ST/OT Graduation

We had Owen's 6 month review with his ST, OT, and the qualifying agency Alta Regional this week. Since Owen was 10 months we have been getting services, as Owen showed a 1/3 delay in more than 2 areas of development. We are pleased to report that he does not show enough delay to qualify for services! We could not be more proud. It was so amazing to read in print:

"Owen has become an oral eater."

WOW!!!!!!

We are a bit sad, as we have developed relationships with his therapists. Amy was coming once per week for an hour session. 

She got to be quite popular in our house, Owen seems to think she is coming over every day.

 Owen's first encounter with brussel sprouts. He had fun peeling the layers off. I found a big stem at trader joe's and it was quite a hit. He scored at the 33 month level for Cognitive development, wahoo! He scored at 30 months for fine motor skills, and 24 months for gross motor. These were both expected, as his fine motor has always been a little ahead we think due to him having to sit so long for feeds we always gave him something to do with his hands. The gross motor is also no surprise. Crawling at 11 months and then walking at 19months gave him a later start to it all. He also is a little uncoordinated with jumping and rolling over. These both require a lot of core strength but he is still improving.

 In the mouth...

 A little bitter face but he shoved it in.

 Yup, down the hatch.

 MMMMM. He ate a whole one that day, and continues to enjoy them raw.

 He is improving on self feeding. This was on halloween. We used food coloring to make it orange and more fun. He scored at the 24 month age range for Self Help scores (at 28 months). This includes dressing, feeding, etc. This is below his age but still acceptable and not considered delayed.

As far as speech, Coleen assessed him as meeting most of his goals and/or the skills are emerging. An example is circles of communication. It's like ping pong, how many times can you go back and forth? At the time of answering the questions we thought it was two circles, for example:
Two Circles:
"What are you doing, Owen?"
"I'm just playing with my cars."
"Which one is your favorite?"
"Lighting McQueen."

We are finding that if we expand our questions he expands his answers. He is also asking a lot more questions. That was another area that the ST looked at, his ability to answer & ask Who, What, Where, When, and How questions. Pass!

He still is working on his aversions. This is his pumpkin gooey face. The fresh fruit palate now includes fresh apple, and that is all. He will drink a fruit smoothie as long as the predominant flavor is strawberry. That is a vehicle for many other fruits and vegetables to get into his belly.

The tube is still in place. We need at least 6 months of solid eating and growing. He takes his 1/2 baby aspirin by mouth daily most days without a fuss. He has a selective diet (what toddler doesn't). Here are his acceptable foods:

Protein/Fat-
Chicken nuggets ("chicken toast" we call em)
Cheese
Nuts
Falafel (hasn't in a while, but enjoyed "bean toast" for a bit)
Bacon
Fried salami or deli meats (to get them crunchy vs moist)

Starch-
tortillas
bagels
bread
chips
cereals
noodles (very selective, ravioli a few times in decent portions!)

Vegetables-
Carrots (disguised in a quesadilla)
dehydrated peas
dehydrated corn
(All listed below raw and likely right off the plant outside)
sage
basil
kale
spinach
parsley
brussel sprouts

Fruit-
apple (sliced very thin with a peeler)
apple juice
fruit snacks
dehydrated fruit/ fruit chips
everything else in a smoothie

Dairy-
yogurt
small amounts of milk

I can't believe how long this list is! It is so fun to watch him add food to the list. He still struggles in learning about his hunger cues, and doesn't always know when he is hungry. He needs constant encouragement to stay attentive with meals, and sometimes needs to be fed.

Sadly we are saying goodbye to our awesome therapists, but we have learned so much. We are forever grateful to our therapy ladies, so glad to have them in our lives.