Lil Sis

I went to court for the first hearing for Lil Sis this morning. It was quite a production. BM, possible BF, two sets of aunts and uncles, and I showed up.  Everyone was friendly and no one got their feelings hurt. Familiar attorneys from Sweets' case are involved again, and they remembered most of the players. Lil Sis is staying in the relative's home (good decision!), and we will proceed over the next two months seeing what BM does and whether possible BF really is BF. Yep, here we go again!

Six Months Old

BB is now six months old!  Where has the time gone?  He is the most adorable little guy, and I absolutely love, love, love him!  He now rolls over both ways and has just started sitting up enough to count it as actually sitting.  He stayed over a minute in a sitting position today, way up from three seconds just days ago.  Still no teeth, but he chows down on the baby food. 

At court this week, the case plan officially changed to severance and adoption.  If everything goes perfectly, TPR could happen by the end of the year.  Knowing how something usually goes awry, I will be happy if it happens by the end of February.  Adoption is starting to seem very real! 

I am so thankful that I quit trying to control my placement situation and just left it up to the Man upstairs!  BB is such a blessing to our family.  He is so happy, even when he wakes in the morning.  He is also very alert and engaging.  Praise God that we were chosen to be his forever family!

Spider Bite

Buddy has been complaining about his leg itching from a bug bite since yesterday.  He has had a lot of bug bites lately, supposedly because he ran through some tall grass near school.  Well, this particular bite was bothering him more than most.  Yesterday the outside of his left thigh looked like an itchy bite that he had been scratching.  This morning it was red around the bite.  By this afternoon the redness had expanded to over 3" in diameter; it was hard and warm.  Tonight I took him to a nighttime pediatric urgent care (open 5pm to 5am seven days a week for kids only - best idea in a long time!).  Verdict: spider bite!

The doctor prescribed five days of oral antibiotic and 2.5% hydrocortisone cream.  After we finally got home from the 24 hour pharmacy with the prescriptions, I stared at the antibiotic, thinking that it didn't look like a chewable pill.  I called the pharmacy.  Nope, not chewable.  Azithromycin doesn't come in chewable.  I explained to Buddy that he had to swallow it with water; he was not happy.  After fifteen minutes of  "I don't know how" followed by a demonstration with a different pill by mom, he tried it.  Bravo!  Swallowed it on the first swig!  Happy boy; happy mom.  Hopefully the spider bite clears up soon!

Busy Day Ahead

Saturday morning starts with May, Sweets, and Buddy going off to Children's Chorus rehearsal.  They are up and excited to go.  I pick them up at noon and rush to the other side of town for a foster care training class (you know, those things you need to keep your license - most get old after 16 years!).  Tonight we are going to an Autumn Moon Festival with friends who adopted their daughter from China.  That should be lots of fun and a new experience for us!  Somewhere in there I need to make progress on a paper for my class.  Have a great weekend!

Fun Day

I went with Buddy's class on their field trip to the Science Museum today.  It was a fun day, but tiring!  The boys went from one hands-on exhibit to the next, sometimes faster than you can blink.  They had a ball, especially on the ones where you crank, pull, push, drop, or spin.  Buddy was so happy I finally made it to one of his field trips; I'm so glad I had the opportunity!

Here We Go Again?

CPS removed Sweets' four year old sister  from BM and took Lil Sis into state custody today.  Lil Sis is currently staying with an appropriate family member.  BF needs to be determined; don't know if it is Sweets' dad or not.

Frustration

May has dyslexia, and it makes schoolwork very difficult for her. She has a high IQ, and speaking to her, you decide that she is smart, mature, and very logical for an 11 year old. Most people who meet her think she is considerably older. However, put a piece of paper in front of her to read, or ask her to write something, and it is a huge struggle. I hired a tutor for May beginning the summer after kindergarten. May received resource help (special ed) in the public school starting in 2nd grade through 4th grade. They tried, but progress was slow, and May's self-esteem was diminishing, more quickly as she grew older. By late 4th grade, I knew something had to change.

