He's Eating New Foods!!!

The last several posts (click #1 or #2 to read them) have been leading up to some very exciting news! ETHAN HAS BEEN EATING NEW FOODS THIS WEEK!!!! Pinch me 'cuz I think I'm dreaming!

 The food issue is sooooo maddening to me.....a girl who literally loves all food. I don't understand this "picky-eater" thing AT ALL! And I used to REALLY fight this battle with all my might. But, whether good or bad, I just grew tired of fighting with Ethan at EVERY meal. I just decided to focus on what I could help him with....table manners & sitting at the table LONGER than a minute. We also eat in our living room a lot now because we have an eat-in kitchen & the smells are too much for Ethan. In fact, we have even moved our dining room table INTO our living room!

But THIS WEEK....THIS WEEK ETHAN HAS EATEN & ENJOYED SEVEN NEW FOODS!!!

Beef Stew

Pizza Pocket made with crescent rolls

Pringles

Jelly Beans

Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits

Spice Cake

Chicken & Noodles

Ethan & I "cheesing it up" at dinner!

He also TRIED cheesy scalloped potatoes & LICKED apples slices in therapy at Easter Seals. This is from a child who wigs out whenever he sees apple slices approaching the dinner table! However, when we went to the new Chick-Fil-A restaurant & was served WAFFLE fries, he wouldn't touch them. Fries are not shaped like waffles. Oh, that kid cracks me up!

Now, I realize that all of these foods are not SUPER healthy, but they are foods that he would have NEVER tried in the past....and now he is willingly eating....and loving them!!! CRAZY AWESOME PROGRESS!

This just reiterates that doing sensory play at home as well as having Ethan in occupational therapy is paying off big time! I can't wait to see what new foods he will eat this week! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!

***OH YEAH! One more thing! Ethan's school occupational therapist has told me that Ethan is able to zip up his own coat, but he has NEVER done it for me. It was always a frustration/trigger that would set him off, and I would end up doing it for him. Recently, we dug out a "new to us" hand-me-down jacket for Spring.....and ETHAN HAS ZIPPED IT UP EVERY TIME HE'S WORN IT!!!!!! WOO-HOO!!!!!!!

Messy Art Projects at Easter Seals

Ethan's snowmen & his name. This is simply amazing!

Last post, I talked about how we do a lot of messy sensory play in our home. This is to help Ethan overcome his heightened senses due to Sensory Processing Disorder. This has many benefits which should help him participate in daily common activities, such as sitting in a noisy classroom or eating a bigger variety of foods.

Well, leave it to Ethan's Early Intervention Team (including Easter Seals & School Preschool Program) to take things to the next level!!! THANK YOU!

I'm always so excited to see Ethan's take-home projects in his bookbag. Since he doesn't (or can't) relay to me in words what he is doing at school/ITAP, it is nice to see tangible items that helps me see the whole picture. About a month ago, I picked Ethan up from Easter Seals and noticed that Ethan's hands were dyed with colors. I knew immediately that he had been doing some kind of art project....but just what that was had yet to be seen.

Well, folks, let me tell you.....when I saw what Ethan had been doing, I was blown away. Ethan had been painting. Not just with a paintbrush, but with his fingers.....and his ENTIRE BARE HANDS!!!!

Ethan Sandwich Game....Good for Proprioceptive System!

Recently, I have noticed that Ethan is needing more & more heavy work during the day. If he doesn't get a lot of this on a daily basis, he is extremely restless, more clumsy, and doesn't sleep as well. This summer it was quite easy to get in a daily "workout" because we had a pool in our backyard that we would swim in almost every day. Even when the weather got cooler, my husband would take Ethan outside on our large trampoline & jump for a long time. Now, however, it's darker earlier & getting colder so all of our outside things are becoming less & less dependable for us to help Ethan in this area. We do have several things inside our home (jumping on single trampoline, helping with housework using "big boy muscles", etc.), but Ethan seems to be getting bored with all of these things in our home. So, we have started to be a bit creative....

One evening when my husband had been gone all day & I was at the end of my rope with Ethan, I came up with a new game.....Making an Ethan Sandwich. Often, Ethan gets all of the pillows & blankets from all over the house & makes a big pile in our living room. He will jump on this pile, hide under the pile or even roll around in the pile....all good for his proprioceptive system. So, here's how it started....

After a day that seemed to never end.....we've all had them, right?......this mommy needed a moment to myself. So, I put Ethan on his iPad, and snuck off to my bedroom for 5 minutes of peace. Pretty soon Ethan made his way back to me. He crawled up on the bed & began to gather pillows for a pile. Knowing that part of his issues for the day was that his body was needing input, I started squishing him slightly under a pillow...something that we do a lot with our living room couch pillows. Ethan loves it & needs it. Well, to turn it into a game, we decided that the pillows were bread & we were making an Ethan sandwich.

I think because he is getting bigger, he is needing more pressure than previously, so that meant more weight than just one pillow. So, we added more pillows.....and labeled them as pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, bacon, ketchup, and other sandwich toppings.

Ethan loved it! We played this game for at least 45 minutes, and often times Ethan would just lay still once the sandwich was made.....a sign that it was working. So here are some pictures of our Ethan Sandwich game. Cheap, easy, and it worked! Ethan has asked to play this many times since. You can see how much it relaxed him in the pictures below....especially the one with his legs sticking out the back. A couple of times, I thought that Ethan had fallen asleep because he was so still! So, if this is something that your kiddo's system craves, try making a sandwich! It's delicious!!!!

 

Pool Therapy

I was so nervous about purchasing a pool this summer. I knew it would be good for Ethan, and I knew that the cost/availability was better than paying the fee at our local pool......but I was still nervous about this purchase. However, I'm so glad we did it. The reasons we bought it are confirmed just about everyday.

One really exciting thing is how it is helping Ethan's muscle development. I often say that I feel as if I'm trying to create a body builder because I am always trying to find ways to incorporate "muscle" work into our everyday activities. One reason is because he craves that in order to be calm & relaxed....part of his sensory diet. Another reason is because he really needs to develop his muscles. One particular group of musclse that I tend to focus on are his shoulder blade muscles. If you lift your arm up & down, you will feel those muscles moving around your shoulder area.....these are muscles that help with handwriting & fine motor skills. These are areas that Ethan struggles with partly because those muscles are weak. So, I try to do things that will help strengthen them. When I do laundry, he pushes my basket down the hallway (and he loves to do it!). Playing with Playdoh, silly putty & other kinds of these molding clays are really good for this as well. And, a big reason for the pool purchase, swimming will help with a lot of muscle development but especially those shoulder muscles.

So, I stumbled across a pool game that makes Ethan laugh & laugh (he loves it!), but it also helps those muscles. We have one of those dollar store kick balls. Because it has air in it, it is difficult to hold under water. And when you do manage to hold it under water, and then let go, it flies up out of water. Ethan can't get enough of this! The first day I did this with him, I had to do hand over hand with him to hold the ball under water for a 3-count. The next day, he was doing it by himself....easily. The day after that, he was doing it for a 10-count....all his idea. Yesterday, Daddy showed him how to put it under water & between your legs so the ball pops up out of the water behind you. A new kind of hilarity was reached that day.

We have also noticed that Ethan isn't as clumsy when he walks & he is calmer during the day. This has been so good for him, and I'm so glad we did it. Here is a video of Ethan playing this new game!

Brown Bear Playdoh!

Today, Ethan & I had our weekly "PJ Day." We both love Pajama Days. Every morning, Ethan will say, "Let's just wear these" as he pats his pj shirt. I remind him that we don't wear pajamas to school, church, errands, etc. So, on the rare day that we actually get to spend time at home, it is a treat for him. So, here I am typing this at 3:22pm, and we are both still in our PJs.

