My baby boy is sitting by himself for up to 5 minutes!! I am SO proud of him. Updates to follow...I will write a blog on what he is up to when I have more computer time :)
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Growing, Changing, Learning
We have had a busy last couple of days but have got a lot accomplished and got a lot of great news!
Hubercito and I enrolled in Early Head Start yesterday. If I understand correctly it is more to teach me how to take care of a disabled child (like I didn't already figure that one out!) and just about development and that sort of thing. They come to our house to work with us and they offer play groups for us to attend to meet other familes and just to hangout together and play! So he goes on a waiting list now and should be accepted next month some time.
He also had physical therapy yesterday with his teacher Anne. We got to show her all the changes and new things that he has been doing. He is nonstop moving. Not content to be held or sit still anymore. He definatly knows that he can move around by himself, he just has to keep figuring out how. Also he has been loving being on his tummy and she was really impressed at how long he tolerated it and how well he held his head looking all around. She even said a few of the positions he was putting himself into or that I was putting him into just as I was holding him and talking to her were great and for him to tolerate them was a great foreshadowing into what he will be able to do in the future as far as moving around. One of the major things she was proud of that he is doing is that if he is laying on my lap and I turn him playing as if he is gonna fall off he reacts and pulls himself back. She said that a lot of CP babys brains dont register that they are gonna fall. It seems like something so simple but she said that it is a HUGE thing for him. Our goals for the next month before the therapy school year starts up again is work on side sitting with his legs to the side and arms in front of him holding himself up and also to keep practicing and stretching on the excersise ball.
Then this morning he had an appointment with his new pediatrition Dr Goyle. She is young and very nice and we hit it off right away so I am very happy about that and feel confident that she will be a good Dr for him. She gave me tons of info on some of the things that he is doing such as his raspy breathing. She reassured me that it isnt asthma and something pretty commen in CP babies and even younger newer babies. There are a few different things that could be making him breathe like that that can be fixed or he will outgrow it. He really only does it when he is excited or when he is concentrating and trying to do something. Which lately is ALL day long!She also set him up with a bunch of referrels such as a neurologist, dentist, Ear, nose and mouth specialist, nutritionist etc etc. Plus we got labs drawn to check his seizure medication level and a couple other things. And in later visits she is gonna help me with my dreaded sleep problems with him. All is all she was very thourough and I am excited to get all this going for him! She said once we consult with all these different specialists everything will just all take off and come together for him. We go back in 2 weeks for results of the tests and to get some shots if they find that he didnt already have them done.
I dont know if it is the moving to a different climate, starting more aggressive therapies or just him getting older but he is changing so much and for the better. His G tube site was always a battle for us keeping it dry and the granulation tissue down but it is now completely cleared up and Dr Goyle said it looks amazingly well for a G Tube site!
My baby is growing up and it wont be long before he starts doing all the things they said he wouldn't do but that we always knew he would be doing :)
Hubercito and I enrolled in Early Head Start yesterday. If I understand correctly it is more to teach me how to take care of a disabled child (like I didn't already figure that one out!) and just about development and that sort of thing. They come to our house to work with us and they offer play groups for us to attend to meet other familes and just to hangout together and play! So he goes on a waiting list now and should be accepted next month some time.
He also had physical therapy yesterday with his teacher Anne. We got to show her all the changes and new things that he has been doing. He is nonstop moving. Not content to be held or sit still anymore. He definatly knows that he can move around by himself, he just has to keep figuring out how. Also he has been loving being on his tummy and she was really impressed at how long he tolerated it and how well he held his head looking all around. She even said a few of the positions he was putting himself into or that I was putting him into just as I was holding him and talking to her were great and for him to tolerate them was a great foreshadowing into what he will be able to do in the future as far as moving around. One of the major things she was proud of that he is doing is that if he is laying on my lap and I turn him playing as if he is gonna fall off he reacts and pulls himself back. She said that a lot of CP babys brains dont register that they are gonna fall. It seems like something so simple but she said that it is a HUGE thing for him. Our goals for the next month before the therapy school year starts up again is work on side sitting with his legs to the side and arms in front of him holding himself up and also to keep practicing and stretching on the excersise ball.
