious George.  Crazy to think that she is already 9 months old, but much like Bekah always seems older than she is.  She is also very very stubborn like her sister Bekah!  Addie will let you know if youve made her mad which is pretty easy to do.  Just change her diaper, change her clothes, take away paper, tell her no, or walk into her room to give her a bottle.  I had to wean Addie at 7 months when we found out she was aspriating while eating.  We found out God had been very good at protecting Addie from having pneumonia her first 7 months.  The doctors couldnt believe she had never had pneumonia because she apirated every swallow.  Being a bad mom I didnt realize that her choking during feeds was a problem.  I just thought she ate too fast.  I finally was concerned when she started refusing to eat more and more. She was down to 5-12 ounces a day.  We now have to thicken her formula with one scoop of rice cereal to one ounce of formula.  I tried oat cereal but she hated it!  In Novemeber, she will have another feeding study to see if she has outgrown her problem yet.  Im praying she does because I really do not want to be thickening her food forever!! Of course my first kid to ever figure out a sippy cup this young is not allowed to use one because the fluids in one are way to thin.  On Friday, we had to make our first 911 call ever!  Addie started choking and gagging and drooling very badly.  I immediately turned her over and patted her back and kept sticking my finger in her mouth to find the culprit and hoping she would throw it up, however she just couldnt get it up.  After a quick realization that this item could go either way we called for help and we had no idea what it was.  Right before the firefighters arrived we were finally able to get it out.  It was a tiny piece of laffy taffy wrapper!   It was terribly scary and Im so thankful for the firefighters who were great and encouraging in a scary moment!  Addie is now at the age of sleep anea due to large adnoids in the other 3 kids.  Im praying she has no problems with this, but lately are becoming a bit concerned.  We will give it more time though.  They wont remove adnoids until 1 yr old anyway.  Adelyn currenly has 3 teeth with more on the way!  Addie strted crawling at 8 1/2 months old and this week pullin up.  She is definitely in a hurry to catch up with siblings like Bekah. She has a serious addiction to her left thumb.  She recently decided she hated baby food and will only eat table food that she can pick up and feed herself.  So So nice!!!   Addie's favorit person is her Daddy.  Im definitely only 2nd best.  She absolutely hates strangers and has a very loud cry like Caleb did.    Addie looks identical to Bekah in pictures just with a chubby face like Caleb.  I cant wait to see her personality more and more as she grows up.  Ryan just loves taking care of Addie and Addie definitely shows favoritism to Ryan.  Addie has already started babbling but with her aspirating she has a high chance of having speech problems later.  I told the Dr that all Moons have huge rotting adnoids and terrible speech.  At least we are consistent!!  We love our "little lady" as much as the others and are so excited to watch her change everyday!!!

Caleb Ezra!!

Caleb is going to be 3 in 21 days!! Our sweet, caring, considerate, smart, affectionate, independent "little man" is growing up.  My most favorite thing about Caleb is his tender heart. If someone is sad he will give hugs and pat your back.  If another child wants something he has he is the first to share. I honestly have recieved more hugs and kisses from my "guy" than any of my other kids.  Caleb hates to disapoint, but loves praise and extra affection.   Lately, he is scared of everything.  I honestly think his little brain distorts everything he sees.  We hope he gets through this quickly!  Tonight at a restaurant a commercial with a talking tree with eyes came on and he wouldnt finish eating dinner because scary was coming back on soon.  Caleb loves loves loves trains!!  Steam engines are by far his favorite.  He enjoys the real train videos over Chuggington and Thomas, although he does like them too.  He reads real train magazines with Daddy and watches live trains on the internet.  He plays trains all day long when he is not putting a puzzle together with trains on it.  Caleb also loves diggers, cranes, rollers, hotwheel cars, Daddy, and his Papa Moon!  Caleb's best friend is Bekah.  If he needs anything he knows who to go.  Bekah always knows what is wrong with him or what he needs.  They do puzzles together everyday and love to tackle and wrestle and laugh about silly things.  These days Caleb is potty training and is almost completely trained.  He has been doing it on and off since a little after he turned 2, but now we are making him stick with it.  He wants to be big like his sisters, but being lazy is also appealing.  As for speech, Im happy to say he has been working so hard and has made a lot of progress.  He is now able to repeat any 1 and 2 word phrases when asked. Obviously there are tons of articulation problems, but we'll take it! He still is lacking spontaneous speech outside of our home with someone other than immediately family.   He is currently in speech with 1st steps and at the local hospital.  Once he started getting therapy 2 times a week he really started gaining some ground.  There is nothing better than hearing his deep voice!  When he says a two word phrase he sounds just like Arnold Schwartzenager (totally guessed how to spell that)!  Life has definitely gotten easier being able to figure out what he needs. Once he turns 3 he will get into the local school for some therapy.  We actually find out Thurs what he qualifies for at the school.  He will either be put into a preschool program for 2 hours a few days a week or only once a week 30 min program.  We are just praying he gets into what God wants for him because honestly Im torn on what I want for me and for him.  I do want him to get the help he needs! All I have heard from the school from his testing is that he only tested in the 17 percentile for his age. 6 months ago he didnt score a single point!   Although he has come so far, he has so far to still go.  He was in a slump and backtracking for about 3 weeks but seems to be coming out of it this week.  Hearing him call our names for the first time brought such joy to our hearts and the next thing that would bring pure joy to our hearts would be to hear spontaneous speech outside of our home with those not a part of our family.  Caleb recently started riding a training wheel bike, doing 100 piece puzzles, counting, recognizing shapes, colors, and many letters.  He has also started being picky at meals, but loves fresh fruit, raisins, fruit snacks, and chocolate covered granola bars. Oh and any candy he can get! His favorite song for me to sing is 5 Green Speckled Frogs.  We definitely love our "little guy" and couldn't be more proud of his hard work these last 6 months!!  I cant wait to celebrate 3 great years on October 1st!!!

