Pointing(baby steps that is what makes us happy around here)

This is small but something I wanted to document.  Dylan had been watching shows(Team Umizoomi and Paw Patrol) all day.  He lead me to me and Brandon's room and gave me the remote that controls Netflix.  I went to grab the other one and turn on his normal shows.  He grabbed that and put it down and gave me the other remote again.  I had no idea what he would want to watch but started scrolling through the shows.  All of a sudden his finger shot up, full on pointing finger and not full hand point, and he pointed to Super Why!  I was so excited to see the actual pointing finger showing me what he wanted!

Potty Training!

Christmas has come and gone and we are almost to a new year!  I decided since this would be the longest break and would have Dylan home for 2 weeks that I would attempt potty training!  Potty Training in itself is not the best time as a parent, but potty training a non verbal child is really not  fun at all!  I started the Monday before Christmas and just jumped in.  At first I had a pull up on him but he seemed to just pee in that so I decided half way through the day to just put underwear on.  Best but worst decision, because he held his bladder better but when it came night time to put the diaper on, he wanted nothing to do with it.  Now, not that I intended to go back to diapers, we are absolutely going to have to train him because he will not wear a diaper!  We do put a pull up on when we drive somewhere, just in case.

I started out taking him to the bathroom ever 15 minutes or so and the first day I had to change his underwear at least 7 times.  We are getting better though.  I still don't think he it is "clicking" on when he needs to go for himself, but he does use the bathroom pretty much every time you put him on there.  The pooping is what drives me crazy because he normally goes several times a day and so I really have to watch him and try to judge when I "think" he needs to go, so sometimes I "think" he needs to go and it rules my life for the next several hours and he ends up going the minute I get distracted.  Or on Christmas Eve when he pushes me out of the room, ha ha.  I had the idea that it was time for him to go for an hour or so, so I had taken him a whole lot.  I went downstairs at Rick and Lori's with him where he was watching his shows and sat.  After a good 15 minutes of sitting there, he grabbed my hand and acted as if he was leading me somewhere.  That "somewhere" was to get the heck out of the room.  The minute I was out the door, he let go of my hand and slammed it shut, ha ha.  I laughed and decided to take a minute and use the restroom myself.  I came back down 5 minutes later and he came walking to the stairs.  I could smell and soon realized why he wanted me gone, little stink(luckily he had a pull up on that time).

We are making progress but slow so we will just keep working.  I am not sure how to go about it with him going to school though.  I think I will send a bag of clothes, underwear and pull ups and fill the teachers in on what is going on and let them choose the route they want to take.  What ever they choose, we just hope it continues and we will be done with diapers before too long!

Dylan's Teacher Run in

We were at Costco today and had stopped on our way out to eat some pizza!  My kids and I pretty much think that is what you do when you go to Costco, ha ha.  My sister in law had called me so I was talking to her and then Brandon kind of started talking to someone and before I knew it Dylan's teacher popped in and gave Dylan a hug!  I was watching Dylan and the look on his face was priceless!  You could just see the joy and excitement and for me to see how excited he was to see her, out of the school setting, made me so happy!  I know he is in a good place and they all love him, but seeing this just confirmed it!  I will never be able to repay all the teachers(aides) for the help they are giving us with Dylan.  They work harder on him then I do, so they deserve a lot of credit!

His teacher said that she feels things are starting to click better for him and he is starting to move forward.  She also said that when they are at recess he has started to run up to her and lean in as if he wants a hug.  I wonder how many times he tries to kiss them to get something he wants, since he does that at home.  I just can't deny him because I am his Mom and I absolutely love it, but I know I need to stop so he doesn't try to smooch any and everyone to get something he wants!!

Another note!

We got the first note for a little bit.  Short and sweet!  I have been sending mac and cheese or spaghettios the past couple days to give him a variety, but apparently he wants a sandwich!