I asked and eventually begged to have May admitted to a private Christian school for 5th grade. Her homeroom teacher had worked with dyslexic students before and was determined to help May learn. The principal was concerned about whether the school could meet May's needs, but we finally won him over. May thrived! She made at least two years progress in reading in just nine months. She was accepted by the other students and was no longer singled out as one of the "special" kids who couldn't keep up. Accommodations were made for some assignments, mainly to assess learning orally instead of through written tests, but she did 5th grade work. Only spelling expectations were reduced; she learned all other subjects at grade level.

Now May is in 6th grade, and her 5th grade teacher moved up to become her 6th grade homeroom teacher. I can't tell you how AWESOME this is! A new 5th grade teacher was hired and she is now "learning" how to teach May. The new 5th grade teacher teaches reading and language arts to the 5th and 6th grade classes, while the 6th grade teacher teaches math, science, social studies, and Bible to these two grades.

Here is where the current frustration sets in... Vocabulary! The 6th grade has a vocabulary book with 20 new vocabulary words for each two week period. I'm impressed by the level of the word lists, the first of which included one word I had never heard of! Do you know what a repast is?

The method of learning for this teacher is to have the students write each word, pronunciation, part of speech, definition, and synonyms on a 3x5 index card. I wrote to her and met with her and explained that this would not help May learn the words. First of all, it would take her more than 30 minutes to create one index card (copying is VERY difficult). Secondly, May would have no more idea what was on the index card than what was in the book, because she CAN'T READ IT. Third, she couldn't recognize what the word is because she never heard it, and since she can't read it.... Are you catching on? I tried to explain to the teacher that May could learn these words; in fact, she already knows some of them, as her vocabulary is well above grade level. May also has an amazing memory. But I also told her teacher that May needed to learn the words by listening to them and hearing the words and the definitions.

Well, today was the first day of the third word list. May is excused from creating index cards, but she has been asked to TYPE all of the above information. Aargh!!! She typed up three of them and had no idea what the words even were! I guess I need to talk to the teacher again.

A Little Behind

The early childhood specialist came out two weeks ago and declared BB was on target or above, except for his gross motor skills, which were quite behind.  So the PT came out this morning for a further evaluation of BB.  She said he is functioning in gross motor at a solid four months level.  He will be six months next week.  To qualify for further services, he must be 50% delayed, and he is not (thank goodness).  The PT said his fine motor skills and responsiveness are great.  She recommended more floor time and just to watch him for the next few months.  By 9-10 months, he should be pivoting around on the floor and scooching or crawling (even if only army style).  If not, then we'll evaluate again as he approaches a year old.  Since he keeps improving, I'm not worried.  I'll bet he rolls over from back to front (already does front to back) within a couple of weeks.

BB went to the eye specialist yesterday because his left eyelid has drooped since birth.  She did a full exam and said it is not interferring with his vision, which is the only thing they would be concerned with at this age.  Again, we wait and monitor.  As long as it doesn't cause any vision problems, they will wait a few years, and only then might they consider surgery if the eyelid muscle doesn't strengthen on its own.  BB will go back every 3-4 months to the eye specialist for monitoring.

At the pediatrician yesterday, BB weighed 17 pounds 10 ounces.  He is getting SO big!  He is already moving into 9 month clothes.  No wonder he loves to eat!

Dinosaurs

Sweets and Buddy set up this scene over the weekend:

They declared one side was the plant eaters and one side was the meat eaters.  Wonder which side won?   ;-)

Yum, Yum!

BB is a great eater! He now likes peas, green beans, squash, carrots, and applesauce. He tolerates the rice and oatmeal cereal, but he likes the veggies much more. We are just beginning the fruits, and I am convinced he will probably like them all. He sees a jar and spoon and gets very excited!

