Acceptance Letter

This is from the day of his screening. Of the children chosen for the screening about 1 in 4 get accepted.

GOD IS GOOD!!! Our boy that a few years a go we were told  may not talk in sentences till he was 7-9, or be potty trained until then, and we worried about what school would look like for him.... just got ACCEPTED to a magnet school with an accelerated curriculum.... I am SO PROUD of our little red head wonder...

My Boy

Lately I have really been thankful for how far my boy has come. 3 years ago our prayer was that Harrison would be able to start kindergarten without pull ups (we were told it he may be 6-9 before potty trained, we still wear at night but we will glady do that), and being able to tell his simple wants and needs, and to just be able to function at all in a normal school setting. AND TODAY I took him his second kindergarten screening for magnet schools here in our town. NO speical education meetings making the decsions on where he needs to go, NO pull ups, able to go with people he did not know, check in by telling his whole name and writing his name and doing all of that with a SMILE.

Harrison in the past 6 months has moved, started a new school, visits churches and classes in those churches, played soccer when he knew not one person, played basketball (which would have not been possible even a few months ago with the LOUDNESS and craziness of all that goes on around during practice and games).  3 years ago, 2 years ago each of these activities could have been a deal breaker, and he has handled it all with such ease, and has adjusted so well. What an answer to prayers.

I have been watching Parenthood  on netflix I am just on season one and with the first episode one of the families discovers they their son has Aspergers (you can find more info here about Aspergers.) And going through all the trials that a family has to deal with. These type of disorders affect the WHOLE FAMILY, and you HURT for your child and are willing to do ANYTHING to make their life the best it can be.While Aspergers is on the autism speculum it is higher functioning. Of the 11 symptoms Harrison has 7... if he had had more social delays he would have this label... this Mama kinda had to fight a bit to keep this label off his records.  I was FINE with Harrison having issues that we needed to work on and I was the one that FOUGHT to get him any services at all, his doctors did not think I needed to worry, they keep telling me he was just slower because he was a boy. But I KNEW there was something not quite right... but just as I KNEW there was something wrong I KNEW he was higher functioning than having the label Aspergers. So his official papers say he has Sensory Processing Disorder and Verbal Apraxia.
 A little about Sensory Processing Disorders, from http://www.sensory-processing-disorder.com/ again Harrison shows 7 of these.
•Do you wonder why they are excessive risk takers - jumping and crashing into anything they can ?
•Why they can’t do puzzles - write well - or find the coordination for riding a bike or hitting a ball?
•Why they cry or cover their ears with every loud sound - even vacuums, toilets or hairdryers ?
•Why they don’t like to be touched or can’t be touched enough?
•Why they will only eat macaroni and cheese and pizza?
•Why they will only wear certain clothes or need you to cut the tags out of their shirts?
•Ever wonder why you can’t seem to calm them down or get them to sleep?
•Why they won’t put their hands in anything messy or use glue, Play Doh, or play with mud?
•Why they fear playground equipment or being tipped upside down?
•Why crowded stores bother them so much leading to major meltdowns in public places?


And add that to Verbal Apraxia-- Oral apraxia indicates that the child has difficulty with volitional control of nonspeech movement. For instance, perhaps the child will have difficulty sticking out and wagging their tongue when requested to do so. Or the child may have difficulty sequencing movements for the command, "Show me how you kiss, now smile, now blow". Verbal apraxia indicates that the child has difficulty with volitional movement for the production of speech. This can be at the level of sounds, syllables, words, or even phrases (connected speech). The motor struggle is most typically seen with sounds sequencing. from http://www.apraxia-kids.org/site/apps/nlnet/content3.aspx?c=chKMI0PIIsE&b=787891&ct=464119 

 We had a VERY angry little boy that could NOT tell us anything that he needed or wanted. Throw in an intolerance to wheat/gluten which is VERY common in children with Sensory issues and Apraxia along with ADHD and Autism our little boy needed HELP. Harrison is still a little behind what is considered "Normal" in his speech, but everyone can understand him or most of what he says :) his speech still sound a little "baby like"  I really don't know what else to call it. But other kids his age sound bigger or older when they talk  if that makes any sense.

We are so Blessed that we were able to give him the help that he needed in the form of therapies and the RIGHT therapists to give him AND us the skills he needed. And I am so thankful that I was able to stay home so he could go to the clinic that was not close to our house but a great fit for him.

