School Field Trip / Collecting Snails

We take one step at a time.

Getting Elizabeth to her class at school is not one of my favourite activities in the mornings. It is a busy place lots of kids and parents coming and going. To get Elizabeth to her class we need to go down a set of stairs and drop off her bag at her cubby and continue up 2 sets of stairs to her class. Stairs are a challenge for Elizabeth she still requires complete assistance to get up and down, she needs cueing for each step and reminders for her hand placement. I really want to pick her up and carry her to speed up the process and avoid stares but this important for Elizabeth to learn as she needs to be independent. I really try to keep to one side to let everyone pass but one mom persistently tails behind us complaining the whole way. "I have places to go", "we need to hurry up" she tells her daughter behind us. Yes at one point I had places to go to but then came Elizabeth and she brought my life to a standstill and now to pace in which we can stop and admire everything on the way. Yes we take one step at a time but we see and experience more along the way.

She continues to shock and awe.

Elizabeth had her hearing checked again at the Hospital for Sick Kids and wowed her audiologist Vicki. To check Elizabeth's hearing at her AV therapy and at home we have her put a puzzle/peg to her ear and place it when she hears one the Ling's six sounds (ah,oo,ee,mm,ss,and sh). Elizabeth at times has difficulities with the shh and sss as they are high frequency sounds. Elizabeth sat in the sound booth with her headphones and correctly placed all the pegs. Her audiologist could not believe how well she has done. Auditory Neuropathy continues to be such a puzzling diagnosis and often parents want to rush in to get implants. Elizabeth has shown them that waiting to see can be okay and beneficial. She will continue to go every 4 months for checks as with AN hearing loss can fluctuate.
Her preschool is still trying to figure how she has a hearing impairment as she talks so well. She recently asked 'if Daddy was an alien?' and 'where was the deep space signal?', she makes me laugh with her constant curiosity.

We need to get out more.

'Oh my goodness, oh my goodness we are going to a grocery store' squeals Elizabeth as I pull into our local grocery store parking lot. Elizabeth could not believe I was taking her to buy groceries. Ivan and I have always saved our errands for when the other parent can stay at home with her. Guilt plagues me every time I have to take her out to do something that is not associated with one of her therapy goals. I count the wasted minutes spent in the car or in a grocery cart as time I have not spent working on her walking or providing sensory stimulating activities for her to do. From the glee in her voice about getting to go to the grocery store I know that this is something we will have to involve her in. Besides we can always work on her Auditory-Verbal therapy goals while we are shopping, we are currently providing descriptives for her to tell us what an object is 'I am looking for something that is yellow, a fruit and you can peel it'.
Elizabeth got her first haircut by our friend/hairdresser Helen. Helen was the only one who could help us with the lipstick disaster we had (note pink near Elizabeth's mouth). With Helen's lipstick remover we were successfully able to remove the lipstick from Elizabeth and our leather furniture.

First haircut

shopping for groceries

SHE'S WALKING!

All the hard work Elizabeth has done has paid off. She is walking without her walker on her own. She is not quite ready to transfer her new skill to the great outdoors due to frequent falling but at home and even at school she is walking. Her walk is quite unsteady still and she is learning to navigate around uneven surfaces and objects but SHE IS WALKING. We are in awe when we hear a little voice behind us and there she is standing there on her own after having walked into the next room. Way to go Elizabeth we are so proud of you.

First Day At School

Elizabeth has started pre-school and is loving it. She is the only child in her class who does not cry when I drop her off, this has made the transition for mommy so much easier. The staff at her school were so surprised at how well she has done and that she is always happy.
Elizabeth has also found a new appreciation in make-up and while Mommy was getting dressed this morning got into Mommy's make-up and applied the 12hr lipstick to compliment her outfit. As the lipstick is designed to last all day it would not wash off so Elizabeth went to school covered in lipstick and is now in bed with the lipstick still on.

Our First Vacation

Our first family vacation was amazing! We spent a week in Prince Edward Island with Amy, Max and Owen at Max's mom's summer home. PEI is a beautiful island with so much to do, a week is not long enough to experience everything it has to offer. Elizabeth was able to enjoy her vacation with her best friend Owen, the two were joined at the hip they did everything together and even had their baths together. Elizabeth was so excited to go in an airplane for the first time and did great on the plane watching movies and reading books. The weather was perfect, we were able to enjoy a day at the beach. Elizabeth loved digging for potatoes in the potato field, digging in the sand, looking for crabs and lobsters and just hanging out with Owen. Mom and Dad were even able to enjoy time away doing girls (pedicure) and guy stuff (golfing and fishing) with Amy and Max. Max's family were so friendly and made us feel very welcome, they even had a kids party with games, food and a petting zoo. Elizabeth did not want to get out of the pig pen at the party and was amazed by all the animals. We want to give a huge thank you to Nelly and all her family for their hospitality.

PEI was just amazing

Here are some photos from our very first vacation...