For the Love of Ivey

So, this week marks the end of March, which only leaves April to come in like a Lamb. It also means that Ivey’s second birthday is fast approaching. I can’t believe another year has passed. The days before Ivey are memories of a different person living my life. Two years ago seems like it was a lifetime ago and this past year is but a flash behind me. Someone told me a couple of months ago that parents of special need children begin to truly come out of the fog around the second year. Maybe so; at least it feels like it. One thing for certain, there is still a long journey ahead of us. However, now I can honestly say that I look forward to the future. For so long the certainty of ‘tomorrow’ was suffocating, actually depressing. Now I am finally wrapping my head around the acceptance that our days are full, they are busy, they circle around medical yip-yap, but they are good. I went to the mall a few weeks ago in a rush to try and grab Easter outfits for the boys. I was in a panic tryin...

If you watched the video first, you probably saw a little girl playing with a toothbrush. Yes and no. She is playing with the toothbrush. What is great is that she (actually we) have finally found something that she loves to hold. It has taken months. We have tried spoons, drum sticks, spatulas, whisks, more toys than you can count and finally the toothbrush. She loves it. It is still a little heavy, but she hangs on to it until her little hand gets tired. Ivey’s favorite ‘thing’ to chew on is her thumb, which you have all seen in the video. She loves it so much there is an awful blister on it right now. Second, her shirt, which ever she is wearing at the moment – mostly the sleeve. Third, fingers, but I think most people have learned there lesson when it comes to fingers. Now…the toothbrush. What you may not realize is that Ivey is actually learning in this video. We have been teaching her about object permanence. Objects are all around her even if she can’t see them. All of you moms ...

Update: The past two weeks have been full of appointments. Last week on Wednesday alone Ivey had three appointments. She went to her BEGIN class at the Center for the Visually Impaired (CVI). One of our main goals is to encourage Ivey to reach out beyond her comfort zone. Pretend that Ivey is in a little cylinder and beyond that is a strange land for her. We want her to become comfortable and trusting that she can explore away from her body. So when playing or interacting with Ivey, let her become secure with you. Then you can encourage her to reach out to objects or toys - guide her as you do so. If you know Ivey, she loves to play with long hair, rub scruffy faces and chew on everything attached to her (bids, shirt sleeves, tubes or socks), we want her to feel or hear something new and be curious enough to 'find' it. Her prosthesis were also enlarged by her ocularist. Now her little eyes fit better and for the time she is having a hard time getting them out by herself. So for...