Joey:
So bear with my mom, it has been awhile since she wrote and has a lot to tell you all.
Mom:
School is out. Joey completed kindergarten and is going into 1st grade in the fall. I can't believe my baby is going into 1st grade ;( Kindergarten was a great year. He learned so much and did so much in school. He has a gait trainer (walker) he uses and walks all over the playground and classroom. He also has a stander in his classroom and he is working on sitting independently in a cube chair. The goal is to get him to sit for 15 minutes in it. This chair has NO support. Its all him. He can sit for 3 minutes now in the chair. The teacher and aides have been working great with his switches to get him to communicate. He reaches and pushes his button to talk. He is doing great using his special crayon to color me a million pictures. In the 1st grade he will have the same teacher and aides which is great because they know him already and its not starting from the beginning again. Right now he is in summer school for 4 weeks with the same teacher. He loves hanging with his friends.
In March he had botox on his hamstrings and calf's again to help loosen him up. It works fantastic with Joey. He grew so much in the last year that we had to get him new AFO's (ankle foot braces). He has set a new record when it comes to sitting independently. He can sit on the floor criss cross applesauce for 36 minutes now. He reaches outward now to grab and touch. He walks in his gait trainer all over now. We don't even count the steps anymore.
In January Joey got glasses as a therapy tool to help uncross his eyes and get him to use his central vision. Well, it is working. He is tracking and focusing so much better. Still can't figure out the extent of his eyesight though. In June Joey started an AAC clinic at CSUN. This clinic helps determine which is the best communication device for Joey. We are only 3 days into it and he is already making choices. It was great to see him use his button to make a choice.
In April, my mom and I went to the abilities expo here in LA. A convention for the disabled. We found a fantastic bike for Joey, but unfortunately the cost was way to much ($3700). I know right just for a bike. Well at the same time we saw this bike, a friend contacts me asking if I want to buy a bike for Joey that his son has outgrown. AND guess what? It was the same exact bike we saw at the expo. So Joey has a new bike. He loves it so much. He uses it almost every day.
Joey will start Tomatis (listening therapy) and Vital Stim (swallowing therapy) in July for 3 weeks. It is an intensive program in which he will go everyday. The Tomatis will help him organize himself and the Vital Stim will help him drink better. Both therapies will also help his speech and voice better. When this is done we will be heading back to AZ for more ABM therapy. Joey was so loose after this therapy. He did really great. So we have a full busy month of July.
Tuesday is Joey's B-day. He is turning 6 yrs old. We are having a little b-day party for him on Sunday. I will post pictures of his party this next week.
Well I think that's it for now.
