Tuesday, October 10, 2006

A typical day in Nickland

Yesterday was Nick's OT and Speech day, so we were at the center from 9am to around 11:30am. First he went to his playgroup. Things started off very well, but in true Nick fashion, things can change drastically. He became quite upset during snack time. For one, with all the kids in the room, the snack area kind of echoed-and I think this was one thing that bothered him. He has become increasingly intolerant of loud noises. He has never liked the vacuum cleaner,but now it is also blenders,garbage disposals, he will even steer clear of the microwave. Two: There was a little girl sitting beside him who was just very active, and he was not comfortable at all with sitting next to her while she was jumping in and out of her seat. Three: He is afraid of the table top fan they had in the room. They had to cover it up with a towel just to stop his crying. Once he saw the fan, thats all he would look at. I actually had to hold him to get him somewhat calm. We have noticed that at home he has started covering his ears more when things get too loud. He is also banging his head more frequently. Yesterday morning, as we were leaving the house,something irritated him and he went outside and banged his head on the car. Anyway, after his playgroup, it was time for Speech and OT. Christy wanted to know what an OT does, so here it goes. Nicks OT is working on getting him to play with toys appropriately. This may seem like common sense to most of us, but Nick needs to be taught. For instance; instead of pushing a car on the floor,Nick will spin the wheels. We also work with him on things like climbing, jumping, and we will eventually work with him on his stims. Right now, when he is excited or on "overload" he flaps his hands, shakes his head, or stiffens himself like a board. This is acceptable for a toddler, but as he gets older it will only make him stand out more. So, we have to teach him other methods like twiddling thumbs or giving himself a hug. Another thing he will do is pace the floor over and over, and slap his hands on the wall. He will do this around 20 times or so before stopping. Today was ok until around 10am-when he apparently just had a meltdown. Mike has no idea of what triggered it, and even Tam was taken by it. He usually likes her session, so this was completely new to her. Such as a typical day with Nick; we never know what we will get.

Monday, October 09, 2006

Some nice fall pictures

For those of you who don't have the Fall season; here is a glimpse of what it looks like in western Washington right now!

This is the tree that is in our front yard.


Our view from our driveway

Looking down our street


As you can tell, it was overcast outside and the temperature hovered just below 60. We did not do much today. Just relaxed and cleaned the house up a bit. Michael went over to a friends house and played some video games. He also spent time cleaning up the playroom!! I did not even tell him to do that!! Nick is slowly getting over his cold. I cannot wait until he gets done with it--he gets even more picky with what he eats when he is sick. It is hit or miss (mostly MISS) getting him to eat anything that is not a pop-tart or cereal or yogurt. These are the three foods we are currently alternating now. If anyone has any other suggestions I would LOVE to hear it!! Otherwise, things are just as peachy as they can be.