Yay, I'm 154 weeks old today!
Masinja had a quite an eventful week this week. His speech session went pretty well. He cooperated quite well with his therapist and she is very impressed with the progress he has made so far. One of the activities she does with him every week involves picture cards that represent verbs. She puts them into a pillow case and lets him pull them out. He cracks us up every week though because after he pulls out each card and she asks him what the person pictured is doing he always says, "crying." For some reason he seems to think everyone is always crying. After she tells him to try again, he tells her exactly what action is being portrayed. Next he will take all the cards and line them up on the floor. He insists that they be lined up just right; none of them can be touching! When it is time to pick up he has to tell us once again what action is being portrayed before his therapist can put the cards back in their box. He is very particular about the entire process :o) This week his therapist had to put even more cards in the pillow case because he wanted to do more.
Masinja has been having some difficulty with stuttering and I asked his therapist about it. She said this time of year it is normal for kids his age to stutter due to the holidays and all of the new vocabulary that they are learning. She said that we will monitor him and if he continues to stutter after the holidays, she will look into it.
Masinja got his second H1N1 shot this week. He handled it like a trooper. About the only thing he got upset about is that the nurse only gave him one sticker instead of two :o)
Masinja had his 25th ECI session this week. We further discussed ways to use the First/Then poster utilizing pictures of his toys as well pictures of daily activities. We also discussed making a Daily Schedule using the same pictures and switching things up a bit from day to day to help Masinja break out of his rigidness. Lastly, we discussed ways to get him to sit in his chair instead of standing directly in front of the tv. He starts out sitting in his chair but he inevitably winds up standing so close to the tv that I swear his nose it touching the screen!! His teacher suggested getting a throw rug and putting his chair on it and explaining to him that he has to sit there if he wants to watch tv. She also suggested turning the tv off any time he stands too close and telling him that the tv doesn't work if you stand too close. When I told T.M. about this suggestion he just laughed and said that knowing Masinja, he'll just walk up to the tv and push the power button to turn it back on :o)
Below is a video of Masinja eating chocolate. We wanted to share it with y'all because his pronunciation of chocolate is priceless :o) He says "crocket!"
Chocolate Video
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Weekly Update -- 7 - 13 December 2009
Yay, I'm 153 weeks old today!
Masinja had quite an eventful week. T.M. had to go out of town and unfortunately while he was gone we had a pretty big winter storm. By the time the storm was over we had a total of 13 inches of snow on the ground! Masinja didn't quite understand what the snow was though. He kept saying, "It's raining!" I took him outside with me on Tuesday while I was shoveling and he fell down in the snow and the proceeded to follow me around saying, "Wet. Cold." We were going to go sleigh riding with his friend Clay but he just wasn't as impressed with the snow after he fell :o)
Masinja didn't end up going to speech this week because the roads were so bad. All of the schools were closed and even the base was closed. We did venture out to Target early on Tuesday just to pick up a few things in case the power went out. On Wednesday I had to shovel the driveway in sections because there was so much snow. When I shoveled the first part I left Masinja in the living room watching Sesame Street because it was way too cold to take him outside with me. I came in to check on him after about 5 minutes just to make sure he wasn't getting into any mischief. The picture below is what I found :o)
Surrounded by CDs pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had quite an eventful week. T.M. had to go out of town and unfortunately while he was gone we had a pretty big winter storm. By the time the storm was over we had a total of 13 inches of snow on the ground! Masinja didn't quite understand what the snow was though. He kept saying, "It's raining!" I took him outside with me on Tuesday while I was shoveling and he fell down in the snow and the proceeded to follow me around saying, "Wet. Cold." We were going to go sleigh riding with his friend Clay but he just wasn't as impressed with the snow after he fell :o)
Masinja didn't end up going to speech this week because the roads were so bad. All of the schools were closed and even the base was closed. We did venture out to Target early on Tuesday just to pick up a few things in case the power went out. On Wednesday I had to shovel the driveway in sections because there was so much snow. When I shoveled the first part I left Masinja in the living room watching Sesame Street because it was way too cold to take him outside with me. I came in to check on him after about 5 minutes just to make sure he wasn't getting into any mischief. The picture below is what I found :o)
Surrounded by CDs pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 30 November - 6 December 2009
Yay, I'm 152 weeks old today!
We drove the rest of the way back to Nebraska this Monday. Masinja really didn't seem to mind the drive at all. He slept for a good portion of it and played quietly with his link-a-doos for the rest of the time. T.M. and I were amazed and we're pretty certain that when we have another child he/she probably will be Masinja's polar opposite :o)
Masinja had speech on Tuesday and since T.M. was off for the day he got to go with us. I think it was quite enlightening for him! We tried to make an appointment for Masinja's formal occupational therapy evaluation but they are short staffed right now so we might have to wait a few weeks.
Masinja was supposed to have his 25th ECI session on Wednesday but we had to cancel because T.M. was sick. He was running a fever and we figured it would be best if we canceld so Masinja's teacher wouldn't get sick.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
We drove the rest of the way back to Nebraska this Monday. Masinja really didn't seem to mind the drive at all. He slept for a good portion of it and played quietly with his link-a-doos for the rest of the time. T.M. and I were amazed and we're pretty certain that when we have another child he/she probably will be Masinja's polar opposite :o)
Masinja had speech on Tuesday and since T.M. was off for the day he got to go with us. I think it was quite enlightening for him! We tried to make an appointment for Masinja's formal occupational therapy evaluation but they are short staffed right now so we might have to wait a few weeks.
Masinja was supposed to have his 25th ECI session on Wednesday but we had to cancel because T.M. was sick. He was running a fever and we figured it would be best if we canceld so Masinja's teacher wouldn't get sick.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 23 - 29 November 2009
Yay, I'm 151 weeks old today!
Masinja got to spend Thanksgiving with his Grandpa Murphy, Uncle Gary, cousins Taylor and Jordan, Uncle Sean, Aunt Joyce and Uncle Vin. He also got to visit with lots of friends and family that haven't seen him since he was about 6 months old. It was a very busy week but it was nice to get to spend the holiday with loved ones. Everyone was amazed with how big Masinja has gotten and everyone was very sad when we had to leave to head back to Ohio. We drove to Masinja's Uncle Gary's house on Saturday so we could rest up on Sunday before heading back to Nebraska on Monday. None of us were too psyched about that 14 hour drive :o( On a positive note, we were able to visit with one set of Masinja's Godparents while we were in Ohio. Tom, Leslie, Gabe and Patrick drove to Gary's house to see us and we all went to lunch. It was a short visit but it was well worth it!
Masinja & Grandpa Murphy
Masinja & Uncle Gary
Masinja & Uncle Sean
Masinja & Aunt Joyce
Masinja & Uncle Vin
Masinja & Tom, Leslie, Gabe & Patrick
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja got to spend Thanksgiving with his Grandpa Murphy, Uncle Gary, cousins Taylor and Jordan, Uncle Sean, Aunt Joyce and Uncle Vin. He also got to visit with lots of friends and family that haven't seen him since he was about 6 months old. It was a very busy week but it was nice to get to spend the holiday with loved ones. Everyone was amazed with how big Masinja has gotten and everyone was very sad when we had to leave to head back to Ohio. We drove to Masinja's Uncle Gary's house on Saturday so we could rest up on Sunday before heading back to Nebraska on Monday. None of us were too psyched about that 14 hour drive :o( On a positive note, we were able to visit with one set of Masinja's Godparents while we were in Ohio. Tom, Leslie, Gabe and Patrick drove to Gary's house to see us and we all went to lunch. It was a short visit but it was well worth it!
Masinja & Grandpa Murphy
Masinja & Uncle Gary
Masinja & Uncle Sean
Masinja & Aunt Joyce
Masinja & Uncle Vin
Masinja & Tom, Leslie, Gabe & Patrick
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 16 - 22 November 2009
Yay, I'm 150 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty busy week this week. We went to speech on Tuesday and he had a hard time staying on task. He had a few melt downs because he coulnd't do what he wanted when he wanted to! Definitely channeling the terrible twos :o) His therapist found out the resutls of the Sensory Profile today as well. He scored significantly on it so now he needs to have a formal Occupational Therapy evaluation. Once that is completed he will start OT.
Masinja had his 24th ECI session this week. We discussed Masinja's sensory processing issues. His teacher is going to try to get the results of the Sensory Profile and share it with the OT that is on his ECI team and try to coordinate services for him. Masinja started spinning in circles when she was trying to interact with him and I told her that he had been doing so repeatedly several times throughout the day. She said that this is also a sensory issue. We also discussed the fact that Masinja has issues with perseveration. Basically, he gets stuck on a specific activity or insists on doing things a certain way and won't deviate. His teacher is going contact the school psychologist and see if she can come out and observe Masinja and maybe give us some additional strategies to help him.
This Saturday we started our trip home to New York for Thanksgiving. We left bright and early and drove to Ohio to stay with Uncle Gary for a bit before finishing the last leg of our trip. Masinja was great for the entire 14 hour trip. I'm sure by the time we head back to Nebraska he will be sick and tired of the car!! I know T.M. and I will be.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty busy week this week. We went to speech on Tuesday and he had a hard time staying on task. He had a few melt downs because he coulnd't do what he wanted when he wanted to! Definitely channeling the terrible twos :o) His therapist found out the resutls of the Sensory Profile today as well. He scored significantly on it so now he needs to have a formal Occupational Therapy evaluation. Once that is completed he will start OT.
Masinja had his 24th ECI session this week. We discussed Masinja's sensory processing issues. His teacher is going to try to get the results of the Sensory Profile and share it with the OT that is on his ECI team and try to coordinate services for him. Masinja started spinning in circles when she was trying to interact with him and I told her that he had been doing so repeatedly several times throughout the day. She said that this is also a sensory issue. We also discussed the fact that Masinja has issues with perseveration. Basically, he gets stuck on a specific activity or insists on doing things a certain way and won't deviate. His teacher is going contact the school psychologist and see if she can come out and observe Masinja and maybe give us some additional strategies to help him.
This Saturday we started our trip home to New York for Thanksgiving. We left bright and early and drove to Ohio to stay with Uncle Gary for a bit before finishing the last leg of our trip. Masinja was great for the entire 14 hour trip. I'm sure by the time we head back to Nebraska he will be sick and tired of the car!! I know T.M. and I will be.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 9 - 15 November 2009
Yay, I'm 149 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 24th ECI session this week. We discussed ways to better help him transition from one activity to the next. Masinja's teacher is going to make a First/Then poster that we can use to motivate him to finish an activity before moving on to another one. T.M. and I are going to take pictures of all of Masinja's toys and his teacher will laminate them for use with the poster. We also discussed trying another strategy to help him make eye contact. His speech therapist at Children's has had success with using a physical prompt. Masinja's teacher suggested using a familiar object or making an "L" with my fingers and placing it next to my eye and saying "Look" to get Masinja's attention. Hopefully this will help because he just refuses to make eye contact.
We STILL don't have the results of the Sensory Profile. Masinja's speech therapist couldn't figure out what was taking so long so she went looking and found it in his file. Apparently the receptionist never gave it to the occupational therapists to be scored. Now that it is in the right hands we should know something next week for sure!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 24th ECI session this week. We discussed ways to better help him transition from one activity to the next. Masinja's teacher is going to make a First/Then poster that we can use to motivate him to finish an activity before moving on to another one. T.M. and I are going to take pictures of all of Masinja's toys and his teacher will laminate them for use with the poster. We also discussed trying another strategy to help him make eye contact. His speech therapist at Children's has had success with using a physical prompt. Masinja's teacher suggested using a familiar object or making an "L" with my fingers and placing it next to my eye and saying "Look" to get Masinja's attention. Hopefully this will help because he just refuses to make eye contact.