I am still brought to tears when Harrison does something that would have been very hard or impossible in the past. The first basketball practice was one of those times. The Gym was CRAZY LOUD and lots and lots of people around and he was able to go and did a great job.So all of this is said to thank GOD for bringing my boy so FAR and to make this Mama so PROUD. And the Blessing that all these milestones are... YES it has not always been easy, the meltdowns, the years of NO sleep, the months of none stop screaming and throwing up, all the Speech, and OT appointments, seeing your child HURT physically, mentally, and emotionally, it is a strain on the family  BUT it is SO WORTH it and we would do it all over again in a heartbeat.


If you are new the blog or interested in more info here are some past posts
Harrison's World
Harrison's World part 2
Harrison's World Part 3
Harrison's World part 4
Video from 2 years ago
Last Day of Speech



How is my BABY this big

Harrison is now 4 1/2 years old, and I really don't know where the time has gone. He is so big, and so much fun. It is unreal the things that he is saying and doing. He AMAZES us daily. For a little boy that we feared would not be understandable for years come ups with things like "It is a beautiful day to play checkers outside" or telling us Jokes, or making up songs and stories.  I just don't know how he he has gotten this BIG!

and now for the REAL HARRISON... with all his silliness

Progress

I don't video tape nearly as much as I should and I really wished I had Harrison on tape talking more while we were FIGHTING for his words to show us all how far he has come. Here http://parkhurst1.blogspot.com/2010/02/little-of-school-time.html is a link from the blog about a year ago. This was after we started the Gluten Free diet (for about 3 months) and we were amazed at that point on how much he had improved.





TODAY we (the grown ups) are almost speechless at what he is doing.

Santa

We have went to see Santa twice this year I will try to get the real pictures up on here later but Harrison actually wanted to go see him this year. And the first trip while we were in line he was so cute (and it broke my heart) he said, "This Year I can tell him my name." Then he practiced over and over, "My name is Harrison and I would like Thomas the trains". He remembered that he could not "talk" to Santa in years past. This was also the first year he did not scream when visiting Santa. He still would not sit on Santa's lap but he did stand close without me.

GOD is GOOD

TODAY WAS HARRISON'S LAST DAY OF SPEECH THERAPY and HE FINISHED WITH OT A COUPLE MONTHS AGO!!!! GOD IS GOOD AND STILL PREFORMING MIRACLES IN OUR LIVES DAILY!!!

We knew early on (like at a year old) that Harrison was going to have some tough things to overcome. About Two years ago we began fully understand what He was up against. We began to pray that he would be understandable, potty trained, and able to function with others by the time he began school. At his third birthday he had 12 words. NOW strangers can even understand his SENTENCES, he is potty trained, and is well behaved and has many many friends in preschool. A year ago he was just learning how to say Mommy and Daddy today we are working on saying pronouns in the correct context. Today he is doing things we prayed would happen before school GOD IS SO GOOD.

Harrison has worked so hard and we have the right people at the right time come into his life and help him change his life forever. We know he will continue to have to work hard, and we will have to continue to stay on top of things. We will be going back for an evaluation in 3-4 months then every 6 months for a while. I feel that He will have more therapy at some point but this is a HUGE DEAL. We are also looking forward to having more time at home!!!

VBS

This week at church we had Vacation Bible School. It was a great week but Harrison has had one rough week, the wrost in a really long time, maybe ever. Anyway he did enjoy parts of VBS and even though I am trying to get a nap in today I thought I would share a few pictures. The Kids all had so much fun and learned so much about God's Plans for their lives. It makes all the hard work wroth it, I just wish Harrison could have enjoyed himself a bit more this week. I guess God wanted to take the week to teach me a bit more about our little Red Head Wonder and remind us we still have work to do.

Brown Bear

Our Little boy has been working SO HARD on his speech and amazes us daily.

Just My Boy

Yes we have our moments, we have meltdowns, we have Tatums. Yes we have fought for speech, and control of his body but it all just makes his milestones so much sweeter. How many Parents are brought to tears by hearing their 3 year old singing "Ol Christmas Tree" in the car, or when do parents get to stand in awe of of the same child that has screamed for hours on end speak a whole sentence. We celebrate peeing in the potty, we celebrate leaving the house without kicking and screaming, we celebrate holding a pencil, but most important we celebrate the life of our "perfect" little Red Head Wonder, and feel so blessed to be his parents

a Little of 'School Time'

Harrison has made so much progress in the month and a half. In August he had about 12 words that anyone could understand. Since Christmas he has added close to a hundred words and is putting sentences together. IT IS UNREAL.... We are so proud of his hard work.

