So, it's one day after Sarah has been discharged and I have stuff on my mind I want to post.
At breakfast, she gave me a bit of a hard time. I think she was testing me because she eats fork-mashed pears just fine. I thought I was going to need help blocking her. I had called Daddy to come in and help me, but she finally accepted the pears and then was more or less fine. I really think she just wanted to see if after finishing the clinic if she'd have to still eat the food presented to her with the protocol. I think I've made that clear now, but we'll see how the next meals go.
Otherwise, though, things have been great today. The weather outside is wonderful, and I played outside with Sean a bit. My plan of not leaving the house today was killed by the discovery that we were out of some key food items. Oops. So I did have to go to the grocery store, but that was it. I forgot how nice and quiet it is in the store when most people are at work. Wow.
Sarah got on the bus happily this morning, and I got an e-mail from her teacher telling me she's doing great today. She got off the bus very excited, greeted everyone by name, and is doing just fine. She also reported that Sarah ate her lunch (preferred foods, just not baby food, I sent in spaghetti-o's, pudding, yogurt, and applesauce) fine. She's not asking to use her trainer seat in the bathroom anymore, so that's great too.
I'm really excited to have her get home and see how happy she'll be. I definitely feel like I made the right decision sending her straight back to school.
So, some reflections for now.
This clinic has really changed our lives, although I have to say we're very much in a transition period right now. I have to remember that time needs to be taken to prepare her food now, rather than popping open a jar of baby food. I need to allot time to do her protocol to make sure she eats her food.
It is a shame we were put through such a long fight with our insurance to get there, but this was absolutely worth the fight. I'm so glad we didn't give up the fight. It really took the team approach they take here to get Sarah over the hurdles. She really had a mix of sensory issues, jaw weakness, and fear preventing her from being able to chew and eat solid foods. We aren't over all of that yet, but it's all much better.
What I'll Miss:
- The incredible staff, especially her feeding team
- Having an excuse not to clean the house, not that I did that all that often anyway, I just had a built-in excuse for not bothering while we were there
- The valets, got to love people who park your car for free and don't expect a tip (I did give them a tip yesterday for the entire eight weeks)
- Seeing my parents nearly every day
- The adorable kids who were also in the clinic
- The extra one-on-one time with Sarah I don't normally get during the day during the week
What I Won't Miss:
- Having to get up, drag my son to my parents' house, and then Sarah to the clinic every day
- The parent lounge, believe me, the term "lounge" is loosely used. I know KKI is doing their best, but I'm sick of the place after eight weeks. It's nice to be watching what I want to watch at home, surfing the net and doing what I want on my computer, having my DVR, etc.
- The playroom when it's super loud.
- Having my son handed off back and forth between my parents and sister-in-law
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Day 40: Discharge Day!
What a great day! It was short today due to childcare issues and my wanting to be done with this already. We brought Aunt Jenny with us so she could learn the protocol.
Jen did great feeding Sarah. She fed breakfast, and Sarah did a great job for her and behaved herself. I was happy with both of them. We hung out in the playroom for a bit until it got pretty crowded and loud in there. Her teacher from KKI stopped by with Sarah's schoolwork for me to give her regular teacher, so that was good. We were scheduled for school time, but it was a mistake. I was happy because we were scheduled for way after lunch, and that would not have worked well for my parents.
Jen and I had a great time hanging out and chatting with another mom for a while. Then we got lunch before coming back to feed Sarah her lunch. We hung around for a while after she ate because we were waiting for D (her main therapist). D has already been assigned a new kid and she was working on her first feed. There was NO way we were leaving without saying goodbye to her. I gave her a big hug and thanked her for all she's done.
Sarah has made amazing progress at the clinic. I can't believe the change in eight weeks. I was so happy to feed her table food for dinner. It was fork-mashed, but it wasn't made by a baby food company. Yay! I was a little worried feeding her tonight because we don't own the DVDs that we have been using at the clinic, but she was happy with the two Elmo DVDs I grabbed for her.
Sean was thrilled to see Mommy, Sarah, and Aunt Jenny pick him up today. The kids got Elmo balloons from Grammy and Granddad and a cool book (We're Going on a Bear Hunt) for doing a great job. I was happy to take them home in the early afternoon and let them play outside in the gorgeous weather. I think it was around 80 degrees here this afternoon. They had a blast outside and I got some time to myself.
The kids had dance class tonight, and Sean's behavior was much improved over how it's been the past few weeks. I think maybe the new school and being away from Mommy so much was just too much for him. Hopefully with me home and things being back to normal, he'll continue to behave himself. Sarah did well too, but was tired. She was telling me she was tired on the way there, and her teacher could tell she was tired.
