Sunday, May 6, 2012
May 6, 2012
Thursday, May 3, 2012
May 3, 2012
Long time, no blog update! I think it has been 2 months. Lots has happened. The boys started Pre-K on March 19th. They were supposed to start on the 12th but the principal called on the 9th and said they weren't quite ready, could they please start on the 14th. I said sure, I needed a few more days anyway. So the 14th came and we got up, got ready and waited for the bus, and waited for the bus. I called and no one told the bus driver to pick them up. They had a doctor appointment on the 15th and no school on Fridays, so I said they'd just start on Monday the 19th and that is what they did.
They got on the bus without a whimper. Jake gave the sweetest smile as the bus pulled away. It was a bittersweet moment. I was happy that they were going to be getting the therapies that they need, but so so sad that my babies were going to be away for hours. Their teacher said that I could call at any time. I made myself wait until after noon before I called. Their teacher said that they were doing fine. The only time they cried was when they weren't allowed to pick their noses. They ate breakfast alright. They only ate yogurt, wouldn't touch the pancakes. Ate mashed potatoes at lunch, wouldn't touch the chicken or green beans. She said one of them was napping and the other was running around the class room. I was relieved that they did so well.
They really seem to like their teachers and aides. They get up easily most morning and are sleeping better most nights. We have dropped the naps and that helps a lot. One of their aides rides the bus with them and every day she tells us something new that they have done. Jake apparently loves the school custodian and she will take him for a walk up and down the hall and bring him back to class. He knocks on the door and says "Me in" for "Let me in". I thought that was just adorable. Patrick talks to the boy in the mirror.
The school psychologist did an autism evaluation. CARS-2. Jake received an overall raw score of 42, a result at the 69th percentile and in the moderate to severe symptoms range. Patrick received an overall raw score of 42.5, in the 69th percentile of the moderate to severe symptoms range. Does that count as a diagnosis? I think so. It should if it doesn't.
I finally got them to Process Strategies on April 23rd and a child psychologist saw them, asked a lot of questions, observed their behavior for a while and gave me homework that I still have to finish. BASC-2 for parent and teacher to complete. And the CARS-2, but the school already did that. Patrick goes back on Monday the 7th and Jake goes on Wednesday. I know they are autistic, we just need to get the paperwork done at this point so we can get them treatments.
Also, regarding my belief that I may have Asperger's Syndrome, I now know it. It explains everything about my behavior that has confused me for my whole life. I'm still doing lots of googling about autism, watching videos about autism on youtube, as well as reading blogs from other mothers with autistic children and asperger moms with autistic children. I am learning so much but still feel clueless and confused most days. There is just so much that isn't known. What causes it, does diet help, does medication help, should we do ABA or Rising Son, it goes on and on.
We did get them some LeapFrog learning toys and they both sit around like teenagers with cell phones, pushing buttons and texting. It is adorable.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Feb 7, 2012
Preschool evaluation was today. It was chaotic but went well. They can start school on their 3rd birthday. I still have to go to another meeting. The EIP I think plus tour the classroom. I need to find a ride to the school. Their preschool will be about 10 miles away and we have no car. They will go there for the 2+ years and then go to kindergarten here in town. Our elementary school doesn't have a preK program. So down the road they will have to go. On a bus. Four days a week from 8 to 3. I wonder if they need little back packs. They will get their speech therapy and all the other therapies they need. Early intervention and all that. I am so happy they will be getting the help they need. I wish I could do it myself but I don't know how.
Tomorrow, off to the dentist.
Tomorrow, off to the dentist.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Feb 6, 2012
Preschool evaluation is tomorrow morning. The babies woke up bright and early this morning (7:30ish) after falling asleep around 2 or 3 am. Jake had a tummy ache and threw up just before he fell asleep.
