4 Years Ago Today

Well, a year ago from today I did this post about where I was 3 years ago from that day so if you want to see my largely uncomfortable pregnant self again, you can click on that link, lol.

I can't believe that 4 years has gone by in such a relatively quick time. I know I shouldn't be surprised because I have two other kids who hit the 4 year mark, but maybe it seems to go by quicker when you have more to deal with. ;)

I'm so thankful to have this time to reflect on the past 4 years and how far Jayden has come. He really is a joy- despite the times that aren't so easy. I love watching him learn and grow and run around the house singing,"Happy Burp-day to you." He was singing it to Isaiah, and I told him that it's HIS birthday. He says, "No! No, thank you!" Maybe he wants to be like Peter Pan and never grow up. We just got him to finally say how old he is(3 years old), but now I am trying to teach him to say that he'll be four years old. Silly kid. Gotta love him!

Jayden's appointment

It went pretty well. He has grown 3 inches and gained 5 lbs since the last time. The doctor said that he wasn't concerned with Jayden's nutrition(did I say he is a sensory eater?) because of his growth.

Jayden let the dr. listen to his heart and lungs, but that's as far as it went before he started getting anxious and wouldn't allow him to look in his mouth or anything else. Fortunately, the doctor has a great bedside manner and didn't push things. We talked about how he has improved with the therapies he has received in preschool, but I told him that I was still concerned about his other quirks and meltdowns. I showed him the pictures from this blog- thank heavens for smart phones! He told me that there wasn't really a pressing need for him to get assessed because he was already getting the therapies he needs at school, but he understood my desire to get closure on it all, so he set up the referral for Jayden to see a pediatric neurologist. It probably won't happen for a while because there is only one pediatric neurologist this side of the state, so we'll be on a waiting list, but I'm relieved that we have taken the step.

S-P-E-L-L

He really loves to spell.
Mostly things that he has seen on movies. Our refrigerator is covered with letter and number magnets. He also likes numbers. He's been able to read and identify his numbers and count things since he was about 2 1/2.

There is a term for the ability to read above the expected age level and to have an intense focus on letters and numbers- all the while having a hard time with comprehension and the ability to communicate. It's called hyperlexia.

Currently, Jayden's teachers are using these hyperlexic qualities to help him. They ask me to write a script for him to say when he is doing Sharing Time at school, and he reads off the script while showing off his toy or item. It's working well, but now he talks like he's reading from a script sometimes.

His favorite books are anything by Dr. Seuss. When his class celebrated Dr. Seuss week a short while back, he had a grand ole time! The only problem was that he hoarded all the Dr. Seuss books to himself and would get upset if anyone wanted to read with him.


Today is his 4 year well-child checkup. I will be talking to his doctor about his development and the possibility of getting some more assessments done. I hope we can get through the appointment okay. He has a tendency not to appreciate doctors very much. I will post an update later!

All Your Little Cars(and other items) all Lined up in a Row

A hint that might lead one to believe that Jayden is on the autism spectrum is:

And he gets mighty upset when someone messes with his order in any way.

Autism Awareness Month

I haven't posted in forever because I find posting things on Facebook satisfies my need to share my life with family and friends. I have decided that this month, I should go back to blogging because April is Autism Awareness month, and this is a subject that is hitting close to home.




Almost a year ago I posted this entry about Jayden's 3 year check-up and my apprehensions about his lack of speech. The plan was for Jayden to go to HeadStart and see if things would work themselves out with extra outside help.

I'm happy to say that things ARE improving. He has developed more vocabulary. He is starting to play more with other kids- whereas before, he was mostly doing his own thing and didn't care to be very social. He's receiving therapies that seem to be helping a lot.

Therein is the pull. He is receiving therapies because it has been determined by the Special Education team that he qualifies based on the SSIS(Social Skills Improvement System) and other assessments they performed. The SSIS includes an assessment of autism behaviors. Jayden placed within the above average range for behaviors related to autism. This wasn't a big surprise to me. I had suspected such for a while, but it makes it a little more real when you hear it from others.

Those of you who know Jayden well might be shocked to hear that he could be autistic. He shows love and affection and interacts. It's a myth that people with autism lack the ability to show affection and love. In fact, it's a myth that if you've seen one person with autism, you've seen them all. There is a reason that they call it "the spectrum." I am fortunate in that Jayden seems to be on the high functioning end of the spectrum.