Tomorrow is back to life the way it was before the clinic. I have really grandiose plans, ha ha. I'm probably tossing on yesterday's clothes just to feed Sarah breakfast and put her on the bus. Once she's on the bus, I'm parking Sean in front of the TV to watch PBS while I take a shower that won't be rushed. He'll happily watch PBS until 10 when Sesame Street goes on (he gets so mad because it's Sarah's turn even if she's not home), and then hopefully he's going outside because it's supposed to be gorgeous out again. I hope Sarah is okay at school tomorrow, and I really think she will be. I am sending a copy of her protocol to the school, and we will be tweaking it a bit because watching a DVD while eating isn't exactly practical in a cafeteria full of kids. I also wrote her teacher a long note about her return to school. I really think she'll do fine, but we'll see what happens. Since none of my plans tomorrow involve leaving the house, I'll be home if there's a problem and they can call me.
I have one pic to share from today. It's her final braid from one of the playroom staff. Her dishes are in front of her because she'd just finished lunch.
Jen did great feeding Sarah. She fed breakfast, and Sarah did a great job for her and behaved herself. I was happy with both of them. We hung out in the playroom for a bit until it got pretty crowded and loud in there. Her teacher from KKI stopped by with Sarah's schoolwork for me to give her regular teacher, so that was good. We were scheduled for school time, but it was a mistake. I was happy because we were scheduled for way after lunch, and that would not have worked well for my parents.
Jen and I had a great time hanging out and chatting with another mom for a while. Then we got lunch before coming back to feed Sarah her lunch. We hung around for a while after she ate because we were waiting for D (her main therapist). D has already been assigned a new kid and she was working on her first feed. There was NO way we were leaving without saying goodbye to her. I gave her a big hug and thanked her for all she's done.
Sarah has made amazing progress at the clinic. I can't believe the change in eight weeks. I was so happy to feed her table food for dinner. It was fork-mashed, but it wasn't made by a baby food company. Yay! I was a little worried feeding her tonight because we don't own the DVDs that we have been using at the clinic, but she was happy with the two Elmo DVDs I grabbed for her.
Sean was thrilled to see Mommy, Sarah, and Aunt Jenny pick him up today. The kids got Elmo balloons from Grammy and Granddad and a cool book (We're Going on a Bear Hunt) for doing a great job. I was happy to take them home in the early afternoon and let them play outside in the gorgeous weather. I think it was around 80 degrees here this afternoon. They had a blast outside and I got some time to myself.
The kids had dance class tonight, and Sean's behavior was much improved over how it's been the past few weeks. I think maybe the new school and being away from Mommy so much was just too much for him. Hopefully with me home and things being back to normal, he'll continue to behave himself. Sarah did well too, but was tired. She was telling me she was tired on the way there, and her teacher could tell she was tired.
Tomorrow is back to life the way it was before the clinic. I have really grandiose plans, ha ha. I'm probably tossing on yesterday's clothes just to feed Sarah breakfast and put her on the bus. Once she's on the bus, I'm parking Sean in front of the TV to watch PBS while I take a shower that won't be rushed. He'll happily watch PBS until 10 when Sesame Street goes on (he gets so mad because it's Sarah's turn even if she's not home), and then hopefully he's going outside because it's supposed to be gorgeous out again. I hope Sarah is okay at school tomorrow, and I really think she will be. I am sending a copy of her protocol to the school, and we will be tweaking it a bit because watching a DVD while eating isn't exactly practical in a cafeteria full of kids. I also wrote her teacher a long note about her return to school. I really think she'll do fine, but we'll see what happens. Since none of my plans tomorrow involve leaving the house, I'll be home if there's a problem and they can call me.
I have one pic to share from today. It's her final braid from one of the playroom staff. Her dishes are in front of her because she'd just finished lunch.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Days 38-39 & Rest of Weekend Update
So, Sunday was pretty quiet for us. Well, quiet for Sarah and Sean and me, not so much for Daddy and Aunt Jenny. They were taking Great Grandma to visit Grandma and Grandpa John at a restaurant at about the halfway point between our houses. The kids and I were invited, but it's extremely difficult to have all of those people at a restaurant. It also would have made feeding Sarah lunch on protocol impossible. Restaurants are too distracting for her, and it's about a one-hour drive each way to the restaurant.