Everyone was sick last week. Patrick got it first. He threw up on Wednesday the25th, the day after their doctor visit. Just the one time, then he had a low fever (never went over 100) for 24 hours and was very sleepy. Jake threw up the following Saturday, four times over the whole day, had the low fever for a day and was sleepy. I got it that Monday (a week ago today), no vomiting but plenty of the other. Lots of body aches and a headache that would not go away. No appetite. Smells were overwhelming. I just wanted to sleep. Then Trey got it, then Kennedy.. They missed 2 days of school. It was a horrible, smelly, achy mess. I'm glad it's over.
But back to last night, Jake was fine after he threw up. I'm not sure what made him sick. He was laughing one minute, then he ran to me crying and threw up. After I cleaned him up, he cuddled for a few minutes, then went to sleep. I think he would have slept later than 8am this morning but Patrick was bright eyed and bushy tailed and making a lot of noise.
So we went downstairs and I fed them cheerios and bananas with milk. Then we colored pictures and read stories. I called the doctor's office and had them fax their shot records to the elementary school where the testing is. They ran around like little lunatics and had a fun morning.
All they had for lunch was potato chips. At one point I thought that Jake was going to throw up again but he didn't. Jake went to sleep aroung 2pm and Patrick passed out around 3. I started doing google searches for autism and found 2 articles about ultrasounds and autism. Scary stuff. I was getting like 1 or 2 ultrasounds a week at the end of the pregnancy.
This stands out in my mind:
"ultrasound is a form of energy, and even at low levels, laboratory studies have shown it can produce physical effect in tissue, such as jarring vibrations and a rise in temperature."(9) This is consistent with research conducted in 2001 in which an ultrasound transducer aimed directly at a miniature hydrophone placed in a woman's uterus recorded sound "as loud as a subway train coming into the station."(10)
WTF? A subway train? That is LOUD! I keep picturing them as tiny little fetuses with their little hands over their ears.
I think I was 14 or 15 weeks along before I got the first ultrasound and found out for sure it was twins. I had a feeling and Mom was absolutely certain it was twins. But that first ultrasound lasted for over an hour. They measured femurs and amniotic fluid and listened to heartbeats and examined genitals. They tried to get a picture of Patrick's (Baby A) face but he kept turning away. We did get a picture of Jake's (Baby B) face and I swear it looks like he is flipping the bird. I'll have to figure out how to add pictures to this thing.
The pregnancy was considered high-risk because of my age (38), gestational diabetes (diet controlled), and anemia. I also had an abnormal pap.They wanted to biopsy my cervix but I decided to wait until after delivery. I never did get that done. Too busy.
I took my prenatal vitamins with iron and I stuck to my diabetic diet. No one would let me do anything even remotely strenuous at work. I was put on bed rest in December of 2008. I only got out of bed to eat and shower. And to keep doctor appointments, which went from once a month, to twice a month, to once a week, to twice and sometimes three times a week.
They were always the same size, always had enough amniotic fluid. My blood pressure was always low, my blood sugar was kept within an acceptable range. I was gaining the right amount of weight. Everyone was kicking and moving around in there. Patrick was always in the same position: on my left side, upside down, ready to cut in front of the line to the birth canal. Jake was doing flip flops all over the place. He was never in the same position twice.During one ultrasound, he flipped from head down to head up and back to head down again in 15 minutes.
Then I noticed that I was not peeing as much as I was drinking. I'd have a big glass of water and later on just pee a little bit. My legs and feet were swelling so big. I only had one pair of shoes that I could wear and if I took them off for too long, I couldn't get them on again. I reported this to my doctor on a routine visit at 36 weeks and they scheduled the c-section for right away. I didn't even have my purse, forget about the over night bag.
The c-section was horrible. Everything was rushed. I realized there was an urgency but I still felt disconnected somehow. It was all very surreal, like a dream or something. It was wait, wait, hurry, wait, hurry. I started having contractions while they were giving me an epidural. I couldn't relax and arch my back at the same time. I started crying. It was just awful. Then everything was numb. I could feel tugging. Couldn't see a damn thing. Then I felt an emptiness on my left side and I knew that Patrick was out. Less than a minute later, I felt the emptiness on my right side and knew that Jake was out as well. I kept listening for crying. I was worried about their little lungs being under developed. I heard them both cry and and just started bawling like a baby myself. They were both okay. Everything was going to be fine.
