Baby Baby

Yesterday was my OB appt. He did an ultrasound and everything looks great!! Our baby bean has grown into a baby :) It's amazing that at only 12wks it's a fully formed baby or at least appears to be. We didn't plan this baby like we did our other two. This is our lil surprise and now that I'm over the initial shock of it all I feel so blessed to be having another baby and didn't have to TRY to get pregnant. I think until you have trouble getting pregnant you don't realize how amazing just getting pregnant is. I'm glad I finally got to experience that :) Hoping to find out what we are having in a few weeks.

Wordless Wednesday

Outside Potty

This morning we woke up and got ready for to go to the water park. I was hoping to wake up early and go to the free swim at 8am. It's so hot that 8am would be a nice time to swim. Of course we didn't make that and the waterpark doesn't open until 10. Mom, Tanya, and Camryn came with us. We only stayed about an hour and a half but the kids had fun. Both of my boys were tired and fussy. I was hoping to get the boys to take a nap when we got home b/c we had a b-day party at 3 but of course my kids didn't fall asleep until about 2pm and we missed the party. Anyway we just stayed at the house watched tv the rest of the day.

Day 2 of Potty Training and still no pee or poo in the potty but he went outside several times. He seems like he's starting to understand that he can go. Hopefully once he gets use to this we can get him to use the inside potty but for now it's outside potty.

Tonight me mom, Tanya, Camryn and Tyler all went to the movies and saw My Sister's Keeper. It was a good movie. We all cried like babies :)

Potty Training Day 1

I know I know we just took the paci from him last week but I wanted to try to potty train him during the summer. I would rather me be able to do it and not have to worry about his teacher at school doing it. Anyway he's going to ESY(summer school) and next week they don't have school. I decided to cancel all his therapy for next week to and just see how he does. If he isn't ready then we will try again in a few months. Today we just stayed in underware and no pullups and I tried to make him go sit on the potty often. No luck getting him to go in the potty but he did pee outside!!!! He was really excited about it and so I think that's a start.

We went to my parents house that afternoon My dad cooked and the kids swam.

He's walking!

Sage started walking today! He's been walking on furniture, holding your hand or pushing behind a toy, but this morning he just got up and walked across the living room. It's funny to see him walking like that. All throughout the day today he would get up and walk but for the most part he's still crawling. It's almost like he doesn't even know he is actually walking.

Daxton is talking so much more I just can't believe it. He's being able to tell me so much more and I love it! His lil personality is coming out with being able to communicate more. I have such high hopes for him. He's come so far and I can't wait to see how far he will continue to go. I know God is working in his life and has something special for his future.

Yesterday we had a great day. Dax went to school and Jordan, me and Sage ran errands and ended up getting new cell phones. It's been awhile since me and Jordan bought new phones. Ours didn't even have internet I felt like we were behind( lol) Anyway new phones are definately up to date with the works :) That afternoon Jordan kept Sage and me and Dax went swimming with Jana and Travis. Daxton loves swimming in the big inground pool with Travis. I love it too! It's nice to stay cool in this hot weather AND get a tan.

Today we stayed home most of the morning and then after Daxton was finished with speech we went to my parents house and the boys swam. Dax swam with Blade and Jazer in the pool and I set up a little pool on the porch for Sage. He loved it!

Wordless Wednesday

Bye bye paci

Well we made it almost 72 hours without a paci. Can you believe that? Daxton was starting to want his paci at all times and so I decided we should try to take it away. He's understanding so much more so we told him that the paci fairy wanted his paci and she would bring him a present. (not sure how much of that he understood) Anyway he helped me put all of his pacifiers in a gift back and we hung the back outside. Him and Daddy swam and then a few hours later we went and looked in the bag. He was really excited to see his 2 new video games that the paci fairy left him but then put his hands over his face and said "Oh no what a do?" "My paci!!!" He really didn't even cry just whine about it. And of course has been asking me a hundred times a day for one.

Then just when I thought we might have seen the last of Daxton's paci guess what he found in the couch tonight? I didn't say anything and just let him fall asleep with it. Hopefully this doesn't set us back.

Let's catch up

Ok I'm determined to blog everyday! Right now it would be nice to at least blog once a week. Either way let me try to update.