Anyway, for anyone who would like to laugh at us, we totally forgot to set our clocks forward. Daddy was calling Grandma to tell her they would be late and was confused to find out they were on their way to the restaurant. He was confused as to why they were leaving early until she reminded him it was daylight savings. DUH! The sad thing is he called Grandma from a cell phone, and that auto-updates the time. You'd think he would have noticed the time change. Or that I'd have noticed from playing with my cell phone during the day. Nope. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
So, Sarah was a sleepyhead Sunday too. She was starting to "nap" again around lunch time, or maybe shortly after, I don't remember. I needed to go to the store, so I convinced her to get up and go to the store with me. Sean is on this kick lately where he asks if he can have a sticker if he does a good job. I used this to my advantage and had a chat with him about what a good job actually meant. I'm pleased to report both kids were really good at the store. Sarah whined a bit that she was tired and wanted to nap, and was a little frustrated with me that I couldn't find something she wanted, but she was pretty good for the most part. Sean got his sticker when we got home. It was really nice going to Target and getting food for Sarah that wasn't made by Gerber or Beech-Nut or any other baby food company. Awesome!!! It's still different from what we typically eat, but I'm okay with that. It's easy enough to prepare, so it should be fine. I stocked up on stuff she ate at the clinic, and I'm all set to prepare her dinner Wednesday night. Woo-hoo!!!!!
Monday was a nice, but busy day at the clinic. Daddy joined us so he could learn the protocol. He watched in the feeding room while I fed her breakfast. She did great for me, so that was nice. We had a bit of a schedule snafu, but it was okay. They told us she had speech at 10:30 and school at 12. Her teacher came to get her at 10:30, and I told her Sarah was scheduled for speech then on my paperwork. She said she had her principal there for observation and she was taking her. I talked to the speech pathologist, and she said she didn't have Sarah at 10:30. She had her at 12. Our schedule was printed in reverse, which has never happened to us before. That's okay, though. No biggie. It just freaked me out for a bit. Sarah was fine at school, which was a relief. Daddy and D (main feeder) went over Sarah's protocol, and then we headed to speech. We all took turns and went over the oral motor plan. Sarah did very well for both of us for the exercises, so that's really nice. We went to lunch and Daddy fed while I watched from the observation room. That went very well. He made a few minor mistakes, but overall he did great. I know I wasn't perfect when I did her protocol the first few times either.
Sarah had OT that afternoon and she was so funny. She really loves ranch dressing. When given the opportunity, she wanted to eat it straight! Goofball! Anyway, she was eating all kinds of things in ranch dressing, and we got to see her do some really great stuff. She was eating cooked vegetables that were diced to about the size of a raisin. We were really impressed. She also practiced handwriting and did a nice job.
We also had our discharge meeting, which was great. They were all really pleased with how well she has done, and we got questions answered. Everything is pretty well set there.
Today was less busy, but that's okay. Sarah had her final OT session, and I only caught half of it due to being in an IEP meeting via conference call with the school. The IEP meeting went well too, so that's nice.
I talked to Sarah's bus aide and we're all set for her to return to school on Thursday.
Nothing major with breakfast or lunch today, but dinner was interesting. She threw a fit over hot dog (it was her new food). I really had to block her, and needed backup. As soon as D came in to help, Sarah gave in. Once she stopped, D left the room and Sarah started fighting me again. D came in for the rest of our five bites, and Sarah gave in again. D was worried about me, but I really was fine with it. Sarah can hate hot dogs. I don't care. D said I did great with the protocol and she would have needed backup in that situation as well. Sarah was putting her head down on the table, and I can't block that with one hand and make her take the bite with the other one. I thought so, but it made me feel better. I was a little worried that I wasn't doing a good job blocking her. Anyway, she was fine for the regular session, and I think I did a great job switching gears to get her to eat her meal. I acted like the hot dog thing didn't happen at all and started fresh. She accepted all of her bites, but needed a little prompting to take some of them. No biggie.
Tomorrow is discharge day! Woo-hoo!!!! I am so glad to be done. I'll miss a lot of the staff and the friends we have made here, though. It is going to be weird not coming here every day. I am eager to get back to our normal life. We are sending preferred foods (not baby food, just easier stuff we know she'll eat) with her to school through the end of this week for lunch so there aren't issues in the cafeteria. I want to ease her into things a little since I know school will be a bit of a shock. I think she'll manage okay, though.
Anyway, we are having a short day at the clinic tomorrow (leaving after lunch), so hopefully I can give the last update tomorrow afternoon. I will probably reflect on our experience there as well, but likely in a separate post.
Anyway, for anyone who would like to laugh at us, we totally forgot to set our clocks forward. Daddy was calling Grandma to tell her they would be late and was confused to find out they were on their way to the restaurant. He was confused as to why they were leaving early until she reminded him it was daylight savings. DUH! The sad thing is he called Grandma from a cell phone, and that auto-updates the time. You'd think he would have noticed the time change. Or that I'd have noticed from playing with my cell phone during the day. Nope. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
So, Sarah was a sleepyhead Sunday too. She was starting to "nap" again around lunch time, or maybe shortly after, I don't remember. I needed to go to the store, so I convinced her to get up and go to the store with me. Sean is on this kick lately where he asks if he can have a sticker if he does a good job. I used this to my advantage and had a chat with him about what a good job actually meant. I'm pleased to report both kids were really good at the store. Sarah whined a bit that she was tired and wanted to nap, and was a little frustrated with me that I couldn't find something she wanted, but she was pretty good for the most part. Sean got his sticker when we got home. It was really nice going to Target and getting food for Sarah that wasn't made by Gerber or Beech-Nut or any other baby food company. Awesome!!! It's still different from what we typically eat, but I'm okay with that. It's easy enough to prepare, so it should be fine. I stocked up on stuff she ate at the clinic, and I'm all set to prepare her dinner Wednesday night. Woo-hoo!!!!!
Monday was a nice, but busy day at the clinic. Daddy joined us so he could learn the protocol. He watched in the feeding room while I fed her breakfast. She did great for me, so that was nice. We had a bit of a schedule snafu, but it was okay. They told us she had speech at 10:30 and school at 12. Her teacher came to get her at 10:30, and I told her Sarah was scheduled for speech then on my paperwork. She said she had her principal there for observation and she was taking her. I talked to the speech pathologist, and she said she didn't have Sarah at 10:30. She had her at 12. Our schedule was printed in reverse, which has never happened to us before. That's okay, though. No biggie. It just freaked me out for a bit. Sarah was fine at school, which was a relief. Daddy and D (main feeder) went over Sarah's protocol, and then we headed to speech. We all took turns and went over the oral motor plan. Sarah did very well for both of us for the exercises, so that's really nice. We went to lunch and Daddy fed while I watched from the observation room. That went very well. He made a few minor mistakes, but overall he did great. I know I wasn't perfect when I did her protocol the first few times either.
Sarah had OT that afternoon and she was so funny. She really loves ranch dressing. When given the opportunity, she wanted to eat it straight! Goofball! Anyway, she was eating all kinds of things in ranch dressing, and we got to see her do some really great stuff. She was eating cooked vegetables that were diced to about the size of a raisin. We were really impressed. She also practiced handwriting and did a nice job.
We also had our discharge meeting, which was great. They were all really pleased with how well she has done, and we got questions answered. Everything is pretty well set there.
Today was less busy, but that's okay. Sarah had her final OT session, and I only caught half of it due to being in an IEP meeting via conference call with the school. The IEP meeting went well too, so that's nice.
I talked to Sarah's bus aide and we're all set for her to return to school on Thursday.
Nothing major with breakfast or lunch today, but dinner was interesting. She threw a fit over hot dog (it was her new food). I really had to block her, and needed backup. As soon as D came in to help, Sarah gave in. Once she stopped, D left the room and Sarah started fighting me again. D came in for the rest of our five bites, and Sarah gave in again. D was worried about me, but I really was fine with it. Sarah can hate hot dogs. I don't care. D said I did great with the protocol and she would have needed backup in that situation as well. Sarah was putting her head down on the table, and I can't block that with one hand and make her take the bite with the other one. I thought so, but it made me feel better. I was a little worried that I wasn't doing a good job blocking her. Anyway, she was fine for the regular session, and I think I did a great job switching gears to get her to eat her meal. I acted like the hot dog thing didn't happen at all and started fresh. She accepted all of her bites, but needed a little prompting to take some of them. No biggie.
Tomorrow is discharge day! Woo-hoo!!!! I am so glad to be done. I'll miss a lot of the staff and the friends we have made here, though. It is going to be weird not coming here every day. I am eager to get back to our normal life. We are sending preferred foods (not baby food, just easier stuff we know she'll eat) with her to school through the end of this week for lunch so there aren't issues in the cafeteria. I want to ease her into things a little since I know school will be a bit of a shock. I think she'll manage okay, though.
Anyway, we are having a short day at the clinic tomorrow (leaving after lunch), so hopefully I can give the last update tomorrow afternoon. I will probably reflect on our experience there as well, but likely in a separate post.
