Sensitive Material (update)

Today was our first Early Intervention session at our home. First let me say that being place with someone was no easy task. Remember when they told me that I would be contacted within 28 days and that it would probably most definitely be sooner because our availability was so great? Well after 29 days of hearing absolutely nothing whatsoever, I contacted our coordinator to see what was up. It then took several more days for her to find someone that could service our area that specialized in what The Chubs' needed. Her schedule was very limited so I basically told her whenever she could come, to come because we NEED to get the ball rolling.

Well to make a long story short, I absolutely love her. She's wonderful and The Chubs loves her to death (she was smiling at her and showing off the entire time). She's great with kids and actually had a child with reflux so she gets it. From what she observed, The Chub Muffin has a lot of sensory issues, which is why she is hesitant to grab for things, touch things, and eat from a spoon. She also gets agitated by loud noises and often cries when she's moved from place to place or out of the bathtub. I was an idiot and didn't pick up on any of these cues until recently. I guess I figured it was "normal" behavior. I guess not.

Her thought is that she is not napping well due to these sensory issues and because of her short naps, it's compounding the problem. She wants to work on getting her nervous system regulated so we can get her to sleep better and not be as sensitive toward textures, various positions, noise and objects.

I also finally (with a lot of effort on my part) got her enrolled in the feeding therapy program at Children's. Nevermind that the head of the department STILL has not returned my calls regarding getting her placed. I had to dig up an old number we had from the NICU when The Chubs was seen by an OT for her lack of suck/swallow/breath coordination. If I hadn't had that number who knows how long this would've taken. I love this OT as well. She is wonderful and got my daughter to take several bites of food. Something we have not been able to replicate since, but at least I know it's possible. She also suspected sensory issues and sent me home with a questionnaire.

In other more interesting news, The Chubs has finally learned how to roll from back to tummy. She did this a few times during nap time and at night where she proceeded to sleep on her tummy for quite some time. I'm hoping this becomes a favorite sleeping position because it's supposed to be one of the best positions for reflux. It has to be all her idea though. And yes, she did technically roll from back to tummy around 6 months but it was an accident. One she was determined not to repeat for quite some time because she normally hates her belly.

Her second tooth is in now and all though they have not come all the way up, they are getting there everyday. She still seems to be in discomfort, however. I'm sure having heightened senses probably doesn't make it easy.

Finally, she is beginning to wave when I take her to look at herself in the mirror. It's kind of a shy wave at the moment, but she gets a kick out of seeing us together in the mirror. I also think she's beginning to sign "Mom". I've shown her this sign for several months now and every now and then she does it. The other day she did it while saying "mmma", so I think she knows what she's doing. It's anybody's guess!