I told their dad to go with the babies while they did the tubal ligation. I would be fine. Go with them. Stay with them. By that time the morphine or whatever they gave me was in high gear and I was feeling no pain. I noticed that doctors were tossing around a long polka dotted pillow which confused me for a minute. Then I realized that was my freckled left thigh they were moving around and I probably started laughing. It makes me laugh now. But that morphine kicked my ass in the recovery room because I am allergic to morphine apparently. Yuck, pain, yuck, pain. Vomit seems to be the theme for today.
I have had three types of deliveries now. Natural with no drugs (9 lbs 14 oz girl at age 24), induced with epidural that only worked on one half of my body. They had to suck the baby out with a tube because I couldn't feel if I was pushing or not (7 lbs. 3 oz boy at age 31) and this c-section (6 lbs 14 oz boy, 5 lbs 13 oz boy at age 39) And out of all those methods, I recommend natural with no drugs. Yes it hurt during but I recovered much more quickly with minimal pain. Induced and c-section hurt way worse and it took weeks to feel like myself again.
They gave Patrick some formula to bring up his blood sugar and a little bit of oxygen. Jake was a little jaundiced but otherwise fine. They stayed in my room with me most of the time. They never needed incubators or anything like that. No NICU. Regular nursery for whatever testing the nurses did. They kept taking them away and bringing them back.
I was breast feeding or trying to breast feed but I could not make enough milk for two babies. I would nurse one baby, burp him and change him. Then it was time to nurse, burp and change the other one. Then a short short nap if I was lucky. Then it was time to nurse, burp and change the first one again. And the whole time, I was still strapped down to the bed with those massaging things on my legs. I had a huge painful gash across my gut and tube up my hoo-hoo to catch my pee. I still felt sick from the morphine reaction. And it seemed like every time I fell asleep, a nurse or doctor walked in to take vitals or whatever. We finally decided to do both breast and formula. They would nurse, one on each boob until I felt dry, then we gave them formula. I tried to pump but never got more than an ounce or two out. I had milk to spare when I was 24 but at 39, not so much.
I think they got some vaccinations before we left the hospital. I will have to check their records.
I have to go fix dinner now. The babies are awake and demanding food.
Source of article about ultrasounds: http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasoundrodgers.asp
Everyone was sick last week. Patrick got it first. He threw up on Wednesday the25th, the day after their doctor visit. Just the one time, then he had a low fever (never went over 100) for 24 hours and was very sleepy. Jake threw up the following Saturday, four times over the whole day, had the low fever for a day and was sleepy. I got it that Monday (a week ago today), no vomiting but plenty of the other. Lots of body aches and a headache that would not go away. No appetite. Smells were overwhelming. I just wanted to sleep. Then Trey got it, then Kennedy.. They missed 2 days of school. It was a horrible, smelly, achy mess. I'm glad it's over.
But back to last night, Jake was fine after he threw up. I'm not sure what made him sick. He was laughing one minute, then he ran to me crying and threw up. After I cleaned him up, he cuddled for a few minutes, then went to sleep. I think he would have slept later than 8am this morning but Patrick was bright eyed and bushy tailed and making a lot of noise.
So we went downstairs and I fed them cheerios and bananas with milk. Then we colored pictures and read stories. I called the doctor's office and had them fax their shot records to the elementary school where the testing is. They ran around like little lunatics and had a fun morning.
All they had for lunch was potato chips. At one point I thought that Jake was going to throw up again but he didn't. Jake went to sleep aroung 2pm and Patrick passed out around 3. I started doing google searches for autism and found 2 articles about ultrasounds and autism. Scary stuff. I was getting like 1 or 2 ultrasounds a week at the end of the pregnancy.
