[blparent] Fw: Update

[Deborah Kent Stein]

Hi, all,

Many of you probably remember Sarah Merrick, who was an active participant on this list until about a year ago.  She recently sent me an update on her family and asked me to share it with everyone.

Debbie


 From: mds4pak at sbcglobal.net 
To: Deborah Kent Stein 
Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2008 9:01 AM



      It's been a very busy year. Liam and Ivy are in first grade now. Liam has behavior plan meetings every month, and due to the school dragging their feet as usual, I am with a parent advocate to try and get him the proper educational diagnosis so he can get a much more qualified teacher consultant.

      Also, after years of trying to put it off, we've gotten Liam to a fabulous psychiatrist and he is now on Stratera after a disasterous attempt to put him on Aderol this past summer. He seems to be responding quite well, and has bringing home fuller stamp charts for good behavior, which makes him, and us, very proud. He's trying very hard and his teachers are doing a lot of things to help him like giving him a cushioned chair, weighted lap blanket, sensory breaks, and a lot of personal attention. But they have twenty-eight other children and can often get overwhelmed with making sure Liam gets all the specialized attention he needs.

      Ryan is talking some and running now. He'll be three in March. We have finally made it to two and three word sentences, and he is shooting up like a weed! He loves trains and cars, lights, water, and exploring the entire house despite my best attempts at baby-proofing. He's receiving occupational, physical, and speech therapy every two weeks. He's also got an I E P and a file with our local special education department. We are very lucky to still be participating in the study through University of Michigan for siblings of children with Autism, and Ryan gets a lot of evaluations and observation at their clinic as well, which is the best in the state.

      It is hard as he's gotten older to know with certainty that he has developmental delays as well, and that we might have another child on the Autistic Spectrum. Daniel and I just try to do our best as any other parents would, living day to day as a family and giving the kids new experiences and room to grow without hindering Ivy's development or overwhelming Liam and Ryan. 

      It is hard, and for a while, I wondered why my third child had to be born prematurely as well, and why he apparently has the same disorder as his brother. And then I told myself to get over it because we wouldn't have been given such special and adorable children if we couldn't handle them. Indeed, they couldn't have been born into a more loving family, and with some of their traits, Daniel and I will admit the apple didn't fall far from the tree. *grin*

      So we're trying to get Liam into a local clinic through Western Michigan University that teaches kids on the spectrum the basics of conversation, socialization, reading situational clues, and understanding the dynamic of person to person interaction. He is seeing the best psychiatrist in town, and we're currently getting Ryan on a waiting list to see the same doctor. At least we can be satisfied with the care they're receiving, and that we're doing all we can as parents.

      Ivy has gotten so grown up! She dotes on the kittens we got this past summer, says she wants to dance and sing on stage when she grows up, and loves helping me in the kitchen and garden. She is reading well above most of the first grade class, and is rocketing along with math and science skills. She is very talkative, funny, and just plain gorgeous, and has a huge crowd of friends from school. She and Liam still play very well together, and the twins still don't want to split up and sleep in different rooms. It's so cute.

      Well speaking of kids, Ryan is busily opening and closing the upstairs doors, so I should probably go before he ruins the hinges. ;) Feel free to forward this message to the list if you like, and do pass along my contact information to anyone who'd like it. We're all doing quite well. Work's going great for me (I can write in the evenings when the kids are in bed so we get to avoid any sort of daycare. Yay!), Daniel and I are learning how the boys think and tring to apply this to parenting, and we have friends here who've become our family and that I can't imagine getting by without. Being a parent isn't easy, but then if it was, would it be worth it?

      Take care and keep in touch! It was a pleasure hearing from you!

      Hugs,
      Sarah
      Wife of Daniel 2-14-00
      Mama to Liam and Ivy 2-13-02 (31 weeks) and Ryan 3-30-06 (31 weeks)

      www.myspace.com/dreaminunderamichiganmoon 

      http://groups.yahoo.com/group/V_I_N_E/
      On www.LiveJournal.com as Just_Plain_S and... 
      proud to announce the creation of the V_I_N_E LiveJournal group, a companion page to the V_I_N_E Yahoo! group. 

      "We can share blood without love if you hurt me. We can share blood without hurt if you love me. There is no middle ground." 
      -Ivy Tamwood, from Kim Harrison's "For a Few Demons More"