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Day 37 & Weekend Update
That was the end of our last week at KKI. I am so freaking happy. I'm pleased with her progress, and I'm relieved that this wasn't another failed clinic. I knew going in that she was unlikely to walk out of the clinic eating food at normal textures, but she's not too far off of that at this point anyway. It's much better than our last clinic experience where she more or less walked out still on baby food and occasionally licking graham cracker crumbs off her lips.
Yesterday wasn't bad, just long like usual. She had school and OT. School was more or less fine, from what I understand. She's getting good at making sentences with her teacher, and her teacher was pleased. I don't know how OT went because I spent that time in the kitchen with her secondary feeding therapist going over food prep. I needed to make sure I learned how to prepare her food at home like they do at KKI so she eats it for me.
Anyway, breakfast went fine. She had oatmeal, blueberry yogurt, and I forget what else for her second session. Her first session (I feed the "chew" session, which is now more of a food into session) was a different flavor of oatmeal. Apparently, she's been eating maple and brown sugar oatmeal. The food intro session was apple cinnamon. She seemed to like it fine. She ate breakfast for me without any problems.
She gave us trouble going into lunch, but was fine for the meal. She wanted D (her main therapist), but D wasn't there for whatever reason. She wasn't happy about this and decided she wasn't going to walk into the meal. B (her secondary therapist) had to carry her into the room. Booger. I forget what the heck she ate for lunch, but remember she didn't have any issues with it. My poor mommy brain.
Food prep was very interesting. We prepared her weekend food and went over how to fork mash the different types of food, so that was good. We sent the more preferred foods home because this is her first weekend home on fork mashed food and it's still a new texture for her. It seems easy enough, though, but it will take getting used to. I'll manage.
I came in to hang out in the playroom with Sarah for a little while before her dinner and D was in there on playroom duty. She was having another therapist take a picture of the two of them together, so I snapped one as well. I can't post it on the blog for privacy reasons, but it is a really cute one. I made sure to save it on the computer so we don't lose it. It's also uploaded to a photo storage website, and I may add it to another one to make extra sure.
Anyway, after that, Sarah grabbed my phone and took a bunch of pictures all around the playroom. She was so funny with it she had the whole playroom staff in tears laughing. I'm posting a few on the blog so you can see the playroom from Sarah's perspective. I had to exclude any of the ones with the other kids for privacy reasons, so these are just ones of the playroom itself.
Yesterday wasn't bad, just long like usual. She had school and OT. School was more or less fine, from what I understand. She's getting good at making sentences with her teacher, and her teacher was pleased. I don't know how OT went because I spent that time in the kitchen with her secondary feeding therapist going over food prep. I needed to make sure I learned how to prepare her food at home like they do at KKI so she eats it for me.
Anyway, breakfast went fine. She had oatmeal, blueberry yogurt, and I forget what else for her second session. Her first session (I feed the "chew" session, which is now more of a food into session) was a different flavor of oatmeal. Apparently, she's been eating maple and brown sugar oatmeal. The food intro session was apple cinnamon. She seemed to like it fine. She ate breakfast for me without any problems.
She gave us trouble going into lunch, but was fine for the meal. She wanted D (her main therapist), but D wasn't there for whatever reason. She wasn't happy about this and decided she wasn't going to walk into the meal. B (her secondary therapist) had to carry her into the room. Booger. I forget what the heck she ate for lunch, but remember she didn't have any issues with it. My poor mommy brain.
Food prep was very interesting. We prepared her weekend food and went over how to fork mash the different types of food, so that was good. We sent the more preferred foods home because this is her first weekend home on fork mashed food and it's still a new texture for her. It seems easy enough, though, but it will take getting used to. I'll manage.
I came in to hang out in the playroom with Sarah for a little while before her dinner and D was in there on playroom duty. She was having another therapist take a picture of the two of them together, so I snapped one as well. I can't post it on the blog for privacy reasons, but it is a really cute one. I made sure to save it on the computer so we don't lose it. It's also uploaded to a photo storage website, and I may add it to another one to make extra sure.
Anyway, after that, Sarah grabbed my phone and took a bunch of pictures all around the playroom. She was so funny with it she had the whole playroom staff in tears laughing. I'm posting a few on the blog so you can see the playroom from Sarah's perspective. I had to exclude any of the ones with the other kids for privacy reasons, so these are just ones of the playroom itself.
This one is a view of the map in the playroom. They have a star for each place from where each patient whose been in the clinic is. It's really interesting and I like looking at the map myself to see how far some of the kids have traveled.
