Parker's Favorites: January 2016- Part 2

Okay...got a bit long-winded, there.  P just has so many favorites!  He also has a lot of goals :)  We are working hard on speech, which still includes a lot of signs.  We are realizing quickly that Parker's needs are growing more sophisticated than his ability to communicate them.  We are hoping this helps boost some speech progress.  One major LOVE of his right now is the new heated blanket we bought. If he saw me on the couch with it, he would sign "more"-- but it took me a few minutes to figure out that "more" meant blanket.  So we've worked with him at least on changing his sign to "help," and hope to work on "blanket."  Our issue at the moment is that many signs are similar, so we are working on distinguishing between objects and needs.  We've found that there are some things that Parker will not try and speak because the sign is so efficient for him, like "more" or "eat."  Currently, "All done" is the only sign that he will also speak.  We are making progress, though!

One of our biggest milestones in the last few weeks has been Parker's transition into his "big boy bed."  This has taken us a good 8-10 months to accomplish, so we are pretty excited.  We started late last summer, like many parents--- Parker figured out how to climb out of his crib, and we panicked.  We made assumptions about how well he would do with this transition because he is able to successfully sleep on a cot at daycare during nap time.  We took the side off his crib, added a toddler  rail, and thought all would be perfect.  We were wrong.  The lack of peer pressure at home, our inability to sit with him for two hours until he fell asleep, and the temptation to get up and play did us in.  So, after a week or so, in a move of total exhaustion, we turned his crib around so the tall side faced out, and brainstormed what to do next.  We couldn't come up with anything great-- I even researched special needs beds.  They are fantastic, but often custom made and nearly a thousand dollars.  I just didn't feel like we were at that point yet.  I researched mesh covers, tent beds, cots, etc. At the end of winter break, we decided to try again.  This time, we got a little smarter and re-connected our baby video monitor, and strengthened our bed time routine.  When Parker tried to get out of bed, we gently scolded him through the monitor.  We are about a week and a half to two weeks into big boy sleeping!  He still gets out of his bed in the morning and plays, which is hysterical to listen to, but we'll choose our battles wisely.  See the video below.....last week, I woke up to Parker hysterically giggling just before my alarm went off.  In the pitch black, he was counting, throwing something across his room, giggling, running after it, and starting over again.  Love. That. Boy.

As I mentioned before, we are learning about Parker and what helps him focus.  At home, there aren't a huge amount of things that Parker really needs to sit down, sit still, and focus on.  School and therapies are not like that.  So, we brainstorm methods for helping him sit still.  He loves music, rhythmic stories, bouncing, swinging, etc.  We are experimenting with wrapping him in Lycra to see if it helps him settle.  We are avoiding buying and installing a swing in the house for now...but I suspect that will be in our future.  The child just needs to move.  In OT, they tell us that it is because of his low muscle tone-- his body doesn't feel safe or comfortable in space, and movement helps bring him awareness.  But the tough fact of life is that sometimes, we just have to sit still, so we are working towards that.  He is a tough little man.

Parker Discovers Bowling: