Preschool

M, W
Not really feeling Mom's picture taking....

We have really been looking forward to getting the boys back in preschool.  I hadn't realized just how excited the boys were too!  We left their Seattle program a couple of months early for our move to Ohio and since we have been here, we shopped around quite a bit until we found the right place.  We finally decided on a school that we thought was the most loving, most focused on learning and fun, and most likely to successfully prepare them for Kindergarten at a public school.  This is an important year for them and we wanted to set them up in a place that they would feel super confident but still be challenged.

Parents went to the first day with the kids.

We will also be starting special needs services with our school district and will know more about that in the coming months.  The process of evaluations is thorough: initial observations, evals with speech and occupational therapists, meetings with psychologist, and then more observations at the boys' private pre school.  We anticipate they will qualify for basic speech services which can take place at their school, but we will learn more once the evaluation process is complete.

We had a hard time adjusting the words, "special needs," almost to a point that we weren't sure we would enroll the boys.  I'm not sure why the stigma of a special needs program resonated as negative thing.  Because it's NOT.  I am so excited for the boys to get the help the need, tailored especially for them.  They have trouble with expressive language.  So it makes perfect sense to have them go to a school where they work with specialists who will help them specifically with their speech.  It's been difficult waiting the past few years with no diagnosis or understanding why the boys don't really talk a lot.  A promise that it will just happen when it happens was fine at first, but with kindergarten being only a year away, we know how important it is to take advantage of all the help we can get.  The boys are showing SO MUCH improvement and I'm very proud of them.  I feel really excited about all the learning that's going to be happening this year!  It's going to be a lot of hard work, but I know they can do it. 

Today Mason ran upstairs and must have rummaged through Ginny's room to find powder, butt paste, a diaper, and some lotion.  He brought it downstairs and said. "Ginny. Poop. Butt."  (Ginny has one of her first episodes of diaper rash and he must have overheard Aaron and I talking about it.)  Sometimes he doesn't say the words, but his love and care is so extremely obvious.  It is probably fair to assume a four year old understands diaper rash and knows how to help.  I think it is important to note that his receptive language is quite typical-- he knows what's going on and communicates through the day well.  I just love to see how much he's started trying to SAY the words recently.  He's doing so well.  It makes me so emotional and so hopeful for the near future. 

Right about the time we moved to Ohio, William's speech started taking off.  It started with, "MOM!"  And then he'd point to something and name it, like he just wanted to show me he knew how to say the word.  In the past few months, he's been stringing several words into a sentence and strangers can clearly understand what he's saying.  When I picked him up from school yesterday, he burst through the door with a, "Momma!" and then proceeded to tell me all about his day.  I only picked up about 15 of the 100 words he said, but I'm so pleased to hear him vocalizing.  It makes me so happy. 

We try not to compare the boys to each other or to other kids their age, because kids are so different.  We know that some things the boys lack are made up for by things like their physical strength or agility.  (These guys are seriously animals.)  Sometimes after a family dinner when I spend time with the boys' four year old cousin, I am sick with jealousy when he says what he's thinking and there's a longing to talk with my sons that actually pulls in my stomach and makes me want to cry.  I hate the thought of William and Mason wanting to say something but being unable to, and I hate thinking how much it must confuse or hurt them to be misunderstood.  I am so thankful I get to spend my day with them and can afford the time to be patient.  (At least I try to be.)  I really hope they know the love I feel for them, and the pride I have for them.  I really feel like we could be on the verge of a speech explosion, and I would just be so happy for them!

That was a lot of words!  Condensed version: the boys started school.  Going to be getting special speech services soon.  I am sad and worried but I'm also really excited and have high expectations for this year.  The boys are awesome.