We STILL don't have the results of the Sensory Profile. Masinja's speech therapist couldn't figure out what was taking so long so she went looking and found it in his file. Apparently the receptionist never gave it to the occupational therapists to be scored. Now that it is in the right hands we should know something next week for sure!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 2 - 8 November 2009
Yay, I'm 148 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 23rd ECI session this week. We discussed the progress he has made with making eye contact and interacting while reading a book. We also discussed the possibility of Masinja starting pre-school in March. His teacher feels that pre-school would greatly benefit him by helping him develop his social skills, improve his attention span, and also help with his speech development. He would be placed in an integrated classroom where he can get the amount of redirection that he requires. I'm very thankful that March is a few months away because it will most likely take me that long to get used to the idea!! He would only go for 2.5 hours twice a week but I know I'll have a harder time adjusting than he will :o)
We haven't gotten the results of the Sensory Profile yet. Masinja's speech therapist said she would look into it this week since it usually only takes about a week to be scored. We'll let y'all know the results as soon as we do!
Masinja got to play in the leaves this week. I'll let the pictures below speak for themselves :o)
Leaves 1
Leaves 2
Leaves 3
Leaves 4
Leaves 5
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 23rd ECI session this week. We discussed the progress he has made with making eye contact and interacting while reading a book. We also discussed the possibility of Masinja starting pre-school in March. His teacher feels that pre-school would greatly benefit him by helping him develop his social skills, improve his attention span, and also help with his speech development. He would be placed in an integrated classroom where he can get the amount of redirection that he requires. I'm very thankful that March is a few months away because it will most likely take me that long to get used to the idea!! He would only go for 2.5 hours twice a week but I know I'll have a harder time adjusting than he will :o)
We haven't gotten the results of the Sensory Profile yet. Masinja's speech therapist said she would look into it this week since it usually only takes about a week to be scored. We'll let y'all know the results as soon as we do!
Masinja got to play in the leaves this week. I'll let the pictures below speak for themselves :o)
Leaves 1
Leaves 2
Leaves 3
Leaves 4
Leaves 5
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 26 October - 1 November 2009
Yay, I'm 147 weeks old today!
Masinja's regular speech therapist came back from maternity leave this week. He was happy to see her and performed pretty well considering she had been gone for 6 weeks. I gave her the Sensory Profile to have scored and she said she should have the results next week.
Masinja got his first H1N1 vaccine this week. We had to get a prescription for him to get the shot instead of the nasal mist because he falls into the high risk category. We weighed the pros and cons for quite a while before deciding to get him the vaccine. For us, the alternative is worse than the risks involved with the vaccine. Masinja's immune system and lungs are still a bit immature and with his neurological problems we just didn't want to take a chance. So far he hasn't had any adverse reactions to the shot. He has to go back in 30 days to get a booster shot. He really didn't fuss too much when he got the shot and he got two stickers which was the highlight of his day :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja's regular speech therapist came back from maternity leave this week. He was happy to see her and performed pretty well considering she had been gone for 6 weeks. I gave her the Sensory Profile to have scored and she said she should have the results next week.
Masinja got his first H1N1 vaccine this week. We had to get a prescription for him to get the shot instead of the nasal mist because he falls into the high risk category. We weighed the pros and cons for quite a while before deciding to get him the vaccine. For us, the alternative is worse than the risks involved with the vaccine. Masinja's immune system and lungs are still a bit immature and with his neurological problems we just didn't want to take a chance. So far he hasn't had any adverse reactions to the shot. He has to go back in 30 days to get a booster shot. He really didn't fuss too much when he got the shot and he got two stickers which was the highlight of his day :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 19 - 25 October 2009
Yay, I'm 146 weeks old today!
Masinja will be resuming regular speech appointments next week because the feeding specialist discharged him this week. She is pleased with the progress he has made in the last couple of weeks and feels that he no longer needs her services. In the few weeks that she has worked with him; however, she observed some behaviors that led her to believe he might have a sensory processing disorder. She gave us a Sensory Profile to fill out and return to be scored by Occupational Therapy. It will be interesting to see what the results are because after filling it out, T.M. and I are even more convinced that Masinja does in fact have sensory issues.
We took Masinja to Trick or Treat at the zoo this weekend. He didn't really understand the whole trick or treat concept but he certainly looked adorable in his costume :o)
Masinja Monkey
Happy Monkey
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja will be resuming regular speech appointments next week because the feeding specialist discharged him this week. She is pleased with the progress he has made in the last couple of weeks and feels that he no longer needs her services. In the few weeks that she has worked with him; however, she observed some behaviors that led her to believe he might have a sensory processing disorder. She gave us a Sensory Profile to fill out and return to be scored by Occupational Therapy. It will be interesting to see what the results are because after filling it out, T.M. and I are even more convinced that Masinja does in fact have sensory issues.
We took Masinja to Trick or Treat at the zoo this weekend. He didn't really understand the whole trick or treat concept but he certainly looked adorable in his costume :o)
Masinja Monkey
Happy Monkey
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 12 - 18 October 2009
Yay, I', 145 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week so we figured we'd just post a few pics for your enjoyment :o)
Sleeping Peacefully
Why'd you wake me up?
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week so we figured we'd just post a few pics for your enjoyment :o)
Sleeping Peacefully
Why'd you wake me up?
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 5 - 11 October 2009
Yay, I'm 144 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 22nd ECI session this week. We discussed a different technique for reading books with him. Instead of having Masinja sit in our laps, which is what he prefers, his teacher suggested having him sit in front of us so he can interact more with the story. She would like us to have him point to and name items as a way to build his vocabulary and attention span. Masinja tends to rush through a book and often turns the pages before T.M. or I have even finished reading! Hopefully this technique will make reading books with him more enjoyable :o) We also discussed working on getting Masinja to make eye contact. It is very hard to give him directions when he looks everywhere else but at the person speaking to him! Lastly, we discussed strategies to help Masinja engage in both busy and quiet activities. His teacher suggested pairing a busy activity with a quiet activity as a way to help him focus more. I am eager to try this strategy because I am hoping it will make it easier to play with Masinja!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 22nd ECI session this week. We discussed a different technique for reading books with him. Instead of having Masinja sit in our laps, which is what he prefers, his teacher suggested having him sit in front of us so he can interact more with the story. She would like us to have him point to and name items as a way to build his vocabulary and attention span. Masinja tends to rush through a book and often turns the pages before T.M. or I have even finished reading! Hopefully this technique will make reading books with him more enjoyable :o) We also discussed working on getting Masinja to make eye contact. It is very hard to give him directions when he looks everywhere else but at the person speaking to him! Lastly, we discussed strategies to help Masinja engage in both busy and quiet activities. His teacher suggested pairing a busy activity with a quiet activity as a way to help him focus more. I am eager to try this strategy because I am hoping it will make it easier to play with Masinja!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 28 September - 4 October 2009
Yay, I'm 143 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty exciting time this week. He didn't have speech because the feeding specialist took a well deserved vacation but he did get to go to a wedding for the first time. Our friends Holly and Nick got married Friday night and Masinja had a blast. He was a dancing fool!! He was on the dance floor for almost the entire reception! He kept following all the little girls around trying to get them to dance with him :o) Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of him dancing with any of them but we did get a picture of him dancing with his friend Bryce.
Masinja dancing with Bryce
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty exciting time this week. He didn't have speech because the feeding specialist took a well deserved vacation but he did get to go to a wedding for the first time. Our friends Holly and Nick got married Friday night and Masinja had a blast. He was a dancing fool!! He was on the dance floor for almost the entire reception! He kept following all the little girls around trying to get them to dance with him :o) Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of him dancing with any of them but we did get a picture of him dancing with his friend Bryce.
Masinja dancing with Bryce
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 21 - 27 September 2009
Yay, I'm 142 weeks old today!
Masinja had his second session with the feeding therapist this week. He got to try peanut butter for the first time. We had been reluctant to give it to him for fear that he might have an allergic reaction. Just that weekend though T.M. and I had decided to request that the therapist try it with him. We figured it was the best setting for him to try it for the first time simply because if he did have an allergic reaction he was already in a hospital. When we got to speech this week I didn't even have to ask her to try peanut butter because she had already planned on it. Luckily Masinja didn't have an allergic reaction but watching him try it for the first time was interesting to say the least. The therapist put some peanut butter on a graham cracker and then gave it to Masinja. He turned the cracker around so he could eat the end that didn't have peanut butter on it! The therapist then put more peanut butter on the cracker and Masinja proceeded to try to eat around the peanut butter. Next, she put some on an apple slice. He pretty much wiped the peanut butter of with his finger and then kept saying, "on the plate." He was not impressed with how it felt on his fingers and insisted that we wipe it off :o) The therapist finally gave up and just put some on the back side of Masinja's front teeth. He didn't quite know what to make of it. I'm not sure if he just didn't like the taste or if it was the texture. I guess we'll just have to keep offering it to him and hope that eventually he likes it.
Masinja and I went to Parent Connections again this week. I attended a training session titled "It's Not What You Say But How You Say It." The session was desinged to help parents of special needs children communicate with the school system about their child's needs. I learned a lot of good communication skills that I'm sure will come in handy in the years to come. Masinja had a good time playing with Miss Jacqui again. She tried to get him to play with something besides the kitchen set and food but it didn't work very well :o) Maybe he's going to be a chef when he grows up??
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his second session with the feeding therapist this week. He got to try peanut butter for the first time. We had been reluctant to give it to him for fear that he might have an allergic reaction. Just that weekend though T.M. and I had decided to request that the therapist try it with him. We figured it was the best setting for him to try it for the first time simply because if he did have an allergic reaction he was already in a hospital. When we got to speech this week I didn't even have to ask her to try peanut butter because she had already planned on it. Luckily Masinja didn't have an allergic reaction but watching him try it for the first time was interesting to say the least. The therapist put some peanut butter on a graham cracker and then gave it to Masinja. He turned the cracker around so he could eat the end that didn't have peanut butter on it! The therapist then put more peanut butter on the cracker and Masinja proceeded to try to eat around the peanut butter. Next, she put some on an apple slice. He pretty much wiped the peanut butter of with his finger and then kept saying, "on the plate." He was not impressed with how it felt on his fingers and insisted that we wipe it off :o) The therapist finally gave up and just put some on the back side of Masinja's front teeth. He didn't quite know what to make of it. I'm not sure if he just didn't like the taste or if it was the texture. I guess we'll just have to keep offering it to him and hope that eventually he likes it.
Masinja and I went to Parent Connections again this week. I attended a training session titled "It's Not What You Say But How You Say It." The session was desinged to help parents of special needs children communicate with the school system about their child's needs. I learned a lot of good communication skills that I'm sure will come in handy in the years to come. Masinja had a good time playing with Miss Jacqui again. She tried to get him to play with something besides the kitchen set and food but it didn't work very well :o) Maybe he's going to be a chef when he grows up??
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 14 - 20 September 2009
Yay, I'm 141 weeks old today!
Masinja had his first session with the feeding specialist this week. It seemed to go pretty well but that's probably due to the fact that he got to spend the majority of the time eating :o) The therapist worked on getting him to eat soft solids like apples and cheese. She gave him some crackers in between as a way to motivate him to eat the soft solids. She also tried to get him to drink from a regular cup but all he seemed to do was dribble milk every where! During the second half of the appointment, Masinja worked on building his vocabulary with picture cards that represent various verbs. He is getting really good at identifying them. The therapist is going to update his speech goals because he has pretty much met all of the goals his original therapist had set for him.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his first session with the feeding specialist this week. It seemed to go pretty well but that's probably due to the fact that he got to spend the majority of the time eating :o) The therapist worked on getting him to eat soft solids like apples and cheese. She gave him some crackers in between as a way to motivate him to eat the soft solids. She also tried to get him to drink from a regular cup but all he seemed to do was dribble milk every where! During the second half of the appointment, Masinja worked on building his vocabulary with picture cards that represent various verbs. He is getting really good at identifying them. The therapist is going to update his speech goals because he has pretty much met all of the goals his original therapist had set for him.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Weekly Update -- 7 - 13 September 2009
Yay, I'm 140 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 21st ECI session this week. We discussed working on getting him to make a choice. Up to this point, when asked whether he would like milk or juice all he does is repeat milk or juice. We also talked about working on motor imitation because Masinja has a really hard time copying actions. We are hoping that by improving his motor imitation skills we can then improve his speech. If he can imitate lip and tongue placement for the pronunciation of sounds it will most likely make it easier for him to articulate those sounds.
Masinja saw the same speech therapist this week that he did last week. He got to work more with the computer program and he now knows "fall down" very well. In fact, each time he responded correctly to a prompt the therapist showed him the action fall down because got the biggest kick out of watching a little boy fall down :o) The therapist tried really hard to get Masinja to wave bye bye when it was time to leave but he just wouldn't cooperate. I guess he'll figure it out eventually. Next week he'll start working with the feeding specialist.
Masinja and I attended another Parent Connections session this week. I went to a training on Potty Training. It was very informative and enlightening. I learned that Masinja is probably not ready yet to start potty training. We need to work on vocabulary associated with potty training first, such as wet, dry, dirty and clean. We also need to work on getting Masinja to tell us when he is wet or dirty. Once he is able to identify these sensations and starts to show more interest in learning to use the toilet it will be time to start potty training. Masinja had a good time playing with Miss Jacqui again and of course he went for the kitchen set and the food again :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 21st ECI session this week. We discussed working on getting him to make a choice. Up to this point, when asked whether he would like milk or juice all he does is repeat milk or juice. We also talked about working on motor imitation because Masinja has a really hard time copying actions. We are hoping that by improving his motor imitation skills we can then improve his speech. If he can imitate lip and tongue placement for the pronunciation of sounds it will most likely make it easier for him to articulate those sounds.
Masinja saw the same speech therapist this week that he did last week. He got to work more with the computer program and he now knows "fall down" very well. In fact, each time he responded correctly to a prompt the therapist showed him the action fall down because got the biggest kick out of watching a little boy fall down :o) The therapist tried really hard to get Masinja to wave bye bye when it was time to leave but he just wouldn't cooperate. I guess he'll figure it out eventually. Next week he'll start working with the feeding specialist.
Masinja and I attended another Parent Connections session this week. I went to a training on Potty Training. It was very informative and enlightening. I learned that Masinja is probably not ready yet to start potty training. We need to work on vocabulary associated with potty training first, such as wet, dry, dirty and clean. We also need to work on getting Masinja to tell us when he is wet or dirty. Once he is able to identify these sensations and starts to show more interest in learning to use the toilet it will be time to start potty training. Masinja had a good time playing with Miss Jacqui again and of course he went for the kitchen set and the food again :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Weekly Update -- 31 August - 6 September 2009
Yay! I'm 139 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. We were busy just about every day! On Tuesday Masinja got to go back to Parent Connections and play with Miss Jacqui and a bunch of other kids. I attended a workshop on Sensory Processing while Masinja was playing. I decided it would be a good idea to attend this particular parent training session because many of the therapists and educators that have worked with Masinja have mentioned the possibility of sensory problems. I have done quite a bit of research on the subject and T.M. and I have also talked about it at length. After attending the training sessoin and learning even more about it T.M. and I have decided to ask Masinja's doctor about it and see where that leads us. We'll keep y'all posted with what we find out.
Masinja also had speech therapy again on Tuesday. His regular speech therapist wasn't there though because she is out on maternity leave. He enjoyed his session with the therapist that took her place though. We have been working on expanding his vocabulary to include action words. He got to play with a computer program that dealt with verbs and he really liked it. The program involved children acting out actions and his favorite one was "fall down." Every time the boy on the computer would act out "fall down" Masinja would giggle uncontrollably :o)
Masinja had a follow-up occupational therapy evaluation on Wednesday. We are still having feeding issues with him. We stopped taking him to OT months ago because everyone kept telling us that it was normal for a toddler to be picky. We didn't want to take an appointment away from a child who would benefit more from OT than Masinja and we felt that we could work around his picky eating habits. In the last month or so though he has exhibited behaviors that concern us. He doesn't chew his food completely before he swallows it. It may not seem that alarming but when you consider the fact that he does this with chicken nuggets and carrots it is alarming. He still doesn't eat a wide variety of foods either and therefore doesn't have the most well balanced diet. The occupational therapist and speech pathologist that conducted the evaluation noticed that he primarily doesn't chew soft solids but instead swallows them whole. He also is not yet using utensils consistently and is still quite a picky eater. Most of the things that he needs help with can be addressed through speech; however, so starting next week he will get half an hour of speech and half an hour of occupational therapy. This will make things much easier on both Masinja and I because it means only one trip to the hospital instead of two!
Last, but not least, Masinja got to see his Uncle Boop (Jeremy) again this week. He came for a visit and Masinja enjoyed it very much.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. We were busy just about every day! On Tuesday Masinja got to go back to Parent Connections and play with Miss Jacqui and a bunch of other kids. I attended a workshop on Sensory Processing while Masinja was playing. I decided it would be a good idea to attend this particular parent training session because many of the therapists and educators that have worked with Masinja have mentioned the possibility of sensory problems. I have done quite a bit of research on the subject and T.M. and I have also talked about it at length. After attending the training sessoin and learning even more about it T.M. and I have decided to ask Masinja's doctor about it and see where that leads us. We'll keep y'all posted with what we find out.
Masinja also had speech therapy again on Tuesday. His regular speech therapist wasn't there though because she is out on maternity leave. He enjoyed his session with the therapist that took her place though. We have been working on expanding his vocabulary to include action words. He got to play with a computer program that dealt with verbs and he really liked it. The program involved children acting out actions and his favorite one was "fall down." Every time the boy on the computer would act out "fall down" Masinja would giggle uncontrollably :o)
Masinja had a follow-up occupational therapy evaluation on Wednesday. We are still having feeding issues with him. We stopped taking him to OT months ago because everyone kept telling us that it was normal for a toddler to be picky. We didn't want to take an appointment away from a child who would benefit more from OT than Masinja and we felt that we could work around his picky eating habits. In the last month or so though he has exhibited behaviors that concern us. He doesn't chew his food completely before he swallows it. It may not seem that alarming but when you consider the fact that he does this with chicken nuggets and carrots it is alarming. He still doesn't eat a wide variety of foods either and therefore doesn't have the most well balanced diet. The occupational therapist and speech pathologist that conducted the evaluation noticed that he primarily doesn't chew soft solids but instead swallows them whole. He also is not yet using utensils consistently and is still quite a picky eater. Most of the things that he needs help with can be addressed through speech; however, so starting next week he will get half an hour of speech and half an hour of occupational therapy. This will make things much easier on both Masinja and I because it means only one trip to the hospital instead of two!
Last, but not least, Masinja got to see his Uncle Boop (Jeremy) again this week. He came for a visit and Masinja enjoyed it very much.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 24 - 30 August 2009
Yay! I'm 138 weeks old today!
Masinja and I went to Parent Connections for the first time this week. Parent Connections is a component of the ECI program here. It is basically a way to educate and train parents on various topics. While the parents are in training the children get to play in a setting that is much like a day care. We went for kind of an open house visit. Masinja seemed to really enjoy it and he got to meet some other children as well. His favorite part was the toy kitchen. He went right over to it and started playing with the pretend food. His favorite items were the chocolate ice cream and the hot dogs :o) Masinja got a new "teddy bear" also. Technically it isn't a teddy bear but we really don't know what else to call it! It's one of the characters from the Dr. Seus books. It's really soft and cuddly though. He hugged it and carried it around the entire week :o)
Masinja went to his first Air Show this week. He didn't seem very impressed though. He didn't even look up when the jets flew overhead. I was concerned that it might be too loud for him but he didn't even seem to notice the noise. Maybe next year he'll get more enjoyment out of it.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja and I went to Parent Connections for the first time this week. Parent Connections is a component of the ECI program here. It is basically a way to educate and train parents on various topics. While the parents are in training the children get to play in a setting that is much like a day care. We went for kind of an open house visit. Masinja seemed to really enjoy it and he got to meet some other children as well. His favorite part was the toy kitchen. He went right over to it and started playing with the pretend food. His favorite items were the chocolate ice cream and the hot dogs :o) Masinja got a new "teddy bear" also. Technically it isn't a teddy bear but we really don't know what else to call it! It's one of the characters from the Dr. Seus books. It's really soft and cuddly though. He hugged it and carried it around the entire week :o)
Masinja went to his first Air Show this week. He didn't seem very impressed though. He didn't even look up when the jets flew overhead. I was concerned that it might be too loud for him but he didn't even seem to notice the noise. Maybe next year he'll get more enjoyment out of it.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 17 - 23 August 2009
Yay! I'm 137 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 20th ECI session this week. Masinja's teacher was impressed with his progress as far as his attention span is concerned. He is now completing two inset puzzles before moving on to another activity which is great! He used to flit from one activity to another every minute or less. Masinja's teacher suggested using more action words and encouraging him to imitate the actions as well to further build his vocabulary. We also discussed ways to help him make choices. It was a very productive session.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 20th ECI session this week. Masinja's teacher was impressed with his progress as far as his attention span is concerned. He is now completing two inset puzzles before moving on to another activity which is great! He used to flit from one activity to another every minute or less. Masinja's teacher suggested using more action words and encouraging him to imitate the actions as well to further build his vocabulary. We also discussed ways to help him make choices. It was a very productive session.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 10 - 16 August 2009
Yay! I'm 136 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. The only highlight to report is that T.M. and I finally got him to sit in his chair. He normally stands as close to the television as he can get which obviously isn't good for his eyes! Below are before and after pictures :o)
Before Masinja learned to sit in his chair
After Masinja learned to sit in his chair
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. The only highlight to report is that T.M. and I finally got him to sit in his chair. He normally stands as close to the television as he can get which obviously isn't good for his eyes! Below are before and after pictures :o)
Before Masinja learned to sit in his chair
After Masinja learned to sit in his chair
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Weekly Update -- 3 - 9 August 2009
Yay, I'm 135 weeks old today!
Masinja had speech again this week. He cooperated for the most part. His therapist is working on getting him to immitate actions and sounds. She is pretty confident that if we can get him to immiate things then he will be able to correctly pronounce the few sounds that he is having the most difficulty with right now. He didn't have much of a problem immitating the actions such as clapping his hands and stomping his feet, but he would not immiate the sounds at all. She tried to get him to say buh, buh, buh; puh, puh, puh; and mmmmmm but he just wouldn't do it. I told her that I could pretty much guarantee that he would be saying those sounds all the way home. He didn't do that exactly but as we were getting into the car I said all three sounds and asked him to repeat me, and sure enough he did it without hesitation! He is just one stubborn little boy.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had speech again this week. He cooperated for the most part. His therapist is working on getting him to immitate actions and sounds. She is pretty confident that if we can get him to immiate things then he will be able to correctly pronounce the few sounds that he is having the most difficulty with right now. He didn't have much of a problem immitating the actions such as clapping his hands and stomping his feet, but he would not immiate the sounds at all. She tried to get him to say buh, buh, buh; puh, puh, puh; and mmmmmm but he just wouldn't do it. I told her that I could pretty much guarantee that he would be saying those sounds all the way home. He didn't do that exactly but as we were getting into the car I said all three sounds and asked him to repeat me, and sure enough he did it without hesitation! He is just one stubborn little boy.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 27 July - 2 August 2009
Yay, I'm 134 weeks old today!
Masinja went for the second half of his speech evaluation this week. It went much better this time, thank goodness! I scheduled the appointment for 11 o'clock which made a huge difference. He got to play with some toys again but this time when the speech therapist asked him to identify the pictures in the book he cooperated much better. It might have something to do with the fact that I bribed him with Kix :O) Anyway, the funniest part was when the speech therapist flipped to a picture of a clown. Before she could even ask Masinja what it was he pointed to it and said, "Mommy!" She and I started to laugh hysterically. It took a few minutes before we could proceed with the rest of the evaluation.
Masinja got to go to a Japanse restaurant this week. T.M. and I, along with Masinja, went to Kobe to celebrate our 11 year wedding anniversary. It is a hibatchi restaurant so you get to watch them cook right in front of you. Masinja had a blast! His favorite part was when they lit the grill. He kept watching for the fires. Each time a chef would light a grill he would grin from ear to ear and giggle like crazy. I hope that's not a sign :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja went for the second half of his speech evaluation this week. It went much better this time, thank goodness! I scheduled the appointment for 11 o'clock which made a huge difference. He got to play with some toys again but this time when the speech therapist asked him to identify the pictures in the book he cooperated much better. It might have something to do with the fact that I bribed him with Kix :O) Anyway, the funniest part was when the speech therapist flipped to a picture of a clown. Before she could even ask Masinja what it was he pointed to it and said, "Mommy!" She and I started to laugh hysterically. It took a few minutes before we could proceed with the rest of the evaluation.
Masinja got to go to a Japanse restaurant this week. T.M. and I, along with Masinja, went to Kobe to celebrate our 11 year wedding anniversary. It is a hibatchi restaurant so you get to watch them cook right in front of you. Masinja had a blast! His favorite part was when they lit the grill. He kept watching for the fires. Each time a chef would light a grill he would grin from ear to ear and giggle like crazy. I hope that's not a sign :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 20 - 26 July 2009
Yay, I'm 133 weeks old today!
Masinja went for a speech evaluation this week. It didn't go very well because the appointment was at one o'clock which is right in the middle of nap time. He didn't really cooperate at all with the speech therapist. She gave him some toys to play with and asked T.M. and I a series of questions. Once we finished that portion, she showed Masinja some pictures in a book and tried to get him to tell her what was in each picture. Masinja was more interested in playing with the toys :o) He pretty much threw three temper tantrums in the span of ten minutes! We have to take him back next week to finish the evaluation. Hopefully that portion will go much better.
Masinja went to the ophthalmologist for a checkup this week. He had to have his eyes dilated this time because he didn't have it done last time. The doctor basically did so in order to check Masinja's prescription. He was pleasantly surprised and so were T.M. and I. Even though Masinja has grown quite a bit in the last 6 months, his vision hasn't changed at all. It hasn't improved, but it hasn't gotten worse either!
Masinja had his 19th ECI session this week. We discussed his speech evaluation and talked about some strategies to use at home to help improve his language skills.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja went for a speech evaluation this week. It didn't go very well because the appointment was at one o'clock which is right in the middle of nap time. He didn't really cooperate at all with the speech therapist. She gave him some toys to play with and asked T.M. and I a series of questions. Once we finished that portion, she showed Masinja some pictures in a book and tried to get him to tell her what was in each picture. Masinja was more interested in playing with the toys :o) He pretty much threw three temper tantrums in the span of ten minutes! We have to take him back next week to finish the evaluation. Hopefully that portion will go much better.
Masinja went to the ophthalmologist for a checkup this week. He had to have his eyes dilated this time because he didn't have it done last time. The doctor basically did so in order to check Masinja's prescription. He was pleasantly surprised and so were T.M. and I. Even though Masinja has grown quite a bit in the last 6 months, his vision hasn't changed at all. It hasn't improved, but it hasn't gotten worse either!
Masinja had his 19th ECI session this week. We discussed his speech evaluation and talked about some strategies to use at home to help improve his language skills.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 13 - 19 July 2009
Yay, I'm 132 weeks old today!
Masinja had another eventful week this week. We left Shreveport on Tuesday and drove to Tennesse to visit his Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny, and cousins Grace and Josh. We were supposed to leave on Monday but I got sick Sunday night so we had to stay in Shreveport an extra day. We had a great visit though. It had been six months since they had all come to visit us and Jenn, Kenny and the kids were anxious to see Masinja. I guess they were excited to see T.M. and I too :o) Our first day in town we got to go and watch Grace's dance class. It was pretty neat because we haven't been able to attend any of her recitals. She is a great dancer and I can't wait to see her dance again. Masinja had a good time because he was surrounded by pretty girls! The next day we all went to the Aquarium in Chattanooga. It was pretty cool because most of the exhibits contained fish that were native to Tennessee. Masinja's favorite part was the sting rays. There were all sorts of them and he thought they were neat. Our last day in town we spent relaxing at the house in preparation for our long drive home. It took us 17 hours to drive back to Nebraska. Masinja was trooper for the entire ride though.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had another eventful week this week. We left Shreveport on Tuesday and drove to Tennesse to visit his Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny, and cousins Grace and Josh. We were supposed to leave on Monday but I got sick Sunday night so we had to stay in Shreveport an extra day. We had a great visit though. It had been six months since they had all come to visit us and Jenn, Kenny and the kids were anxious to see Masinja. I guess they were excited to see T.M. and I too :o) Our first day in town we got to go and watch Grace's dance class. It was pretty neat because we haven't been able to attend any of her recitals. She is a great dancer and I can't wait to see her dance again. Masinja had a good time because he was surrounded by pretty girls! The next day we all went to the Aquarium in Chattanooga. It was pretty cool because most of the exhibits contained fish that were native to Tennessee. Masinja's favorite part was the sting rays. There were all sorts of them and he thought they were neat. Our last day in town we spent relaxing at the house in preparation for our long drive home. It took us 17 hours to drive back to Nebraska. Masinja was trooper for the entire ride though.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 6 - 12 July 2009
Yay, I'm 131 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. We went to Shreveport for a visit. It has been a year and a half since we moved from there and we really wanted to go back and see everyone. It took us about 13 hours to get there but it was well worth the trip. We stayed with Masinja's Grandma Martha and he got to see his Aunt CC and his Uncle Robert almost every day. Our first full night in town we went to see Masinja's Mommy Tammy. Masinja had a blast and I'm pretty sure his Mommy Tammy did as well. She was his favorite nurse from the NICU and she's pretty fond of him too! The next day we took Masinja to the NICU so all of the nurses could see how big he has gotten. They were all pretty impressed with him and just amazed at how far he has come. Neither one of the doctors were there at that time so we went back that afternoon so Masinja's doctor, Dr. M, could see him. Unfortunately, by the time we got back there Masinja was passed out! He slept for most of the visit but he woke up toward the end and Dr. M got to see him in action. She was just as amazed as everyone else with how smart he is and how well he is doing. We went back to the NICU a few days later so that the nurses on the other shift could see him too. He had every one of those nurses wrapped around his little finger :o)
We also got to visit with our church family at St. Matthias several times while we were in town. Vacation Bible School was going on that week so we went a few nights and got to catch up with a lot of people. We got to spend extra time with Masinja's Aunt CC and Uncle Robert and Grandma Martha and Kori too because they were all conducting VBS. Masinja had a great time playing with all the kids. The highlight of VBS for him though was the "train" ride. The theme was St. Matthias Express so each night the kids would all get into a wagon that was pulled by a four wheeler and ride the "train" to VBS. Masinja absolutely loved riding the "train." He would laugh hysterically while going over the bumps and just grin from ear to ear while the ride lasted. It was a different story entirely when the "train" stopped though. As soon as the "train" came to a stop he would start to throw a temper tantrum!
We tried to see as many people as we could while we were in town but there just never seemed to be enough time in the day. Maybe the next time we go for a visit we'll be able to stay longer and see more people :o)
Masinja and his Mommy Tammy
Masinja and his Aunt CC and Uncle Robert
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. We went to Shreveport for a visit. It has been a year and a half since we moved from there and we really wanted to go back and see everyone. It took us about 13 hours to get there but it was well worth the trip. We stayed with Masinja's Grandma Martha and he got to see his Aunt CC and his Uncle Robert almost every day. Our first full night in town we went to see Masinja's Mommy Tammy. Masinja had a blast and I'm pretty sure his Mommy Tammy did as well. She was his favorite nurse from the NICU and she's pretty fond of him too! The next day we took Masinja to the NICU so all of the nurses could see how big he has gotten. They were all pretty impressed with him and just amazed at how far he has come. Neither one of the doctors were there at that time so we went back that afternoon so Masinja's doctor, Dr. M, could see him. Unfortunately, by the time we got back there Masinja was passed out! He slept for most of the visit but he woke up toward the end and Dr. M got to see him in action. She was just as amazed as everyone else with how smart he is and how well he is doing. We went back to the NICU a few days later so that the nurses on the other shift could see him too. He had every one of those nurses wrapped around his little finger :o)
We also got to visit with our church family at St. Matthias several times while we were in town. Vacation Bible School was going on that week so we went a few nights and got to catch up with a lot of people. We got to spend extra time with Masinja's Aunt CC and Uncle Robert and Grandma Martha and Kori too because they were all conducting VBS. Masinja had a great time playing with all the kids. The highlight of VBS for him though was the "train" ride. The theme was St. Matthias Express so each night the kids would all get into a wagon that was pulled by a four wheeler and ride the "train" to VBS. Masinja absolutely loved riding the "train." He would laugh hysterically while going over the bumps and just grin from ear to ear while the ride lasted. It was a different story entirely when the "train" stopped though. As soon as the "train" came to a stop he would start to throw a temper tantrum!
We tried to see as many people as we could while we were in town but there just never seemed to be enough time in the day. Maybe the next time we go for a visit we'll be able to stay longer and see more people :o)
Masinja and his Mommy Tammy
Masinja and his Aunt CC and Uncle Robert
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update 29 June - 5 July 2009
Yay, I'm 130 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. We didn't take him to see any fireworks for the the 4th of July because we figured he wouldn't like the loud noise. We did get a good picture of him in his 4th of July outfit though :o)
4th of July Outfit
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. We didn't take him to see any fireworks for the the 4th of July because we figured he wouldn't like the loud noise. We did get a good picture of him in his 4th of July outfit though :o)
4th of July Outfit
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Weekly Update -- 22 - 28 June 2009
Yay, I'm 129 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week. Since we don't have much of anything to report we figured we'd just share some pics that we took of him this week. Enjoy :o)
Dirt Bike Pic
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 1
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 2
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 3
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week. Since we don't have much of anything to report we figured we'd just share some pics that we took of him this week. Enjoy :o)
Dirt Bike Pic
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 1
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 2
Bird is the Word Elmo Pic 3
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Weekly Update - 15 - 21 June 2009
Yay, I'm 128 weeks old today!
Masinja went to the ER this week. He wasn't doing better after the weekend stomach bug and started to refuse to drink anything, so we took him in at 0-dark-30 Monday morning. They gave him some pedialyte and some meds to help nausea. It took a little while, but he started drinking again and doing fine.
Masinja also had a neurology appointment this week. It's been almost 2 years since he's had a seizure, so we asked about taking him off the phenobarb. The doc suggested waiting another 6 months, so we'll go again in December and see what happens.
Last, Masinja had his 18th ECI session this week. It was with his regular teacher again. She was actually helpful and gave T.M.M. lots of suggestions for activities to help Masinja get to be a smarter boy than he already is.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.
Masinja went to the ER this week. He wasn't doing better after the weekend stomach bug and started to refuse to drink anything, so we took him in at 0-dark-30 Monday morning. They gave him some pedialyte and some meds to help nausea. It took a little while, but he started drinking again and doing fine.
Masinja also had a neurology appointment this week. It's been almost 2 years since he's had a seizure, so we asked about taking him off the phenobarb. The doc suggested waiting another 6 months, so we'll go again in December and see what happens.
Last, Masinja had his 18th ECI session this week. It was with his regular teacher again. She was actually helpful and gave T.M.M. lots of suggestions for activities to help Masinja get to be a smarter boy than he already is.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.
Weekly Update - 8 - 14 June 2009
Yay, I'm 127 weeks old today.
Masinja had his 17th ECI session this week. His regular teacher is still on vacation, so the speech therapist that is assigned to his team came instead.
The services coordinator came as well. We spent a great deal of time discussing Masinja's language development as well as the possibility that he has Central Auditory Processining Disorder (CAPD). Ironically, all three of us had researched the disorder prior to the session and we all agreed that Masinja does exhibit some of the characteristics. I told both the speech therapist and the services coordinator that we are just waiting for the referral to be approved and then we are going to have Masinja evaluated. The remainder of the session was spent discussing strategies to teach Masinja the concept of a conversation. The speech therapist suggested doing activities that require taking turns, as this will help Masinja understand that a conversation involves taking turns. Overall, it was a very eventful session. The remainder of the ECI sessions this summer will be with Masinja's regular teacher, so it should be interesting!
As I mentioned in last week's post, Masinja and I had plans to get together with some neighbors for a play date this week. We met up with them and went to the Early Childhood Center on Wednesday. The boys had a great time and I have to admit the Mommies did too :O) That evening we met up with them again and went for a long walk. Afterwards we spent a little while at their house.
I don't know for sure if he picked it up at the Early Childhood Center or if he got it at their house, but Masinja got his first official stomach bug this week. It started Friday night and my poor little man had diarrhea so bad that I had to go and buy more diapers!! While I was on my way to the store, I saw our neighbors out for a walk and I found out that the little boy had had a stomach bug the previous week :O( Poor Masinja has been sick all weekend long. His little tush is extremely raw also. We have tried every diaper rash cream on the market and nothing has helped. It is heartbreaking every time we have to change his diaper, because it hurts so much that he screams and cries. We went and picked up a different brand of diaper rash cream this afternoon and it seems to be helping a little bit. Hopefully this will only last a few more days. At any rate, we plan on taking him to the doctor tomorrow just to be on the safe side and to see if we can get something else for this diaper rash. I know children are supposed to get sick but it is just so hard to watch our little man suffer!!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 17th ECI session this week. His regular teacher is still on vacation, so the speech therapist that is assigned to his team came instead.
The services coordinator came as well. We spent a great deal of time discussing Masinja's language development as well as the possibility that he has Central Auditory Processining Disorder (CAPD). Ironically, all three of us had researched the disorder prior to the session and we all agreed that Masinja does exhibit some of the characteristics. I told both the speech therapist and the services coordinator that we are just waiting for the referral to be approved and then we are going to have Masinja evaluated. The remainder of the session was spent discussing strategies to teach Masinja the concept of a conversation. The speech therapist suggested doing activities that require taking turns, as this will help Masinja understand that a conversation involves taking turns. Overall, it was a very eventful session. The remainder of the ECI sessions this summer will be with Masinja's regular teacher, so it should be interesting!
As I mentioned in last week's post, Masinja and I had plans to get together with some neighbors for a play date this week. We met up with them and went to the Early Childhood Center on Wednesday. The boys had a great time and I have to admit the Mommies did too :O) That evening we met up with them again and went for a long walk. Afterwards we spent a little while at their house.
I don't know for sure if he picked it up at the Early Childhood Center or if he got it at their house, but Masinja got his first official stomach bug this week. It started Friday night and my poor little man had diarrhea so bad that I had to go and buy more diapers!! While I was on my way to the store, I saw our neighbors out for a walk and I found out that the little boy had had a stomach bug the previous week :O( Poor Masinja has been sick all weekend long. His little tush is extremely raw also. We have tried every diaper rash cream on the market and nothing has helped. It is heartbreaking every time we have to change his diaper, because it hurts so much that he screams and cries. We went and picked up a different brand of diaper rash cream this afternoon and it seems to be helping a little bit. Hopefully this will only last a few more days. At any rate, we plan on taking him to the doctor tomorrow just to be on the safe side and to see if we can get something else for this diaper rash. I know children are supposed to get sick but it is just so hard to watch our little man suffer!!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Weekly Update -- 1 - 7 June 2009
Yay, I'm 126 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. He had his 16th ECI session and his regular teacher didn't come, because she is on vacation. The occupational therapist that is on his team came instead. It was a very eventful session. She is very knowledgeable and observant. Masinja enjoyed playing with her.
We discussed his gravitational insecurity and she gave me some additional things to try to help Masinja get over that hurdle. She gave me some very good ideas as far as Masinja's feeding issues are concerned as well. In addition to broadening the spectrum of foods that he eats, we are also trying to get him to feed himself using utensils. She gave me some tips on how to accomplish that. All in all, it was a very good session and if we do decide to request a different teacher, I think we will ask for the occupational therapist.
T.M., Masinja and I made some new friends this week. T.M. and I took Masinja for a walk Thursday night and we met some neighbors, a woman and her son. The little boy is about Masinja's age and he has bright red hair. The boys seemed to get along pretty well and we are planning on getting together for some play dates next week.
The best part of the whole week was this weekend. T.M. and I took Masinja to the playground and he proceeded to climb up the stairs and then turn around and scoot back down on his butt! He must have done it about half a dozen times. He is definitely overcoming his gravitational insecurity. He still isn't very fond of the swings, but I'm sure that will change in a few weeks. He absolutely loves going down the slides though. T.M. and took turns catching him and then we all went down the really big slide a few times. We all had a great time and T.M. and I are so proud of our little man!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update - 25 - 31 May 2009
Yay, I'm 125 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. About the only thing to report is the meeting that T.M. and I had with the services coordinator for ECI.
We wanted to discuss Masinja's teacher's attitude during his last ECI session, as well as our options. The services coordinator was shocked when I told her what Masinja's teacher said a few weeks ago concerning medically based therapies. She understood our position and agreed that we should use all the resources that are available to us. I was honest with her and told her that we had considered pulling Masinja out of the program but after careful consideration had decided not to. I also told her that we feel that ECI is beneficial to him ,but that at the present time we don't feel his needs are being met. We further discussed our concerns regarding language development and our plans to seek a medically based speech evaluation. I dropped several subtle hints about the possibility of replacing Masinja's teacher, but apparently I should have been more blunt about it. T.M. and I have decided to give it a few more months and if things remain the same then we are going to request a different teacher.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. About the only thing to report is the meeting that T.M. and I had with the services coordinator for ECI.
We wanted to discuss Masinja's teacher's attitude during his last ECI session, as well as our options. The services coordinator was shocked when I told her what Masinja's teacher said a few weeks ago concerning medically based therapies. She understood our position and agreed that we should use all the resources that are available to us. I was honest with her and told her that we had considered pulling Masinja out of the program but after careful consideration had decided not to. I also told her that we feel that ECI is beneficial to him ,but that at the present time we don't feel his needs are being met. We further discussed our concerns regarding language development and our plans to seek a medically based speech evaluation. I dropped several subtle hints about the possibility of replacing Masinja's teacher, but apparently I should have been more blunt about it. T.M. and I have decided to give it a few more months and if things remain the same then we are going to request a different teacher.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 18 - 24 May 2009
Yay, I'm 124 weeks old today!
This week we found some videos that we forgot we had. Enjoy.
Cow Bum (Cheese Bread)
Sleepy Time in the high chair
That's all the excitement. It was actually a really boring week.
Peace,
T.M.
This week we found some videos that we forgot we had. Enjoy.
Cow Bum (Cheese Bread)
Sleepy Time in the high chair
That's all the excitement. It was actually a really boring week.
Peace,
T.M.
Weekly Update -- 11 - 17 May 2009
Yay, I'm 123 weeks old today!
Masinja went to the dentist this week. He had to have his front bottom teeth cleaned because they had tartar build-up. He doesn't cooperate when T.M. and I brush his teeth so I wasn't surprised in the least. He didn't particularly like the cleaning though so maybe now he will starte cooperating! Other than that he got a clean bill of dental health. The denist also said that it is looking more and more possible that when his permanent teeth come in they will be white instead of yellow. Hurray!!
Masinja had his 15th ECI session today. He and I met his teacher at the Early Childhood Center. He had a great time in the gross motor room playing in the ball pit and playing with the matchbox cars. His teacher tried to get him to play on the little gym setup, but he really didn't want anything to do with it. She did manage to get him to walk down the stairs a few times though. We tried taking him into the reading room, but he didn't do very well in that environment. It was right in the middle of song time and he I think it was too loud and busy.
Based on a conversation that I had with Masinja's teacher while we were at the Early Childhood Center, T.M. and I are considering pulling Masinja out of ECI. I told her about Masinja's followup PT appointment last Friday and how his physical therapist was concerned about his speech and asked one of the speech therapists to sit in and listen to him. I explained to his teacher that the speech therapist doesn't feel that Masinja has an articulation problem but rather a phonics problem. I told her that he was on the waiting list to recieve therapy. She got really annoyed and said, "I hate the medically based therapies! They always do things so differently." This really surprised T.M. and I, because she has been telling us for weeks now that we are more than welcome to seek therapy outside of ECI and that in fact most families do. We haven't decided for sure yet what we are going to do, but we will let you know when we do.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja went to the dentist this week. He had to have his front bottom teeth cleaned because they had tartar build-up. He doesn't cooperate when T.M. and I brush his teeth so I wasn't surprised in the least. He didn't particularly like the cleaning though so maybe now he will starte cooperating! Other than that he got a clean bill of dental health. The denist also said that it is looking more and more possible that when his permanent teeth come in they will be white instead of yellow. Hurray!!