Bekah Jael

Holy Cow!!! Bekah is 4 1/2 and has changed more than any of the others!  She is calmer and more relaxed than she used to be.  I never thought that would happen!  Im not saying she doesnt still act like a Monkey and bounce around when she can, but she seems to do it more often when appropriate.  The tantrums are finally fewer and really only if she is tired.  She will easily take a nap still when needed unlike any of the other kids.  She loves to be sung to and will immediately goes to sleep afterwards.  Her 4 songs to sleep are Jesus Loves Me, This is the Day, Peace like a River, and He's got the whole world in His Hands.  Bekah loves a challenge!  She loves to do new things and always succeeds eventually.  She is definitely athletic and active and eats like a horse since figuring out she was allergic to oats her whole life.  Bekah loved playing softball over the summer and was very good at it.  She made us practice with her everyday and she practiced everything you could having to do with softball.  Now she is playing soccer and scored her first goal at her first game.  She adores her Mommy and therefore asked me to be her soccer coach and sunday school teacher for one quarter.  She started Kindergarten because she has nothing better to do than learn to read so that she can keep up with Ryan.  Math is so simple to Bekah, but she loves it.  She loves to play pretend with Ryan.  No matter what we do she says, "Lets pretend we are..."  It can drive me crazy sometimes, but is pretty cute too.  We have gotten her to use the baby voice much less than she used to!  Praise the Lord!!  Bekah loves to ride her bike, jump on the trampoline, climb the swingset, puzzles with Caleb, help Caleb with anything she can, still loves her "Yellow" (yellow baby since 1 year old), do flips on anything she can, dance, run and play board games.  Bekah is definitely the favorite sibling to all the other kids.  Bekah is definitely the glue that holds everyone together!  She makes us all laugh and scream in frustration sometimes at the same time.  Bekah probably wont give you anything of hers, but I gurantee she will help you in any way you need, and defend you no matter how silly it is to the end!  Bekah will never give up!  I have no doubts that Bekah will stand her ground so I just pray that she stays grounded in Jesus Christ because I gurantee you that if she does God will use her in ways unimaginable!!  If you ever want those sweet little Jesus questions just lay in bed with Bekah before saying goodnight.  She is great at putting up a front in broad daylight, but get her in a dark room and you see what is truly in her heart.  Bekah's favorite places are Church, BSF, children's museum, perry pool and anything else out of our house!  Bekah's favorite friends are Mae, Callie Davis, and Mandy Hale.  Whenever we go anywhere Bekah is either extremely shy or the one making all of the friends.  She still cant decide if she wants to be an extrovert or introvert (so like her Mama!).  I will say that I dont feel like Bekah's 4 1/2 years have flown by instead I would say, "It is about time!" one because she has been a challenge healthwise and through each stage of age and secondly because she has always seemed older than she is.  Bekah has shown Scott and I so much about ourselves that we didnt even know existed! I love Bekah so much and am so proud of her and the little lady she is becoming!!!