Secretly, this is my day to catch up on laundry, cleaning, and other things that have been put off throughout the week due to running around or spending time with my family. PJ Day is also the day that Ethan and I get to play with our "special" toys.....anything messy or detailed, like crafts or water play, is usually saved for PJ Day.

Today, as I spread out several picture cards of PJ Day type activities, he very excitedly picked Playdoh. He hasn't picked this one in awhile, so I was excited to get it all out too. We started with our typical Playdoh play, but then as I made a purple cat, Ethan said, "Purple cat, purple cat, what do you see?" Well.....I think we all know what I did next.....

Of course I went & got that book!!! Then, we began to make the animals from this book & read the book with our book-related animals. It was a little tricky because some of the animals were brown, black & white...of which I didn't have that Playdoh color....and I didn't have some of the animals, like the frog, so we had to improvise a little....a turtle replaced our frog.

Here are a few pictures of our activity. My favorite thing when I was teaching was the moment kiddos made the connection between their life & the things we were learning in school. It was so awesome to see the lightbulb come on & the excitement happen. And it's so much more rewarding when it happens to my own child. Ethan's school did a whole unit on this book, and he loved it. I was so glad to see him connect our Playdoh activity with that beloved book! (And this is so good for his muscle & fine motor development! Shhh....don't tell Ethan!)

Rolling out the Playdoh

This is the same look his father gives me when I get out my camera!

Here is our "brown" bear

Peeling away the extra

Pushing...this is sooooo good for him!

More pushing

Here is our "white" dog

Here are most of our animals all lined up in order!

"I see a brown bear, red fish, yellow duck, blue horse, green frog, purple cat, white dog......"

Look how much he loved doing this! What a great smile!

A New Toy

Today, Ethan & I went to Walmart after school in order to pick up a few items for my grandpa who has recently moved to a nursing home in our town. Ethan had a weepy day at school today, so I thought I was in for a tough errand. So, I used bribery! I told him if he was good & didn't whine/cry, he could get a new toy. That kid was a good as gold! So, he picked out a new toy.

Why am I blogging about a new toy? The toy he picked is a car launcher, so in order for the toy to work, Ethan has to use TWO HANDS. He has been playing it without any trouble for about 1/2 an hour now. I took some video of him. He concentrates so much while lining up the cars to the launcher & uses his muscles to push the car onto the track. These are things that Ethan needs to work on, and he is doing it with this toy! AND LOVING IT!!! Check it out!

Inspired for DIY Summer OT!!!!

It has been CRAZY around here for the last 2 weeks. Ethan & I came down with strep throat last week, we had a death in the family, I have been helping my mom prepare to move my only living grandparent to a nursing home in our town, as well as doing our version of "Clean House" at her own house, and the end of school is nearing......we we are so close I can taste it!!!! It has been BUSY, BUSY, BUSY around here!

When I become overwhelmed with my to-do list, I often zone out to my favorite websites, and occasionally I will find a new favorite....AND I HAVE A NEW FAVORITE TODAY!!!!!

After a brief conversation with Ethan's current Occupational Therapist today (see suggested activities for Ethan below), I became re-inspired to search for new OT activities to do this summer. Ethan & I have become a bit bored with our current games, so I began searching PINTEREST.com (one of my favorite websites for zoning out). I came across this article 40 WAYS TO DO SENSORY PLAY. It is a short & concise list, and ALL kiddos will love it! It would be great to do these things when the long summer days begin to lead to bored children!

40 Ways to Do Sensory Play

They have so many other articles and ideas that would AWESOME for summer play! So...check out my new favorite website, Make, Do & Friend.com!

Suggested OT Activities to do At Home With Ethan This Summer! (Just so I don't forget!!!)

1. Weighted pencil (do it yourself...click here for example.)
2. Thicker writing utensils
3. Continue to encourage coloring. Use Wikki Stix & have him fill in the created shape.
4. Continue to correct his pencil grasp. Correct his fingers to use pointer & middle finger with his thumb. Here is a great article & visual aid for what we are working towards.
5. The other fingers need to fold under. Have him hold a penny or small object in these fingers to help.
6. When working on cutting, place Ethan on his tummy. It stabilizes the muscles needed for this task.
7. Place sandpaper under coloring pages in order to give Ethan the sensory feedback he needs.
8. He is starting to be able to button large buttons on his own! WOO-HOO!!!!!

Thank you, Mrs. T! We are so grateful to have had you as our OT this year! We will miss you!!!!!

Stamping It Up!

One day this week, Ethan woke up VERY early. We typically don't have much time to play in the morning before school, but we did that day! Although Ethan really wanted to play with play dough, I just didn't feel like getting all of that out. So, instead I suggested playing with the overhead projector. We play with different things on the overhead, but here he is playing with yellow transparent numbers 1-100. It's hard to see, but here is what I mean...

This was taken on a different day, but this is how he plays with the overhead. We shine it on the white board by the front door.

After he was done playing with the overhead, he asked to play with stamps. This is amazing because I am always forcing encouraging him to do anything that would fall in the "Messy" category. Finger painting, water beads, shaving cream, silly putty, and......stamps. He just doesn't like his hands to be messy. (He gets that from me.) So, when he ASKED for stamps.....I QUICKLY got them out before he could change his mind!!! I took a few pictures & even got some video of Ethan VOLUNTARILY playing with stamps! He is doing so well!!!!!!! What a blessing!!!!!!

 

Morning Therapy

Ethan has been having more & more difficulty pushing kids down at school. I am seeing this behavior in our home life as well. So, I thought maybe we should try switching up our morning OT routine to include more heavy work. Maybe he is pushing kids to provide that sensory input that he is needing/missing. But how to do this for Ethan when I have my nephew & niece in the mornings too??? A GAME!

So, here is the new game (OT) that Corey & I came up with to do in the mornings! I had the idea....and Corey made it fun. He is very good at that. Corey played the game with Ethan while I prepared breakfast & laid out Ethan's clothes. It was so nice being able to share these responsibilities with Corey.

Here is Ethan & Daddy ready to start the game. Ethan is in a swivel chair on wheels that is covered with the weighted blanket that I made him. He also has his weighted lizard across his lap (purchased at Dr. Temple Grandin's conference)...it was the "seat belt."

We placed tape on the floor...a starting line (under the chair), a race line (also going to be our balance beam), and an finish line at the other end of our hallway. Ethan says, "Ready, Set, Go!" and Corey pushes him fast down the hallway...that's why the picture is blurry.

At the finish line (the end of the hallway), Ethan crawls off the chair & pushes it back to the start line. This is the heavy work that he really needs. Not only is the chair weighted with the blanket & lizard, but the fact that is swivels makes it a bit more challenging & helps him use both hands. Ethan loved playing this game!

Daddy & Ethan doing morning therapy....a beautiful thing!

Go, Ethan, Go!

And ready to do it again!!!

We will see if this works as far as pushing other kids down, but we noticed a difference on the 1st day we did this game. He was much more calm & able to sit longer. I think this will be a game that we play for awhile. In fact, this morning I did this game with all 3 of the kids, and they loved it! HOORAY!

***Update! I forgot to ask his teacher to see if she saw any improvement in Ethan's pushing, but Ethan's speech therapist told me that Ethan was answering more questions for her this morning! And I didn't even ask if she saw an improvement....she just told me! YEAH!!!!

Handwriting

A couple of weeks ago, I was telling Ethan's Occupational Therapist that I couldn't get Ethan to write for me. I can barely get him to write his name anymore. She gave me some things to try....writing in shaving cream and so on.....and I have been doing it with Ethan. Then, a couple of days ago, Ethan brought me his iPad with a chalkboard app pulled up on the screen. You are able to take your finger & mimic writing on a chalkboard. He was asking me to write $11.99.....his new favorite game/commercial (Pizza Hut). I told him that I thought he could write it....and he took off!!!!! Granted he was using his finger & not a writing utensil, but I was able to see just how well he CAN write! I was amazed. And, as the game goes, we start with $11.99 then go to 12.99, 13.99, 14.99 and so on until 24.99...then we start back at 11.99. Here are some pictures that I took of Ethan proudly showing his work! YEAH!!!!

