Emmett and I had a serious case of cabin fever yesterday, and James needed some quiet time to study, so I decided to take him out for a few hours in the afternoon. Emmett LOVES riding the bus, so we just took a bus up Whyte to run a quick errand, then back downtown where we had some Booster Juice and window shopped at the downtown mall. Em had his first ride on one of the new LRT trains (automated announcer that announces the stops=not cool, going over the river=very cool!) and mastered the art of stepping on and off of an escalator.
We didn't do anything big or exciting, but we had a lot of fun! We enjoyed looking for a bus with the right number on it's sign, finding juuuust the right seat (back of the bus, first seats on the left), pushing elevator buttons, saying "one, two, three, GO!" before getting on the escalator, and of course people watching. I remember riding the LRT with my dad when I was little, and having SUCH a fun time. We didn't have a lot of money to do stuff when I was a kid, but we always had fun. I really do think it's the simple little stuff that kids remember most....just having one on one time with mom or dad. I've got to find something to do with the Seth-meister, maybe a mommy and me swim class (he loves the bathtub and never wants to get out!). I loved spending some time with just my big boy though.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
A long road ahead
When Emmett was about 18 months old I started to notice that he was a bit different than other children his age...I remember going to the health center and reading that kids his age should be saying something like 50 words, and Em was only saying 4 or 5. Things would bother him that wouldn't bother other kids, like people in a group laughing. He would plug his ears and hum when he felt uncomfortable or heard a noise he didn't recognize. He would point and whine for something he wanted, or use one word over and over, long after his peers started using simple sentences.
At first I just thought he was a late bloomer, and that he would catch up soon, and that the weird behaviors were just the quirks of a toddler. My mom tried to broach the subject with me gently (albeit not all that tactfully) and I kind of freaked out at her. I took it as an attack on my parenting, that he was behind and different because of something I did/didn't do. Still I told myself that he WAS going to catch up, it was just a matter of time, that by the time he was 4 or 5 this would all be a distant memory.
Then he was 3 1/2 pushing 4, and the "toddler quirks" weren't going away. The words "autism spectrum" came into my head from nowhere one day, and I started to research. I cried as I recognized many of Emmett's "quirks" on a list of "symptoms". I was quickly pulled out of my denial.
Nobody wants to be in the "special needs club". Nobody gets pregnant with the hopes of having a kid that's behind, that's different. I will be the first to admit I spent a day crying and feeling super depressed about it...then I woke up the next day I decided it was time to DO something. Denial wasn't going to help my child, and crying that it wasn't fair wasn't going to help him either. He needed ME to advocate for him if he was going to get the chance to live up to his full potential...whatever that may be. I realized that loving Emmett for the unique little person that he his and helping him be happy and successful on HIS terms was more important than him being the same as his peers.
I took him to our family doctor a couple of months ago and told him about my concerns with the hope of getting a referral to a pediatrician. I wasn't prepared to be treated like an overprotective mom with nothing better to do and to have my concerns challenged at every point. I stuck up for myself though and got my referral. Yesterday Emmett saw the pediatrician (who was MUCH better, and thoughtfully listened to my concerns and asked questions). She wasn't able to tell me anything right away...she's not totally convinced it's autism but agreed there was enough concern to do further testing. He's getting a full workup as well as some genetic testing, and he'll be going to a preschool assessment centre for a full evaluation. The process is going to take somewhere in the ballpark of a year. While it's frustrating that the wait is so long, starting now means we should have some answers before he starts kindergarten and hopefully we can get him in any special programs that he needs.
Emmett really is a joy to parent...he's a big time mama's boy and I love that he's my little buddy. We love to read together, sing together, have tickle fights. We even have inside jokes! I believe he came to our family on purpose...he needed us and we needed him. I don't know where this journey is going to take us, and I know there are many challenges ahead, but I also know that somehow everything is going to be OK.
At first I just thought he was a late bloomer, and that he would catch up soon, and that the weird behaviors were just the quirks of a toddler. My mom tried to broach the subject with me gently (albeit not all that tactfully) and I kind of freaked out at her. I took it as an attack on my parenting, that he was behind and different because of something I did/didn't do. Still I told myself that he WAS going to catch up, it was just a matter of time, that by the time he was 4 or 5 this would all be a distant memory.