Toxins and learning disorders

Here is an interesting article about environmental toxins and children with Learning Disorders such as ADHD which we know we find lots of links to Autism and Apraxia. It really Just good health sense but shows some effects what we have around us is effecting us.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/83226217_Environmental_toxins_and_learning_disorders.html?c=y&page=1

Talking with the cashier

Tonight while we were at Kroger's Harrison had a conversion with the lady at the check out. This brought tears to my eyes. I mean he told her about the book he was getting, and what he was going to eat for dinner. Sure the lady did not know every word he said but she could pick up enough to have a conversation with him. This is a time during the shopping that we both usually tread. Well meaning people ask Harrison what his name is and how old he is etc. He acts shy and I speak for him. I have actually had cashiers tell me he was a big boy and he could talk for himself. This is one of the hardest things for me. But tonight was a great change.

One Smart Little Boy

One of the biggest frustrations as a parent with a child with Apraxia is that when people meet Harrison or even people that know him think that since he does not speak they way we "think" he should, that he is no intelligent. Which is very far from the truth. Harrison amazes me daily with the things he knows and the connections he makes.

We also went to an Open House to a school we are looking at once he starts school and I really think he could just about do the Kindergarten work now, and it was advanced for the general Kind garden, I did see a few things that we need to continue to work on. One of our biggest areas of needed gain is in his hand writing which is worked on weekly in OT and I work on daily with him.

Harrison LOVES to do his "school work" which we try to get to daily but with two days of Speech and OT, and two days of Mother's Day Out it does not happen every day.

TAG he said TAG... big deal to this Mama

Tonight Harrison said "YELLOW TAG". Tag is the little blanket on the left of the picture that Harrison has carried around for 3 1/2 years. The tag with yellow ribbons is his favorite. He has NEVER actually said the word tag before tonight. One of my first red flags that there was issues with his speech was when he was about a year old and still did not call his "tag"or "paci" by name even though they were the most important things to him. So THIS IS HUGE.

Harrison and his Daddy

This is my favorite picture of John and Harrison the day after he was born.

Tonight after I put Harrison to bed and during his second dirty diaper since bed time (yes I know, he can do it on demand ( within an hour) at bedtime but not on the potty no matter how hard he tries), we had a sweet conversation. I love that I am able to understand more and more of what he says and piece his sentences together to really see the heart of my child. It went something like this, and remember I am translating and Paraphrasing for Harrison here.

Harrison: Daddy needs to be home, it is dark out side.

Mommy: Daddy works hard so we can have a nice house, food, and choo choo trains. (we all know Harrison's world revolves around trains)

Harrison: Its Dark outside (going to the window and pulling the shade) I need Daddy Hugs and kisses to go to sleep (with lots of sound effects in place of words)

Mommy: Daddy has to work sometimes when it is dark so Mommy does not have to work every day.

Harrison: confused look on his face

Mommy: Some Mommies have to work everyday but your Mommy only has to work a Little in Daddy's office and I get to stay home and play with you and we get to do lots of fun stuff together. That's why Daddy works late.

Harrison: Gets ups and gives me a big hug and kiss saying "oh tank (thank) yous mommy"

THIS IS WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT, sure we could do more and have more "Stuff" if I worked full time outside of the home but even my Three year thanks it is pretty important for me to be home with him, how sweet. And it makes for a much healthier Mommy with Lupus that can take it easy when she needs too. I think we are pretty lucky to have a Daddy and Husband like John.

THANK YOU DADDY!!!!! and Harrison is expecting hugs and kisses when you get home by the way. :)

some books... apraxia

Not much has been going around here lately, well that's not really we have been super busy just not much going on in the blog world so I thought I was time for some more information on Apraxia. When your child has special needs of any kind it can become all consuming of your thoughts, your day and your life. When People look at Harrison they may not think that he looks like a child with "special needs" but in fact his apraxia and sensory issues can be as life altering as many other disabilities. Can you begin to think how hard it would be to not be able to communicate with other, and then when the frustration hits or you hear the wrong sound etc, your whole day goes down the drain and you have NO CONTROL over it. I can't not image what our little red head wonder lives with and on most days I think the fights it really well and makes the best of it.





So without getting teary eyed tonight I thought I would share some books that GREAT resources if you know some one with apraxia, ADHD, autism, etc. Most research that is used for Apraxia includes ADHD and Autism or the study was started with ADHD or Autistic children and parallels were found with apraxia since they all share many similar traits. As I read all these books tears just flowed, because I could see my little man in all of the children profiled in the books, because you realize you are not the only one who has a child that cries for days on end, never sleeps, and can not control their bodies no mater how hard they try, and because you see how different their lives are and may have to remain for some time from that of their peers.





So this first one may be the hardest to swallow. The Kid Friendly ADHD & Autism Cookbook is a great source to understand what effect gluten(wheat) and casein (dairy) can have on ones body and especially that of people with ADHD, Autism, and Apraxia. It talks about how these kids crave the foods that help their bodies lose control, how for some children MILK and WHEAT can be like morphine in their little bodies. Going Gluten free takes MAJOR dedication, it is in everything. We took about two months of really watching labels and trying new things, and watching the amount of wheat & gluten Harrison had in is diet. We did not cut it out 100% but have we seen changes. Last week we said we are going to take a break and let him eat anything he wants, and he LOVES BREAD and did we reap the consequences. Now John is also a believer and we trying to him Harrison onto a Gluten free diet, I am sure we will fail lots, but we see such a difference in his behavior, frustration, rebellion, and attention span that is is worth it to us.



Yes it is going to be hard to go to birthday parties and not eat cake and pizza yes it will be hard to pass up a cracker or cookie, but we are going to have to to it for the health of our child. This also means we will be eating at home even more, because there is very little out in restaurant that are gluten free, even french fries fried in the same oil as breaded chicken can have gluten on them. Now he does not have Celic disease which is the reason most people go to a gluten free diet so if he eats it he is not going to get sick, the negative behaviors will return within hours and stay around for what we have found at least 24-48 hours.

The Late Talker is a MUST READ for anyone with an apraxic child or person in their life. It is the only book that is all about Apraxia and it gives great insights on the life of someone with verbal apraxia along with how to deal with doctors that are not familiar with apraxia or even SLP (speech and language pathologist) and how to work with insurance companies in trying to get more coverages for this disorder, down to what codes need to be in medical files. THIS IS A MUST READ...

The LCP Solution talks about the benefits of LCP or fatty acids to help show remarkable results in people with ADHA, Dyslexia, Autism, Dyspraxia, and apraxia. Basically show the research in how fatty acids, mainly omega-3 and benefits these disorders. We started Harrison on Fish oil about 2 1/2 months ago and really think it has been the one factor that has made the most difference in his ability to gain speech. His attention span has gotten so much longer in turn allows him to work much harder on his speech. We we started the fish oil he had about 12 words that most people would know and they were never put together like in a sentence now he is saying 5 or 6 words at a time that at lease John, his SLP, and I know what he is saying. IT IS AMAZING.

I am not a doctor by any means but I am all for the most natural approach to our health and found that I can manage my lupus as well with what I put in my body or what I choose to keep out of my body. I am not saying we never use medication but in our book that is a last resort, since we don't really know what the long term side effects may be.

iPhone

OK so I know that most level headed people would not dream of letting their 3 year old son play with their iPhone, but I guess I am not most :). John bought this phone from a friend when my Blackberry died. I morned the blackberry, I LOVED IT, I thought the iPhone was too much for me and wished for my blackberry. Then I started playing and finding apps for Harrison. It is so neat to watch him play games and sing songs with my phone. there are so many things that he can do which he thinks is just great fun but helps him practice his speech. He has all kinds of music, flashcards, recording his own words, counting and letter games, even reading activities that he really enjoys. It also gives us an activity when we are out and he begins to have a meltdown that he can sit still and clam down with. So my three year old is going to continue to play with my phone and might even have something similar one day soon of his own.

GOOD DAY.... BAD DAY ... Harrison's world

What a difference a day can make. When people of Apraxia they think oh, he can't speak, but with the frustration that goes along with it, the lack of communication, and the often sensory possessing issues that with it. Harrison has GREAT DAYS and but when we have a rough day boy is it ROUGH.

GOOD DAY...

Harrison wakes up Happy and ready to play, meets me in the hall and starts running and laughing down the hall. He begins playing wants a cup of juice and the day is off to a great start. He eats a good breakfast , wants to get dress, lets me brush his teeth and hair, and after Curious George he is ready for "School Work" and will work for about about 40 mins, doing pre reading practice, speech work, etc.

After school time he will play in his room with Trains and puzzles while I do some chores of my own. When asked to do something Harrison responses with "Yes Mama". He helps with my "chores" eats a good lunch. Off to bed for a nap. After a good long nap He is up and ready to play and work some more we play games, and play laughing and having fun. bath and bed goes well, errands are easy, he is happy to do anything asked of him and is pleasure to be around. Loads of fun and a well behaved little boy that obeys his Mommy.

BAD DAY...

