January 2010 - July 2010

2010

Alan is doing great in the CD4 (Child Development class for 4 year olds).  He is making friends and listening well.  Had some transition issues but the teachers helped Alan work through them and he is doing remarkably well.  Our IEP (Individualized Education Plan) is due in May.  By March 2010, Alan is talking in sentences, requesting (demanding :-)), eating different foods, listening, awesome eye-contact, and attending well.  He enjoys school so much and I am looking forward to see how he does in Kindergarten.  Well, the end of the year is here and he finished CD4.  He graduated with his class (too cute)!  It has been decided to mainstream Alan into Kindergarten next year full day with little to no support.  I am in full agreement.  I have declined OT for the following year.  I kept his speech at 1.5 hours a week but moved it from individual to group to encourage more conversations with peers.  He no longer needs any type of special education and his IEP is being handled by a case manager now.

May 2010:

·        Counts to 31

·        Knows days of the week and months of the year

·        Knows Upper and Lowercase and sounds for each letter

·        Can write all Upper and Lowercase (needs some find tuning)

·        Can say his first and last name

·        Write and spell is first and last name (if you knew our last name believe me this is a great accomplishment)

·        Write his numbers

·        Social skills are emerging

·        Large Vocabulary

·        Understands "WH" questions

·        Understands Verbs, adjectives, nouns

·        Starting to learn He, She, Him, Her, I, You, and We

·        Rides a big boy bike with training wheels

·        Ride a scooter

·        Reads up to 100 sight words

·        Learning how to swim

·        Drawing and Colorings has improved

·        Attends well in Little Gym Class

·        Loves to act out scenes using favorite characters

·        Knows his age, Birthday, phone number, and address

Summer 2010

Alan went to Camp Good Times again this year and enjoyed it.  I think this will be his last year.  I am thinking of putting him in more sports and other camps that he can learn more social skills.  We declined ESY.  Alan continues to receive ABA.  During the school year, Alan does 18-22 hours of ABA.  During the summer, he did about 24-30 hours of ABA.  We are getting ready for Daddy to come home from deployment.  I have setup a countdown for the kids so they know when Daddy is coming home.  We have planned a big surprise to Disney World.  I am so excited this is our first time going on a family vacation.  Over the summer his language has doubled and his attentiveness and listening skills have improved dramatically.  Behaviors have been eliminated.  I call them “Just being a 4-5 year old”.  Typical tantrum or stubbornness is all I see now.  

August 2010

We went to Disney World and stayed at the best resort ever.  Thank you Uncle Glynn and Aunt Wendy for making our family vacation memorable.  The hotel had a water slide which was Alan’s favorite.  It was this 2 story high water slide and he went down it all by himself.  We enjoyed Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Epcot.  I am looking forward to our future years at Disney.  We did learn a few things:  Epcot is not for us, do not ever go to Disney in August and double check the luggage your husband packs.  Other than that the character dinners were great.  The kids had a blast eating with the Princesses, Mickey Mouse, Donald, Minnie, and many more.  Great times and cannot wait till next year.

Alan starts Kindergarten on August 16, 2010.  I am so nervous about how he will do with no support.  First day of school and my son walks into class and just fit right in.  No “bye, mommy”, “I love you, mommy”, “I will miss you”.  Nothing.  HAPPY DAYS!  His teacher this year understands what Autism is which is great.  There is no need for the endless meetings of explaining why he does some things or if she could change things for him.  Nope she knows and I am so relieved for that.  I was worried in the beginning but all my fears have been settled.

In the beginning of August, I signed Alan up for Soccer.  I was anxious, fearful, and excited all at the same time.  I never thought the day would come where I would get to sign my boy up for a sport.  We bought the cleats, soccer shorts, shin guards, and soccer ball.  First day of practice he did really well.  He had some attention problems but it was his first day.  Each practice after this got better.  He had his off days but he did so much better than I thought.  Our first game, Alan did great.  He stayed with his team while on the field.  He had problems listening to his coach and had to be carried off several times, but I know it will get better.  The second game was so much better.  He listened really well and enjoyed himself.  We had some issues at the end but he was upset that he could not get the ball.  As parents, we talked to him and hopefully he understands that soccer is supposed to be fun.  All we require of him is listen to his coaches, follow directions, no whining or crying, and just try.  I know at his next game it will be much better.  He is doing so well and I am so proud of how far he has come.