Then this morning he had an appointment with his new pediatrition Dr Goyle. She is young and very nice and we hit it off right away so I am very happy about that and feel confident that she will be a good Dr for him. She gave me tons of info on some of the things that he is doing such as his raspy breathing. She reassured me that it isnt asthma and something pretty commen in CP babies and even younger newer babies. There are a few different things that could be making him breathe like that that can be fixed or he will outgrow it. He really only does it when he is excited or when he is concentrating and trying to do something. Which lately is ALL day long!She also set him up with a bunch of referrels such as a neurologist, dentist, Ear, nose and mouth specialist, nutritionist etc etc. Plus we got labs drawn to check his seizure medication level and a couple other things. And in later visits she is gonna help me with my dreaded sleep problems with him. All is all she was very thourough and I am excited to get all this going for him! She said once we consult with all these different specialists everything will just all take off and come together for him. We go back in 2 weeks for results of the tests and to get some shots if they find that he didnt already have them done.
I dont know if it is the moving to a different climate, starting more aggressive therapies or just him getting older but he is changing so much and for the better. His G tube site was always a battle for us keeping it dry and the granulation tissue down but it is now completely cleared up and Dr Goyle said it looks amazingly well for a G Tube site!
My baby is growing up and it wont be long before he starts doing all the things they said he wouldn't do but that we always knew he would be doing :)
Friday, July 17, 2009
So Far So Good
We are halfway through July already and so far have had a great month! We are finally all settled in our new place here in Cali and lovin it! We got all of our stuff from Oregon moved down so it finally feels like home here!
Huber got a few weeks off unexpectadly so we took a fast mini vacation back up to Oregon to spend the 4th of July with my Mom and got to see some family and friends while we were there. I just wasnt ready to give up our tradition of the 4th spent on the beach. It of course was freezing cold, being Brookings so we had to bail out early but still fun. It was nice to get out of the heat and into the cold for a couple days!
Hubercito continues to do well. We had our first Dr visit last week. He is just under 20lbs and got a clean bill of health after his physical. We didnt get to see the actual Dr we will be going to see from now on but we are going back this Wed to meet with her. She deals with a lot of Cerebral Palsy babies and has a lot of advice for me on transitioning him from babyhood to toddlerhood. Such as his diet and getting him in to see all the specialists he needs to see.
Our Occupational therapist was nice enough to take a few days out of her summer vacation to work with Huber so we continue working with the walker and learned that we can get some good stretches and excersises out of him on one of those big excersise balls without a lot of protest from him. He is moving around non stop all day, not content to be held like before. And jabbering away non stop! He is definatly more aware of his surroundings and knows what he wants and tries his hardest to get or do it. I worked with him last night on rolling from his back to his stomach and then moving his arms out in front of him and pushing himself up and after showing him only one time he just about had it, only needing a lil help from mommy. But when doing things like that with him you can see the understanding and determination he has. It is very exciting to see!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Kickin Butt
Hubercito continues to do an awesome job in Occupational Therapy. There is a lot of different things we are working on and just not enough time to really be able to work on everything at once. We only have 1 more week before all the teachers go on their summer vacations so they are trying to get Hubercito everything he will need for the summer before that starts.
Christine our teacher is very optimistic and was amazed at how responsive Hubercito is. When we asked him to touch a toy you could see him raise his hand a lil as if trying to. When she would tell him okay we are going to do this now, he would stiffen up as if knowing she was about to move him to a new position. She called his name today sitting behind him and he stopped what he was doing and tried to find her. These are all things that Huber and I have seen all along but as always it is always nice to see a professional who works with many kids with special needs get so excited about him doing so well and being so responsive to what we talk to him about. She said that he is a very intelligent lil guy.
We met a physical therapist today named Anne who is going to be bringing us a stroller to use that will position Hubercito better then the one we have and is also going to let us play around with a walker since he is accepting and liking standing up right now. With the walker it will give him the support he needs allowing us to teach him to use his feet and legs to get around. He is definatly more wiggly and always trying to get down when being held. I am very excited to see how he does with these.