This stands out in my mind:
"ultrasound is a form of energy, and even at low levels, laboratory studies have shown it can produce physical effect in tissue, such as jarring vibrations and a rise in temperature."(9) This is consistent with research conducted in 2001 in which an ultrasound transducer aimed directly at a miniature hydrophone placed in a woman's uterus recorded sound "as loud as a subway train coming into the station."(10)
WTF? A subway train? That is LOUD! I keep picturing them as tiny little fetuses with their little hands over their ears.
I think I was 14 or 15 weeks along before I got the first ultrasound and found out for sure it was twins. I had a feeling and Mom was absolutely certain it was twins. But that first ultrasound lasted for over an hour. They measured femurs and amniotic fluid and listened to heartbeats and examined genitals. They tried to get a picture of Patrick's (Baby A) face but he kept turning away. We did get a picture of Jake's (Baby B) face and I swear it looks like he is flipping the bird. I'll have to figure out how to add pictures to this thing.
The pregnancy was considered high-risk because of my age (38), gestational diabetes (diet controlled), and anemia. I also had an abnormal pap.They wanted to biopsy my cervix but I decided to wait until after delivery. I never did get that done. Too busy.
I took my prenatal vitamins with iron and I stuck to my diabetic diet. No one would let me do anything even remotely strenuous at work. I was put on bed rest in December of 2008. I only got out of bed to eat and shower. And to keep doctor appointments, which went from once a month, to twice a month, to once a week, to twice and sometimes three times a week.
They were always the same size, always had enough amniotic fluid. My blood pressure was always low, my blood sugar was kept within an acceptable range. I was gaining the right amount of weight. Everyone was kicking and moving around in there. Patrick was always in the same position: on my left side, upside down, ready to cut in front of the line to the birth canal. Jake was doing flip flops all over the place. He was never in the same position twice.During one ultrasound, he flipped from head down to head up and back to head down again in 15 minutes.
Then I noticed that I was not peeing as much as I was drinking. I'd have a big glass of water and later on just pee a little bit. My legs and feet were swelling so big. I only had one pair of shoes that I could wear and if I took them off for too long, I couldn't get them on again. I reported this to my doctor on a routine visit at 36 weeks and they scheduled the c-section for right away. I didn't even have my purse, forget about the over night bag.
The c-section was horrible. Everything was rushed. I realized there was an urgency but I still felt disconnected somehow. It was all very surreal, like a dream or something. It was wait, wait, hurry, wait, hurry. I started having contractions while they were giving me an epidural. I couldn't relax and arch my back at the same time. I started crying. It was just awful. Then everything was numb. I could feel tugging. Couldn't see a damn thing. Then I felt an emptiness on my left side and I knew that Patrick was out. Less than a minute later, I felt the emptiness on my right side and knew that Jake was out as well. I kept listening for crying. I was worried about their little lungs being under developed. I heard them both cry and and just started bawling like a baby myself. They were both okay. Everything was going to be fine.
I told their dad to go with the babies while they did the tubal ligation. I would be fine. Go with them. Stay with them. By that time the morphine or whatever they gave me was in high gear and I was feeling no pain. I noticed that doctors were tossing around a long polka dotted pillow which confused me for a minute. Then I realized that was my freckled left thigh they were moving around and I probably started laughing. It makes me laugh now. But that morphine kicked my ass in the recovery room because I am allergic to morphine apparently. Yuck, pain, yuck, pain. Vomit seems to be the theme for today.
I have had three types of deliveries now. Natural with no drugs (9 lbs 14 oz girl at age 24), induced with epidural that only worked on one half of my body. They had to suck the baby out with a tube because I couldn't feel if I was pushing or not (7 lbs. 3 oz boy at age 31) and this c-section (6 lbs 14 oz boy, 5 lbs 13 oz boy at age 39) And out of all those methods, I recommend natural with no drugs. Yes it hurt during but I recovered much more quickly with minimal pain. Induced and c-section hurt way worse and it took weeks to feel like myself again.