16.99...Look how proud he is!!!!

What a great smile!

18.99...I was so impressed that he could do an "8"...that's hard!!!

*****UPDATE! This morning after breakfast, Ethan & his cousins were drawing....and Ethan wrote with a crayon these same numbers!!!! Sooooo....he CAN use a writing instrument for me! I was so excited to witness his progress first hand! GO ETHAN!!!!!

Why Do I Love OT? Because It WORKS!!!

This week, I had the privilege of being asked to speak to a group of Occupational Therapists. Myself and another mom of a child with autism were invited to talk about our stories & how OT has helped in our child's development. Well, I'm a HUGE fan of OT, so I was SO excited for this honor. OT has really helped Ethan deal with and overcome a lot of his challenges.

Here is a simple example... The other day, I was trying to video Ethan reciting one of his Bible verses that he had memorized. Here is the first take....without any therapy aids....

I decided not to use this video, but instead try again another day. The next day, he was doing the same thing. Then, duh, I decided to give him a fidget toy in order to help him sit still & focus. To be specific, it is a football stress ball that he has in his hands. Nothing else has changed. Check out the difference in posture, eye contact, and clarity of speech...

Isn't that AMAZING!!!!!!! We are so fortunate to live in a day where we know what occupational therapy can do, and how it can help people overcome their challenges. Ethan has responded so well to OT, and that is why I am constantly looking for ways to incorporate it into our everyday life....and keep it new & fun for Ethan. So, thanks so much to all of you Occupational Therapists! Our life has been forever changed because of your work!

Oral Therapy Toys (AKA.....Teething Jewelry)

So, lately, Ethan has been having spurts of days where he is chewing on anything & everything. I have talked before about how this helps Ethan, so we don't stop Ethan from chewing. We also have been trying to find therapy items that will allow Ethan to chew on the toys & not his clothes, fingers, or other kids! There have been a few days when Ethan will have 3 different shirts on in one day because he keeps chewing a "bib" on his shirt. However, I am reluctant to buy any type of oral motor teether or jewelry because they are about $15 each plus shipping & tax. And, I have no idea if he will like it or if it will be a quality item. So, as I have talked about before, I have been trying to find cheap chew items or things I can make for him.

Recently, Ethan's Speech Therapist told me about a trusted website which had therapy toys, but she also told me to check out Etsy.com. I never thought about that website! I usually use Ebay or Amazon. So I did....and this leads me into my recent project.

I am not an amazing seamstress or have awesome sewing skills, but I would say that I have fair skills. I took a sewing class in junior high, and I loved it. My grandma loved to sew, and my mom knows how to sew as well....although I don't know if she loves it. My mom has taught me a lot about how to sew, and she is still my continual teacher. I have made blankets, pillowcases, quiet books, curtains, shirts, a dress, pjs, and I can alter our clothes.....just don't look too close! So when I saw some of the items on Esty, you know what I was thinking........"I can make that myself!" So, here it is......

These are supposed to be worn by mothers who have babies, but I thought I could make one for Ethan to wear. This way he would always have something to chew on & save his clothing. Following the tutorial from Pretty Ditty, I made Ethan a chew necklace. I slightly altered from the tutorial example, but it is basically the same thing.

I started with a piece of scrap fabric that I left over from making Ethan's existing curtains.

I also had these small wooden beads on hand. When my grandma passed away, I was given most of her sewing/craft supplies, so these come from a hat box full of a variety of wooden beads. Thanks Grandma!

I needed to make a "sleeve" to put the beads in, so I wrapped the fabric around a bead in order to measure my sleeve size. I started sewing a straight seam where I had measured....right sides together.

