Hippotherapy

Dylan's Occupational Therapist (who we LOVE!) was giving us some ideas for strengthening his core muscles. She would really like us to have Dylan do Hippotherapy. Also called Equine therapy. Or for us plain talkers, horse therapy. There is one small problem with this plan. Actually, it is quite a large problem. I have a serious allergy to horses. Very serious. I can't be anywhere near a horse. I can't be near anyone who has recently been on a horse. I can't be in a room where there has recently been a person who was on a horse. If I am near a horse, or a person who has been on a horse, or in a room where there has been a person who was on a horse, I swell up and struggle to breathe. Ever see the movie Hitch? When he eats the shellfish? it's kinda like that. Only it's not so funny in real life. I've never done anything about it, because it is very easy to stay away from horses. People with other serious allergies, such as a peanut or bee allergy can't control being stung by a bee or exposed to a peanut product. I can control being around horses. But now I'm trying to decide if it is worth going to an allergist, getting shots, to try to become desensitized. I'm pretty sure that would take quite a while. For now we are looking at alternatives to hippotherapy. They have a machine called igallop that simulates horseback riding. since the pricetag is quite hefty, we'll be calling around to see if there are any clinics that have one. If so, we'll see if we can get approval for that. But if hippotherapy will have better long term effects for Dylan, I guess I'll drop trou for those monthly shots. Oh, joy. Here is a picture of Dylan during another OT activity. He also happens to be signing "mom". He is such a smart boy, and knows 25-30 signs. He is also getting more vocal... finally! We finally have a good Speech therapist!
Here he is signing "dad"

Have you ever seen a cuter boy?

My son, my sun

Luke recently celebrated his 5th birthday. we have been parents for nearly 5 years. Amazing. Luke is the first baby we ever had. He was 2 months old on our first day with him. His big brother Landon was 2 1/2 and came to live with us just 2 days prior to Luke's arrival. He was a sweet little bundle. He was pretty tiny- at least he seemed small at the time. He had a very reddish complexion, and people were constantly asking what his nationality was. He had a bunch of soft, straight black hair. And he cried. all. the. time. He was stiff, and would shudder from time to time. We did lots of stretches with him to loosen his muscles, and the shudders stopped after about a month. He had us all fascinated and completely in love with him from the first moment, which was a really good thing. Did I mention all the crying? Luke was not a great sleeper. He had to be swaddled TIGHT in order to get any sleep at all. His little arms were very jerky, and he'd punch himself in the face even while he slept and wake himself up squalling. We considered ourselves lucky if he slept for a 3 hour stretch. Scott and I had Luke "shifts". We often fell asleep in the recliner with Luke on our chest, because we were so exhausted. He didn't nap well. mostly, he just cried. Until he was about 6 months old. Then, blissfully, the crying stopped. He started sleeping through the night. And he started smiling. all. the. time. I tell people he cried for the first 6 months of his life, but he's spent every day since then making up for it. Luke is one happy, crazy, wild, exuberant, joyful boy. He makes it very hard to ever be mad at him. Even his siblings put up with more from Luke because he just has such a happy spirit. here are some recent Luke-isms. Dylan fell off his little ride on toy, and Luke beat me to him, snuggling him and saying "oh, sweetheart, are you ok?". We had Luke's birthday party the Saturday before his birthday, so on his actual birthday I let him choose what he wanted for dessert. He chose chocolate chip cookies, which he then helped me make. After dinner, I got out the ice cream, and brought the nice warm cookies to the table. I asked luke if he wanted ice cream with his cookie, and he said he just wanted ice cream. I asked why he wanted me to make the cookies if he didn't want to eat them. He asked if he could whisper it in my ear. So I leaned over, and he whispered "so everyone else could have them". What lessons I learn from this sweet boy. My sweet son loves to put his cheek on mine and sing "Dear Prudence" and "You'll Be in My Heart" with me. He loves to sit and watch Star Trek with me. He's the first to run in and say Good morning, Mom! He's rarely grumpy. He is my little ray of sunshine and I'm so thankful he will forever be my son!

Trust Issues

Poor Dylan doesn't trust his mommy anymore. He was on antibiotics again recently for a sinus infection. He is very prone to them. we are going to start using saline drops in his nose daily to see if that will help. He hates taking medicine. right before the sinus infection, he had croup. We asked for the steroid shot, because trying to get him to take oral meds is NOT fun. But for the sinus infection, they gave him oral antibiotics. And then the fun begins. If we try to force him, he just gags and throws up everywhere, so we have to be sneaky. The second he sees the syringe, he starts going into fits. So this last time, I tried hiding the medicine in his food. I'd put a little food on his spoon, squirt a little medicine on his spoon and give it to him. He didn't like it, but he tolerated it for 2 whole days (thank heavens this medicine is just once a day for 5 days). Then he decided he was done with that trick. He wouldn't eat any food at all. We had to fight the other days to get his meds down him at all. and mostly he spit them back out. But he got better and that is all I really care about. But he still doesn't trust me at mealtime. We don't feed him much food from a jar anymore. Because he has oral sensitivities, and didn't get any teeth until he was nearly 2, and still only has 4 teeth (all molars), he is not eating a lot of solids. He gags on anything too lumpy. So his meal preparation is not for the weak of stomach. I take whatever leftovers we have and use my hand blender to mix them up. I use applesauce, juice or a jar of baby food to make it a little smoother. For instance, todays meal was blended pork roast, carrots and potatoes from last night's dinner, with applesauce to smooth it out. I try to make sure we always have a protein, fruit, and vegetable in his meal. There is usually some sort of starch for bulk (rice, potatoes, noodles, or crackers if nothing else). yesterdays meal was Mac-n-cheese with peanut butter and applesauce. I know it sounds disgusting, but we do what it takes. sometimes that means refried beans or navy beans with sweet potatoes and bananas. Like I said, his meal preparation is not for the weak of stomach. Anyway, We keep jars of baby food on hand for times that we are going to be away from home at mealtime, or to help smooth out his blended concoctions. But now he won't eat his blended concoctions. He has been off the meds for a week and he still doesn't trust that I didn't put meds in his food. The only way he'll eat it is if he SEES me open a new jar of baby food and feed him directly from the jar. The good news is that after a few bites from the jar, he will eat his blended food. But if I dare try to feed him a bite of his blended food first, he starts shaking his head, kicking his legs, and swinging his arms. Hmmm..... Temper much? How do I get my sweet boy to trust me again??? I can't promise never to hide meds in his food again. I guess I just have to live with the consequences. Good thing he's so adorable.