speech
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Our first parent-teacher conference
So yesterday evening, Jessica and I met with Namine’s teacher and school-appointed speech therapist. It went well, I thought, all things considered. I still hold to the opinion that Miss Merrie has too many children to watch, and so cannot pay enough attention to any one in particular, thus short-changing all of them.
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The concept of “normal”
“Normal” is a funny word. You might think it means one thing – such as the dictionary definition, which is, according to Dictionary.com, “conforming to the standard or the common type; usual; not abnormal; regular; natural” – but that idea can change. The first three definitions there do not describe Namine in the least. Of…
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A little attitude goes a long way
Namine, being a headstrong and willful child, can be quite, as my sister puts it, ‘tudey. But that attitude, far from being a bad thing, is what has made her so strong. And, of course, she employs her determination in more than just sassing off.
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School away from school
Jessica converted the dining area (which, to be fair, is not all that large in our apartment anyway) into a teaching corner. So, that’s not quite right. It’s more of a nook. She’s got a bulletin board, a magnetic calendar, and a whole bunch of new books. She’s even got next week’s lessons all planned…
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The new IEP
To paraphrase The Who, “the new IEP, same as the old IEP.” Rather, in this case, we hope not. Namine’s IEP meeting was on Monday, and we came away from it feeling good. As always, though, time will tell.
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Feet, baths, and IEPs
Well, kids, it’s official. Namine’s feet have been declared just fine and dandy (if more than a little smelly) by both her orthopedic and plastic surgeons. This is momentous news indeed!
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School tour
This afternoon Jessica, Namine, and I will be touring what we hope will be Namine’s new school. We’ll see. Hopefully this time around her teacher(s) won’t partition her off as “Special Needs” without understanding what it is that she truly needs, in terms of education and activity.
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Well, it’s normal for us
Today is Namine’s first full day back home, having been discharged from the hospital yesterday morning. Today was our Saturday – by that I mean we spent the day cleaning and grocery shopping – but despite how sore and tired she must still be, it was a very good day.
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Party time
Namine – well, all of us, really – had a very busy and eventful day on Sunday. But fun. That’s important, especially on the weekend. I know that after no nap and three and a half hours of very active play, she was pretty tired. She dropped off to sleep within about five minutes of…
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Hope and heartache
I read this morning – I don’t have the link anymore, so sorry – that February is Special Needs Awareness Month. I’ve seen this kind of thing perpetuated all over on Facebook, and 90% of the time it’s not really Whatever Awareness Time Period. But I saw this on Twitter, not Facebook, so it must…
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Father-daughter time
It’s not often that I get to accompany Namine to therapy, let alone take her all by myself.
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Miscommunication
Namine is a smart girl. What she doesn’t understand outright – and there isn’t much, her vocabulary is probably in the hojillions – she tends to pick up from context. Before you know it, she’s using words, phrases, and expressions beyond what you’d expect from a three year old. But sometimes she totally misses the…