Some things that indicate he could be on the spectrum:
Speech delay
Difficulty with social interaction
Repetitive behaviors
Lines toys up
Becomes very upset if his order is messed with
Echolalia
Difficulty with change
Hyperlexia
Sensitive to some sounds
Food aversions

Some of these issues lead to behaviors that seem less than desirable to the general passerby. I'm sure that people might look at Jayden during a meltdown and think that he just needs to be disciplined and I feel like a bad parent at those times. I think that one thing people need to be aware of this month(and others) is that autism is an invisible disorder. Don't sit in judgment on a situation where a child is having a meltdown. It could be that the child is a little hellion with lack of discipline, but it could be something that is beyond control. I know that I've been judgmental in the past, but I'm not so quick to be that way now. A kind word goes a long way.

It hasn't been easy for me to come to terms with our situation. Parents want the best for their children, and I want Jayden to have a good life without too many struggles. The truth is that we all have our own struggles to face, and I hope to be able to help Jayden face his struggles. He hasn't officially been diagnosed with autism(something I need to work on in the coming year), but no matter what label he gets, the label that I hope to put on him is LOVE. He's a great kid, and I'm proud to be his mom. He makes me smile every day(even on the days that I want to cry).

There's a lot more that I want to say about this subject, but I'm leaving on a weekend retreat later today, so my plan is to blog frequently through the month about autism and Jayden. I'll be adding more pictures and stuff, so check back soon!

Squirrel in my Bag and Snake in the Sink!

Today we went to a park for an outing with people from Parents as Teachers. We grabbed lunch from McDonalds because I forgot that we were out of bread. After it was over, I grabbed my bag which contained a few leftover fries and set it on the grass while the kids continued to play on the playground. When we were getting ready to go, I told Kyrie to go get the bag. She came back with,"Mom! There's a squirrel in the bag!"

We sat and watched for a while.






It found the french fries! Moments later it went back down and came up with a ketchup packet! Guess it wanted a little ketchup to go with the fries!


Late tonight, I decided to make a trip to the gym. When I got there, I used the restroom and started to wash my hands. I got my heart rate up before I even stepped on the treadmill when this snake came up out of the drain! I let out a scream! I didn't bother to reach over and turn off the water. There were two guys and two other girls working out. I told them about the snake in the sink, so we all gathered around the bathroom and stood there watching it. One girl told me that the manager had tried to get the snake out earlier, but was unsuccessful(Thanks for the warning!). We called the manager, but she was in bed and didn't want to come down, so she said if no one was going to get it, we could shut the door and leave a note about the bathroom being out of order.



For some reason, I decided to put on a brave face and pick the snake up and carry it outside. I don't know why- maybe I was afraid of it coming out under the door or something. Anyway, I hope it stays outside now and enjoys it's freedom.

And that was my experience with wildlife- twice in the same day!

4th of July

If you want to see all 63 photos I took of the day, you can click on this!

We had an excellent 4th of July. Went to church in the morning. In the afternoon, we attended the parade:




This is my favorite picture!

After the parade, I put the final touches on the raspberry pretzel jello salad that I had prepared the night before for the party we were attending that night. Note to self:Spray whipped cream might be convenient, but it will surely melt and run later on.


Later that evening we left for the party that was a few blocks down the lake from us. The neighbors were setting off a lot of fireworks, and Jayden was very overwhelmed by it all. I think it was partially due to the fact that he was tired, but Mark decided to take him home and put him to bed.


Isaiah and I took a little boat ride on the lake before they shut it down for the fireworks. It was pretty smoky coming back to the dock because of all the fireworks being ignited. The man next to Isaiah is Captain Ken. He is a sailboat enthusiast. After we got back to shore, he taught Isaiah how to tie knots. They really bonded.



Kyrie and Isaiah were the only kids at the party, so a lady there gave them all her sparklers to play with and we got to play with some personal fireworks.







At 10:00, they shot off the fireworks over the lake. It wasn't as big a show as last year, though.



It didn't matter too much because we got to enjoy all the other fireworks that the neighbors were setting off. ;)



Happy 234th birthday, America!