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| "Do you want to play football with me?" |
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| Aly got her face painted today at the St. Patrick's Day event. She chose a snowflake. |
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| Saya chose a dog! |
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| Best dinner ever!! - Sean |
I took the twins and Saya to the doctor's last week for their 6-year well check. Aly was worried she is going to get a shot but I assured her there won't be any (although I wasn't sure if that is true).
The twins stats are as below:
Alyson
Height: 50 inches / 127 cm
Weight: 49.8 pounds / 22.6 kg
Noah
Height 46 inches / 116 cm
Weight: 44.8 pounds / 20.3 kg
Alyson is off the chart on height and 75% on weight. Noah is about average height and weight.
Noah looks skinny and small compared to Alyson, but he is growing ok. He would be much bigger if he actually ate something, but he is doing well for not being a big eater. The doctor recommended Alyson to take physical therapy for her torticollis and I think I will call a clinic in Issaquah. She's always had a slight tilt to the right ever since she was a baby. A lot of twins develop torticollis since they are crammed together in the womb. I was hoping she would grow out of it but it never went away.
I am happy to report that Sean is doing so much better at school and at home. I got an email from his teacher that he finished his work on time and has gotten good points for his effort. It's a big achievement for him because I know how out of sync he was with what was going on around him. He would just stare into space and didn't do anything during the individual work time. I witnessed the change myself when I went to volunteer at his classroom last Thursday. I walked in and I noticed that he was busily writing his reading response in his notebook. He was agreeable with me, too, when I suggested what he might want to include in his writing. He was checking his checklist to see what more he needs to do and very quick to start working on his tasks. That was what we wanted to see. I am very happy to see the new, more engaged second grader.
We are seeing some positive changes in his social skills as well. I noticed that he befriended another boy in the class whom he never played before. He is also a big fan of football and they talk about football together with wide eyes. Their favorite topic now is of course drafting. Currently the football teams are recruiting players to the team and who left and joined Seahawks is the talk of the town. Those two passionate 8 year-olds talk like Sports Center casts and it's funny to listen to them talk. They also play "air football" during recess time. I overheard them excitedly exclaim, "Let's play air football together!" I guess the school doesn't provide footballs to play during recess. Poor boys are throwing and catching phantom football during recess and I guess that nurtures their creativity and theatrical skills (?)
His social skills are blossoming outside school, too. When we went to a park the other day, he invited several random boys, some younger and some older, to play football with him. I heard him introduce himself and ask their names. I had to take a picture of him playing with new kids because I just couldn't believe my eyes. That sort of thing never ever happened before. I guess he was very anxious about everything... The medication he is on helps to produce more serotonin (relaxing/feel good chemical) and encourage serotonin to stay in the brain longer. I am glad he is feeling better.
He still throws tantrum at home, but the tantrum is definitely shorter. He is saying "no" less and it's getting much easier to have a positive relationship with him. We are going to meet with the psychiatrist at the end of March again and I want to ask him about the effect of certain medication on more severely autistic kids. I was avoiding the route to medicate my children since it just seemed like a quick fix and unnatural thing to do. Most therapists I talked to seemed to me that they are against using medications, too. In the end though, when going on a special diet and spending time and money on therapies are not as effective as we want and the child is obviously suffering, I just didn't see the point of sticking to one philosophy. A chemical imbalance is a chemical imbalance. It needs to be fixed. I am glad I took the step forward to meet with the psychiatrist and listened to his expertise.
So, life's pretty good at this point! I am really really tired today because I took the kids to the gym to play at their St. Patrick's Day event. Sean insisted he wanted to eat the green spaghetti at the gym (they had a family meal special) so we ended up staying and having dinner there. Presented with garlic bread and a HUGE plate of spaghetti, he exclaimed "This is the best dinner ever!!" We ended dinner with a chocolate sundae and the kids were beyond happy. Now I am ready to crash on bed.
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