Diaper rash has arrived with a passion, though. His little tushy is almost raw from squirting little amounts of p**p in almost every diaper change. Diaper rash cream wasn't cutting it, even with cornstarch powder. I've moved on to A & D ointment, which seems to sooth but is not yet healing. BB loves his bath, and I think it makes him feel much better, but he screams whenever you touch his redness. Hopefully his tummy / GI will adjust soon and come to a happy medium between the infrequent bowel movements days apart and the now constant output.

Remembering

Nine years ago, but seems like not so long. I remember I turned the news on at 6am as I got ready for work, something I rarely did. But that morning I heard the reporter say there was smoke coming out of the World Trade Center. Then the rest of the events unfolded. Being clear across the country, it all seemed surreal, but yet it was scary. I went on about my day, dropped three toddlers off at daycare and proceeded to work, all continuously listening to the radio for more news. About 2pm I received a call from the daycare. They were evacuating; a bomb threat had been called into the nearby high school. I was glad for the excuse to go home. The kids were too little to know anything, but they knew I was sad. We prayed and hoped and prayed.

Today, kids don't really associate much with this day. May knows it's the day the planes crashed into the twin towers, but she can't comprehend why. I pray for those that lost their lives and the families left behind. I pray that our country continues to stand strong and does not bow to those who will not compromise. We must rely on God as a nation. Yes, we can be tolerant of others, but only as far as their tolerance allows. We cannot sacrifice our lives and our country in the name of tolerance and political correctness to those who have no tolerance for beliefs other than their own. God Bless America!

Foster Care Review Board

FCRB for BB was today.  I took him to the meeting, and the review committee was so excited to see a baby in person!  He was very well behaved and adorable as usual.  Case plan is being changed to severance and adoption, and the review went well.  Everyone is happy that BB is potentially in his permanent home.  They were very pleased that I have been and plan to continue to have visits with a couple of BB's extended family members.  They are supportive of me adopting him.  It's so nice when a case is so easy.  I feel for the bio mom, but she either decided to make things easy on BB or simply doesn't care.  Either way, if she surfaces and turns her life around later, I am open to her having contact with BB, as long as she is appropriate.  We have that relationship with May's dad, and it is working beautifully, both for her and for him. :-)

Busy Holiday Weekend

Wow! I can't believe the long weekend is coming to a close already. I didn't accomplish much of anything I had planned, but we all enjoyed family time together instead. Saturday was spent going out for lunch, watching a movie, and then swimming with my good friend C. and a former foster daughter who was able to spend some time with us.  Sunday was church, followed by my parents coming over for the rest of the day. We tried double decker tostadas for lunch (yum!), went swimming, made a C*stco run, and had spaghetti for dinner.

Today we slept in. May fed BB this morning, so I got an extra hour of sleep (THANKS!). My parents came over again and we just "hung around". My sister had the day off and came over to see the kids. We grilled hamburgers, chicken legs, and hot dogs for lunch. Then we got in the pool again to cool things off. I'll be glad when the 100+ degree days are over!

BB loves the swimming pool. He likes his bath too, but the pool (which is probably 90 degrees these days) is his favorite. He puts his head back and relaxes. He splashes and kicks. This weekend I dunked him under a few times, and he liked that too. Water in his face? No problem! He has a ball!

Milestone Today

Miss M told me that BB rolled over today! He rolled from his tummy to his back about four times. As she went for the camera, he fell asleep exhausted. Hopefully I'll get to see him tomorrow.

BB has been doing well with baby food. He likes green beans and peas. He tolerates cereal. He is back to sleeping through the night again, sometimes over ten hours. I think the worst of the gas issues are behind us, thank goodness.

On Friday, an early childhood specialist is coming to evaluate BB to see if he is on target for his age. I think his gross motor skills are a little delayed, but everything else seems to be coming along nicely. We'll see what her opinion is.

I praise God for bringing this beautiful child into our family. This is not what I had planned, but He knew what was right for us. I'm starting to allow myself to be excited that BB may get to stay. Based on past experience, it is so hard to start down that emotional path when decisions are still uncertain. I'm just trusting Him to know what is right!