Owen's Developmental Evaluation

Today Owen had his developmental evaluation by the Children's Developmental Services Agency. I was worried how he would perform for a stranger but I was pleasantly surprised how fast he warmed up to the evaluator. She had him perform all sorts of tasks, from placing cubes in a cup to matching objects to completing puzzles. As I feared, he came to a point where he was just done and became clingy. The end didn't go as well but I felt like she got an accurate picture of what he could do. While she scored his evaluation, I fed him lunch and then we went over the results.

He scored in the average range in all his daily activities, socialization, and fine motor skills. He was right on the border with gross and expressive language. He was below standard on receptive language. Because he was below on one and borderline on the others, he was borderline for qualifying for services. The evaluator and I both agreed though that it would be in his best interest to get services. At 19 months, he is too young to qualify for speech therapy so we will do developmental therapy, also called play therapy. For the next 6 months, a therapist will come in once a week for an hour to work on goals that we have put in place. Some of his goals were like being able to name an object instead of just pointing and grunting. We also will work on more coordination activities, seeing how he is still learning to walk on all surfaces (currently he won't walk on any uneven surface, like grass or sand).

People have asked me how I feel about all this. I personally am excited about it. After being a teacher for so many years, I realize the need for early intervention and I want to do anything that will help Owen. As a teacher, I hated when parents were naive or stubborn about their child's need for help because they didn't want a label. I want to help Owen now when he's only a little behind rather than later when he is really behind. I'm looking forward to seeing the activities the therapist brings and implementing them on a daily basis.

Thanks everyone for your support and your advice! I'll keep you updated as we go along.

18 month checkup

Owen went in for his 18 month checkup finally.

He weighed 26 lbs. (33%) and was 31 in long (55%). He evidently has a big head as he is in the 95%. He got 1 shot, which is the last one he needs until he's four.

Though the doctor doesn't really seem worried about his development I have been. While he is walking now, he still behind in his speech and a few motor skills (like stacking blocks). A couple of weeks ago, after getting advice from a few trusted friends and family, I contacted the Child Development Agency about my concerns. I talked to their awesome director and she thought an evaluation may be necessary. She assigned us a service coordinator, who visited us this past Tuesday. The coordinator asked every thing about Owen, from his birth story to all of his routines. She took down all this information and then presented it yesterday to a team of evaluators. They have set up a hearing test on the 20th and an in-home evaluation for the 27th.

Even if nothing is wrong, I'll be glad to have a professional's advice. The evaluation is free so it doesn't hurt to have it done. I look forward to getting the results!

How Should a Christian Live?

As a young believer, many Christians struggle with what should their life look now that Christ is Lord over my life. Thomas Nelson Publishers sent me this new devotional & journal called How Should a Christian Live? It is part of a four part devotional series that walks a student through the entire New Testament. The book includes a CD with famous actors reading the Scripture that are used in the lessons.

After reading through the book, I would definitely recommend it for middle and high schoolers who are just beginning their Christian walk. While it can be done as a personal devotional, I believe it would be a great discussion start in a Bible study or large group setting. The book is great for giving you basic Biblical truths along with history lessons of the Bible and its characters. I admire the authors for not just giving readers a checklist of do’s and don’ts for the Christian walk but rather points them to character of Christ and how we should emulate him. I also liked how they defined churchy words instead of assuming the reader automatically knows them. Things that that I thought that could have been left out were the word games and puzzles. While they may be fun to do, I’m not really sure they add to the points the authors are trying to make. Overall, I think it’s a great resource and I look forward to sharing my copy with a special youth in my life.

Walk Like a Man

Duke is Puke

I swore I would never let my child cheer for Dook, let alone wear anything Dook. Then somehow I married a Dookie. (Dad said if he knew that Jeremy was a Duke fan, he would have never let me marry him.)

A few weeks back Jeremy bought him this onesie. I hate it..I tried to hide it. Jeremy puts it on him if he dresses him. Since they were playing in the championship yesterday, he got to wear it. You can tell Owen is really excited about it. Don't worry..it was off by game time. :) GO Butler!Owen is and always will be a Tar Heel! See, look how happy he is in his UNC shirt! :)

Easter 2010

We had a fun Easter weekend! We spent the weekend with my (Shannon's) family.

Friday night we dyed Easter eggs. They all made fun of me for wanting to do it but they enjoyed it nonetheless.

Brandon and Lauren decorating their eggs.Mom
Dad trying to write Go Heels but he wrote in white so it was hard to see.
Jeremy drew funny faces on his.
Dad liked to mix colors.
So somehow we ended up with lots of shades of yellow.
Easter morning Owen got a basket from us.
His eggs were filled with yogurt melts which he was obssessed with.
He also got a Magna Doodle.
Family shot before church.
Our family of 3.
Brandon and his girlfriend Lauren
Sweet pictures of my boys. (Owen's shirt would not stay tuck in and he was too hot for the jacket. )
We enjoyed all the time with our family and celebrating the resurrection of Christ. Having a son now, it makes the Lord's sacrifice even more meaningful. I don't know how I could give up my son for someone else's sin. I am thankful for the cross and thankful even more that I have eternal life with Christ. I pray everyday that Owen will come to know the Lord at a young age and will one day accept Christ. I hope your family had a blessed Easter as well!

You're Order is Up

Owen received a fun surprise for Easter this year. Thanks to a great sale, money from Jeremy's Uncle Sid and Aunt Marsha, and my parents.. we were able to purchase this awesome kitchen/50's diner for Owen. He loves playing with the kitchen at preschool so we knew it would be a big hit.

This set did not disappoint! He could barely wait for us to put it together before he got on it. He went home with his Nana and Papa so we could finish. Here is the kitchen side. It's so cute! It has a sink, stove (with sounds), an ice cream cooler, fridge, and oven. This is the diner side. On the table is a little jukebox that plays 50's music!
As soon as he woke up, he went straight to the kitchen. He opened all the doors and pulled out all the food and dishes.
He loves getting the ice cream out.
Sitting at the booth, reaching for the mustard.
Frying up some hamburgers.
He decided he didn't like the location so he pushed it around a bit.
Enjoying a drink.
and a little hotdog.
I LOVE this pic, notice how he even has his feet crossed.
We are working on what to do you do with the stuff when you are done with it. Currently our kitchen is now littered with his kitchen pieces.
Though we have only had it for 2 days, I can tell this is a keeper. He has played with it constantly. So come on over and Owen will serve you up a burger! :)