They gave Patrick some formula to bring up his blood sugar and a little bit of oxygen. Jake was a little jaundiced but otherwise fine. They stayed in my room with me most of the time. They never needed incubators or anything like that. No NICU. Regular nursery for whatever testing the nurses did. They kept taking them away and bringing them back.
I was breast feeding or trying to breast feed but I could not make enough milk for two babies. I would nurse one baby, burp him and change him. Then it was time to nurse, burp and change the other one. Then a short short nap if I was lucky. Then it was time to nurse, burp and change the first one again. And the whole time, I was still strapped down to the bed with those massaging things on my legs. I had a huge painful gash across my gut and tube up my hoo-hoo to catch my pee. I still felt sick from the morphine reaction. And it seemed like every time I fell asleep, a nurse or doctor walked in to take vitals or whatever. We finally decided to do both breast and formula. They would nurse, one on each boob until I felt dry, then we gave them formula. I tried to pump but never got more than an ounce or two out. I had milk to spare when I was 24 but at 39, not so much.
I think they got some vaccinations before we left the hospital. I will have to check their records.
I have to go fix dinner now. The babies are awake and demanding food.
Source of article about ultrasounds: http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasoundrodgers.asp
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
January 25, 2012
We took the boys to their pediatrician yesterday and she said she saw "cause for concern" but wants a more qualified specialist to make the diagnosis. She is trying to arrange an appointment at a clinic in Beckley. Possibly at Marshall or WVU. She said they could just be hyper kids with some OCD issues but when you add in the speech delay, it makes her more inclined to think it is autism. High functioning autism. They do engage with us and each other. The smile and laugh when tickled.
We had their hearing checked in November and their little ears are still in working order. I'm trying to think of all the things I couldn't think of yesterday. I forgot to get a copy of their shot records. I need those for their pre-school evaluation. I just called the pediatrician office and I can pick up their shot records or they can fax them somewhere for me. Yay! My memory is non-existent at this point. I have to write down everything or I forget.
Jake has a small cavity on one of his front teeth. We need to make an appointment with a kids' dentist too. They drink too much juice but it is the only way I can get them to poop. And their toothpaste doesn't have fluoride in it yet because they don't know how to spit out the toothpaste. I used Trey's toothpaste on them last night. I only used a small amount but I know they swallowed it and today Patrick threw up.
Jake took a long time to fall asleep last night. (This morning!) Patrick passed out around 3am while Jake was awake until about 4:15 or so. Patrick woke up crying around 5:45am but settled down and went back to sleep around 6:15. They slept really well after that and I woke them up at 1:30pm. They ate bananas and cheerios and drank milk. Had a shower and got dressed. Brushed teeth with the baby toothpaste. No tantrums so far today. Patrick didn't even cry when he threw up. He just looked at me like "What just happened?", then he looked disgusted. It was pretty gross. Good thing he was sitting on his bed when it happened and not the carpet. Much easier to wash a sheet and bleach a plastic mattress than to scrub a carpet.
They have new books to read and a new coloring book so we are doing that now.
I found this link for the clinic in Beckley: http://www.autismrecoveryresourcecenter.com/
I guess this is the link to the Marshall place: http://www.marshall.edu/atc/
and WVU: http://clinics.cedwvu.org/next-steps/
The boys are still scheduled for pre-school evaluation on Feb 7th and an autism specialist will be there so I am wondering if we really need to go to any of these other places. Do we really need a team of caregivers? I am a stay at home mom so I don't have to worry about getting time off from work to go to these places but transportation is an issue.
I don't feel like writing much today. Sleep deprivation and stress.
Jake was pointing at pictures in a book today! He usually takes our fingers and points to things.
Patrick has been identifying letters and numbers and some colors. He can't pronounce all the words and for some reason 3 is always P and 4 is always B, but we clap and cheer. They both love it when we cheer.
It is all so overwhelming. I keep saying that but it is how I feel.
This post is a jumbled mess. I kept going back and adding stuff.
We had their hearing checked in November and their little ears are still in working order. I'm trying to think of all the things I couldn't think of yesterday. I forgot to get a copy of their shot records. I need those for their pre-school evaluation. I just called the pediatrician office and I can pick up their shot records or they can fax them somewhere for me. Yay! My memory is non-existent at this point. I have to write down everything or I forget.
Jake has a small cavity on one of his front teeth. We need to make an appointment with a kids' dentist too. They drink too much juice but it is the only way I can get them to poop. And their toothpaste doesn't have fluoride in it yet because they don't know how to spit out the toothpaste. I used Trey's toothpaste on them last night. I only used a small amount but I know they swallowed it and today Patrick threw up.
Jake took a long time to fall asleep last night. (This morning!) Patrick passed out around 3am while Jake was awake until about 4:15 or so. Patrick woke up crying around 5:45am but settled down and went back to sleep around 6:15. They slept really well after that and I woke them up at 1:30pm. They ate bananas and cheerios and drank milk. Had a shower and got dressed. Brushed teeth with the baby toothpaste. No tantrums so far today. Patrick didn't even cry when he threw up. He just looked at me like "What just happened?", then he looked disgusted. It was pretty gross. Good thing he was sitting on his bed when it happened and not the carpet. Much easier to wash a sheet and bleach a plastic mattress than to scrub a carpet.
They have new books to read and a new coloring book so we are doing that now.
I found this link for the clinic in Beckley: http://www.autismrecoveryresourcecenter.com/
I guess this is the link to the Marshall place: http://www.marshall.edu/atc/
and WVU: http://clinics.cedwvu.org/next-steps/
The boys are still scheduled for pre-school evaluation on Feb 7th and an autism specialist will be there so I am wondering if we really need to go to any of these other places. Do we really need a team of caregivers? I am a stay at home mom so I don't have to worry about getting time off from work to go to these places but transportation is an issue.
I don't feel like writing much today. Sleep deprivation and stress.
Jake was pointing at pictures in a book today! He usually takes our fingers and points to things.
Patrick has been identifying letters and numbers and some colors. He can't pronounce all the words and for some reason 3 is always P and 4 is always B, but we clap and cheer. They both love it when we cheer.
It is all so overwhelming. I keep saying that but it is how I feel.
This post is a jumbled mess. I kept going back and adding stuff.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
January 22 2012
I don't exactly know where to start. I have 4 children. A 17 year old daughter, a 9 year old son and 2 year old twin boys. I believe the twins have autism and have testing and evaluation scheduled. I will start at the beginning. The twins were born 4 weeks early at 36 weeks. Or 2 weeks early if you believe 38 weeks is full term for twins. They weighed 5 lbs 13 oz and 6 lbs 14 oz. Pretty big for preemie twins. I had gestational diabetes and possible pre eclampsia. I was retaining a lot of fluid in my feet and legs, and not urinating as much as I was drinking. So an emergency c-section was performed. We were in the hospital for three days, mostly because of me. I was on strict bedrest with my feet in some sort of massaging machine. Patrick, the biggest and oldest twin (1 minute older) needed a little oxygen as he had low oxygen saturation, and a little bit of formula as he had low blood sugar. Jacob was a little jaundiced. They had their hearing tested and their little ears were fine.
We all came home together. They developed normally. They were a little slow to roll over and sit up, but I gave them extra time to hit milestones because they were premature. They walked at 14 1/2 months.
They said a few words. They once had a whole conversation using only the word "cookie". They said "mama", "dada", "bub", and "ninny" for their older sister Kennedy. I have video of one of them saying "tanks" for "thanks" when they were about 16 months old. They like to put on their dad's ball cap and say "dad's hat."
We took them to the doctor for regular check-up and vaccinations. When they were 18 months old, we took them for a check-up and they received multiple vaccinations and a flu shot. They slept most of the day and night after that, developed temperatures and breathing problems. Jacob ended up in the ER when his chest started caving in with every breath. He was transferred to a children's hospital and stayed for 2 days. He needed an IV for dehydration, oxygen for low saturation, and breathing treatments. Patrick was admitted to the hospital the day that Jacob was released and remained for 1 day. He had ear infections in both ears and was also dehydrated. He received oxygen in the ER plus a breathing treatment but did not need it during the day he stayed. During their stays, it was very difficult to keep all the wires straight on their little bodies. I was so worried they would strangle themselves that I did not sleep unless they were lying on my chest. I was so exhausted that I did not even know what day it was when we finally went home.