Masinja had his 15th ECI session today. He and I met his teacher at the Early Childhood Center. He had a great time in the gross motor room playing in the ball pit and playing with the matchbox cars. His teacher tried to get him to play on the little gym setup, but he really didn't want anything to do with it. She did manage to get him to walk down the stairs a few times though. We tried taking him into the reading room, but he didn't do very well in that environment. It was right in the middle of song time and he I think it was too loud and busy.
Based on a conversation that I had with Masinja's teacher while we were at the Early Childhood Center, T.M. and I are considering pulling Masinja out of ECI. I told her about Masinja's followup PT appointment last Friday and how his physical therapist was concerned about his speech and asked one of the speech therapists to sit in and listen to him. I explained to his teacher that the speech therapist doesn't feel that Masinja has an articulation problem but rather a phonics problem. I told her that he was on the waiting list to recieve therapy. She got really annoyed and said, "I hate the medically based therapies! They always do things so differently." This really surprised T.M. and I, because she has been telling us for weeks now that we are more than welcome to seek therapy outside of ECI and that in fact most families do. We haven't decided for sure yet what we are going to do, but we will let you know when we do.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 4 - 10 May 2009
Yay, I'm 122 weeks old today!
Masinja went for a followup PT appointment on Friday. When he was discharged in October, his therapist said she wanted to follow up with him in 6-8 months just to make sure he was still on track. She was pretty pleased with his progress and even amazed at his cognitive development. During the evalution she had him kneel and while he was doing so she asked him to tell her some letters. Masinja proceeded to start naming letters. She turned to me and said, "Do you know how great that is? That is a completely abstract idea and for him to be able to grasp it is great!"
I told her that he knows all, but a few of the letters of the alphabet and that he knows most of the numbers 0-9, as well as the colors blue and green. She was pretty impressed! We then took Masinja out to the playground setup that they have in the clinic so she could see if he had improved as far as climbing stairs. He did a pretty good job going up, but he wouldn't go down unassisted and in fact he was shaking and grabing her shirt when he was on the edge of a step. She said he has gravitational insecurity. Basically, he's not comfortable when he doesn't feel supported. It explains why he doesn't like swinging for very long too. She gave me some ideas on how to work with him to help him overcome it. Other than the gravitational insecurity, he is right on track as far as PT is concerned, speech however is a different matter all together.
During his PT evaluation Masinja's therapist was concerned about his speech. She knew that he was in the ECI program and she asked how that was going. I admitted to her that T.M. and I still had concerns about his speech. I told her that there seemed to be some miscommunication as far as the ECI program was concerned and that we didn't feel like our concerns were being taken seriously. His therapist asked my permission to have one of the speech therapists sit in on his evaluation for a few minutes to listen to him talk. I agreed of course. The speech therapist sat in for about 10-15 minutes. I explained to her that he was in ECI and that we had been told that he has an articulation problem and not to worry about it because due to his age it is normal. She said she thought he had a phonetic problem and not an articulation problem. She said that it seems to her that he isn't hearing the sounds correctly and therefore isn't processing them correctly which is why he can't pronounce them correctly. She put him on the waiting list so we could take him for a full evaluation and hopefully start speech therapy. We will keep you posted on what happens.
We went to the zoo again today. We stayed for about 3 - 4 hours and saw a bunch more exhibits. We still haven't seen everything yet though! I think Masinja's favorite animals this time were the bears. Once agian it took a lot of pointing to get him to actually pay attention to the animals. He was more into people watching. We didn't actually go into the Dairy World exhibit but T.M. insisted that I take their picture next to the sign. It's kind of a personal joke with Masinja's Godfather Tom :O)
Dairy World Pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja went for a followup PT appointment on Friday. When he was discharged in October, his therapist said she wanted to follow up with him in 6-8 months just to make sure he was still on track. She was pretty pleased with his progress and even amazed at his cognitive development. During the evalution she had him kneel and while he was doing so she asked him to tell her some letters. Masinja proceeded to start naming letters. She turned to me and said, "Do you know how great that is? That is a completely abstract idea and for him to be able to grasp it is great!"
I told her that he knows all, but a few of the letters of the alphabet and that he knows most of the numbers 0-9, as well as the colors blue and green. She was pretty impressed! We then took Masinja out to the playground setup that they have in the clinic so she could see if he had improved as far as climbing stairs. He did a pretty good job going up, but he wouldn't go down unassisted and in fact he was shaking and grabing her shirt when he was on the edge of a step. She said he has gravitational insecurity. Basically, he's not comfortable when he doesn't feel supported. It explains why he doesn't like swinging for very long too. She gave me some ideas on how to work with him to help him overcome it. Other than the gravitational insecurity, he is right on track as far as PT is concerned, speech however is a different matter all together.
During his PT evaluation Masinja's therapist was concerned about his speech. She knew that he was in the ECI program and she asked how that was going. I admitted to her that T.M. and I still had concerns about his speech. I told her that there seemed to be some miscommunication as far as the ECI program was concerned and that we didn't feel like our concerns were being taken seriously. His therapist asked my permission to have one of the speech therapists sit in on his evaluation for a few minutes to listen to him talk. I agreed of course. The speech therapist sat in for about 10-15 minutes. I explained to her that he was in ECI and that we had been told that he has an articulation problem and not to worry about it because due to his age it is normal. She said she thought he had a phonetic problem and not an articulation problem. She said that it seems to her that he isn't hearing the sounds correctly and therefore isn't processing them correctly which is why he can't pronounce them correctly. She put him on the waiting list so we could take him for a full evaluation and hopefully start speech therapy. We will keep you posted on what happens.
We went to the zoo again today. We stayed for about 3 - 4 hours and saw a bunch more exhibits. We still haven't seen everything yet though! I think Masinja's favorite animals this time were the bears. Once agian it took a lot of pointing to get him to actually pay attention to the animals. He was more into people watching. We didn't actually go into the Dairy World exhibit but T.M. insisted that I take their picture next to the sign. It's kind of a personal joke with Masinja's Godfather Tom :O)
Dairy World Pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 27 April - 3 May 2009
Yay, I'm 121 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 14th ECI session today. His teacher was pleased with his progress as far as vocabulary development. She gave me some suggestions concerning his feeding in order to try to get him to eat a wider variety of foods. She also wants us to continue to work on activities that will build his upper body strength.
Masinja went to the zoo for the second time this week! The weather was finally nice enough for us to go. We stayed for about 3 hours and only saw about a third of the zoo. Masinja didn't really pay attention to the animals. He was more interested in just walking around! T.M. and I had to point the animals out several times before he actually focused on them. Masinja's favorite animals were the penguins, the sea turtles and the giraffes.
Giraffe Pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 14th ECI session today. His teacher was pleased with his progress as far as vocabulary development. She gave me some suggestions concerning his feeding in order to try to get him to eat a wider variety of foods. She also wants us to continue to work on activities that will build his upper body strength.
Masinja went to the zoo for the second time this week! The weather was finally nice enough for us to go. We stayed for about 3 hours and only saw about a third of the zoo. Masinja didn't really pay attention to the animals. He was more interested in just walking around! T.M. and I had to point the animals out several times before he actually focused on them. Masinja's favorite animals were the penguins, the sea turtles and the giraffes.
Giraffe Pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 20 - 26 April 2009
Yay, I'm 120 weeks old today!
Masinja had a great time this week. His Uncle Boop (Jeremy) came for a visit this weekend. We were going to go to the zoo yesterday, but it was cold and rainy, so we went to the Durham Museum instead. The museum is located in what used to be the train station. It's pretty neat, because they have a train that you can walk through. Masinja really enjoyed walking through the train and exploring things at the museum.
Masinja started saying a new word this week. We had Uncle Boop set up on some air mattresses in the living room, because we don't quite have a guest room yet. Masinja kept climbing up on the air mattresses and then he would lay down and say "heepy, heepy" and then proceed to suck his thumb and cuddle with his bunny. It was absolutely adorable. We tried to get it on video, but I'm not sure how clear it is. I guess you'll have to judge for yourselves. Enjoy :O)
Heepy, Heepy Video
We were going to participate in the March for Babies walk today, but the weather was even worse today than it was yesterday. There were severe thunderstorms and it was pretty chilly. We decided it would be better to keep Masinja home, so that he didn't get sick. We were pretty disappointed though, because the March for Babies walk is the perfect way to honor Madelinja's memory. It was been two years since she became Masinja's guardian angel.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a great time this week. His Uncle Boop (Jeremy) came for a visit this weekend. We were going to go to the zoo yesterday, but it was cold and rainy, so we went to the Durham Museum instead. The museum is located in what used to be the train station. It's pretty neat, because they have a train that you can walk through. Masinja really enjoyed walking through the train and exploring things at the museum.
Masinja started saying a new word this week. We had Uncle Boop set up on some air mattresses in the living room, because we don't quite have a guest room yet. Masinja kept climbing up on the air mattresses and then he would lay down and say "heepy, heepy" and then proceed to suck his thumb and cuddle with his bunny. It was absolutely adorable. We tried to get it on video, but I'm not sure how clear it is. I guess you'll have to judge for yourselves. Enjoy :O)
Heepy, Heepy Video
We were going to participate in the March for Babies walk today, but the weather was even worse today than it was yesterday. There were severe thunderstorms and it was pretty chilly. We decided it would be better to keep Masinja home, so that he didn't get sick. We were pretty disappointed though, because the March for Babies walk is the perfect way to honor Madelinja's memory. It was been two years since she became Masinja's guardian angel.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Weekly Update -- 13 - 19 April 2009
Yay, I'm 119 weeks old today!
T.M. and I have been trying to take Masinja on walks, weather permitting. We have had a few rainy days, so we haven't been able to go on a daily basis.
I decided to try to take him to the park early this week. We drove over to the newer base housing, because they have some really great playgrounds complete with slides and toddler swings. Masinja was super excited when we started walking on the sidewalk to get to the playground. We went down two of the slides a few times and I pushed him in the swing for about 10 minutes. He didn't want to play for very long though, because he was more interested in walking on the sidewalk! I figured I might as well just drive back home and take him for a walk around the neighborhood instead.
We had a pleasant walk with the exception of the German Shepherd that got a little too close for comfort. Thank goodness the dog's owner was outside at the time, because he made her back off. Luckily the dog didn't scare Masinja and we continued on our walk. It took us quite a while to complete our walk because Masinja kept stopping at every crack in the sidewalk to inspect it. I think he was fascinated with the texture of the concrete, because he kept scratching it will his finger nails. We eventually made our way back home and Masinja didn't throw a temper tantrum this time when we got there. He was probably tuckered out from playing on the playground. :0)
T.M. and I took Masinja to the playground again this weekend. There is a school directly behind base housing that has two playgrounds. We decided to check out the preschool playground. It took longer than it should have to walk to the playground, because Masinja got distracted by the fence. He kept stopping and hitting it to hear it clang. When we finally got to the playground, he had a blast! They had several different slides and he giggled as he slid down them. There weren't any toddler swings, but he was more interested in the wood chips that were on the playground than anything else anyway. He wasn't too happy when we left the playground, but as soon as he realized we were going to continue our walk he was happy as a clam. :o)
Masinja's Uncle Boop (Jeremy) is coming for a visit next weekend, so we are going to take him to the zoo. I'm sure he will have a great time.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
T.M. and I have been trying to take Masinja on walks, weather permitting. We have had a few rainy days, so we haven't been able to go on a daily basis.