We will also be meeting with a behaviorist who will be able to talk to me and help me with some ideas on how to get him to sleep easier and faster which is probably the biggest challenge I have with him right now.
I am loving the therapies here in California! He has already received so much more attention and the fact that getting equiptment is so easy is awesome!
Christine our teacher is very optimistic and was amazed at how responsive Hubercito is. When we asked him to touch a toy you could see him raise his hand a lil as if trying to. When she would tell him okay we are going to do this now, he would stiffen up as if knowing she was about to move him to a new position. She called his name today sitting behind him and he stopped what he was doing and tried to find her. These are all things that Huber and I have seen all along but as always it is always nice to see a professional who works with many kids with special needs get so excited about him doing so well and being so responsive to what we talk to him about. She said that he is a very intelligent lil guy.
We met a physical therapist today named Anne who is going to be bringing us a stroller to use that will position Hubercito better then the one we have and is also going to let us play around with a walker since he is accepting and liking standing up right now. With the walker it will give him the support he needs allowing us to teach him to use his feet and legs to get around. He is definatly more wiggly and always trying to get down when being held. I am very excited to see how he does with these.
We will also be meeting with a behaviorist who will be able to talk to me and help me with some ideas on how to get him to sleep easier and faster which is probably the biggest challenge I have with him right now.
I am loving the therapies here in California! He has already received so much more attention and the fact that getting equiptment is so easy is awesome!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Let The Therapies Begin!!
We have finally begun Occupational Therapy for Hubercito. A couple weeks ago we had a rough evaluation to qualify him for services. He was accepted and has had 2 sessions so far. His teachers name is Christine and we love her! Hubercito gives her a big smile when she comes and he goes into flirt mode.
Our main goals for this upcoming school year (they go for summer vacation starting in a couple weeks then restart a new school year) for Hubercito is to work on his feeding (latching quicker and better), sleeping (to hopefully get him asleep quicker and stay asleep without me laying down with him) and of course the important sitting, rolling, and crawling. Our first session was very encouraging tho, when we put him on his tummy he will usually bring his knees up into a crawling position. When we stand him he occasionally will bring one foot forward. These we were told are very good signs that he is ready and willing to start working towards crawling and walking. You can see that he understands and wants to, he just cant get his body to do what he wants. But Christine told us that for him to even be trying is a very good sign because some kids are scared shifting weight from 2 feet to 1 for example. She said that she can see his determination and for that she requested to come twice a week rather then once so she can give us some advice and things to work on with him while they are out for vacation.
Our second session she watched how I normally put Hubercito to bed and gave me suggestions to try such as a weighted blanket so he feels the closeness of something against and on him and to even put once of my shirts close to him or on a pillow so he has my scent near him to hopefully encourage him to stay asleep without me laying with him. She also watched me give him a bottle and said that she is very impressed with his determination again and to try massaging around his jaw and tongue before giving him the bottle in hopes that he will latch quicker and easier.
All in all I am very pleased with how it is all starting. She is very optimistic about what he will be able to do later on and very encouraging. Hubercito has a ways to go but I definatly feel more confident in the therapies he is receiving here that he is getting what he needs.
Our main goals for this upcoming school year (they go for summer vacation starting in a couple weeks then restart a new school year) for Hubercito is to work on his feeding (latching quicker and better), sleeping (to hopefully get him asleep quicker and stay asleep without me laying down with him) and of course the important sitting, rolling, and crawling. Our first session was very encouraging tho, when we put him on his tummy he will usually bring his knees up into a crawling position. When we stand him he occasionally will bring one foot forward. These we were told are very good signs that he is ready and willing to start working towards crawling and walking. You can see that he understands and wants to, he just cant get his body to do what he wants. But Christine told us that for him to even be trying is a very good sign because some kids are scared shifting weight from 2 feet to 1 for example. She said that she can see his determination and for that she requested to come twice a week rather then once so she can give us some advice and things to work on with him while they are out for vacation.