Today has been a busy day like most Saturdays. Sarah had hockey first thing in the morning, and I had to wake her up for it. I did this AFTER making her breakfast, and that meant the oatmeal thickened up quite a bit and she really struggled. I realized what was going on and added some milk to loosen it up and she did much better. I have to remember that in the future. I do have to say it was super awesome making instant oatmeal for Sarah. A normal breakfast. How nice. I'm so sick of baby food it isn't even funny. She did okay at hockey. The coach wouldn't let her have a walker and she wasn't thrilled about that idea. She didn't have a tantrum, but decided to lay on the ice and give her helper a hard time a few times. She had a younger helper (I'm guessing high school or college age), so he seemed a bit unsure of what to do with her. They got through it, though, with some help. He seemed frustrated with her, and I don't blame him. I have a feeling he isn't going to want to help her again any time soon.
She ate lunch fine at home and seemed to really like the beefaroni and green beans. Anyway, she put herself down for a nap after lunch, so I canceled her therapy session this afternoon. I hate to do that, but I hate waking up a sleeping kid even more. I took some time that afternoon to do some kid-free shopping for a few things. I'm alone with the kids tomorrow while Daddy and Aunt Jenny take Great Grandma to go visit Grandma (follow that?), so I got some supplies to make a few crafts with the kids. It should help keep them busy and out of trouble.
Here's a pic from hockey this morning:
Thursday, March 8, 2012
A few things from this week I forgot to mention...
Oh, mommy brain is a tough thing, as is blogging when two kids are acting up.
First off, her main feeding therapist told me she and B were cheering me on during the Fruit Cocktail Standoff. They were really impressed that I followed the protocol and made her eat it. They were debating on whether or not to go in and help me block her, but it turned out to not be necessary because I got her under control and made her eat it. Yay for me!
The other thing I wanted to mention is that baby food is now a thing of the past. It's under lock and key in this house. Literally. We recently bought new furniture for Sarah's room, and one is a cabinet with a key lock. That's where I hid her baby food. She doesn't need it anymore and I wanted it gone before we left the clinic. She's asked for it a few times at home, but I have just told her it's gone. She asked me to go to the store last night for it, and I told her she was a big girl and didn't need it and offered her applesauce. She accepted, but only ate maybe half of what was in the cup. I didn't make her finish, but I would have if we'd been on protocol. Since this was just a relaxing snack, it was no big deal.
Anyway, that is all for now. Time for me to hit the sack because tomorrow is another long day at the clinic. I'm just so glad we only have a few more of these. Next Thursday, she is going right back to school on the bus and I can't wait!
First off, her main feeding therapist told me she and B were cheering me on during the Fruit Cocktail Standoff. They were really impressed that I followed the protocol and made her eat it. They were debating on whether or not to go in and help me block her, but it turned out to not be necessary because I got her under control and made her eat it. Yay for me!
The other thing I wanted to mention is that baby food is now a thing of the past. It's under lock and key in this house. Literally. We recently bought new furniture for Sarah's room, and one is a cabinet with a key lock. That's where I hid her baby food. She doesn't need it anymore and I wanted it gone before we left the clinic. She's asked for it a few times at home, but I have just told her it's gone. She asked me to go to the store last night for it, and I told her she was a big girl and didn't need it and offered her applesauce. She accepted, but only ate maybe half of what was in the cup. I didn't make her finish, but I would have if we'd been on protocol. Since this was just a relaxing snack, it was no big deal.
Anyway, that is all for now. Time for me to hit the sack because tomorrow is another long day at the clinic. I'm just so glad we only have a few more of these. Next Thursday, she is going right back to school on the bus and I can't wait!
Days 34-36
Busy last few nights. Such is life.
Sarah is doing well at the clinic. Everyone is fine. We are just busy. Tuesday evening, we dropped my car off for service, and Wednesday night we picked it up. I didn't have the energy to blog after those adventures. I have to say we had both kids with us for the car drop-off on Tuesday and they did great. We only had Sean on Wednesday and he was just fine. My car needed way too much service, but that's the way it goes when you've had it for 3 1/2 years.
Anyway, Tuesday...Sarah did fine at her therapy sessions and her meals. Her teacher told me that her principal (the teacher's) is coming in to observe on Monday and she chose Sarah as her student. She asked me to please medicate her. Ha ha! But I am honored that she chose Sarah. Very cool. Anyway, her breakfast wasn't anything out of the ordinary. At lunch, they bumped her up a texture for her fruits and veggies. She was caught a tad off-guard, but dealt just fine. She made a few interesting faces, but she ate everything okay without any spitting or gagging or anything. I got to observe OT and she had some baked potato and a fish stick, both were fork-mashed. She had a little trouble with the baked potato, but that was because it was microwaved and she got a tough piece. I understand that.
