Well. I guess I haven't posted in a bit. This whole end of the world thing has really shifted life. Let me see if I can catch everyone up because really amazing stuff has been happening.
When I posted last I was updating various therapy videos and talking about how we were starting to see things shifting for Dominic. We had gone down to Pueblo and visited my friends Stable with our friends, and generally life was just plugging along. Dominic was in a stand alone significant special needs classroom in public school, and was wrapping up a unit of swim class that we had to fight to get him in. And that he loved. We were making plans to go skiing with the same friends we went to the stables with over spring break. And i'd bought a camper and was making plans to get it tuned up and happy so we could go camping this summer. We had made plans for Dominic to continue the tutoring that we started over the holiday break twice a week and that he would join full time for the summer (full time is 6 hours a day / 5 days a week)
Then the plague arrived.
Mid March the state of Colorado basically shut down. Our ski trip plans got axed (only took 3 weeks to get the refund on the VRBO, but it did come), schools closed a week before spring break planning to come back after like nothing else. We thought we just needed 14 days to incubate. At the beginning of this, a couple of us who are pretty close agreed to quarantine together - eg - go shopping for each other as needed, take care of each other if we got sick, take turns giving each other a break from the kids, offer adult conversation, etc. I'm so very grateful for that. I spent those 2 weeks taking care of 2 kids most days, while working the first week (the second i already had vacation for spring break) and rode out some crud or another (not saying it was the plague, but i did talk to my doctor during it, and it did take me about 10 days to feel right, but i never got super sick. OTOH, I did throw ALL my tricks at it including nebulizing colloidal silver).
By the end of that second week we knew that the schools were going to go to distance learning - and we will be suprised if thats not for the remainder of the year - and that we would be expected to do it all. That did not work for Dominic. His first attempt at video interaction with a therapist was a huge failure. He really does need the 1:1 right there and I cannot do that and work. So he spent 2 weeks staring at the tv and it showed. So we reached out to Rachel, his tutor. I am considered essential because I work telecom. My friend is essential as healthcare. Both our kids are allowed to be in daycare. The tutor is an LLC, not a school, so she's allowed to offer care. We made it work. Instead of starting full time there on June 1, Dominic started full time April 1. My friend picks him up and drops both kids off in the morning and I pick them up and let them play for a few hours together after. Rachel is working on brain bridging, math, science and reading. At the level they are.
1. In general its really good for 2 only children to have to learn to cooperate, play together and share. When both those kids have quirks of varying levels, its actually imperative. Its been very nice to see that when left to their own devices, these two kids end up playing together in one form or another. This is the first actual FRIEND Dominic has had since before he regressed. he has never spent this much time playing with ANY other child in the course of his life.
2. 8 full days with Rachel and we are seeing HUGE things and i'm trying hard to not get sucked back into the hope thing, but its hard when we see
- Dominic spontaneously using full sentences that are NOT scripts
- Dominic's articulation improving to the point that we are figuring out what he's saying ("happyerector" was actually happily ever after)
- Dominic is trying to read EVERYTHING. I caught him watching a youtube on the TV of someone reading a finding nemo story aloud and he paused it and we read one word at a time. He struggles and he gets mad, but he is trying so hard.
Edited to add, as I was publishing this blog, he started to do it! So here's a video of it from RIGHT THIS SECOND.
- Dominic asking to call his friends (specifically Kelley and Rachel and then being happy to send them messages on messenger kids)
- Last night as Daddy was going upstairs after wishing him good night, Dominic came running out and hollered (twice) "You are my Best Friend" up the stairs.
3. It is my hope to be able to finance keeping Dominic with Rachel through the remainder of his high school career. Currently the universe seems to be supporting that desire as the way to pay for it is appearing.
I'll try to remember to post here for long term record keeping.... but no promises. Clearly i get easily distracted.
When I posted last I was updating various therapy videos and talking about how we were starting to see things shifting for Dominic. We had gone down to Pueblo and visited my friends Stable with our friends, and generally life was just plugging along. Dominic was in a stand alone significant special needs classroom in public school, and was wrapping up a unit of swim class that we had to fight to get him in. And that he loved. We were making plans to go skiing with the same friends we went to the stables with over spring break. And i'd bought a camper and was making plans to get it tuned up and happy so we could go camping this summer. We had made plans for Dominic to continue the tutoring that we started over the holiday break twice a week and that he would join full time for the summer (full time is 6 hours a day / 5 days a week)
Then the plague arrived.
Mid March the state of Colorado basically shut down. Our ski trip plans got axed (only took 3 weeks to get the refund on the VRBO, but it did come), schools closed a week before spring break planning to come back after like nothing else. We thought we just needed 14 days to incubate. At the beginning of this, a couple of us who are pretty close agreed to quarantine together - eg - go shopping for each other as needed, take care of each other if we got sick, take turns giving each other a break from the kids, offer adult conversation, etc. I'm so very grateful for that. I spent those 2 weeks taking care of 2 kids most days, while working the first week (the second i already had vacation for spring break) and rode out some crud or another (not saying it was the plague, but i did talk to my doctor during it, and it did take me about 10 days to feel right, but i never got super sick. OTOH, I did throw ALL my tricks at it including nebulizing colloidal silver).
By the end of that second week we knew that the schools were going to go to distance learning - and we will be suprised if thats not for the remainder of the year - and that we would be expected to do it all. That did not work for Dominic. His first attempt at video interaction with a therapist was a huge failure. He really does need the 1:1 right there and I cannot do that and work. So he spent 2 weeks staring at the tv and it showed. So we reached out to Rachel, his tutor. I am considered essential because I work telecom. My friend is essential as healthcare. Both our kids are allowed to be in daycare. The tutor is an LLC, not a school, so she's allowed to offer care. We made it work. Instead of starting full time there on June 1, Dominic started full time April 1. My friend picks him up and drops both kids off in the morning and I pick them up and let them play for a few hours together after. Rachel is working on brain bridging, math, science and reading. At the level they are.
1. In general its really good for 2 only children to have to learn to cooperate, play together and share. When both those kids have quirks of varying levels, its actually imperative. Its been very nice to see that when left to their own devices, these two kids end up playing together in one form or another. This is the first actual FRIEND Dominic has had since before he regressed. he has never spent this much time playing with ANY other child in the course of his life.
2. 8 full days with Rachel and we are seeing HUGE things and i'm trying hard to not get sucked back into the hope thing, but its hard when we see
- Dominic spontaneously using full sentences that are NOT scripts
- Dominic's articulation improving to the point that we are figuring out what he's saying ("happyerector" was actually happily ever after)
- Dominic is trying to read EVERYTHING. I caught him watching a youtube on the TV of someone reading a finding nemo story aloud and he paused it and we read one word at a time. He struggles and he gets mad, but he is trying so hard.
Edited to add, as I was publishing this blog, he started to do it! So here's a video of it from RIGHT THIS SECOND.
- Dominic asking to call his friends (specifically Kelley and Rachel and then being happy to send them messages on messenger kids)
- Last night as Daddy was going upstairs after wishing him good night, Dominic came running out and hollered (twice) "You are my Best Friend" up the stairs.
3. It is my hope to be able to finance keeping Dominic with Rachel through the remainder of his high school career. Currently the universe seems to be supporting that desire as the way to pay for it is appearing.
I'll try to remember to post here for long term record keeping.... but no promises. Clearly i get easily distracted.
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