Leaps and bounds...

It is unseasonably warm, here in Ohio. The kids are outside playing and Isaac, who usually confines himself to the back porch, bravely and tentatively, put a foot in the grass, and then the next, and before I knew it, he was walking across the yard. I couldn't hold back the tears. It looks like next summer will be so much more enjoyable, and I can't wait to watch him explore.

My little man is really coming along. This week he talked on the phone for the first time. His first conversation went something like this: Ha (hi), go, ya, no, ya, go, Ba (bye). There were hand gestures that went along with it, and I'm his mom so I'm allowed to brag and say that witnessing the whole thing was ridiculously cute. And I'm going to embarrass my husband, and tell you that he said hearing Isaac talk on the phone almost made him cry while he was sitting in a lab at work. We wait and wait for these moments, which only adds to the sweetness when they do finally happen.

We're working on teaching Isaac how to get dressed. Obviously, we never had to spend a moment teaching Isabella anything about getting dressed. She's been a pro at it for way too long, and I had to give up control on picking out her outfits before she turned two. Hence the wide array of fashionable attire that you often see pictured on this blog. A tip to moms who want to maintain some control in this area: buy tops, bottoms, tights, pants, skirts, that are (relatively) within the same color scheme, and chances are, whatever your toddler happens to put together as an outfit, will look cute and not (completely) bizarre. Also, the shoes matter. They must be comfortable, they must be able to walk quickly (I say this because I don't believe in walking slowly, so she has no choice other than to keep up) and have the potential to walk for long distances in them, and they must go with just about anything. Example, Isabella's cowgirl boots. Everybody loves her red boots (they are pretty fabulous), and they just so happen to be quite comfortable. Other good shoes for kids, Robeez and See Kai Run are two of my favorite brands, as well as, Stride Rite. Oh, and no flip flops. Isabella can't stand that I have made this a rule, but they break all of my shoe rules, so I don't even entertain the idea.

Back to Isaac...I never really gave any thought to having to teach someone to get dressed, but Isaac firmly believes that getting dressed is a form of torture. On the off chance he's in a good mood and I can make the whole thing a really funny game, it works out well. Otherwise, he says, "Ow, ow, ow, OW!" for the duration of dressing. Not only does he think it is torture, but he will not sit up, stand up, move an arm or leg, during the process. Think, jello. So, we've been trying to teach him to help push his arm through sleeves, and lift up a leg so that it can go in his pants, or show us a foot for his sock. If you're in the same predicament with your child who has special needs, verbal cues really help. I talk him through each step, encourage him to help me by moving his body parts to appropriate places, tell him he's a big boy and can put his arm through the hole, and stuff like that. He's getting much better. Now he will help zip and unzip his jacket (we're working on lessening his tactile defensiveness--basically, this means he doesn't like to use a strong grip to touch things), and he will lift up his foot for a sock, and will periodically give minimal effort in pushing his arm through a sleeve, all the while saying, "Ow, ow, OW!" 

This morning was one of those morning in which my kids played together beautifully. They entertained each other for hours. This allowed me to get a bunch of research done for a project I'm working on, and it was nice to see Isaac follow Isabella all around the house, excitedly following her every command.

She "read" about thirty books to him...

...in various places throughout the house...

 

I am almost done with our Christmas shopping. Isabella was very excited to wrap presents for Stella, Lucy, and daddy.