Daxton~He is doing so good! I wish I would have been blogging these last few months because he has changed so much. He is talking in sentences and understanding so much more. He had a seizure in December. He had it at school and it only lasted a few minutes. The school ended up calling 911 b/c he went to sleep afterward and they thought he was having trouble breathing. He was fine at the hospital and went home a few hours later. About 2 weeks ago he had another seizure (or at least I think it was another one) It didn't last very long maybe 30-60seconds. They checked his Keppra levels and they came back on the low side so they increased his dose. Daxton had a great year at school. Right now he's going to extended school year (summer school) It's Monday-Thursday 9a-12p. I'm glad we decided to do it b/c I really think it will help him be ready for the next school year. He seems to be loving it too! Right now Daxton goes to speech twice a week for 30min with Mrs. M and then to ABA therapy twice a week. He is still on risperdal and the clonidine and of course the keppra. His behaviors are so much better. He still has his moments but I think it's a major improvement!

Sage~My baby is 1 years old! I can't believe it! He only has his two bottom teeth, so cute! He's trying to walk. He stands and walks the furniture and with his push toys and he has taken a few steps. I'm in no hurry for him to walk though. He sleeps in his own bed and doesn't even take a bottle during the night. This is very new for me b/c Daxton still sleeps with us and wakes up during the night. Sage loves to eat! He eats everything and would love to eat all day. He still refuses to drink out of a cup but just learned last night how to suck out of a straw. He is a little water bug like Daxton and could stay outside all day.

Baby #3~Yes we are pregnant again! I found out the day after Mother's day, May 11th. This is our first surprise baby and is due January 15, 2010. I'm 10 weeks right now.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something but I'll continue to update as I remember new stuff.

All about Autism

We had Autism Awareness shirts made for our family and friends. They came in this past week and they came out so cute! I had someone ask me to help them understand Autism better incase someone would ask them about it while wearing the shirt. So I decided I would explain it for everyone.

Autism is a complex neurological disorder that affects the normal functioning of the brain, impacting development in the areas of social interaction and communication skills. Children with autism have problems with social interaction, communication, imagination and behavior. Autistic traits persist into adulthood, but vary in severity. Some adults with autism function well, earning college degrees and living independently. Others never develop the skills of daily living.

Autism causes kids to experience the world differently from the way most other kids do. It's hard for kids with autism to talk with other people and express themselves using words. They also may react to what's going on around them in unusual ways. Normal sounds may really bother someone with autism — so much so that the person covers his or her ears. Being touched, even in a gentle way, may feel uncomfortable. Kids with autism often can not make connections that other kids make easily. For example, when someone smiles, you know the smiling person is happy or being friendly. But a kid with autism may have trouble connecting that smile with the person's happy feelings. A kid who has autism also has trouble linking words to their meanings. Imagine trying to understand what your mom is saying if you didn't know what her words really mean. It is doubly frustrating then if a kid can't come up with the right words to express his or her own thoughts.
Autism causes kids to act in unusual ways. They might flap their hands, say certain words over and over, have temper tantrums, or play only with one particular toy. Most kids with autism don't like changes in routines. They like to stay on a schedule that is always the same. They also may insist that their toys or other objects be arranged a certain way and get upset if these items are moved or disturbed.
If someone has autism, his or her brain has trouble with an important job: making sense of the world. Every day, your brain interprets the sights, sounds, smells, and other sensations that you experience. If your brain couldn't help you understand these things, you would have trouble functioning, talking, going to school, and doing other everyday stuff. Kids can be mildly affected by autism, so that they only have a little trouble in life, or they can be very affected, so that they need a lot of help.

Autism affects about 1 in every 150 kids. This means as many as 1.5 million Americans today are believed to have some form of autism. And this number is on the rise making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined. It occurs in all racial, ethnic, and social groups and is four times more likely to strike boys than girls. But no one knows what causes it.

The brain contains over 100 billion nerve cells called neurons. Each neuron may have hundreds or thousands of connections that carry messages to other nerve cells in the brain and body. The connections and the chemical messengers they send (called neurotransmitters) let the neurons that help you see, feel, move, remember, and work together as they should.
For some reason, some of the cells and connections in the brain of a kid with autism — especially those that affect communication, emotions, and senses — don't develop properly or get damaged. Scientists are still trying to understand how and why this happens.

