Saturday, September 6, 2014

Back to School!

Carter started his last few months of preschool up again last Wednesday at Utah School for the Deaf and Blind (USDB).  This is his second year and there are a lot of changes for him  His teacher is new, his school is in a new building (much bigger and further east), he has a new driver and the time has changed.  When I heard that his teacher changed I was very sad because we loved her.  I haven't had the chance to meet the new one yet since we were informed just days before school started.  I hear his classroom is much bigger so he has more room to explore, which is good.  His driver Kent is really nice and he still goes in his wheelchair back and forth.  He is picked up at 7:55 and dropped off now at 3-3:10.  It used to be 7:15 and then around 4, so it's shorter by like two hours now.  They feed him only once now instead of twice, so that kind of threw me off for the first while.  Their theme for the month is back to school peanut butter & jelly, so they have been playing with it and making stuff too.  Since Carter can't eat he just plays with it.  They still have music time and therapy, which it sounds like he has been kind of ornery with.  He has seen his old teacher and she said he recognized her and wanted to go with her, which is sad.  Poor guy.  I don't know that he understands why people aren't there anymore, like Brenda, who was with him all summer but is now gone.  We still keep in touch via email.

The first two days of school Carter had a meltdown after getting home.  Not sure why but he hasn't done it again.  We noticed a couple of weeks ago that he was shaking a lot and seemed scared of some of his toys.  He got a really scared look on his face when his bear started singing.  That was unusual, so we tested his glucose to see if it was low but it was fine.  Then about a week later, he woke up one night crying and moaning very strangely, a sound I hadn't heard in awhile.  When he used to have seizures he would sometimes make that sound like he was scared of something and he would shake.  He was doing that but I didn't notice any seizures.  I'm still not sure what caused it.  I have noticed he seems a bit shakier overall from time to time.  Might be something for us to figure out.  Carter has his yearly GI and eye appointments this month, then hopefully we are good until next year.  His 2 bottom teeth have been coming in good- they have those nice serrated tops that his baby teeth don't have because he grinds so much.  Carter's oxygen concentrator and tanks were finally picked up because we don't need them anymore.  So nice.  We still own his bi pap machine so we cleaned it up and packed it away for now.  I love seeing progress.

Carter has been watching us eat a lot lately, like he's really paying attention, so I was curious if he was interested in the food or just what we were doing.  So I tried giving him some pudding today, and he smiled but flinched and turned away when the spoon got close to his face.  It's not something I want to force but I was curious.  He turns 5 in just three months and I had hoped he would be walking by then.  He will stand and even walk some if you help support him, but still has trouble keeping his head up.  I haven't really ever pictured him walking and to be honest, I'm not even sure if he will be able to walk totally on his own.  I think he can with support or a walker, but I don't know about all by himself.  Of course that would be incredible but I kind of keep my expectations low or more realistic so I don't get disappointed, while still giving him the opportunities to do what he can.  

Sierra is 2 years old and about 5 months, so I've been thinking about potty training her.  I bought her a toilet before Keaton was born, my mom bought her panties and I just ordered some potty training books.  I've been reading up on the signs of a toddler being ready and I don't think she is quite there.  She still needs to have periods of time during the day where her diaper is relatively dry, she needs to be better at sitting still, she needs to help put her pants on and off, and I need to see her interest and more awareness of messy diapers.  I want to start reading to her about it and see if in a few months she will be ready.  They say if you do it too early that it will just take longer.  She drinks a lot too so I want to switch her to eating more.  With her still being a bit difficult and acting out, I think it's best we wait a little bit anyway.  She is putting two to four words together when she talks, but I'd like her to communicate a little better with me.  She follows directions pretty well and seemed interested in the toilet, but mostly because it made music when you flushed it.  Lol.  

Keaton is 7 weeks 4 days and getting so big.  Whenever we are out people think he is like 3 months old or more.  He's still in 3 month clothes and acts small still.  He is pretty even tempered and sweet and has started to smile, coo and laugh some.  It takes some work but he will get there.  He likes to wiggle on the floor and look around and receive lots of kisses from Sierra and me.  He is still sleeping pretty good and seems to be strong with his grip and lifting his head.  He has rolled to the side a few times now.  He can see really well now and follows me when I leave his sight.  I can tell he likes my voice because he smiles the most when I come into his vision and talk or sing to him.  He is very cute- we still aren't sure if he'll be blonde or have strawberry blonde hair like me.  I see a little bit of me, Carter and Chris in him.  He is a good mix of everyone.  We are blessing him this month so I look forward to that.  I have two sisters in law having baby boys within the new few months so that's exciting.  Anyway, that's it for now!