Our second session she watched how I normally put Hubercito to bed and gave me suggestions to try such as a weighted blanket so he feels the closeness of something against and on him and to even put once of my shirts close to him or on a pillow so he has my scent near him to hopefully encourage him to stay asleep without me laying with him. She also watched me give him a bottle and said that she is very impressed with his determination again and to try massaging around his jaw and tongue before giving him the bottle in hopes that he will latch quicker and easier.
All in all I am very pleased with how it is all starting. She is very optimistic about what he will be able to do later on and very encouraging. Hubercito has a ways to go but I definatly feel more confident in the therapies he is receiving here that he is getting what he needs.
Monday, June 8, 2009
California Love
As most of you family and friends know we made the big move to the Fresno, California area about a month ago! It was a very difficult decision to make, leaving behind friends and family who mean a lot to us. But when it all came down to it there is more work for Huber down here and better services for Hubercito.
Huber has been working for a farm service company for almost 2 months now (he came a month before we actually officially moved.) He drives a tractor spraying the fruit trees and fields. From the start he weaseled his way into being the favorite getting the 'good tractor' with enclosed windows, radio and air conditioning) while the other guys had the older tractors. He likes it and definatly likes getting those paychecks! He has been working nights so we don't get to see him as much as we were used to in Oregon with working at night and sleeping during the day but he has to work as much as he can while there is work for him.
Hubercito has been growing like a lil weed and has finally reached the 20lbs I have been forever waiting for! He is starting to be a lot more aware of his surroundings and more interested in his toys and the people around him. He knows what he wants and is slowly learning his own way to get it. Although he still doesnt have much use with his arms he is trying hard to reach for things he wants and will soon figure out his own way to get it. We had an evaluation this morning with Early Intervention out of Fresno. They were a nice bunch of people and I look forward to working with them and seeing some progress. Hubercito took to a couple of the ladies right away, giving them the flirty eyes and big smiles. Now that we have that started we can hopefully get his Medi Cal accepted and then will be able to get him into a pediatrition.
As for me, I have just been trying hard to get everything started for him and other then that not much lol. We just moved into our own place after staying with Hubers family for a month. It is only 2 blocks from them so when Huber is working I can still come hang out over here so Im not alone all the time. We got a 2bdrm, 1 bath duplex. It is really nice inside and has tons of room and storage for all our stuff. I love it!
Anyways though I will be able to update this more so be sure to check back to keep up with lil mans progress!!
Huber has been working for a farm service company for almost 2 months now (he came a month before we actually officially moved.) He drives a tractor spraying the fruit trees and fields. From the start he weaseled his way into being the favorite getting the 'good tractor' with enclosed windows, radio and air conditioning) while the other guys had the older tractors. He likes it and definatly likes getting those paychecks! He has been working nights so we don't get to see him as much as we were used to in Oregon with working at night and sleeping during the day but he has to work as much as he can while there is work for him.
Hubercito has been growing like a lil weed and has finally reached the 20lbs I have been forever waiting for! He is starting to be a lot more aware of his surroundings and more interested in his toys and the people around him. He knows what he wants and is slowly learning his own way to get it. Although he still doesnt have much use with his arms he is trying hard to reach for things he wants and will soon figure out his own way to get it. We had an evaluation this morning with Early Intervention out of Fresno. They were a nice bunch of people and I look forward to working with them and seeing some progress. Hubercito took to a couple of the ladies right away, giving them the flirty eyes and big smiles. Now that we have that started we can hopefully get his Medi Cal accepted and then will be able to get him into a pediatrition.
As for me, I have just been trying hard to get everything started for him and other then that not much lol. We just moved into our own place after staying with Hubers family for a month. It is only 2 blocks from them so when Huber is working I can still come hang out over here so Im not alone all the time. We got a 2bdrm, 1 bath duplex. It is really nice inside and has tons of room and storage for all our stuff. I love it!
Anyways though I will be able to update this more so be sure to check back to keep up with lil mans progress!!
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