There is no cure for autism, but doctors, therapists, and special teachers can help kids with autism overcome or adjust to many difficulties. The earlier a kid starts treatment for autism, the better. Different kids need different kinds of help, but learning how to communicate is always an important first step. Spoken language can be hard for kids with autism to learn. Most understand words better by seeing them, so therapists teach them how to communicate by pointing or using pictures or sign language. That makes learning other things easier, and eventually, many kids with autism learn to talk. Therapists also help kids learn social skills, such as how to greet people, wait for a turn, and follow directions. Some kids need special help with living skills (like brushing teeth, etc.). Others have trouble sitting still or controlling their tempers and need therapy to help them control their behavior. Some kids take medications to help their moods and behavior, but there's no medicine that will make a kid's autism go away.

Each child is different and each child with autism is different. Daxton struggles with several things. Last year his receptive language was equivalent of 8 month old and expressive language of a 10 month old. Today he has improved greatly. He still goes to speech therapy twice a week at school and privately. I think Daxton is good at labeling things and getting pretty good at requesting but he still can't tell me what he's thinking or feeling or tell me about his day or things that happened. He's understanding more but I still don't know exactly how much. I think he understands basic things we say but can't understand detailed explanations or descriptions. I think he pulls out the key words he knows and trys to make sense of that. I hope that one day he will be able to tell me a story or something about his day or even what he's feeling.
Daxton LOVES other kids. Some children with autism seem withdrawn or don't like to be around other kids. Daxton doesn't do that. He still has problems with social interaction though. He wants to play with them so badly but really just doesn't know what to do. Lack of communication play a part in this but also his sensory issues cause problems. Most children don't want to play with him because he is very aggressive, doesn't understand how to play and can't understand what they are telling him to do. Daxton usually likes to bump, hit or throw things because he is a deep pressure seeker. He can't understand why this wouldn't be fun for other people. Daxton goes to behavior therapy every other week and ABA therapy 3 times a week to help him learn how to interact and do things appropriately. He also attends school for half a day and seems to be doing very well interacting with the children there!
Daxton has many sensory issues. This causes him to have issues with getting dressed, brushing his hair and teeth, wearing shoes, taking a bath, and eating. Different textures usually bother him, especially in food. There are very few things he will eat or drink. Sounds sometimes do bother Daxton. Some days it's as if he doesn't even hear them and then other days he hears everything. The same thing with crowds of people or changes is routine. Sometimes he's ok and sometimes he just can't handle it. Daxton is a deep pressure seeker. Which is pretty self explanitory. He seeks deep pressure. He pushes, bumps, throws, hits, and crashes things together. He needs Occupational Therapy to help him through these things but as of right now he is no longer being able to go because our insurance will not cover it and we can't afford it.
Some of the other symptoms of autism that Daxton has is sometimes not answering to his name, not making good eye contact (although I think these are improving greatly because of therapy) appears not to hear you at times, performs repetitive movements( hand flapping, spinning, twirling hair), moves constantly, likes to line up items in a row, no fear of danger, has trouble going to sleep and staying asleep, and seizures.

I hope this helps you to understand Autism a little better and also understand Daxton. We are still learning more each day. This family has been forever changed because of his presence, he has taught us all a new level of patience and understanding for children who don't fit into the "mold" that society has created for them. Nothing is taken for granted. We are truly blessed for the many gifts he has brought into our lives. He has taught us immeasurable patience, tolerance, acceptance, and most importantly, never to judge.



***most of this was found on different websites***

Last week

Halloween was last week. Daxton did so good. I was so worried about taking him trick or treating. I honestly didn't want to go b/c last year he was confused about the whole thing and I was thinking this year would just end up in a tantrum. We ended up going with Jana and Travis. Daxton even wore his transformer costume! He looked so cute and was so excited about going with Travis. They went door to door together for an hour and a half trick or treating. Daxton even held out his bag for the candy. I was so happy we went and so proud of him!

My lil transformer!

My lil fishy!

Our pumpkin party was last Saturday. The party was great and Daxton has a blast. He also wore his costume the entire party. It was so dirty lol!

We started the Risperdal last Saturday so Daxton has been on it for a week. So far I haven't noticed many changes. He seems to appear more tired but doesn't act like he is. He's still is hyper active self. I have noticed he is talking more which is a major plus! Starting today the dose will double and I'm hoping we see more improvements.