I decided to try to take him to the park early this week. We drove over to the newer base housing, because they have some really great playgrounds complete with slides and toddler swings. Masinja was super excited when we started walking on the sidewalk to get to the playground. We went down two of the slides a few times and I pushed him in the swing for about 10 minutes. He didn't want to play for very long though, because he was more interested in walking on the sidewalk! I figured I might as well just drive back home and take him for a walk around the neighborhood instead.
We had a pleasant walk with the exception of the German Shepherd that got a little too close for comfort. Thank goodness the dog's owner was outside at the time, because he made her back off. Luckily the dog didn't scare Masinja and we continued on our walk. It took us quite a while to complete our walk because Masinja kept stopping at every crack in the sidewalk to inspect it. I think he was fascinated with the texture of the concrete, because he kept scratching it will his finger nails. We eventually made our way back home and Masinja didn't throw a temper tantrum this time when we got there. He was probably tuckered out from playing on the playground. :0)
T.M. and I took Masinja to the playground again this weekend. There is a school directly behind base housing that has two playgrounds. We decided to check out the preschool playground. It took longer than it should have to walk to the playground, because Masinja got distracted by the fence. He kept stopping and hitting it to hear it clang. When we finally got to the playground, he had a blast! They had several different slides and he giggled as he slid down them. There weren't any toddler swings, but he was more interested in the wood chips that were on the playground than anything else anyway. He wasn't too happy when we left the playground, but as soon as he realized we were going to continue our walk he was happy as a clam. :o)
Masinja's Uncle Boop (Jeremy) is coming for a visit next weekend, so we are going to take him to the zoo. I'm sure he will have a great time.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 6 - 12 April 2009
Yay, I'm 118 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 13th ECI session this week. He's had some improvement since the last session, although he is still mouthing a lot of his toys. T.M. and I need to work with him on choosing certain items that are okay for him to mouth and redirecting him to those items.
Masinja's teacher is going to get a feeding continuum from the feeding specialist, so we can work on his texture aversions. As far as speech is concerned, Masinja is now using color words and his teacher wants us to reinforce that by having him identify which object he wants, i.e. "Do you want the red block or the blue block?" Hopefully by his next session he will be using his color words more frequently.
Masinja celebrated his 2nd Easter today. Since he is still too young for loads of candy, we gave him clothes instead. He also got two sets of drum sticks. I know T.M. and I were probably crazy to willingly give him drum sticks, but he has a set of bongos and a tambourine which he absolutely loves! We figured we might as well start him early since he obviously loves music so much and he bangs on everything anyway. :o)
Masinja had his 13th ECI session this week. He's had some improvement since the last session, although he is still mouthing a lot of his toys. T.M. and I need to work with him on choosing certain items that are okay for him to mouth and redirecting him to those items.
Masinja's teacher is going to get a feeding continuum from the feeding specialist, so we can work on his texture aversions. As far as speech is concerned, Masinja is now using color words and his teacher wants us to reinforce that by having him identify which object he wants, i.e. "Do you want the red block or the blue block?" Hopefully by his next session he will be using his color words more frequently.
Masinja celebrated his 2nd Easter today. Since he is still too young for loads of candy, we gave him clothes instead. He also got two sets of drum sticks. I know T.M. and I were probably crazy to willingly give him drum sticks, but he has a set of bongos and a tambourine which he absolutely loves! We figured we might as well start him early since he obviously loves music so much and he bangs on everything anyway. :o)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 30 March - 5 April 2009
Yay, I'm 117 weeks old today!
The weather is finally breaking and we have had some warm and sunny days. It was so nice one evening that I decided to take Masinja for a walk around the neighborhood. As we walked, we saw a few dogs in their yards and Masinja decided to "talk" to them. I had to tug on his arm quite a few times to get him moving again because he was too busy say "bwoof, bwoof!" I had planned on taking him all the way around the block, but it got a little bit windy and his face and hands were getting cold. Instead, we just turned around and walked back the way we came. Again Masinja got distracted by the dogs, but we eventually made it back to the house. I don't think he realized we were home at first but when I opened the screen door and put the key in the lock he started to throw a fit! He was crying and saying "walk-around" repeatedly. :o) It took me a good 10 to 15 minutes to calm him down. I guess now that the weather is clearing up we will have to go for walks on a daily basis.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
The weather is finally breaking and we have had some warm and sunny days. It was so nice one evening that I decided to take Masinja for a walk around the neighborhood. As we walked, we saw a few dogs in their yards and Masinja decided to "talk" to them. I had to tug on his arm quite a few times to get him moving again because he was too busy say "bwoof, bwoof!" I had planned on taking him all the way around the block, but it got a little bit windy and his face and hands were getting cold. Instead, we just turned around and walked back the way we came. Again Masinja got distracted by the dogs, but we eventually made it back to the house. I don't think he realized we were home at first but when I opened the screen door and put the key in the lock he started to throw a fit! He was crying and saying "walk-around" repeatedly. :o) It took me a good 10 to 15 minutes to calm him down. I guess now that the weather is clearing up we will have to go for walks on a daily basis.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 23 - 29 March 2009
Yay, I'm 116 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 12th ECI session this week. Actually it was his 6-month review. Masinja's teacher, as well as the services coordinator and Speech therapist, were in attendance. We discussed where Masinja had started in October and how far he has come since then. We also discussed the concerns that T.M. and I still have regarding Masinja's communication skills. Due to our concerns, as well as the fact that Masinja does indeed have a deficit in this area, the Speech therapist is now on his team.
We set several new goals for him, including increasing his vocabulary by adding verbs, adverbs and adjectives; and working on his feeding issues. Masinja still has some deficits in fine motor skills, which will also be addressed.
Overall, T.M. and I are very pleased with the progress that Masinja has made and we are looking forward to his continued improvement over the next 6 months.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 12th ECI session this week. Actually it was his 6-month review. Masinja's teacher, as well as the services coordinator and Speech therapist, were in attendance. We discussed where Masinja had started in October and how far he has come since then. We also discussed the concerns that T.M. and I still have regarding Masinja's communication skills. Due to our concerns, as well as the fact that Masinja does indeed have a deficit in this area, the Speech therapist is now on his team.
We set several new goals for him, including increasing his vocabulary by adding verbs, adverbs and adjectives; and working on his feeding issues. Masinja still has some deficits in fine motor skills, which will also be addressed.
Overall, T.M. and I are very pleased with the progress that Masinja has made and we are looking forward to his continued improvement over the next 6 months.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 16 - 22 March 2009
Yay, I'm 115 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. I had planned to take him to the park because the weather has started to break, but unfortunately it's still a little too cold. We have spent a lot of time watching Sesame Street or "Pa Pa Pweet" as he calls it and playing inside.
On another note, T.M. and I have decided that we are going to start potty training Masinja. He has started showing some interest in the potty and lets us know when he needs a diaper change by saying "change-a-booty." We are going to buy a training toilet and start by just letting him get used to it first. When the weather is officially nice, I will start in earnest.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. I had planned to take him to the park because the weather has started to break, but unfortunately it's still a little too cold. We have spent a lot of time watching Sesame Street or "Pa Pa Pweet" as he calls it and playing inside.
On another note, T.M. and I have decided that we are going to start potty training Masinja. He has started showing some interest in the potty and lets us know when he needs a diaper change by saying "change-a-booty." We are going to buy a training toilet and start by just letting him get used to it first. When the weather is officially nice, I will start in earnest.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 9 - 15 March 2009
Yay, I'm 114 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 11th ECI session today. His teacher and I went over his progress and talked about the milestones that he has reached as well as the ones that we still need to work on. We will be meeting in a few weeks for his 6-month review to discuss his progress and set new goals for the next 6 months.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 2 - 8 March 2009
Yay, I'm 113 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. The weather has been pretty nasty so we have spent a great deal of time indoors. As a result Masinja is now addicted to Sesame Street! He absolutely loves Elmo and gets extremely excited when the Elmo's World segment comes on. He cracked me up the first day he watched it because when Elmo went off the screen for a second Masinja got very agitated. When the episode ended it was ever worse, because he started to cry! I think the reason he likes Elmo so much is because I have a pair of Elmo slippers. He has been carrying them around the house and hugging them. :o) We took him to get his own Elmo doll this weekend and wound up getting him Elmo, Ernie, Grover and Cookie Monster mini dolls.
Elmo Doll pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. The weather has been pretty nasty so we have spent a great deal of time indoors. As a result Masinja is now addicted to Sesame Street! He absolutely loves Elmo and gets extremely excited when the Elmo's World segment comes on. He cracked me up the first day he watched it because when Elmo went off the screen for a second Masinja got very agitated. When the episode ended it was ever worse, because he started to cry! I think the reason he likes Elmo so much is because I have a pair of Elmo slippers. He has been carrying them around the house and hugging them. :o) We took him to get his own Elmo doll this weekend and wound up getting him Elmo, Ernie, Grover and Cookie Monster mini dolls.
Elmo Doll pic
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Weekly Update - 23 February - 1 March 2009
Yay, I'm 112 weeks old today!
Masinja had his 10th ECI session this week. His teacher brought the speech therapist with her so we could further discuss our concerns regarding his speech. He is actually saying quite a few words on his own so the speech therapist isn't too concerned about his language development right now. Both she and Masinja's teacher gave me some activities to do with him to help him develop the muscles in his face and his tongue a little bit more. By doing so it will help with his articulation. We will be having his 6-month review at the end of the month and most likely be developing some new goals for him.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his 10th ECI session this week. His teacher brought the speech therapist with her so we could further discuss our concerns regarding his speech. He is actually saying quite a few words on his own so the speech therapist isn't too concerned about his language development right now. Both she and Masinja's teacher gave me some activities to do with him to help him develop the muscles in his face and his tongue a little bit more. By doing so it will help with his articulation. We will be having his 6-month review at the end of the month and most likely be developing some new goals for him.
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 16 - 22 February 2009
Yay, I'm 111 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week other than the fact that he got to spend more time with T.M. because he was still on leave. We pretty much stayed close to home again this week due to inclement weather. Since we don't have a whole lot to report I figured I would post some pics of Masinja in his cold weather gear.
Snowsuit Pic 1
Snowsuit Pic 2
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week other than the fact that he got to spend more time with T.M. because he was still on leave. We pretty much stayed close to home again this week due to inclement weather. Since we don't have a whole lot to report I figured I would post some pics of Masinja in his cold weather gear.
Snowsuit Pic 1
Snowsuit Pic 2
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Weekly Update -- 9 - 15 February 2009
Yay, I'm 110 weeks old today!
Masinja got to spend extra time with T.M. this week because he had to take leave for two weeks since I am still recooperating from sugery. We spent most of our time at home because the weather didn't really permit much else.
Masinja had his 9th ECI session this week. His teacher as well as the occupational therapist came and talked with us about our concerns concerning his speech. His teacher also shared a printout with us that showed Masinja's current development as well as the skills that an average child should be doing at his age. Next week Masinja's teacher will be bringing the speech therapist with her so we can further discuss our concerns about his speech.
Since we didn't have a whole lot to report for this week, T.M. and I decided to include another video of Masinja after bathtime. He loves it when I put lotion on his because it tickles. I'll let the video speak for itself :O)
Lotion Video
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja got to spend extra time with T.M. this week because he had to take leave for two weeks since I am still recooperating from sugery. We spent most of our time at home because the weather didn't really permit much else.
