Friday will be Shane's last day at day-care.
Carrie will begin working part time next week!
At first, Carrie will be have normal office hours twice a week. Shane's Elders+Dog Conglomerate (IndyPopPopNanaJama) will watch over him then.
Eventually, the job will transition to more evening work and Carrie will switch to a day-shift with Shane. Depending on when she has to report to work, I will either be coming home after four or Carrie will be meeting up with me at school for a hand-off.
It's all very much up in the air as to what will actually happen and what we will actually do.
The bottom line is: we'll make it work!
Shane will (mostly) be happy. He doesn't like going to day-care in the mornings, but he loves running over to the blocks when we get there. His teacher normally leaves them out for him. He often sings songs he's learned from music time, as well. Lately it's been "Days of the Week" to the tune of "The Adams Family."
Carrie and I won't miss paying $345 a week, though! Carrie will have to find local programs and play-groups to keep him occupied during the day!
Shane's going to play hooky tomorrow to visit Gran-Gran (a possible name for Grandma Lois?) and Thursday will be his last day-care visit from Georgeanne. She'll stop working with Shane on his third birthday this December.
Lots and lots of change is on the way. I think kids take the change quotient in your life, quadruple it, add two, and then square it.
Showing posts with label Child Find. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Child Find. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Busy Monday
My goal was to take Shane all sorts of cool places this summer.
On Monday, I took him to the doctor's office. He's had a bad cough and congestion for almost two weeks now. Carrie and I didn't think it was anything serious, but we pay for insurance so why not?
We were there for over an hour to hear "It's a bad chest cold or allergies," and I had to pull out all my Daddy tricks to survive.
Like spinning rolley-chairs.
After we got home from the doctors, Georgeanne and Janis came by for Shane's IFSP meeting. It went on for over an hour. How's that for a pair of back to back exciting adventures for a little boy?
On Monday, I took him to the doctor's office. He's had a bad cough and congestion for almost two weeks now. Carrie and I didn't think it was anything serious, but we pay for insurance so why not?
We were there for over an hour to hear "It's a bad chest cold or allergies," and I had to pull out all my Daddy tricks to survive.
Like spinning rolley-chairs.
After we got home from the doctors, Georgeanne and Janis came by for Shane's IFSP meeting. It went on for over an hour. How's that for a pair of back to back exciting adventures for a little boy?
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
IFSP Meeting today
The doctor referring Shane to child find: stressful.
Deciding to contact child find and get an informal assessment: less stressful.
The formal assessment: stressful (especially for Carrie).
Shane's first Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) review today: not stressful at all.
Shane's case manager and therapist came over today at 4 PM for the six-month review of his progress.
I was there, but I was sitting in a car in the garage.
I was on my way home from work at 3:30 PM when I called Carrie. My wife told me "don't come in."
Lately, Shane's been an extreme Mommy's boy. He's also taken an anti-Daddy stance (post to follow). I get lots of "Daddy Bye-Byes!" and if I try to hug Carrie for more than a moment Shane squeezes himself in between us.
Sometimes, he also throws a small fit when I get home from work. The therapist, Georgeanne, wanted to see one when she arrived at 4.
I made a gas detour and my wife put my Bible out in the garage so I could start my Lent reading.
I didn't come in until Carrie texted me an invitation.
No fit.
Shane had a cat toy with a helicopter tied to the end he was slinging around full force. He smiled, showed me his toy, and resumed endangering everyone in reach.
I was relieved. Nothing makes you feel more welcomed home than a temper tantrum and I can't say I was looking forward to his temper tantrum being evaluated by a specialist. Especially because it was about me.
In reality, Shane throws lots of fits when random people show up at our house or we pick him up from Nana Day-Care. I think that: 1) Shane doesn't like transitions and 2) he's really bad at playing favorites. Carrie's in and anyone who could take away Mommy time is the enemy!
When our case manager, Janice, arrived Shane threw one of his fits. He swatted the air and then ran and knocked over some of his toys to show his displeasure (I admit, I felt a little vindicated).
From there, the meeting when in to a full discussion of Shane's progress and his needs. Both women had great things to say. They were extremely helpful and supportive. A social worker was added to answer questions about Shane's behavior and there is a chance we could get free pre-school through the county if Shane qualifies. I would be a little worried about paying more for the extra services, but with Carrie's reduced hours and pending job loss, our income dropped enough that we no longer have a co-pay for any of our services. I'm very glad that we live in the proactive county we do!
The best of all, though, was Shane was happy the whole time Georganne and Janice were here! Mommy was playing with him and he had an audience! He laughed; he giggled. Shane ran circles and from room to room. Would wonders never cease? It was like he knew there were outsiders in the house and wanted Carrie and I to look like A+ parents. I appreciated it.
The only downside was the meeting took close to 2 hours. The ladies were really into word-smithing some of the goals. I was less concerned. They've convinced me through their actions in the past that they have my sons best interests at heart. If I felt otherwise, I would play the "I know a lot about Special Education too" game. Thankfully, that was (and is) not the case.