Once I had sewn my seam, I cut off the excess in order to have a slim sleeve to fill with the beads. Can you spot the error in this picture? My first attempt, I did the wrong sides together...oops! I thought about using it anyway, but the words "RACING" would be backwards....and I would really confuse my word-conscious child.

Next, I needed to turn the sleeve right-side out. This is a trick my mom taught me....put a safety-pin on one in & thread it through....it makes it so much easier!

Halfway through turning the sleeve right-side out....

Then, I added a bead, then tied a knot in the fabric. I veered from the tutorial on this step because I thought Ethan would enjoying chewing on the knots as much as the beads. I did this over & over again until I used all the beads. Then, I stitched up the end seams.

Instead of tying a bow, I decided to add a button. This wouldn't agitate his neck as much as the knot in the bow, and it would still keep it secure. And I just used a random button that was in the bottom of my sewing basket.

This whole project, including my mess up, took about an hour to do. I was hopeful because as I was making this, Ethan kept coming to get beads to chew on! Well, turns out that he likes to chew on this.....but doesn't like to wear it. Hum????? Back to the drawing board......

I contacted an Etsy seller (TNTees) who makes Recycled T-shirt Teething Bracelets. This again is for moms with little ones, but I asked her if she would consider making one for Ethan to wear. She agreed & I sent her his measurements. I'm hoping that Ethan will not only chew on this but will wear it too. These are so much cheaper than the therapy toys, and I know that he likes to chew on t-shirts.......fingers crossed!!!!

Also....this has nothing to do with my recent craft project, but I got a phone call from Ethan's Occupational Therapist this morning.........Ethan has met 4 out of his 5 school year goals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEA!!!!!!!!!!!! He is copying a vertical line & a horizontal line, he is imitating drawing a circle & he is snipping (cutting) paper! That's sooooo amazing!!!!!!!!!!! So, she is drawing up the paperwork to add on to his existing goals!!!!!!!!! HOW AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!! GO ETHAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND GO TEAM ETHAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The "Write" Stuff

OK....Have I mentioned how much I LOVE Occupational Therapy!? It just amazes me how well it works for Ethan. And here is yet ANOTHER example!

Today we (Ethan, my 18 month niece, and myself) decided to get out some construction paper & color with MARKERS....I know!!!!! I guess I just didn't think the kids were messy enough after lunch & playing outside. Anyway, as I turned my back on my niece to ask Ethan what color construction paper he wanted, my niece decided to "apply her makeup"......with markers. YIKES! So, luckily, I still had my wet rag from wiping her hands & face at lunch time, so most of it came off of her face. Then, when I was able to give some attention back to Ethan, this is what I saw.......

Alright....let's break it down. The scribble at the top is a horizontal line....not just a scribble. I'm not really sure what the dots at the right are....other than dots. However, the scribble at the left is a CIRCLE!!!! Ethan asked me to "make a smiley face," so I added the eyes, nose and mouth. BUT HE MADE A CIRCLE!!!! No help, no hand-over-hand, no frustration....he just did it!!!!! This may not seem like much, but it is a big step for Ethan. It was less than a year ago that this child could barely sit down to focus on any paperwork task. When I would get out crayons to color....he would line up the crayons or sort them by color. And while those activities made me love him even more, if that is possible, it was very frustrating for us. So, I would use an art easel to promote any kind of drawing. We would use chalk, water paint, finger paint, shaving cream, and paper taped to it. He was only interested in making a mess & had NO desire to draw anything...including scribbles. And today....he just drew a circle....like it was no big deal. I am so excited!!!!!!!!!

AND, a couple of days ago, my sister & I had a "Book Swap Meeting." Our children love books, and we are continually passing books back & forth between our households in order to keep them from getting bored with the same books. During this meeting, we sorted the books into piles.....my pile, her pile, Grandma's pile, and the Goodwill pile. There were several books that had already made the rounds at my house, so I passed on them. One of the books, however, Ethan decided to rescue....and he wants to play with it all the time. He says, "Together? We play together?" Here he is playing "Together" with Daddy.....

