The Good and the Bad
I feel like I've been out of the loop. Guess our travels last week took a bigger toll on me than I thought! ;)
EK had a GREAT day at preschool 2 weeks ago today. Ms. Sharla walked her out to me that afternoon and said she'd write me an e-mail later to tell me ALL the things she did. I was quite eager to read the e-mail. Here are some of the things she did that day (and continues to do):
**walked in perfectly with Mrs. P (we have been working on this for a month or two because EK was having trouble coming in with anyone other than Ms. Sharla)
**saw Ms. Sharla and greeted her with a big smile and a clear "hi"
**said "Em" at least 3 times during group time when prompted for her name
**steady improvement using PECS pictures to give answers during group time
**jumped on imitation during group time with a minimal prompt (something I didn't think she could even do anymore)
**enjoyed her time with a new 8th grade buddy (she had a difficult time with the buddies last semester)
**ran the track during PE class and stayed focused. (sometimes she wanders off the sidewalk)
**imitated "ee" at least 10 times within a 5 minute work time. (this is a BIG deal...if we can get her to start imitating again, the words could follow!)
**at the end of the day, she greeted her old teacher Ms. Beth with a "hi". Ms. Beth ran out to tell me how much it meant to her! :)
We continue to hear babbling. Sometimes we hear "mommy" and "daddy". She doesn't use it to call us though. Keith said she cried "mommy" a lot while I was gone last week. She does say "hi" to get our attention and to greet others. She is saying "Yeah!" sometimes as well. I am excited about these few words, but am also eager to hear lots more. Pray that I will have patience in the Lord's timing. I know that, for whatever reason, it's been His plan for her to not talk. It doesn't stop me from praying daily that her speech will return! :)
Yesterday Uncle Brad came to drop off Callie for the afternoon and EK didn't get upset at all! Usually there's some crying when someone "interrupts" the normal routine. She was very gentle around Callie, which I was thankful for. EK doesn't realize how rough she is sometimes!
AC moved to her big girl bed a couple weeks ago. She is doing great, other than the occasional "I'm scared of the red light" (on the smoke detector). I think she likes her independence and I love that she can come to me on the mornings we don't have to rush out the door.
She has figured out my new phone and knows how to get to her games without my assistance. (She does, however, accidently change some of my settings once in a while.)
The Bad:
EK's really been having trouble at night. It started a couple weeks ago when she'll scream for a good 30-45 minutes before falling asleep. It got worse a week and a half ago when she started coming out of her room. She won't stay in her room and when we put her back in bed, her screams become even louder! Since coming home last Thursday evening, I've started sitting at the end of her bed until she falls asleep. It's dark in her room but she obviously can sense that I'm in there. It still takes her about 20-30 minutes to fall asleep but it's not the screaming fits we had before. Not sure how long I'll have to do this...
After trying several times to give EK foods with egg in them (such as bread that is gluten/dairy free), I've realized that each time she gets a cold. Guess that egg is something we really need to avoid. I'm sad that it still bothers her, baking tastes much better when you can use the real egg!
EK's been getting upset more often and I'm not sure why. Her crying doesn't last too long, but she usually gets upset several times a day. She got upset on Monday at therapy and her therapist said they didn't get much work done for about 30 minutes. Even her therapist said she wasn't sure what set her off. I wonder if she is getting more of an opinion and she's upset when she doesn't get what she wants. Just wish I could read her mind! Right now, I just acknowledge that she's upset and try to figure out if she's hungry, hurt, tired, bored, etc. Poor thing! It's frustrating for BOTH of us!
AC is becoming more of a drama queen. She sometimes gets upset of the littlest things. I am trying to teach her how to control her emotions (Something us women will work on the rest of our lives, right?). We reviewed our Philippians 2:14 verse this afternoon. "Do everything without complaining or arguing." Occasionally, she spends a little time in her room and comes out with a happier disposition. :) This is something we'll be working on for a while, I imagine. It's good for me to watch how I react in situations as well. I know she sees me get upset over little things (such as traffic) and she's learning more by how I act rather than how I tell her she should act!
Hoping to have some more good things to report soon! :)
EK had a GREAT day at preschool 2 weeks ago today. Ms. Sharla walked her out to me that afternoon and said she'd write me an e-mail later to tell me ALL the things she did. I was quite eager to read the e-mail. Here are some of the things she did that day (and continues to do):
**walked in perfectly with Mrs. P (we have been working on this for a month or two because EK was having trouble coming in with anyone other than Ms. Sharla)
**saw Ms. Sharla and greeted her with a big smile and a clear "hi"
**said "Em" at least 3 times during group time when prompted for her name
**steady improvement using PECS pictures to give answers during group time
**jumped on imitation during group time with a minimal prompt (something I didn't think she could even do anymore)
**enjoyed her time with a new 8th grade buddy (she had a difficult time with the buddies last semester)
**ran the track during PE class and stayed focused. (sometimes she wanders off the sidewalk)
**imitated "ee" at least 10 times within a 5 minute work time. (this is a BIG deal...if we can get her to start imitating again, the words could follow!)
**at the end of the day, she greeted her old teacher Ms. Beth with a "hi". Ms. Beth ran out to tell me how much it meant to her! :)
We continue to hear babbling. Sometimes we hear "mommy" and "daddy". She doesn't use it to call us though. Keith said she cried "mommy" a lot while I was gone last week. She does say "hi" to get our attention and to greet others. She is saying "Yeah!" sometimes as well. I am excited about these few words, but am also eager to hear lots more. Pray that I will have patience in the Lord's timing. I know that, for whatever reason, it's been His plan for her to not talk. It doesn't stop me from praying daily that her speech will return! :)
Yesterday Uncle Brad came to drop off Callie for the afternoon and EK didn't get upset at all! Usually there's some crying when someone "interrupts" the normal routine. She was very gentle around Callie, which I was thankful for. EK doesn't realize how rough she is sometimes!
AC moved to her big girl bed a couple weeks ago. She is doing great, other than the occasional "I'm scared of the red light" (on the smoke detector). I think she likes her independence and I love that she can come to me on the mornings we don't have to rush out the door.
She has figured out my new phone and knows how to get to her games without my assistance. (She does, however, accidently change some of my settings once in a while.)
The Bad:
EK's really been having trouble at night. It started a couple weeks ago when she'll scream for a good 30-45 minutes before falling asleep. It got worse a week and a half ago when she started coming out of her room. She won't stay in her room and when we put her back in bed, her screams become even louder! Since coming home last Thursday evening, I've started sitting at the end of her bed until she falls asleep. It's dark in her room but she obviously can sense that I'm in there. It still takes her about 20-30 minutes to fall asleep but it's not the screaming fits we had before. Not sure how long I'll have to do this...
After trying several times to give EK foods with egg in them (such as bread that is gluten/dairy free), I've realized that each time she gets a cold. Guess that egg is something we really need to avoid. I'm sad that it still bothers her, baking tastes much better when you can use the real egg!
EK's been getting upset more often and I'm not sure why. Her crying doesn't last too long, but she usually gets upset several times a day. She got upset on Monday at therapy and her therapist said they didn't get much work done for about 30 minutes. Even her therapist said she wasn't sure what set her off. I wonder if she is getting more of an opinion and she's upset when she doesn't get what she wants. Just wish I could read her mind! Right now, I just acknowledge that she's upset and try to figure out if she's hungry, hurt, tired, bored, etc. Poor thing! It's frustrating for BOTH of us!
AC is becoming more of a drama queen. She sometimes gets upset of the littlest things. I am trying to teach her how to control her emotions (Something us women will work on the rest of our lives, right?). We reviewed our Philippians 2:14 verse this afternoon. "Do everything without complaining or arguing." Occasionally, she spends a little time in her room and comes out with a happier disposition. :) This is something we'll be working on for a while, I imagine. It's good for me to watch how I react in situations as well. I know she sees me get upset over little things (such as traffic) and she's learning more by how I act rather than how I tell her she should act!
Hoping to have some more good things to report soon! :)
That sounds like some amazing progress from Miss EK! I know that you are so proud of her! That sweet voice is music to your ears, I'm sure. :) Praying that you hear much, much more of it very soon!!!
ReplyDeletei think you knew you had a drama queen a long time ago with little ac...she is so funny and i am sure you know, brings lots of joy to your lives..with the tough times you have with ek, ac gives you a laugh...and a laugh will lighten the heaviest of hearts....enjoy those girls....i will miss seeing them...keep up the blog so i can keep up with you....love pam
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