Building Strength!

         We had a consult in Orlando at APH to see if Cyler was a candidate for their "intensive feeding clinic".  He had to perform a number of tasks in front of a group of specialists including a doctor, therapist, nutritionist, and social worker.  He did really well with the actual tasks.  I wasn't sure how it would go especially after he decided to tell the social worker that his name was "poop" when she asked him.  After the evaluation we were informed that they feel Cyler would benefit from the program.  YAY!   Now we just need to arrange transportation to and from Orlando 5 days a week for 4 weeks!  YIKES!
   
       Also, at the appointment a new diagnosis was thrown into the mix.  We were told that Cyler has low muscle tone, also known as Hypotonia. I was completely taken off guard with that one.  I never considered this even though all of the signs were right there in front of me.  Not being able to balance on one leg, being wobbly, and lack of shoulder definition.  I brought this up at our pediatricians office and we now have a physical therapy consult and a neurology consult.  He should have never been discharged from PT.  When he met his goals new ones should have been created.   The neuro concert is to address some of the self stimulating behaviors that Cyler has (dancing, vocal, and focusing).  So now we are taking our "learning" to a new level.  Focusing on gross and fine motor skills.

       We made Cyler a "busy board"  to work on his fine motor skills.  Some people have asked why I am teaching him to unlock things.  My son is 4 years old and already knows how to do these things.  If we have something under lock and key for his safety the key is not within his reach!  It's that simple!  Part of the board is a "geoboard".  It's just nuts and bolts placed so that he can use rubber bands to make various shapes.

     We also found a park far enough away from the road where Cyler can run.  He LOVED it!

 

     It was so awesome to see him run like this.  He is always active but tends to forget about safety. I think that it's a boy thing.   If we let go of his hand for any reason, he takes off running.   This park is PERFECT.  There is enough area to run and it's semi closed in by a fence.  Cyler has told us that next time we go that he would like to play soccer.  Sounds like a plan!

Straws!

There are so many things that can be done with a handful of straws and a few empty containers.  Cyler enjoyed making letters, shapes, and people.  I was able to sneak in some math as well.  I asked him to count how many were there, then took one or two away, and asked him to count again.  We did this several times and he did amazing.  We also worked on one to one recognition by having him place a certain amount of straws in each container.  This is to ensure that he understands that each number represents one object instead of just counting by rote.  This kept us busy for about thirty minutes.

We added letters to the mix.  Today he was able to spell GMC, Cyler, stop, and of course Ford!

Yesterday was talk like a pirate day (for real).  We didn't know until later in the day but we were still able to talk about it some and incorporate some activities.  Cyler played with his palm tree and pirate ship for a while on his private island.  We watched the Rubbadubbers--pirate episode and went on a small treasure hunt.  

Painting and such.

Glue and sand art.  Cyler really enjoyed this.  He really liked pouring the glue on the paper.  He than started sprinkling some sand on the glue. Finally he decided to mix all of the colors together and see what would happen. The end result was a really pretty peach color.   

Below is Cyler painting with classical music in the background.  I can't believe the concentration.  It's amazing.  He was completely focused.  That is until the static interfered and totally wrecked his groove.  Nevertheless he did manage to create a few nice pieces.  

Even daddy got into the fun and decided to introduce transfer painting.  He folded a piece of paper in half and asked Cyler to paint only one side.  Cyler loved this.  It was so much fun to watch his mind process how this was working.  Daddy looks like he was having fun too! 

Weathering the storm...

The weather forecasters predicted that there would be some severe weather this week here in central Florida.  Mother nature had other plans.  We got a little wet and a few random gusts of wind but mostly just overcast.  So what did we do?  Went to the park of course!

 Cyler really liked crawling through the tunnels--this is a first for him!

Slides are always fun!

 Tuesday we spent a good deal of time in the morning with Play-Doh --lots of fun!

We did end up getting a little rain and when daddy came home we went outside to get a little dirty--big time sensory play!  YES!

Yes--you may take off your boot and fill it with sand!

Cyler had a great time playing outside! In the beginning he wanted us to wash his hands right away but quickly became more interested in exploring--Hooray for dirt!

Fast forward...August!!

Cyler is AMAZING!   He has been completely potty trained for a month now.  He decided all my his self and did it in one day.  Of course, this was right after purchasing 2 cases of diapers because they were a "good deal".  How much of a good deal is it if you only use a few of them.  Oh well, donation time.  We have made some changes...ALL OF US!  We as parents are trying to say yes more.  Realizing that we will never know what Cyler is capable of if we don't let him try.  We have also come to the conclusion that Cyler was very much overstimulated.  This was not good.  We went through his toys and got it down to one cubicle and one bin of toys.  Yes, I understand that this is still a lot.  The rest were moved into the walk-in closet to be traded out later and some were donated.  Cyler was very much involved in the process.  We gave him the choice to rotate, donate, or keep out.  It was funny at one point--he climbed into an empty bin and said that he is not to be donated or rotated because he is staying.  At another point he looked at all the toys in the closet and asked why they were in there.  We explained again the whole rotate thing again then asked him what he thought.  His reply--I think you're A**Holes!   Terry, almost fell over and I was shocked that he used the word in the right context.  (remember this child couldn't even talk for 3 years).

Cyler is 4 (quick post)

Cyler is 4 now.  His birthday party was mostly racing themed.  I say mostly because he wanted a Barney/racing/pirate B-day.

 Here he is letting his AWESOME car cake melt....lol    He was happy anyway!!!

  He continues with his dance classes and even practices at home.  He really loves dance class a lot.
 Also, we are going on a trip in June.  We will be taking the AutoTrain to Lorton, VA then driving to PA.  Spending some time in my old stomping ground...so excited.  Mostly he is excited to go Sesame and Seaside Heights. We shall see!

Update...

We are eating again.  Cyler eats a little of something with every meal.  (mostly sweet potatoes)  I am so thrilled.  He is doing really well.  Also because of all of his "dancing" we have decided to enroll him into dance classes.  He LOVES it!  There is another little boy in there about his age but the class is mostly girls.  His first night was last Tuesday and he has talked about it every day.  He really can't wait to get his tap shoes.  He is growing so much and we are so proud of him.  Furthermore, Cyler has decided that he wants to "potty train".  He will actually let me know that he has to "pee in the potty" or "potty train" about 2 times a day and he likes wearing training pants.