Masinja had his 9th ECI session this week. His teacher as well as the occupational therapist came and talked with us about our concerns concerning his speech. His teacher also shared a printout with us that showed Masinja's current development as well as the skills that an average child should be doing at his age. Next week Masinja's teacher will be bringing the speech therapist with her so we can further discuss our concerns about his speech.
Since we didn't have a whole lot to report for this week, T.M. and I decided to include another video of Masinja after bathtime. He loves it when I put lotion on his because it tickles. I'll let the video speak for itself :O)
Lotion Video
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 2 - 8 February 2009
Yay, I'm 109 weeks old today!
Masinja had his MRI this week. It was a rapid MRI like last time which was good because he didn't have to be sedated which meant he didn't have to skip breakfast and lunch. He wasn't very impressed this time though! The whole process is only supposed to be about 5 minutes long but it took about 15-20 minutes this time. Masinja decided he didn't like being swaddled in a sheet and having his head confined. The technician was about halfway through the MRI when she had to start over because Masinja scooted himself out of position. He had to be strapped down in order to finish but he still managed to get one of his arms free and had his hand up by his head! It was actually pretty commical because Masinja's Aunt Lisa was waiting outside for us and she heard the technician say, "Is that a hand? How did he get his arm free?" My job was to keep him calm and keep him as still as possible but I obviously didn't do a very good job! Masinja was just too strong and it was impossible. He cried most of the time too and kept saying Mommy. After a few minutes though he figured out that I wasn't going to save him and yelled Daddy! It just about broke my heart and I started to cry with him :O)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had his MRI this week. It was a rapid MRI like last time which was good because he didn't have to be sedated which meant he didn't have to skip breakfast and lunch. He wasn't very impressed this time though! The whole process is only supposed to be about 5 minutes long but it took about 15-20 minutes this time. Masinja decided he didn't like being swaddled in a sheet and having his head confined. The technician was about halfway through the MRI when she had to start over because Masinja scooted himself out of position. He had to be strapped down in order to finish but he still managed to get one of his arms free and had his hand up by his head! It was actually pretty commical because Masinja's Aunt Lisa was waiting outside for us and she heard the technician say, "Is that a hand? How did he get his arm free?" My job was to keep him calm and keep him as still as possible but I obviously didn't do a very good job! Masinja was just too strong and it was impossible. He cried most of the time too and kept saying Mommy. After a few minutes though he figured out that I wasn't going to save him and yelled Daddy! It just about broke my heart and I started to cry with him :O)
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Weekly Update -- 26 January - 1 February 2009
Yay, I'm 108 weeks old today!
Masinja has had a pretty eventful week. He had his 8th ECI session this week. His teacher Karen taught him how to climb up onto the couch. It is now one of his favorite things to do. We have to watch out though because he hasn't completely figured out how to get back down safely! Karen also got him to actually sit still for about 5 minutes and build with his blocks. Previously, if you tried to build with his blocks he would just take apart anything that you built and then run around the room with a block in each hand. He really seemed to enjoy it this time though. T.M. and I are looking forward to actually being able to play with him now :O)
Masinja's Aunt Tess (Lisa) came to stay with us for a few weeks to help take care of him. I had my galbladder removed the day after Masinja's birthday so I can't pick him up for about a month. He has really enjoyed spending so much time with his Aunt Tess. She has taught him a few more words: hold on, sweet, dude and peanut butter cup :O) They have been playing a chasing game every night and it is just too cute. Masinja says I ga goo ga - which translates to I'm gonna get you - to get his Aunt Tess to chase him. The funniest part is that he doesn't run away from her but towards her instead :O)
I'm Gonna Get You Video
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja has had a pretty eventful week. He had his 8th ECI session this week. His teacher Karen taught him how to climb up onto the couch. It is now one of his favorite things to do. We have to watch out though because he hasn't completely figured out how to get back down safely! Karen also got him to actually sit still for about 5 minutes and build with his blocks. Previously, if you tried to build with his blocks he would just take apart anything that you built and then run around the room with a block in each hand. He really seemed to enjoy it this time though. T.M. and I are looking forward to actually being able to play with him now :O)
Masinja's Aunt Tess (Lisa) came to stay with us for a few weeks to help take care of him. I had my galbladder removed the day after Masinja's birthday so I can't pick him up for about a month. He has really enjoyed spending so much time with his Aunt Tess. She has taught him a few more words: hold on, sweet, dude and peanut butter cup :O) They have been playing a chasing game every night and it is just too cute. Masinja says I ga goo ga - which translates to I'm gonna get you - to get his Aunt Tess to chase him. The funniest part is that he doesn't run away from her but towards her instead :O)
I'm Gonna Get You Video
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 19 - 25 January 2009
Yay, I'm 107 weeks old today!
Masinja had a very eventful week this week. On Tuesday he had an ophthalmology appointment. It went really well and his ophthalmologist was impressed with the progress Masinja has made with his glasses. He still has a bit of a lazy eye but it isn't that pronounced as long as he wears his glasses. The doc said it looked promising and as long as he continues to improve he won't need surgery to fix the eye muscles.
Masinja turned 2 years old on the 20th. He had his 24 month well baby exam that day as well. He weighed 27 pounds 7 ounces and measured 33 1/2 inches long! He has certainly come a long way!! We weren't able to celebrate his birthday that day because I was scheduled to have surgery the following day. Masinja's Aunt Tess flew in that night though to stay with us for 2 weeks to help take care of him. We did celebrate his birthday on the 24th though and he was pretty excited about his presents. He pretty much did the same thing he did on Christmas as far as unwrapping his presents :O) He wasn't very impressed with his birthday cake though. He wouldn't really eat it. All he did was take all the frosting off and mush it between his fingers!
Birthday Presents
Opening Birthday Presents
Birthday Cake
Eating Birthday Cake 1
Eating Birthday Cake 2
Eating Birthday Cake 3
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a very eventful week this week. On Tuesday he had an ophthalmology appointment. It went really well and his ophthalmologist was impressed with the progress Masinja has made with his glasses. He still has a bit of a lazy eye but it isn't that pronounced as long as he wears his glasses. The doc said it looked promising and as long as he continues to improve he won't need surgery to fix the eye muscles.
Masinja turned 2 years old on the 20th. He had his 24 month well baby exam that day as well. He weighed 27 pounds 7 ounces and measured 33 1/2 inches long! He has certainly come a long way!! We weren't able to celebrate his birthday that day because I was scheduled to have surgery the following day. Masinja's Aunt Tess flew in that night though to stay with us for 2 weeks to help take care of him. We did celebrate his birthday on the 24th though and he was pretty excited about his presents. He pretty much did the same thing he did on Christmas as far as unwrapping his presents :O) He wasn't very impressed with his birthday cake though. He wouldn't really eat it. All he did was take all the frosting off and mush it between his fingers!
Birthday Presents
Opening Birthday Presents
Birthday Cake
Eating Birthday Cake 1
Eating Birthday Cake 2
Eating Birthday Cake 3
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 12 - 18 January 2009
Yay, I'm 106 weeks old today!
Masinja was sick again this week. He started with the sneezing and stuffy nose on Thursday and on Friday night he started to run a low-grade fever. He didn't sleep very well Friday night and by Saturday night he started coughing a lot. His cough sounded really awful so we took him to the acute care clinic on base Sunday morning. His lungs were clear but he had a really bad infection in his left ear and a mild one in the right ear. It was a real bummer that he got sick when he did too because we had planned to have his birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's on Sunday afternoon but we had to cancel it :O(
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja was sick again this week. He started with the sneezing and stuffy nose on Thursday and on Friday night he started to run a low-grade fever. He didn't sleep very well Friday night and by Saturday night he started coughing a lot. His cough sounded really awful so we took him to the acute care clinic on base Sunday morning. His lungs were clear but he had a really bad infection in his left ear and a mild one in the right ear. It was a real bummer that he got sick when he did too because we had planned to have his birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's on Sunday afternoon but we had to cancel it :O(
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 5 - 11 January 2009
Yay, I'm 105 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. He had his 7th ECI session and it went pretty well. He has made quite a bit of progress with his vocabulary and is now saying between 60 and 75 words spontaneously and repeating just about everything he hears.
Masinja has been giving us some trouble at night when it's time to go to sleep. We are pretty sure it's because he misses his Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny and cousins Grace and Josh though. They left last weekend and when he went to bed Friday night they were still here but when he woke up Saturday morning they were gone. I am pretty sure he is going through separation anxiety now because he is afraid something similar will happen with T.M. and I! Hopefully we can get him back on schedule soon!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty uneventful week this week. He had his 7th ECI session and it went pretty well. He has made quite a bit of progress with his vocabulary and is now saying between 60 and 75 words spontaneously and repeating just about everything he hears.
Masinja has been giving us some trouble at night when it's time to go to sleep. We are pretty sure it's because he misses his Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny and cousins Grace and Josh though. They left last weekend and when he went to bed Friday night they were still here but when he woke up Saturday morning they were gone. I am pretty sure he is going through separation anxiety now because he is afraid something similar will happen with T.M. and I! Hopefully we can get him back on schedule soon!
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 29 December 2008 - 4 January 2009
Yay, I'm 104 weeks old today!
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. His Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny and cousins Josh and Grace came for a visit. He was very excited to see them and spent a lot of time playing with his cousins. Masinja also got to go to a museum for the first time. We all took a trip to the Durham Museum. It is located in what used to be the Omaha train station. We got to walk through a train that was actually part of the railway system back in the 1880s. Masinja's favorite part was a bell that T.M. rang for him. He thought it was the coolest thing!
Train Museum Pic 1
Train Museum Pic 2
That's all for now!
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja had a pretty eventful week this week. His Aunt Jenn, Uncle Kenny and cousins Josh and Grace came for a visit. He was very excited to see them and spent a lot of time playing with his cousins. Masinja also got to go to a museum for the first time. We all took a trip to the Durham Museum. It is located in what used to be the Omaha train station. We got to walk through a train that was actually part of the railway system back in the 1880s. Masinja's favorite part was a bell that T.M. rang for him. He thought it was the coolest thing!
Train Museum Pic 1
Train Museum Pic 2
That's all for now!
Peace,
T.M.M.
Weekly Update -- 22 - 28 December 2008
Yay, I'm 103 weeks old today!!
Masinja celebrated his second Christmas this week. He was pretty excited about all of his presents, or at least the paper that they were wrapped in! T.M. and I had to help him unwrap his presents because he would tear off a small piece of paper and get distracted playing with it and forget to unwrap the rest of the present :O) He also got pretty distracted once he got something unwrapped and was anxious for us to take each thing out of its packaging so he could play with it already. It probably took us about half an hour or so for him to unwrap all of his presents!
Christmas Presents
Christmas Presents
Mason loves his giraffe
Mason riding his giraffe
Mason and his guitar
Mason and his big smile
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
Masinja celebrated his second Christmas this week. He was pretty excited about all of his presents, or at least the paper that they were wrapped in! T.M. and I had to help him unwrap his presents because he would tear off a small piece of paper and get distracted playing with it and forget to unwrap the rest of the present :O) He also got pretty distracted once he got something unwrapped and was anxious for us to take each thing out of its packaging so he could play with it already. It probably took us about half an hour or so for him to unwrap all of his presents!
Christmas Presents
Christmas Presents
Mason loves his giraffe
Mason riding his giraffe
Mason and his guitar
Mason and his big smile
That's all for now.
Peace,
T.M.M.
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