So we met with Jack's teachers, the early intervention specialist and the (waste of carbon matter) director of the Early Childhood Services at the JCC yesterday. Sadly absent was Nili Tallis - Fantabulous Infant/Toddler Coordinator at the JCC and all around Super Cool Chic. Seriously - if you ever have your kid in the JCC, deal directly with her.
It was a surprisingly positive meeting. Both the Early interventionist (Shara) and the teachers (Jamie - super-fantastic) and Leslie (also fantastic, but not very vocal) have seen improvement in Jack's communication skills and his interest in playing and interacting with other kids. There has been a little less interest in the doors, but when he wants to play with the door, the redirection is working a little less well, as he is developing a little bit of a temper. He comes by that honestly. Helloooo. Have we met?
So we explained to them that we do not want to have Jack tested for anything right now. We also explained that in the last two weeks we have seen major strides in verbal skills and a lot less door fixation at home and hopefully that will carry over into school soon. We all agreed to keep communicating and, if in six months we don' see the kind of progress we should be seeing, we will revisit the testing issue.
I need to call the pediatrician after they reopen from lunch this afternoon and bring her into the loop on our decision. The people listed above, plus our pediatrician, Dr. Davies (could not possibly ask for a better baby doctor) is who we refer to as Team Jack. Probably Grammy and Grandpa, too.
In other news, my sister and two cousins that I thoroughly enjoy have FINALLY scheduled a girls' weekend in - of all places - the great oasis of Wadsworth/Lodi Ohio. The plan is to drive to Wadsworth to stay in the lap of luxury (i.e. The Holiday Inn Express) and drink ourselves silly and gossip about all the relatives that are not there. Then get up on Saturday and shop the Lodi outlets. Mostly, it is about hanging out with the people we are related to that we actually enjoy. Since we are the offspring of 9 brothers and sisters and there are only 4 of us going, that says something, doesn't it? The rest of them are kind of certifiable. At any rate, I am totally looking forward to it, and that is something, baby!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
1 comment:
Hey, Chris thanks for sending me your blog.
To make you feel better here are things that Riley does that are OCD, (I mean, Jack Nicholson type Really, Really OCD)
1. Does not like anything on his hands, I mean, not the feeling of soap, nor water. FORGET fingerpaints. I tried to fingerprint him for his Kid ID Kit. What a trip that was. If he picks something up with dew on it he holds it with one finger and can barely touch it. At baseball he will not pick up the ball if it has dirt on it. He will not pull pizza cheese string out of his mouth, won't touch it, he'd choke before he put his fingers in his mouth. It is truly very strange watching him with this.
2. Lining things up include his matchbox cars, his lego men, just about anything that he has more than 3 of. He even lined up his Dinosaurs in rows. When we went to his kindergarten program in the fall, they gave all the kids little ziplocs with beads, string and a nametag in order to make a necklace. I watched all the other kids throw those beads on in any order possible. Mine took each bead in order by size and shape and took his time stringing them onto the necklace. It was very noticeable by grandma also, who of course, just had to point it out. Thanks Mom for crying out loud.
3. His feet, no this is not an early foot fetish, but he likes to put his feet on me. On my bicep. And swish them up and down. Or on my leg. Or on my feet. Anywhere. It's very very weird. He also does this with his hands. On my bicep. And swishes them up and down. Or on my cheek. He also will rub my earlobe while we are sitting watching tv or just hanging out. Just takes his thumb and finger and grabs my earlobe and rubs it. Used to do it when I carried him too. Or if he's on my shoulders. Also did this to Grandpa just yesterday on our patio. F R E A K Y!!!
So Chris, honestly, my belief, these kids with quirks are just really smart. Their brains are just focusing on other things. Jack is probably trying to figure out the mechanism that makes the door open and shut but obviously being two can't vocalize that he's trying to understand the concept of gravity in relation to his world, or however you want to say it. I have seen some kids, especially on my son's baseball team, that the only reason they have not hurt themselves is their mother's pure hope and faith.
So don't worry, in this family, I'm never surprised. We are all very strange in our own ways.
Post a Comment