help for John

If you've talked with us in the last few months you know a big topic around here is the fact that John isn't talking much. He has started saying some useful things like "help me" and "I do" and "all mine" (interestingly, all his new words are actually phrases)--but he still can't say ball or hi or bye. While we aren't worried per se, we are concerned about getting John some help if he needs it. This is especially important so he can communicate to others outside of his circle who want to know his name, and if he wants to play, and how old he is.

So here's the good news. Arizona Early Intervention Program (AZEIP) is a resource for kids with all kinds of delays and/or disorders that are under three years old. John has four and a half months left as an under-three so he qualifies for an evaluation and any necessary assistance, all as a service of the state (free to us). I spoke with a very kind lady this afternoon who explained the process to me...and a few hours later I scheduled an appointment for John to be evaluated tomorrow morning. Tomorrow. What a relief after all these months of waiting to feel like we're moving forward in getting John some help, if he needs it. And if he doesn't need? That would be good too. (-:

The evaluator will test John on every area of development and will give us a figure for how he is developing compared to other kids his age. If he is more than 50 percent behind in his speech (and he is), than she will present her findings to the AZEIP committee on Thursday. Only two days later--hooray! They will select two professionals that will be best suited to fit John's needs; most likely, a speech language pathologist and a developmental therapist. Then this committee, Billy, and myself will set goals for John (e.g. helping him say his name when people say "what's your name?") and these folks will come to our house to work with John and to teach Billy and me how to work with John. The woman asked me, "does that sound ok?"

"That's exactly what we were looking for...thank you." (more tomorrow after the evaluation!)


P.S. what happens when John turns three? If he still needs assistance in catching up with his peers, he may qualify for free preschool through the state--a preschool tailored for kids like him. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. I'm just relieved to have other people (and speech professionals, at that) in on the journey now. Please pray that John will understand that we are helping him and that he will respond well to the new people coming to visit him. Fortunately, he loves visitors! (-:

Easter

We had Easter dinner with all of the Phoenix-area family. The kids (and one brave parent, Robyn) went swimming in the hot tub. Aren't these three boy cousins as cute as can be?

Robyn to John: "want to come in with me?"

"Ok!"

Havilah mostly hung out with her Daddy, whom she is quite fond of.

Hope your Easter was happy!

food for thought

Here's a longish but deeply thoughtful article on praying from a woman who lived with Mother Theresa. I'm not there yet, but it's something to aspire to.

The infamous John Willis

One of John's favorite pastimes is still "doing the dishes"--which usually means I mop the floor next to the sink and he gets a fresh shirt. But, hey, I'm not going to argue with a man who wants to lend a hand in the kitchen.

Yesterday, he jumped down from the sink and brought me a Ziploc full of water and some mysterious dark floating objects. "Da!" (which translates roughly as "look!") he said. "What is that, John?" And then I realized he had put his socks in the baggie of water. Resourceful chap.

Next--and boy, this boy keeps me on my toes all day--he opened the fridge and pulled out a bowl of black beans which he proceeded to eat like they were tiny truffles, sound effects and all.

He is still quite tender with Cutie, and wraps her in his blankets and carries her around in Hava's sling. She and Kevin Austin (who deserves his own post--soon!) get lots of love, snacks, drinks from his sippy cup, and handholding.

Billy and I are often puzzled about how to help a two-and-a-half-year-old cope with life disappointments (like getting water instead of milk at dinner). But we're trying our best. (-:

Oh, and John now says yellow as clear as can be!

so thankful for my boy and girl!

book love

yikes, I haven't posted in two weeks. shame on me. Well, here's what we've been up to. Lots of work (Billy had extra training), enjoying tons of sunshine and play in the backyard (John has discovered the fun of watering the trees, grass, weeds, sister, mom, dad...), and a quick trip to Flagstaff with Jim, Megan, and Shane.

Today we had an outing to downtown Peoria for the Library Book Fest. Oh, it might not sound like much but we had tons of fun. There was a book sale, magician, reptile man, storytime, antique/junk sale, face painting and "tattoos," and Saturday market booths. Here's a little bookshelf I got from the sale:

[a statue from outside the library--this is for my mom (-: ]

We couldn't help but get a dozen or so books at the book sale, such as:

More soon, I promise!

Hava turns 1/2

Here are the six month old stats:

Height: 28 inches
Weight: 18 lbs, 3 oz.
Favorite activity: being held by mom
Sleeping through the night (this is included in honor of the mothers at Tot Town play group who find this to be the most important issue with their babes. Go figure.): not a chance.
Eating: so far, bananas, rice cereal, apples (not so crazy about), peas (hated! Don't worry; I'm not giving up on Hava+vegetables. She is my daughter and so vegetables are a fact of life. Sorry sweetheart!)
Moving: just rolling, rolling, and a dash of scooting so far. No need to rush, baby. You only get to lie around all day once in life! (-: