03.06.13

And now, without further ado, a short series of photos in which my children appear to be enjoying each others company:

2.27.13

Paige's tantrums are hilarious. We shouldn't laugh, and most times we try to hide the fact that we're giggling. For example, Josh brought the kids home from daycare today, Paige stomped up the stairs, walked right past me, laid down on the floor behind me and started rolling around and whining.  What is that? 90% of her tantrums involve walking off, laying on the floor and wailing. She's quite the actress.

2.24.13

Paige had a particularly long nap on Saturday - which is good, she is still a little out of sorts after a bout with a nasty stomach bug. Wyatt wanted to help me go get her when she woke up, so for no good reason I stuck him in the crib with her. They both loved it! They read a few books together, jumped up and down like tiny crazy people, and at one point I think Elmo and a teddy bear were having a WWE style cage match. It's nice to see him showing some affection towards her - only took about 21 months (he must be slow to warm up to new people).

2.23.13

Wyatt at 8 months.

On Tuesday I had a chat with Wyatt's doctor about SPD. Somewhere along the way in rushing to get referrals and appointments, I never bothered asking his opinion. Nothing life altering, it just would have been good to get his point of view too. I still believe that Wyatt has sensory issues. But the more that we learn, the more I see myself in him. I've had to leave our lunchroom at work because the sound of people chewing food is so distracting that I can't even eat my own lunch. I find loud sounds like sirens and certain toys beyond annoying - my ears literally hurt after hearing certain noises. I don't like wearing socks or jeans because I don't like how they feel on my skin. I cannot and never in my entire life have I been able to do a somersault. Forwards, backwards...nope. Hate being upside down. Hate the idea of festivals/carnivals/rides/etc. And you know what? That's okay. I can't think of one thing that those "issues" have prevented me from doing (that I've wanted to do, that is). I think I'm successful - I may not have a degree or fancy initials after my name, but had I wanted to pursue that type of education, these issues would not have stopped me. Nor do I think any of Wyatt's sensory issues are going to stop him from being a happy and successful person.
The thing that IS bothering me is that he doesn't seem happy now. And it seemed to be to be something separate from SPD. I didn't (and still don't) know if it was a larger issue, a different issue...so this is why I talked to his doctor. I explained that Wyatt seems to be far to anxious and upset to enjoy "normal" kid things. Everything these days is becoming an ordeal, with lots of talking beforehand, explaining, discussing what will happen, what won't happen, etc. And Wyatt's been doing a lot of copying - not with words specifically, but with behaviour as well. It's as if he's afraid to be his own little self. His doctor thinks he may actually have an anxiety disorder. I haven't done much reading up on it, because I'm currently suffering from "disorder" burnout, and don't want to overwhelm myself again. But from what I have read, it does make sense, and it seems to fit the issues we've been having lately far more than SPD. We have a referral in to a child psychologist (yikes!), so we'll wait for that appointment and take it from there.
In the meantime, we'll finish up his OT session, and then I think we'll cut out any appointments for a while. The weather will be warming up, we can enjoy the fresh air and hopefully Wyatt can enjoy being Wyatt.

2.17.13

Making snow angels....by his own choice!

Well, I think I can officially stamp this weekend with my "Worst Weekend Ever" stamp. I was rudely woken at 4am on Friday morning with some sort of stomach illness - still not sure if it was the norovirus, food poisoning or a gypsy curse. Regardless, it was violent, it was awful, and it lasted until this morning. The good news is, I lost four pounds, and right now my bathroom is really, really clean.
Saturday was Winterfest, some sort of "fest" that celebrates winter, I suppose. I took the kids last year, and I can't say I remember much other than a sleigh ride and street hockey.  Yay? Josh volunteered again with the fire department to control 2 bonfires there for roasting marshmallows (oh yeah, there was that too). Of course, I was unable to go, given my need to be within arms reach of a bathroom at all times. My in-laws took the kids, according to Wyatt, the sleigh ride was, "okay", the igloo "wasn't fun", and as for what else they did - "I don't know." A raving review.
Today was a gorgeous day, so Josh took the kids out after Paige's nap. I mustered up a bit of energy and headed out there with them for a while too. Wyatt made several snow angels (the fact that he willingly lay down in snow was kind of surprising), and Paige tried to climb to the top of a snow hill in our bay unassisted.
I can't help but parent Paige in a constant state of bemusement. I have lost count of the times Josh and I have said to each other, "I wish I knew what she was doing." Today she sat on the couch between Josh and I, pointed at Josh, then me, then loudly clapped and made kissing sounds. Josh tried giving her a kiss much to her dismay, so she grabbed him by the back of the head and pushed him towards me.  Apparently she is not grossed out by her parents kissing like some of us were. Later in the day, on one side of the table, Wyatt set up a "gate" - his tackle box full of cars and a car ramp - to block Paige from getting at his toys. She ran up to it and stopped dead when he yelled, "You can't get through the gate!" Then she turned to look at me - and I swear she shrugged - then sauntered around the other side of the table, grabbed a tractor off the table and ran into the living room.  She is no end of amusement. :D

2.14.13

Some good news today - Wyatt had an eye exam, and his vision is actually improving!  Unfortunately everything was an effort at the appointment. This was his 4th eye exam, third in the last year and we've never had any issues before. It was beyond frustrating - thankfully his optometrist was very patient but I was ticked. This whole sensory processing disorder thing is just damn frustrating at times. Because today I don't think it had anything to do with SPD. I think it had a lot to with a very intelligent 4 1/2 year old who knows that he's different somehow, and he knows how to use that to get out of doing things that make him even a little bit uncomfortable.
For example:
When he had his SPD testing, the occupational therapist noticed that after spinning him and having him look at the wall, his eyes had no nystagmus (the involuntary eye movement you experience after spinning - basically what makes you dizzy). She thought it was so bizarre, but a huge indicator that his vestibular system is out of whack.  However - when put into uncomfortable situations, before resorting to crying, Wyatt will often claim that he is dizzy.  We used to get confused about this, because he would complain about it during activities that should not make him dizzy. And now that we know that he will not get dizzy, it's clear that he uses it to manipulate. I mean, who's going to push a kid who says he's too dizzy to do something?
So herein lays my frustration. When do we push him, because he's just being stubborn, and when do we step back and accept that it's something he may not physically or mentally be capable of doing?

2.1.13

Happy February! Hopefully we're just that much closer to spring, but you never really know in Manitoba.
This week I did some reading on other treatment for sensory processing disorder, besides occupational therapy.  We still intend on following through with OT, but I was interested to see what other people had found helpful. I came across a few articles on chiropractor treatment, and decided to read a little further on the topic. You see, not only is SPD more common in boys, but also more common in children who required interventions during delivery (Wyatt had to be delivered with the help of a vacuum). The idea is that there is spinal trauma from the vacuum (or forceps) and that can have lasting effects on the nerve system, and in turn lead to sensory processing disorder (especially the vestibular and proprioceptive systems). Wyatt saw our chiropractor today, and although there was much resistance to actually laying down on the table ("It's not fun"), we eventually got him laying down and sure enough, the chiropractor found a lot of "activity" in his neck and lower spine. We'll try it out for a few weeks and see how it goes, he seems to think we'll see an improvement within a week or two in regards to his balance.
As for Paige, she's bumping along like any other 20 month old would. It's funny, when we're out in public, I get a lot of comments about how petite she is.  In fact, last week Friday on two separate occasions I was asked if she was walking early. Nope!  She's almost 2! I also get comments about how "adventurous" and "determined" she seems. Yup and yup. She's starting to be able to sit still for longer periods of time though, which means on occasion, I actually get cuddles from her! She's very affectionate - wanting to hug and blowing kisses often. :)