I hear screaming on the bedroom door with a whiny little boy, usually in wet pjs that have to be changed, this is where the the day goes down hill. The changing of of the clothes and bedding causes first break down with kicking and screaming, not wanting to change his clothes he fights to keep the wet dirty clothes, to which I am lucky to just get a diaper on him. The crying continues when offered food and drink, he either does not want anything or I can't understand what he wants and that cause the meltdown to get even worse. at this point food usually ends up on the floor. I am at wits end and it is only 7 am.

He will not get dressed ( for example today for when I took him to speech his SLP knew by looking at his hair and clothes it was a bad day) I best not even try to brush his hair or teeth. If I do another kicking screaming melt downs happens. By this time I have not seen even a little smile from my little red head wonder. "School Time" means more papers thrown on the floor, and more than likely crayons broke along with more kicking and screaming.

Lunch continues the same, nap causes another fight with a little boy running out of his bed for sometimes up to an hour, usually no nap is taken which adds to the stress of the day. Afternoon may cause for desperate trip of taken him for drive in hopes for just a few mins of a nap. Then the count down to bed time begins. After dinner which again is may or may not be eaten, and I may or may not be able to cook between melt downs. I try to get him in the bath. If I am successful I get a few mins free of melt downs but he may scream even more.

Errands are not going to happen unless, we want looks of disgust or pity from other people about the screaming 3 three year old. I have heard "NO" enough for a life time, I am sore from holding my fighting child trying to calm him. About 4 pm he begins crying for his Daddy even though when he gets home he wants nothing to do with John. Bed time means more resistance and usually a late night continues with several times of being awake during the night.

But the next day is a new day and we hope for a smiling little boy in the hallway. And so is the day in the life of our little Harrison. And as hard as rough days are for me, I can only image how hard it is for my little boy that just can't control himself. I know he has to be so frustrated. He is so good on "good days" and so much fun, I know he has to hate the "bad days "as much as we do.

Just Life around here

Nothing really going on around here the past few days. John went to New Orleans for most of last week, so Harrison and I had lots of time together and ate out a lot, I don't usually cook when John is out of town. When is on trips he is eating out which is one of his least favorite things to do so I know when he gets home he is ready for some home cooking, but it gives me a break too. John had a really good trip, he enjoyed his meetings and LOVED the food, he said he felt like he had been on the Food Network. And for those of you that know John know he only eats to fuel his body so he can work so for him to enjoy food the way he did on his trip, is a big deal.

I have all the Christmas shopping done and almost everything wrapped, and have not thought once about baking which is usually in full swing by now around here. I may just take the year off. The past couple of weeks, I have not been feeling the best, just a lupus flare but am getting back to normal, so hopefully this week my house will get back in order and I may have some energy to think about baking.

The Picture above is from our trip to Bass Pro Shop today. What to do when it is cold and raining... well we went thinking we might see Santa but decided we did not want to wait for ever in line but Harrison LOVES the fish there and they have a putting green so he got to play some "bolf" or golf, that he has been begging for. So 2 1/2 hours at Bass Pro I thought I deserved a pair shoes, so that was are exciting Sunday afternoon.

Tonight we watched "Polar Express" (aka Ho HO Choo Choo) which was a first for Harrison, and even though I know this is the worst picture ever, he sat in this spot with his popcorn without moving for the WHOLE movie. Needless to say he LOVED IT.

Tonight He also told me he needed to go potty and actually did need to so that was big news in our house. In other bragging Harrison is working SO HARD with his speech and his doing GREAT. Everyday he is amazing us at what is coming out. He is working REALLY hard on his name, he does the sounds for each of the following letters, H..R..S..N so with time and increased speed we will get there. He is also saying HELP, STOP, HIDE, and PLEASE to the point that most people would know what he was saying or at least people that know him. So these are all HUGE strides in the right direction for our little Red Head Wonder.

Singing Boy

This weekend at church is the Christmas dessert theater and tonight Harrison's Preschool Choir sang. A little background on this is that Harrison LOVES his class at church but he HATES music time. He sits with his head down and looks like he is about to burst into tears. When we pull in to the parking lots he tells me no music. It is almost pitiful. I know he is just not comfortable with his "talking" in front of the other kids, most of which are older than he is. We had a rehearsal Wednesday night and he would not go on stage or even look at the kids singing.

BUT TONIGHT HE DID AWESOME... he stood on the stage, did the motions, and SANG every song. I sat there crying, and I think John was pretty close too. Just proof that God is still into the business of Miracles.

When he was done I went over to brag on him and give him a hug, and he came running to and said "Mama, I did it" and he did. This was such a GREAT Night.

and how did my baby get this big?

And when we were leaving he asked for a milkshake aka "ice cream juice" and even though it was 10 pm he got it, you know it was a big deal if he got sugar that late :)