It also says that he has been so much more connected with his teacher lately and almost always willing to "work" well! That is good to read because for the past 2 weeks I have had to carry him to the bus kicking and screaming.  He just wants to stay home and watch his shows.  Lucky for him, it is almost Christmas break!  I had hoped that once he got to school he would be fine and so this tells me he is!  I have been checking his backpack daily for a note telling me how uncooperative he was that day, so this is much better than I had expected!

This is a little note from Dylan, himself:
∂√cxs cvfuriuytrertgy6hu7yhgtfrdeswaq

And some of his school art work:

Dylan is 4!

Dylan is officially 4!!  I took him to the Dr for his yearly check up the other day(started going to a new Dr because our old one would have forced the vaccines on him and I am not quite sure where to go with that right now) and he is looking very healthy and very big!  He is 40.8 lbs(84th percentile) and 41 inches(67th percentile).  I was impressed with this Dr and he spent a good hour with us discussing both Dylan and Desi and never made me feel rushed.  He said his recommendation is to get the vaccines, but he knows that is up to the parents and he will not make me feel that I HAVE TO.  I talked to him about getting a titer done to see if his body is immune to the diseases from the first doses and to see if we actually need the second dose.  He said 95% of people would come back immune because the first dose actually makes our body immune, but the second dose is to protect in case of a huge outbreak(if I understood correctly) so I don't know what to do.  Other than the fact that he will not be going to Kindergarten until he is almost 6, so I am going to take my time and figure it out by then!

I also asked him his opinion on Dylan's head bonk and told him the story and he said if the MRI came back normal than it was probably good and just timed perfectly with the regression.  I pointed out how the bump is still visible and seems even more visible lately and at first he wasn't sure.  He said he would pull the MRI report and look at it!  Later on though, he did explain how the skull fuses together in 4 quadrants and right down the middle of the forehead would be one.  He said that when it fused it may have buckled causing the little knot on his forehead, that makes sense.  Then he also said maybe when he bonked his head and if it caused a goose bump(which it did) then it could be cartlidge from when it healed and that would always be there.  I think that one makes a lot of sense because he had a huge goosebump and if everything is "good" as they say the cartlidge makes  good sense.  I still wish we could erase that event and see where we were without it though!

We had went down to Nephi on Saturday for a bridal shower, so we decided to celebrate his birthday a couple days early and had cake and ice cream afterwards.  He got lots of cute clothes, shoes, money  and toys.  I found this magnetic fishing game with a fishing pole that I thought he might like because it was something they had at early intervention and he seemed to like it.  Boston loves it and has taken over ha ha.  Brandon found this blue t shirt that he picked out for him and said it would make Dylan "cuddleable" which it does, ha ha.  It looks cute on him!  We took some cake up to Grandpa Jack and Grandma Cindy on Sunday and hung out there for  a bit.

Monday was his actual birthday, and he had to go to school!  He wasn't very happy about it, but when I took him to the bus with a box of donuts, he went willingly!  When he got home from school we headed up to 7 Peaks to the North Pole!  It is something new this year and we thought it would be fun....thought being the key word!  We bundled up because we actually got a lot of snow that day, wahoo!  We went to the Lazy River first where they had bumper boats to take you along the river and had it all decorated like the North Pole, he loved that!  It was after that that the real "fun" began!

We started walking to find the next station and after a couple minutes I looked down and realized Dylan only had one boot and a sock full of snow!  When Brandon got him out of the tube his boot came off.  I ran back and grabbed it and so we had to take his sock off and put his boot on.  I don't think he liked not having a sock on and kept trying to take his boot off.  We saw Santa and hurried and got a picture and then headed to the Avalanche Slide.  Brielle and Boston wanted to go on there so Brandon took them up.  In the meantime (10 minutes)  I wrestled Dylan to get and keep his boots on who knows how many times, put Desi's gloves back on at least 3 times, said a lot of not nice words and am sure people were staring at me wondering what in the world was going on.  We decided we were done!  We took Dylan's boots off and Brandon carried him to the van.  I was hoping we could go on the boat ride again because I knew Dylan loved that, but we were done!  Brielle and Bos were so sad to be leaving so soon, so I had to explain that this is what Autism does on outings.  We try our best to go and have fun, but we as a family have to work together.  Somedays, that means not staying as long as we would like.  It isn't fair to them, but hopefully this is also teaching them in the long run about love, respect, patience, etc.  Something their Mom really needs to learn!

We grabbed some food at Wendy's and headed to the Festival of Lights!  We got a lot of snow that day so it was a good day to go again!  Then headed for home!  I hope Dylan knows that we tried to make his birthday fun and I hope that he had a great one!  I have been doing 20 questions for my older two on their birthday, but since Dylan is nonverbal,  I can't do that with him...yet, but hopefully soon!  At the Dr I had to answer questions on things he could do, pretty much everyone was "NO" and it made me a little sad because he should be doing all of them, but all we can do is keep pushing forward and hope that it all comes to him one day!  We love  you Dylan!!

Cousin Day

Other than keep finding "Naked Dylan" with no diaper on and occaisonally(more often than not) surprises for us(more often Brandon because I am busy running around like a chicken with it's head cut off) to clean up, he has been really good lately!  Happy and always trying to get our attention or wants to be in the vicinity of us more than he has in the past. I love it but at the same time feel bad because we do have 3 other kids and aren't able to give him that constant attention that he seems to be seeking, but at least it seems like we are moving in the right direction!

Today, was one of those days!  I had my 2 nephews and niece over while Cody and Lacy went to work again!  They got here a little before 8 and Dylan's bus picks him up around 8:15.  The kids all went downstairs while I ran upstairs to watch for the bus and get a few last minute things done.  I saw the bus pulling in the Cul De Sac and ran down to grab Dyl.  He was just walking out of the toy room where all the kids were.  When I told him the bus is here, he fell to the ground crying.  I had to pick him up, which he is learning this new technique of throwing himself to the ground and tightening up so it is much harder to just pick him up, and carry him upstairs.  I then had to force his coat on and repeat the pick up Dylan game and carry him to the bus....crying!  When I handed him to the Bus Aide, he climbed the stairs and then turned and looked at me with his sad face, pretty much saying "it isn't fair I don't get to play with my cousins."  Little does he know Brielle and Bos had to go to school 10 minutes later, so they didn't either.

He went to school and as far as I know had a great day!  When he got off the bus, they said "Someone is excited to be home!"  Sure enough no sooner than when his feet hit the sidewalk, he practically jumped into my arms!  I can't deny how that made me feel!  My heart melted! I love that, slowly but surely, his interactions with the world around him seem to be increasing!

Also, we have been asking "yes and no" questions and have got the head nod for "yes" quite a bit!  We haven't got a "no" yet so I am almost wondering if he is just doing it because he knows he'll get something if he does, but he is communicating and that is a step in the right direction so I will take it. The first time I asked him a question, he ran to get cheese so I asked, "do you want cheese?"  I had to ask twice before realizing he was doing it.  It was a very slight nod where he barely tilted his head from the base of his neck down an inch or so.  When I asked him the second time, I noticed it and was so impressed.  Over the past 2 days he seems to be getting it down more!  So I guess to answer his teachers question about him only associating it at school, would be a "No!"  He gets a little smile when he does it too, so I think he is proud of himself, as he should be!

School Update!

I had just left the store when my phone rang.  I thought maybe my Dad was calling to see where we were because he stops by occasionally on his way home from work and it was about that time, but when I saw my phone said Dylan's teacher, I was prepared to head to Payson and pick him up.  When I answered, she said that it wasn't anything bad and he was doing fine but she wanted to talk to me about something to work with Dylan at home!