Ryan Kaley

She turned 6 in July and started 1st grade in Aug!  Hard to believe for sure!  It makes me so sad to think of her being 18 mos-3 (my favorite age).  I cant believe we are so far past that.  I think it is so evident because she acts so much older these days. She changed so much over the summer. I thought it was from being around another girl (I babysat) her age all summer, but after she left she didnt go back to the old Ryan.  I realized she is getting older.  She talks differently toward us (good and bad).  She has learned "I dont love you anymore! and "I dont like that" and "Im bored!" But she always some pretty good "I love you's too!"  She can sit and have a conversation and wants to understand everything not just do it because she is told to.  She is extremely sentsitive to others feelings.  The other day we had a talk about how to make others feel loved because she didnt feel loved when in trouble and I told her I didnt feel loved either when she was in trouble.  That made her feel pretty badly.  The next day she orchestrated a big breakfast for me with Bekah and Caleb.  It was so sweet!  She made me thick pasty oatmeal, crackerjacks, banana, cold water, piece of chocolate and a bowl of ice cream.  After she served it to me she asked, "Now do you feel loved Mommy? You told me you didnt yesterday so I wanted you to feel loved again."  When Caleb or Bekah are in trouble she gets so upset and sometimes scared.  She doesnt tattle a whole lot but we often hear her in another room warning siblings that if they dont stop they will get in big trouble with Mommy and Daddy.  Ryan would give you anything you want even if it is her favorite item in the whole world.  Her giving and compassionate heart make me one proud Momma!! Not because I think I molded her to be that way, but because I wish I were that way!  I pray that she always gives everything for the Lord and not to please others!  Ryan loves riding her bike, she loves ballet (and is taking ballet and tap this year), loves to color, and do crafts,  play pretend Mommy while Bekah is the baby, help me with laundry, mopping, dusting, and dishes, loves Mommy the most right now, loves back scratches, cooking, beans and rice, and one on one time with anyone but escpecially Mommy and Daddy, she loves going to church and has such a love for Jesus, her favorite friends are Callie Davis, and Mandy Hale (wishes she could play with them more often!), her favorite outings are monkey joes, the childrens museum, Perry Pool, Incredible Pizza, and visiting Daddy at work.  1st grade started off as a struggle, but after switching curriculum she is doing great and building her confidence.  She is keeping up and learing that tests are really just review!  Although, every year before Ryan's birthday she has anxiety about turning older and doesnt want to be the oldest she is loving trying to become a little more independent.  I wish she would just slow down!! Im so proud of our biggest girl!!

Heavy Heart

What is worse? A tantrum, disobedient 4 yr old or a 2 1/2 year old who still cannot talk? One is aggravating while the other is well aggravating. The only difference is that the aggravation is toward the 4 yr old, however the aggravation is toward the disorder for the 2 1/2 yr old. I feel like Im loosing my creativity and patience in dealing with Bekah. She is so stubborn with no fear! I honestly think that she believes punishment is totally worth it to disobey. My newest goal is to not allow myself to fight with her anymore. Instead just put her in a place far from me until she is willing to do what she was asked and without screaming. Today it took her 1 1/2 hrs before she gave in, but I guess the key is that she did give in and obey. Im praying that Scott and I get through this while teaching our child about her relationship with Christ and the role He plays in all of this. I know that this too will pass as Ryan went through something very similar at age 3, however she wasnt nearly as stubborn. She was just extremely emotional. Anyway, I cannot allow myself to blame my parenting, but seek Christ for wisdom in this newest trial.
Now for Caleb! The poor boy still cannot talk. He tries so hard to immitate when asked, but there is not spontaneous speech except for last Friday when he called for "mama!" A few months ago I was so overwhelmed with what to do to help him more. Where to get more therapy and how. After getting no where with first steps and being told nothing could be done until he was three I felt frustrated and gave up. But today I met with his evaluator for first steps and realized how serious his condition is once again. She is going to do everything she can to get him more therapy through first steps until he no longer qualifies at age 3. With Apraxia he needs so much more help than he is getting. Im working so hard with him everyday, but it would be nice to have more help. Once he turns 3 I have to decide if we want to use the school system for therapy, the local hospital, or another agency. Well I have no idea what to do! I dont have peace about the school system as Ive had 2 in that program. Not that impressive especially with him having something much more serious than articulation. I want to do what is the best for him and covered by insurance. He is the sweetest boy who wants to talk so badly! It breaks my heart when he gets so frustrated or is trying to tell me something he did, but cant. I know that if this is the only disability that any of my kids suffer from we will be okay. It could be so much worse. This is something that can be fixed, but sounds so overwhelming. I need to learn sign language and help him learn it too while also working on his cards. To give you an idea of how to help him with just one word. For example, to teach the word "me." He will learn the word in phases to eventually be able to say "me".
1st: MMM
2nd: mmm-eh
3rd: mmm-ee
4th: me
That is just to learn one small word! Which by the way he is only on step one MMM and pointing to himself for this word. So much work for one word! Yes overwhelming to say the least!! But obviously if he does not get the proper therapy he needs then he will struggle big time with school and learning to read and write. Anyway, I know that in time he will be okay. It will just take a lot of time and frustration with joy throughout for such simple things! I pray that God gives us wisdom on his therapy and patience these next few years. I wont lie as I also pray that it really isnt apraxia rather he is just delayed and will quickly begin to learn to talk. God is bigger than Apraxia!!!

3 months too long!

As you can imagine I havent had a whole lot of time to update the blog. Adelyn is finally going to bed at 8:30pm now so I have my evenings back. So what will I do with all of this extra free time? Probably not blog, but sleep more. Now that she isnt taking a late evening feeding she is waking twice in the night. I would certainly rather have her go to bed at 10pm and wake only once to feed. Owell this is life with a baby. A sweet baby I should add! So here is an update on the last 3 busy, but good months!

After 8 weeks we realized that Adelyn was allergic to dairy in my breast milk. The first 4 weeks on a dairy free diet was HARD! But now it isnt really a big deal. I do crave cheese once in a while but not nearly as badly as I did at first. Once I gave up dairy she became a completely different baby within 4 days! At 4 months she weights 15lbs 6oz and can scoot all over the room on her back. She plays in her exercauser and sits in her bumbo. She was just weaned from naps in her swing because she stopped sleeping as well at night in her bed. I loved the 3 hour naps in her swing because I could get so much done, but I love my sleep at night more. She rarely cries and is a thumb sucker :) She talks all of the time and even more when her siblings are talking. I think she is trying to pass up Caleb. She follows her mama around the room and loves to giggle. In her first 4 months she has had 2 colds and one ended in an ear infection. All of this to say, Addie, is a normal happy 4 month old that we are in love with!

Caleb is our little man that still cannot talk, but is getting better at making sounds upon command. I am working with him all day long when interacting with him and we also work on cards once every day. It is seeming more and more likely that he does have apraxia. It is a long road of repetition and more repitition, but is something he can overcome. These last two weeks he has made a lot of new sounds for me, but none without command. We are just praying that at age 3 in October we have a clear direction in the proper therapy for him. We have a couple options but want to do what is best for him. Im also still praying that Caleb will prove everyone wrong and it wont be apraxia but rather he is just being slow (the story of his life!) He crawled, walked, and sat up late. He prefers to take his time. A lot like his daddy! What is the hurry is their moddo. We shall see! He is healthy and active. He put holes in pair of new shoes in 1 week! He goes through 2 oufits a day (only bc he lays in his bed for rest time). He hasnt fallen asleep at rest time more than 2 times in the last month. He has created a lot of his own sign language, climbs up 3-4 shelves in the pantry, he put his own shoes on and off now, he goes potty in the potty when he feels like it, he eats non stop from breakfast through lunch and never eats his dinner, and he still enjoys wandering and exploring and trains more than anything else!

Bekah is crazier than ever if that is possible! Bekah climbs and flips on anything she can. I mean anything! She should seriously be in gymnastics doing the rings or bars! But we cant put that much money into a sport. We figured out that she is sensitive or allergic to oats. Since figuring this out she has not complained of a belly ache or had diarrhea. Next month she will go to the dr to see if she is gaining weight finally. I would say she should be because she eats twice as much but she is also twice as active from feeling better too! Our goal is just to get her BMI on the chart at least to 5 % as she is now at 1%. We will see, but Im not worried about it now that she feels better and acts better. Preschool was too easy for her these days so we started some kindergaten stuff just to keep her busy until the fall when I officially start her in kindergarten. She has had a hard time with Adelyn taking up so much of our time and has begun throwing massive tantrums and outright disobedience again. That has been trying for Scott and I but sure this will end soon.

Ryan has become such a great helper! She is a bit too motherly but in some ways it is nice to know I can count on her when I need a little more help. She is flying through kindergarten and is hard to believe she will be in 1st grade in 2 months! Wow! She can read too! It is so awesome to know that I helped her learn to read and it was fun for both of us. She hates learning new things but after the 2nd or 3rd time she enjoys it. Ryan has such a servant tender spirit. She loves to give to others and do things for them whenever she can.

This spring both girls are playing softball and finishing up BSF. This summer I am babysitting a 6 year old. We are trying out this week for spring break and so far it hasnt been too bad. She is a good easy going little girl. Hopefully it wont be too disasterous this summer but I wanted to help out a friend and give my girls an extra playmate.

Scott's business is very busy. He hired a second guy to hopefully help keep up but right now he is so swamped still. But spring is always hard because of estimates for all of those dreamers out there who have no idea the cost to add luxieries to their homes.

So there you have it! Going from 3 to 4 hasnt been all that hard for our family. We have had a good time and Adelyn seems like she has always been here. Now for hoping for a great fun spring and summer!!!