After that, they lost the speech that they had. I don't know for sure if the vaccinations were the cause but that is the point were I noticed the loss of speech. In the months that followed, I noticed other children their age having conversations with their parents. Children younger than them saying "I love you" while my two either remained silent or jabbered nonsensical words. At their 2 year check-up, their doctor recommended speech therapy and cognitive development therapy. They will be 3 in about 6 weeks and Jacob has not gained any speech, while Patrick will echo some words. At their last evaluation Jake had the speech of a 12 month old and Patrick had the speech of an 18 month old.
They never slept through the night. Most new parents celebrate the 4 month mark when the baby no longer needs that 2am feeding. But 4 months came and went and these two still never sleep more than 3 or 4 hours at a time. And sometimes they sleep in shifts. One is wide awake while the other is snoring. And like a nob is turned or a switch is flipped, the sleeping one will wake up as the other nods off.
They had some repetitive behaviors like crawling back and forth across a short distance. Now the crawling has graduated to running back and forth. From the door to the opposite wall, back to the door, touch the door knob, and run back to the wall. Over and over and over. Jacob loves light switches and flips them off and on anytime he can reach them. They both like to change channels on the tv or to turn their brother's XBox off and on. And they both love to slam the kitchen cabinets. Bam bam bam bam bam. You would think it would get old after a while but so far it hasn't.
They like to watch things spin. They never really played with the whole toy car, just the wheels. They do stack blocks, work puzzles and sort shapes. Patrick liked to carry around 2 toys that were exactly the same, 2 red blocks or 2 Sesame Street cars. He also likes to put the same size blocks or the same color blocks on the dresser top. Jake likes to knock down the block towers.
They cover their ears whenever a sound bothers them. It doesn't necessarily have to be a loud sound. Sometimes just the pitch will make them cover their ears. They can sleep through the loudest of noises. They both kept snoring one early morning when I stepped on a fish hook and screamed my head off. Often they will wake up when we turn the tv or radio off.
They don't turn their heads when you call their names. They don't point to anything and never look at what is being pointed out to them. They cannot follow simple directions like "Bring me your cup." They will bring us a cup and place it in our hands when they are thirsty but not when prompted. They will also bring us a plate or bowl when they want a snack.
They are going in for their 3 year check up on Tuesday. I have told their doctor that I believe they may have autism. She will be doing the usual screening process. I told their speech therapist about my concerns and she brought in a friend of hers, who is an autism specialist, to see them. You can't make a diagnoses in one short visit but she believes they have a lot of the characteristics. They will be tested for pre-school on Feb 7th and an autism specialist will be there as well. If they are 25% delayed in 2 areas, they will qualify for special education services and be able to begin preschool on their third birthday. The preschool they will attend has a full time autism specialist and they will receive whatever treatment and therapy they need.
I have been doing a lot of googling about autism but don't really know a whole lot about it. I am going to try to keep a log of everything. I want to do more to help them. I have read a lot of articles and watched a lot of videos and I am both optimistic and overwhelmed. My reading has led me to believe that I have Aspergers syndrome but I will leave that theory for another post. My mom had a little brother whom we believe was autistic back in the 1950's. He died when he was five years old. I will leave that story for another post as well.
We all came home together. They developed normally. They were a little slow to roll over and sit up, but I gave them extra time to hit milestones because they were premature. They walked at 14 1/2 months.
They said a few words. They once had a whole conversation using only the word "cookie". They said "mama", "dada", "bub", and "ninny" for their older sister Kennedy. I have video of one of them saying "tanks" for "thanks" when they were about 16 months old. They like to put on their dad's ball cap and say "dad's hat."