She said they have been working on answering yes and no questions with a simple head nod and the past two days he has been doing it mostly on his own!  She said they have been asking him things and then touching the back of his head and guiding him with the appropriate response but he is starting to do it on his own, unprompted.  She said he ran over to a sensory table and she was going to get him and take him back to where he was supposed to be, but then she decided to use this experience as a "test" so to speak.  She asked him certain questions(yes or no) about the sensory table and he responded by shaking his head(almost the whole body she says), so she let him play at it for getting the correct responses.  She asked that we work on it at home also and see how he does.  She wonders if it will take him some time because he may associate it with school and that is where he is supposed to do it, so if we work with him at home he can use it in his everyday life!  Small but BIG!!

She also said that they feel like he is starting to make more connections and when they are working with him, he is looking at them as if saying, "What do you want me to do."  Which means he is listening and understanding better!  He was saying "Bus" before we left for Panama and she said since our "trip"(that to her is just a week off of school because as far as I know, she doesn't know what our "Trip" was) he hasn't been saying it.  Probably because we don't work on the word "bus" at home but it just shows how quickly he loses words if they are not ran through that little brain of his daily.  He is starting to try and say it again, she said.  She also mentioned that he is starting to try and say more words and some times they can make out and tell what he is saying.

Here is the kicker!!!  She is very glad that he is a "candy addict"(which if you know Dylan you know that is 80% of what he will actually eat, ha ha.)  The reason she is glad that he is a "Candy Addict" is because that is what they use for the rewards, to praise him when he does what they want him to do.  She said that most kids love recess time and despise group time(where they work one on one with the child), but not Dylan.  He LOVES group time and despises recess time!  Why, you may ask, because that is where he gets his treats!  She said when they line up for recess the majority of the time he will break away and head for the "group" area.  When they make him go to recess, he cries ha ha!

Brain Exercises

I have been feeling a lot lately that we need to start doing the brain excercises that we did with Brain Balance.  Maybe that could help kick start something amazing or something small but to us small is big, so no matter what it's going to bring amazing changes right? Ha ha.

Anyway, we had a busy night yesterday and then tonight was the same.  We finally got around to it just before bedtime but did not go as planned.  Lets just say right before bed time is NOT the time to do these.  I don't remember him putting up this big of a fight when we did them last year, but boy did he tonight!  We started off with the Smells, which are 6 different containers that have smells to stimulate his brain on the side they say he is delayed(i think right but need to go back and check in my notes).  The second he got a whiff of the first smell, the struggle began!  It was almost as if the smells brought on PTSD or something, which.  Like I said he never put up this kind of fight before, so I don't know why it was so bad now.

We got through the smells and attempted a few other excercises but it was not easy.  He was screaming and tightening up and turning and trying to get away.  I ran upstairs to grab the folder with the exercises in it because we couldn't remember what we should be doing.  Brandon stayed with him and started a few more exercises where he has to kind of help Dylan do.  One of them being situps!  I walked back in as they were doing these.  The look on Dylan's face and the expression in Dylan's eyes was something I have not seen in a while.  He was gone, checked out, not there, whatever you want to call it, but I was done at that point.  Lately, he always looks "here" and has not had that "gone" look.  Apparently until I saw it tonight, I hadn't noticed but I am thankful he hasn't looked that way in a while.  By the way, Brandon worked up a sweat trying to get Dylan to do 10 situps, that is how bad of a struggle it was!

I grabbed Dyl and cuddled with him and he cuddled up to me!  I told him we are just trying to help him and we want to help these connections along that his brain needs.  I told him we are not trying to hurt him and that we love him and will do anything for him.  I told him we are going to continue these exercises tomorrow and keep trying until hopefully it gets easier and hopefully brings on more progress!  We called it quits for the night, but I couldn't go put him in bed so we watched a show together for a bit and then I made him mad and took him to bed.  He settled down pretty quick and went to bed.

The look in his eyes tonight took me back though and although we are not anywhere close to the finish line, I realized that we have definitley made progress.  Another girl that I speak with on Facebook that has taken her son once for treatment, talked about the "sparkle" in her sons eyes before his regression.  That is also something we talk about with Dylan.  We miss that!  I hope it returns one day!