Then he was 3 1/2 pushing 4, and the "toddler quirks" weren't going away. The words "autism spectrum" came into my head from nowhere one day, and I started to research. I cried as I recognized many of Emmett's "quirks" on a list of "symptoms". I was quickly pulled out of my denial.
Nobody wants to be in the "special needs club". Nobody gets pregnant with the hopes of having a kid that's behind, that's different. I will be the first to admit I spent a day crying and feeling super depressed about it...then I woke up the next day I decided it was time to DO something. Denial wasn't going to help my child, and crying that it wasn't fair wasn't going to help him either. He needed ME to advocate for him if he was going to get the chance to live up to his full potential...whatever that may be. I realized that loving Emmett for the unique little person that he his and helping him be happy and successful on HIS terms was more important than him being the same as his peers.
I took him to our family doctor a couple of months ago and told him about my concerns with the hope of getting a referral to a pediatrician. I wasn't prepared to be treated like an overprotective mom with nothing better to do and to have my concerns challenged at every point. I stuck up for myself though and got my referral. Yesterday Emmett saw the pediatrician (who was MUCH better, and thoughtfully listened to my concerns and asked questions). She wasn't able to tell me anything right away...she's not totally convinced it's autism but agreed there was enough concern to do further testing. He's getting a full workup as well as some genetic testing, and he'll be going to a preschool assessment centre for a full evaluation. The process is going to take somewhere in the ballpark of a year. While it's frustrating that the wait is so long, starting now means we should have some answers before he starts kindergarten and hopefully we can get him in any special programs that he needs.
Emmett really is a joy to parent...he's a big time mama's boy and I love that he's my little buddy. We love to read together, sing together, have tickle fights. We even have inside jokes! I believe he came to our family on purpose...he needed us and we needed him. I don't know where this journey is going to take us, and I know there are many challenges ahead, but I also know that somehow everything is going to be OK.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Post Christmas Detox
I'm not much of a crowd follower...if everybody starts doing something that's usually enough to make me NOT want to do it (case in point: the whole of facebook still doesn't know the colour of my bra ;)). However, this year I decided to be totally lame/cliche/sheep-like and resolve to eat better and lose weight starting January 1. I lost about 25 lbs last year and then sort of lost my resolve (and by what I'm sure is some sort of miracle, maintained that loss). I've got another 10-15lbs to lose so I figured now was the time to kick it back into high gear!
I'm loosely following Weight Watchers (I did that program hard core for a couple of years in college, so I know it well) and eating mostly whole foods. There's a book I've been hearing a lot about that just came out called "Food Rules", by Michael Pollan. His philosophy is "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." He includes such things as "the whiter your bread, the quicker you're dead" and "don't eat things your great-grandmother wouldn't have recognized as food". Sounds like a good philosophy to me!
I'm mostly a scratch cooker, so it hasn't been too much of a switch...just cutting back on the fattening condiments, watching portions, and no more weekly candy binges. I've always been good about making sure that Emmett doesn't eat too much junk food (good thing Grandma and Oma always hook him up with dessert at their houses or the poor kid would be totally deprived!), but I'd eat it myself without a second thought...not the best example. I'm finding healthier treats - my brother and sister in law got us a stove top popcorn popper for Christmas and I love popping some corn with a bit of olive oil. I get some healthy oil and it makes our place smell like movie theatre popcorn...win win!
Now I just have to get through baking Sether's birthday cupcakes this weekend without too much "sampling"...
I'm loosely following Weight Watchers (I did that program hard core for a couple of years in college, so I know it well) and eating mostly whole foods. There's a book I've been hearing a lot about that just came out called "Food Rules", by Michael Pollan. His philosophy is "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." He includes such things as "the whiter your bread, the quicker you're dead" and "don't eat things your great-grandmother wouldn't have recognized as food". Sounds like a good philosophy to me!
I'm mostly a scratch cooker, so it hasn't been too much of a switch...just cutting back on the fattening condiments, watching portions, and no more weekly candy binges. I've always been good about making sure that Emmett doesn't eat too much junk food (good thing Grandma and Oma always hook him up with dessert at their houses or the poor kid would be totally deprived!), but I'd eat it myself without a second thought...not the best example. I'm finding healthier treats - my brother and sister in law got us a stove top popcorn popper for Christmas and I love popping some corn with a bit of olive oil. I get some healthy oil and it makes our place smell like movie theatre popcorn...win win!
Now I just have to get through baking Sether's birthday cupcakes this weekend without too much "sampling"...
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