We took them to the doctor for regular check-up and vaccinations. When they were 18 months old, we took them for a check-up and they received multiple vaccinations and a flu shot. They slept most of the day and night after that, developed temperatures and breathing problems. Jacob ended up in the ER when his chest started caving in with every breath. He was transferred to a children's hospital and stayed for 2 days. He needed an IV for dehydration, oxygen for low saturation, and breathing treatments. Patrick was admitted to the hospital the day that Jacob was released and remained for 1 day. He had ear infections in both ears and was also dehydrated. He received oxygen in the ER plus a breathing treatment but did not need it during the day he stayed. During their stays, it was very difficult to keep all the wires straight on their little bodies. I was so worried they would strangle themselves that I did not sleep unless they were lying on my chest. I was so exhausted that I did not even know what day it was when we finally went home.
After that, they lost the speech that they had. I don't know for sure if the vaccinations were the cause but that is the point were I noticed the loss of speech. In the months that followed, I noticed other children their age having conversations with their parents. Children younger than them saying "I love you" while my two either remained silent or jabbered nonsensical words. At their 2 year check-up, their doctor recommended speech therapy and cognitive development therapy. They will be 3 in about 6 weeks and Jacob has not gained any speech, while Patrick will echo some words. At their last evaluation Jake had the speech of a 12 month old and Patrick had the speech of an 18 month old.
They never slept through the night. Most new parents celebrate the 4 month mark when the baby no longer needs that 2am feeding. But 4 months came and went and these two still never sleep more than 3 or 4 hours at a time. And sometimes they sleep in shifts. One is wide awake while the other is snoring. And like a nob is turned or a switch is flipped, the sleeping one will wake up as the other nods off.
They had some repetitive behaviors like crawling back and forth across a short distance. Now the crawling has graduated to running back and forth. From the door to the opposite wall, back to the door, touch the door knob, and run back to the wall. Over and over and over. Jacob loves light switches and flips them off and on anytime he can reach them. They both like to change channels on the tv or to turn their brother's XBox off and on. And they both love to slam the kitchen cabinets. Bam bam bam bam bam. You would think it would get old after a while but so far it hasn't.
They like to watch things spin. They never really played with the whole toy car, just the wheels. They do stack blocks, work puzzles and sort shapes. Patrick liked to carry around 2 toys that were exactly the same, 2 red blocks or 2 Sesame Street cars. He also likes to put the same size blocks or the same color blocks on the dresser top. Jake likes to knock down the block towers.
They cover their ears whenever a sound bothers them. It doesn't necessarily have to be a loud sound. Sometimes just the pitch will make them cover their ears. They can sleep through the loudest of noises. They both kept snoring one early morning when I stepped on a fish hook and screamed my head off. Often they will wake up when we turn the tv or radio off.
They don't turn their heads when you call their names. They don't point to anything and never look at what is being pointed out to them. They cannot follow simple directions like "Bring me your cup." They will bring us a cup and place it in our hands when they are thirsty but not when prompted. They will also bring us a plate or bowl when they want a snack.
They are going in for their 3 year check up on Tuesday. I have told their doctor that I believe they may have autism. She will be doing the usual screening process. I told their speech therapist about my concerns and she brought in a friend of hers, who is an autism specialist, to see them. You can't make a diagnoses in one short visit but she believes they have a lot of the characteristics. They will be tested for pre-school on Feb 7th and an autism specialist will be there as well. If they are 25% delayed in 2 areas, they will qualify for special education services and be able to begin preschool on their third birthday. The preschool they will attend has a full time autism specialist and they will receive whatever treatment and therapy they need.
I have been doing a lot of googling about autism but don't really know a whole lot about it. I am going to try to keep a log of everything. I want to do more to help them. I have read a lot of articles and watched a lot of videos and I am both optimistic and overwhelmed. My reading has led me to believe that I have Aspergers syndrome but I will leave that theory for another post. My mom had a little brother whom we believe was autistic back in the 1950's. He died when he was five years old. I will leave that story for another post as well.
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