We had this book in our possession before, but Ethan never showed any interest in tracing the letters no matter how much encouragement I gave him. He only wanted to look at the pictures. NOW....he wants to draw in it EVERY DAY! I know it is baby steps, but it is AMAZING how quickly Ethan is catching up!

I have said it before, and I will say it again. Ethan would not be where he is at, would not have made the progress he has made, would not be growing leaps & bounds if it wasn't for his amazing support. His teachers, his therapists, his extended family, his church family, and our friends. NO WAY would Ethan be drawing these circles if didn't have loving people in his life OTHER than mom & dad to teach him. We are SO grateful for all of these wonderful people and blessed to have found this path for Ethan so early in his life. So.....once he masters the art of writing his letters.....be looking for his first novel!

New Therapy Toys continued.....

Previously, I have mentioned that a few family members donated some money to Ethan & his needs, thus allowing us to purchase several of our items on Ethan's Therapy Aids Wish List. Here are the last items that we were able to provide to Ethan.....

This book is actually for Corey. He & some other computer programmers are currently working on developing "social stories" for the iPad2. Many of the apps that would be extremely helpful to children with autism are extremely pricey. So, Corey's goal is to make these apps available for free. So this is part of his development research.

I think the title is pretty self-explanatory as to why we purchased this book. I'm really hoping it helps us with this issue.

This was the most expensive item, but the one we wanted the most. As part of Ethan's Sensory Diet, we know that jumping on this trampoline followed by some heavy work or weighted items helps to keep him calm & his attention span extended for a couple of hours. This is now part of our morning routine before we go to school, we use it before church, and, honestly, he uses it when he knows he needs it....and he doesn't need an adult to help him like he would with brushing, joint compressions, kid sandwich, etc.  And the other kids I babysit love it too!

This picture is a little blurry because it was IMPOSSIBLE to have him just stand on it! After all, you are supposed to jump on the trampoline! I love it, and more importantly, so does Ethan.

If you think you are looking at a rubber chicken, then you would be correct. The girls in my family met my aunt & cousins for a day of shopping in St. Louis, and one of my cousins bought this for Ethan. It has now become one of his favorite portable tactile toys. It is made of a flexible yet soft rubber, and the body of the chicken has a rice-like filling that he can push, pull, massage, etc....similar to playing with play-dough. In fact, the other day, instead of using his fingers to manipulate the iPad2, he was using the chicken's beak...I don't know if it actually worked, but it was super cute to watch. He loves it!

We actually saw this at Ethan's school. It is awesome! This is a felt bag filled with the soft, rounded, plastic, weighted pellets that I put in his weighed blanket as well as tiny little toy-type items. It's an "Eye Spy" bag. So, we try to find all of the animals, all of the green items, all of the things that start with "Z" (only 1 thing does by the way). This is kind of heavy to be a portable item, but it works great for us in the car. He has something weighted, and we can play this while I'm driving...I just say, "Can you find the flower?", and he does. It's awesome. I think I may even try to make some of these on my own. They have all kinds of "themed" bags, but this one is their Language Development bag. Wonder why we chose this one?

 So, again, HUGE thank you to everyone for helping us raise money for the 2 boys to have their iPad2s, protective casings, and stylus. And thanks to those family members who donated money specifically to Ethan. You know, I realize that you weren't just donating money.....you are wanting to help Ethan. And that is what touches my heart. It's difficult to help anyone from a distance...whether that be geographically or relationally or lack of time or whatever.

I have several friends who recently have had babies. My intentions were to make them a home made meal & take it to their house. What I ended up doing was writing & mailing them a congratulations card along with a gift card for a restaurant. I want them to know that I love them & want to help them, but as we all know, time & schedule & LIFE just doesn't always allow for these things. So please hear me when I say that we are SO blessed & humbled & thankful for your extreme generosity....no matter what the gift....charitable donations, encouraging emails, prayers for Ethan, support system, and..............blog reader!