Ashlynn turned four this past weekend and my husband and I were just beaming with pride. Last year, she couldn’t blow out her candles, sing the Happy Birthday Song, much less even say Happy Birthday. When she woke up in the morning, balloons were waiting for her in our hallway. Before she hit the bathroom she excitedly said “BAYOONS!!” As she stepped in the kitchen, we had a Minnie Mouse
For those of you familiar with my blog, I’ve spoke of “Ben” before. A little boy on my school caseload from a Spanish speaking family who has CAS and is nonverbal. However, IQ testing shows him in the 75th percentile! He’s sooo smart. I met him last year in Kindergarten, and we formed an instant bond. His Kindergarten teacher was frustrated that he wouldn’t talk; and I’m not sure if
Ashlynn said her first compound sentence yesterday. It took me so much by surprise that I almost ruined it by interrupting her. I picked her up from school asking the usual questions and getting the usual answers, “How was school?” “Good.” (Dood) “What did you do?” “Play” (pay) “Who did you play with?” “PLAY!!” she says impatiently. “I know, but
Today I took Ashlynn to one of my BFF’s bridal shower. There weren’t going to be any other kids there, but Ashlynn is so good around a group. When I think of people who have charisma, I think of great speakers and people gifted with words. The Martin Luther King’s and the John F Kennedy’s of the world. But Ashlynn makes me realize charismatic people don’t need to speak. There
A research article in Brain Topography: A Journal of Cerebral and Dynamics, has a published a new study that demonstrates actual brain plasticity in the brains of children diagnosed with idiopathic apraxia of speech after undergoing intense PROMPT training. According to the article, it’s the first study of it’s kind to demonstrate “experience dependent structural plasticity in children receiving therapy for speech sound disorders. I’ve been waiting for this kind
We bought a tricycle for Ashlynn three months before her third birthday. My husband and I took her to Toys R Us, excited, full of hope and expectation. I had seen two-year old children on Facebook gleefully riding their trikes with big goofy smiles on their faces, and I couldn’t WAIT to snap that happy gleeful face on my little girl. Pregnant with my son, we all left the store