Wednesday was a busy therapy/school day. She had OT, speech, and school. She did fine for all of them. I got to take turns with her speech pathologist and Sarah was fine for me with the oral motor exercises. She seems to really like pretzel sticks and peaches from a fruit cup. She wasn't as thrilled with marshmallows, but those are hard to chew and that's tough for her anyway. She got through everything and didn't have a ton of trouble with any of it. At OT, she had chili with ground beef, and she had some difficulty chewing the ground beef. The OT put the beef in a therapy tool to help her out and she got it much better that way. I was really proud of her. School went fine, so that was good.
Today she was a bit more difficult. At breakfast, she had cream of wheat, peach yogurt, and fork-mashed fruit cocktail. Well, she devoured the yogurt (no surprise), and then decided she didn't want fruit cocktail. Too bad she didn't realize that Mommy was going to make her eat it just like Miss D and Miss B do! She fought me, and I felt a bit flustered, but I'm apparently pretty good at hiding it. I kept my cool, blocked her from swatting the spoon away, picked up bites she spit out as much as possible, and made her take her bites. She gave in after a few. She was not impressed with the cream of wheat either and took some extra prompting and reminders, but she didn't really fight me on that. She seems to prefer oatmeal. That's fine with me. I don't care which one she eats because neither one is baby food!
At school, she was pulling a few stunts. For one, she pulled the "bathroom" stunt. I'd just taken her and she begged to go. Refused to go back to the room. I kept the trip brief and took her right back to the classroom. Apparently she ripped up an activity she didn't want to do and the teacher made her help tape it back together. Ugh. I think part of the problem is she knew her feeding friends were going outside when she had school and she was upset about being excluded. I understand that. I promised her I'd take her outside myself after her lunch. It was gorgeous today - about the mid-70's and sunny - so I'd planned on it anyway.
She had speech immediately following school. She did just fine at speech, even though she had a different therapist than usual. She didn't seem to like oranges too much there, but that didn't surprise me since she was a bit freaked out by them at breakfast today for her chew session.
We have things pretty well straightened out and set for her discharge, follow-ups, etc. I still have a bunch of paperwork to fill out, but that will have to wait because Daddy is at guys' night tonight and I want his input on things. Next week is it for us. Wednesday is discharge day! Monday, Daddy joins us for training, and Aunt Jenny joins us on Wednesday. I'm so glad we are almost done. I knew going in that we weren't going to have Sarah up to regular textures upon discharge, but I'm so glad she is where she is right now. It's amazing to see, really. Both her OT and her main feeding therapist told me they can't believe she is doing what she's doing. They thought maybe she'd get just a bit beyond the purees, but now she's just below normal textured food. Go Sarah!
For fun, I put Sarah in pigtails with braids today. I got a ton of compliments on her hair. I snapped a couple pics, but they're not great because she was being a booger.
Sarah is doing well at the clinic. Everyone is fine. We are just busy. Tuesday evening, we dropped my car off for service, and Wednesday night we picked it up. I didn't have the energy to blog after those adventures. I have to say we had both kids with us for the car drop-off on Tuesday and they did great. We only had Sean on Wednesday and he was just fine. My car needed way too much service, but that's the way it goes when you've had it for 3 1/2 years.
Anyway, Tuesday...Sarah did fine at her therapy sessions and her meals. Her teacher told me that her principal (the teacher's) is coming in to observe on Monday and she chose Sarah as her student. She asked me to please medicate her. Ha ha! But I am honored that she chose Sarah. Very cool. Anyway, her breakfast wasn't anything out of the ordinary. At lunch, they bumped her up a texture for her fruits and veggies. She was caught a tad off-guard, but dealt just fine. She made a few interesting faces, but she ate everything okay without any spitting or gagging or anything. I got to observe OT and she had some baked potato and a fish stick, both were fork-mashed. She had a little trouble with the baked potato, but that was because it was microwaved and she got a tough piece. I understand that.
Wednesday was a busy therapy/school day. She had OT, speech, and school. She did fine for all of them. I got to take turns with her speech pathologist and Sarah was fine for me with the oral motor exercises. She seems to really like pretzel sticks and peaches from a fruit cup. She wasn't as thrilled with marshmallows, but those are hard to chew and that's tough for her anyway. She got through everything and didn't have a ton of trouble with any of it. At OT, she had chili with ground beef, and she had some difficulty chewing the ground beef. The OT put the beef in a therapy tool to help her out and she got it much better that way. I was really proud of her. School went fine, so that was good.