Janice has Carrie signed up to visit a preschool program through the county Thursday morning. We'll know more then about whether or not we'd want to have Shane receive services through them or stick with the preschool Carrie signed him up for.
Deciding to contact child find and get an informal assessment: less stressful.
The formal assessment: stressful (especially for Carrie).
Shane's first Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) review today: not stressful at all.
Shane's case manager and therapist came over today at 4 PM for the six-month review of his progress.
I was there, but I was sitting in a car in the garage.
I was on my way home from work at 3:30 PM when I called Carrie. My wife told me "don't come in."
Lately, Shane's been an extreme Mommy's boy. He's also taken an anti-Daddy stance (post to follow). I get lots of "Daddy Bye-Byes!" and if I try to hug Carrie for more than a moment Shane squeezes himself in between us.
Sometimes, he also throws a small fit when I get home from work. The therapist, Georgeanne, wanted to see one when she arrived at 4.
I made a gas detour and my wife put my Bible out in the garage so I could start my Lent reading.
I didn't come in until Carrie texted me an invitation.
No fit.
Shane had a cat toy with a helicopter tied to the end he was slinging around full force. He smiled, showed me his toy, and resumed endangering everyone in reach.
I was relieved. Nothing makes you feel more welcomed home than a temper tantrum and I can't say I was looking forward to his temper tantrum being evaluated by a specialist. Especially because it was about me.
In reality, Shane throws lots of fits when random people show up at our house or we pick him up from Nana Day-Care. I think that: 1) Shane doesn't like transitions and 2) he's really bad at playing favorites. Carrie's in and anyone who could take away Mommy time is the enemy!
When our case manager, Janice, arrived Shane threw one of his fits. He swatted the air and then ran and knocked over some of his toys to show his displeasure (I admit, I felt a little vindicated).
From there, the meeting when in to a full discussion of Shane's progress and his needs. Both women had great things to say. They were extremely helpful and supportive. A social worker was added to answer questions about Shane's behavior and there is a chance we could get free pre-school through the county if Shane qualifies. I would be a little worried about paying more for the extra services, but with Carrie's reduced hours and pending job loss, our income dropped enough that we no longer have a co-pay for any of our services. I'm very glad that we live in the proactive county we do!
The best of all, though, was Shane was happy the whole time Georganne and Janice were here! Mommy was playing with him and he had an audience! He laughed; he giggled. Shane ran circles and from room to room. Would wonders never cease? It was like he knew there were outsiders in the house and wanted Carrie and I to look like A+ parents. I appreciated it.
The only downside was the meeting took close to 2 hours. The ladies were really into word-smithing some of the goals. I was less concerned. They've convinced me through their actions in the past that they have my sons best interests at heart. If I felt otherwise, I would play the "I know a lot about Special Education too" game. Thankfully, that was (and is) not the case.
Janice has Carrie signed up to visit a preschool program through the county Thursday morning. We'll know more then about whether or not we'd want to have Shane receive services through them or stick with the preschool Carrie signed him up for.
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Shane's 18 month check-up (at the 19 month mark...oops)
Yesterday, Shane and I drove through 45 minutes of backed up traffic to make it to his Dr's appointment. He was not a happy camper by the time we arrived. He was ready to runnnnn in typical Shane fashion when we walked in. Carrie really liked this pediatric center, but it was my first time to visit with Shane. I was a little surprised when they handed me a questionnaire. The form said M-Chart or something similar to that at the top. It did not list a purpose, but I immediately recognized it for what it was: autism screening.
It was a little worrisome, but I figure it must be a common procedure nowadays. Score one for the autism community on promoting early intervention. Shane does not present the way a typical kid on the spectrum does. I knew all the right answers, but I was honest. There was only question I couldn't answer 'correctly.'
"Does your child imitate faces that you make?"
No. Shane never sits still and is too busy trying to do what he wants to do. If you stick out your tongue, he will laugh and try to pull it an extra foot out of your mouth, but he does not stick out his tongue in reply.
When the doctor came in, she grilled me on my Baby's life. How much milk does Shane drink in a day? How many we diapers? Poop diapers? Wake-up time? Bed time? It turns out I knew most of the information fairly quickly (shocking.), but there was one area the doctor became intensely interested in.
"How many words does your son speak?"
"A few."
It was a little worrisome, but I figure it must be a common procedure nowadays. Score one for the autism community on promoting early intervention. Shane does not present the way a typical kid on the spectrum does. I knew all the right answers, but I was honest. There was only question I couldn't answer 'correctly.'
"Does your child imitate faces that you make?"
No. Shane never sits still and is too busy trying to do what he wants to do. If you stick out your tongue, he will laugh and try to pull it an extra foot out of your mouth, but he does not stick out his tongue in reply.
When the doctor came in, she grilled me on my Baby's life. How much milk does Shane drink in a day? How many we diapers? Poop diapers? Wake-up time? Bed time? It turns out I knew most of the information fairly quickly (shocking.), but there was one area the doctor became intensely interested in.
"How many words does your son speak?"
"A few."
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