Today she was a bit more difficult. At breakfast, she had cream of wheat, peach yogurt, and fork-mashed fruit cocktail. Well, she devoured the yogurt (no surprise), and then decided she didn't want fruit cocktail. Too bad she didn't realize that Mommy was going to make her eat it just like Miss D and Miss B do! She fought me, and I felt a bit flustered, but I'm apparently pretty good at hiding it. I kept my cool, blocked her from swatting the spoon away, picked up bites she spit out as much as possible, and made her take her bites. She gave in after a few. She was not impressed with the cream of wheat either and took some extra prompting and reminders, but she didn't really fight me on that. She seems to prefer oatmeal. That's fine with me. I don't care which one she eats because neither one is baby food!
At school, she was pulling a few stunts. For one, she pulled the "bathroom" stunt. I'd just taken her and she begged to go. Refused to go back to the room. I kept the trip brief and took her right back to the classroom. Apparently she ripped up an activity she didn't want to do and the teacher made her help tape it back together. Ugh. I think part of the problem is she knew her feeding friends were going outside when she had school and she was upset about being excluded. I understand that. I promised her I'd take her outside myself after her lunch. It was gorgeous today - about the mid-70's and sunny - so I'd planned on it anyway.
She had speech immediately following school. She did just fine at speech, even though she had a different therapist than usual. She didn't seem to like oranges too much there, but that didn't surprise me since she was a bit freaked out by them at breakfast today for her chew session.
We have things pretty well straightened out and set for her discharge, follow-ups, etc. I still have a bunch of paperwork to fill out, but that will have to wait because Daddy is at guys' night tonight and I want his input on things. Next week is it for us. Wednesday is discharge day! Monday, Daddy joins us for training, and Aunt Jenny joins us on Wednesday. I'm so glad we are almost done. I knew going in that we weren't going to have Sarah up to regular textures upon discharge, but I'm so glad she is where she is right now. It's amazing to see, really. Both her OT and her main feeding therapist told me they can't believe she is doing what she's doing. They thought maybe she'd get just a bit beyond the purees, but now she's just below normal textured food. Go Sarah!
For fun, I put Sarah in pigtails with braids today. I got a ton of compliments on her hair. I snapped a couple pics, but they're not great because she was being a booger.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Day 33
Last full week of the clinic for us. Thank heaven! This has been more stressful than I could have imagined.
Anyway, she had a good day today. Both feeding therapists were there, so that made her happy. She had speech before breakfast, which annoyed her, but she did okay with it. I sat in and got an oral motor plan on how to do the exercises at home. I have already ordered the tools we don't have. I will probably have to start taking turns with the speech therapist on Wednesday at her next session. I'm a bit nervous about it, but I have to learn how to do it soon.
At lunch, they adjusted her protocol to give her more independence. She loved that! She was so happy to be able to choose what she wanted to eat and in what order. She finished all of her food and only needed a little help from me with scraping the last bits of food out of the cups. Not bad at all.
Dinner was more of the same, so she was happy about that. It was cute. She has taken to hopping like a frog all the way to her feeding room for each meal, and her therapists and I can't help but laugh. She is too funny sometimes.
She had school today as well, and when I told her teacher she was back on her meds, she replied "Thank god." Things must have been interesting on Friday. She worked well today and her teacher was pleased.
There is a lot to be done in the next week and a half we have left of the clinic. They want to try to kick up her textures another notch and see how she handles it. They also need to refine her protocol. I also have some things I need to discuss with her team regarding follow-ups, after care, etc.
Anyway, she had a good day today. Both feeding therapists were there, so that made her happy. She had speech before breakfast, which annoyed her, but she did okay with it. I sat in and got an oral motor plan on how to do the exercises at home. I have already ordered the tools we don't have. I will probably have to start taking turns with the speech therapist on Wednesday at her next session. I'm a bit nervous about it, but I have to learn how to do it soon.
At lunch, they adjusted her protocol to give her more independence. She loved that! She was so happy to be able to choose what she wanted to eat and in what order. She finished all of her food and only needed a little help from me with scraping the last bits of food out of the cups. Not bad at all.
Dinner was more of the same, so she was happy about that. It was cute. She has taken to hopping like a frog all the way to her feeding room for each meal, and her therapists and I can't help but laugh. She is too funny sometimes.
She had school today as well, and when I told her teacher she was back on her meds, she replied "Thank god." Things must have been interesting on Friday. She worked well today and her teacher was pleased.
There is a lot to be done in the next week and a half we have left of the clinic. They want to try to kick up her textures another notch and see how she handles it. They also need to refine her protocol. I also have some things I need to discuss with her team regarding follow-ups, after care, etc.
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