Speak Up

I have been thinking about Aulton's speech issues for awhile now. His lack of speaking ability was the main reason I had concluded he had Autism. As I have been mulling this theory around, I finally got up the courage to ask his speech therapist, Miss Marisa, what she thought. I had dreaded talking to her about this particular issue because I thought she might have reached the same conclusion. I already feel like I'm drowning half the time. I just wasn't sure I could deal with another diagnosis, just as I was getting a really good handle on the Muscular Dystrophy diagnosis. I don't freak out when people ask me questions or stare at us all the time, anymore. I didn't even over-react when an unusually rude woman asked why I was "allowed" to have a handicap sticker, after I had already put Aulton in the car. I thought the "I love someone with Muscular Dystrophy" bumper sticker warded off those kinds of questions. Anyway, Marisa was surprised that I had reached the conclusion that Aulton had Autism. We talked, at length, about some of the other characteristics that Aulton displays that fit within the Autism spectrum. Besides his lack of speech, I was concerned about his communication with other kids. He does not interact much with other children, but that is common, she said, for kids who have difficulty communicating. He knows, at least subconciously, that he is different and I'm guessing he is quite intimidated by peers' speech and movements that are quicker and more advanced than his own. He does interact with his sister, who is much smaller than him and with a classmate he sees nearly everyday and who we have playdates with. This particular child is less ambulatory than Aulton and is also non-verbal. Aulton also does well with adults, probably because they were his earliest friends due to various therapies he has been receiving since he was 4 months old. Other than those two things, Aulton gives good eye contact, is VERY affectionate and doesn't display many other common Autistic signs.

Aulton is unusually intuitive and will interact with only those who have a genuine interest in and love for him. I think that is one of the precious gifts that God gave him to help me determine who I can trust with him. He is so very close to the veil and I have had some very tender experiences recently that have touched my heart and strengthened my testimony about God's love for him and how very precious Aulton is to Him.

Marisa told me that Aulton probably has speech apraxia. This is good news to me. It's the other thing I had been considering, although I didn't have a name for it. Children (or adults) with apraxia have a hard time combining sounds to make words, although they have the vocabulary. Their minds have difficulty processing the individual sounds to make the words they already know. Aulton knows A LOT. I'm not saying he doesn't have cognitive delays, because he does. I just wish I would give him more credit for the things he knows. He is verbal, it just doesn't make much sense and he is making new sounds all the time. If he has apraxia, it's not that he doesn't have the ability to say words, it's just going to take him a lot longer to get them out because his mind needs more time to process how to fit the sounds together.

The positive things about apraxia are that I'm doing most of the "treatments" already. Children with apraxia are supposed to see a speech therapist at least once a week. We go twice a week. The parents need to follow a very consistent home routine. I do speech therapy exercises with Aulton everyday, after lunch right before he naps. He will benefit from an augmentative device, which we are in the process of getting. He chose a SpringBoard Lite and I'm sooo excited about it! His speech will also be improved by his parents' consistent urging for him to repeat sounds that we make during our daily activities. That is something I have done with him and with Lyla since their births. Lyla's vocabulary is quite extensive for a 14 month old. She says; Lyla, Aulton, Mike, dad, mama, cat, dog, rabbit, Dora, done, bubble, pop, bye, good-bye, hello, hi, yeah, yes, no, uh-oh, oh, outside, go, car, wow, whoa, and probably some other words I'm forgetting. So, since all three us are best buddies and hang out together all the time, he must be processing the same information as she is, he just can't say the same things. Lyla also identifies a lot of objects that she hasn't been able to say yet. Aulton can do this, as well. I know from Aulton's therapy that he knows how to answer where, what and who questions, knows colors, body parts, foods and can identify opposites, among other things.

So, it looks like my theory about Autism has been shot out of the water. Hooray. If it comes up in a few years, hopefully I will be in a better place to deal with it. Right now, I'm encouraged by the apraxia theory and am going to continue treating Aulton as if that is what is going on.

To see a quick video from the Telethon, for those of you who aren't on Facebook, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPkRUiWElTE
(I couldn't get it to load directly onto the blog.)
You will note my hopeful attitude about Aulton's eventual speech. I'm so madly in love with him! He is the one of the three most important people to me on this Earth and I would walk through fire for him, but the things I'm doing on a daily basis mean much more than that, I think.

Aulton Updates

I'm not positive anyone reads this blog anymore and I have so little time, but thought I should post a few updates about Aulton, as he's had some changes in his health recently.

Sleep: His most recent sleep study confirmed that Aulton does indeed have Periodic Limb Movement Disorder, as I guessed (literally) years ago. He was asleep for about 8 hours and moved his legs 147 times. Some of those disturbances were jolting or painful enough to wake him several times every hour. Also, he has mild sleep apnea. The doctor who read the report was nice enough to call me to explain the results, as well as talk about possible treatments. He gave me some options to think about and I'm still thinking about them, so I will have to update that later.

Immune System: We found out a few months ago that Aulton has basically no immune system, his immunoglobulin levels were very low and some were absent. He was tested for all the common strains of pneumococcus and we found out that he had no defenses against any of them. Thank goodness for an explanation of the 5 months of sickness he had earlier this year. The immunologist gave him a pneumo-vaccine and fortunately when we went to the doctor today, it showed that his antibody levels have gone up. They are not in the normal range, but pretty close and hopefully, they will continue to go up as the vaccine works in his body.

Orthotics: Aulton is still toe walking a lot. He is still tolerating his day time orthotics and still hates the night splints. He is getting refitted for new day and night orthotics in a few weeks. I wish I could say we were returning to the lower SMOs, but I think he will be in the tall AFOs for a few more years.

Speech: Aulton is attempting more sounds, but still has few words. I'm fairly certain he has autism, but if he does, it doesn't change anything. He's still Aulton, I still love him and am doing everything I can to help him progress. He is going to be evaluated for an augmentative communication device in the next few weeks. This device can be programmed to Aulton and will give him the ability to say hello to people, request foods, activities, etc. It has more options than the PECS he currently uses.

Aulton is still happy, loving and the sweetest, cutest four-year-old I have ever met. I thank God for trusting me to raise him.

Wally's World

I named this post after a paper I wrote in 9th grade, with the same title. I wrote it about my grandpa, Wally, and how I was so proud to be a part of his world. My grandfather, passed away on Sunday, April 11, 2010. I found out as I was driving to drop off some dinner to a friend who had just had a baby.

I'm so grateful for him and his passing has given me the chance to think about what he meant to me. My grandpa always told me exactly what he thought without sugar-coating anything. That part of his personality was sometimes difficult for me to handle. However, he taught me a lot and most of my memories of him are fond.

My favorite memory of him involves his beard. When I was a little girl, my family would visit my grandparents often. We didn't live far from them and I remember sitting on his lap all the time, rubbing my face against his whiskers. I can still feel it and smell him. My grandpa smelled like the combination of Irish Spring soap, aftershave and spearmint. When I was at their home, I would nurse Lyla in his office and just sit in there and cry. The whole room smelled just like him. I miss that smell.
I am so glad that he got to meet both of my children. Aulton has been sick, so he has been staying home from school and therapy this week. As I have been teaching and playing with he and Lyla, I have pictured my grandfather watching us. I think he would proud of the job I'm doing and it makes me want to try a little harder to be more patient and loving.

I feel my grandpa in my heart. He will be there until I'm able to rub my cheek against his again.

My "Heard"

Something very fun has been happening at our home lately. My children are filling the air with "ba" sounds. For Lyla, this is a typical sound. According to the "chart" that is supposed to tell me when every "normal" thing happens, babies typically start making "b" sounds between 7 and 12 months. It also says she is supposed to start shouting for attention. Umm, I guess she's ahead of the curve on that one.

Aulton, on the other hand, has never been able to make that sound. Myotonic Dystrophy gives children weak facial muscles, which explains Aulton's very kissable, chubby cheeks. The hardest sounds to make are "b", "m" and "p" because a person must bring their lips together to make those sounds. I have been consciously working with Aulton on producing a "b" sound since he was 14 months old. In fact, we work on it EVERYDAY by reading, "Brown Bear, Brown Bear." We also work on it in every speech therapy session. This probably doesn't seem like a big deal to the outside observer, but trust me, it is! This sound, combined with other sounds Aulton already makes, will eventually lead to words and I want so badly to know what my little boy is thinking.

I can't recall the first day it happened, but I remember hearing Aulton in the back seat, saying, "ba, ba, ba". I couldn't believe it. It made me so happy.

Around the same time, Lyla starting making the same sound. I don't know if one inspired the other, or if it was merely coincidence, but I'm so excited for and proud of both of them.

I love my little sheep. BAAAAA!

Where to Begin?

It has been seven months since I updated the blog. At first, it was because I was too busy to breathe, then I felt like it was too late. However, the new year is upon us and I thought an update was in order and possible. I'm working on getting Aulton's MDA Stride and Ride page up and I like to include this address for those who would like to check on his progress, so I can hopefully fill you in on those changes, as well as many of the other things that have happened to us during the past few months.

LYLA
First, our little girl was born. We are so excited to have Lyla Emily in our family. Lyla was born on July 10, 2009, 12 days before she was due. I was so thrilled when my water broke because I thought I was going to die from the heat and the doctor had told me two days earlier that it would be a few more weeks. During the last month, I would take Aulton to the nearby supermarket just so we could walk down the freezer aisle. Being 9 months pregnant during an Arizona July, while carrying a 40 pound little boy is not fun, but, of course, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Her birth was EASY! I was only in real labor for a few hours (the entire process was only 14 hours). I dilated from a 4 to a 10 in 20 minutes and she literally slid out. After 26 hours of labor with Aulton I kind of deserved to have an easy one. The most special thing about that day is that she was born on Mike's sister, Emily's birthday. Emily, who is in Heaven, sent Lyla to us on that very wondrous day.

Lyla started to get colic around 2 months, which is something that I have never experienced before. Aulton was a very "easy" baby, who rarely cried. It was exhausting. At 3 months, 1 day, it was like a switch was turned off and the crying decreased. I could put her down and actually go to the bathroom without Lyla completely losing control.

She has added so much to our family. She is very funny. Right now, she is sitting on my lap running her feet over the chunky, blue bracelet I'm wearing. She is a bit high maintenance, but easy going when it counts. For example, she sleeps great in the car, which is important with our schedule. She is a great eater and is generally very jolly.

She is growing up very quickly. She rolled over "early", started crawling already, babbles like crazy and is sleeping through the night (finally!).

OUR NEW HOUSE
My parents, who plan to move to Phoenix upon retirement, bought a house in Gilbert as an investment and are so kind they are letting us live in it. Of course, we pay the mortgage and utilities and everything you normally pay for. We really needed to move to get Aulton into a school in Gilbert and have a house with a pool for his physical therapy needs. We love the new house, it is bigger than our other house and a better set up for our little family. We have a great tree in our front yard that actually changes colors and loses it leaves, bringing me a little bit of the Colorado, Wyoming and Utah Autumns I miss so much.

AULTON
Aulton continues to be a huge blessing to our family and brings me so much joy. He just had his 4th birthday on Christmas. As I have been reflecting on my life, as I often do during a new year, I realize how lucky I am to have had him be a " baby" for so long. Of course, I enjoy watching Lyla reach milestones and thank God everyday that she is "healthy". Aulton's journey has not been easy and it won't ever be, but every accomplishment means so much because he works so hard for all of them. I also get to spend time working with him because things don't come as naturally to him as they do to a typical child. Sometimes, it is very hard work, but most of the time it is fun and always rewarding. I really cherish his milestones because the don't come quickly or easily.

He attends preschool everyday and he absolutely loves it! I adore his teacher and she doesn't underestimate his abilities, which is invaluable. His peers are similar to him, in that most of them are fairly ambulatory, but have limited speaking abilities. Gilbert School District is well-known throughout the state for having excellent special needs programs and our lives have been blessed by this change in Aulton's life.

At any point in the year, Aulton attends between 4 and 7 therapies each week outside of school, where he also recieves PT, OT and speech. Right now, he only has four (two speech, swimming and horseback riding, which he uses as OT). He receives music therapy through ASU, only when school is in session. So, we are waiting for that to start again and we decided that our Fridays were getting too busy, with speech, school, gym and horses. So, we have decided to discontinue attending gym for awhile, especially since Aulton's gross motor skills are his best area.

Aulton has made great strides in speech. He uses a system called PECS (I'm not sure what the acronym stands for). He uses little cards with pictures to communicate his very basic needs, ie what he wants to eat, what he wants to do, etc. I'm using this program to potty train him. My goal is to have him potty trained by the time he is 5. That way, if it happens earlier it will be a nice surprise. It is difficult to toilet train a child who doesn't speak. I will have to do another blog entry to explain how I'm doing it, if anyone is that interested. I change between 7 and 15 diapers each day. The other day, I changed 7 in 15 minutes. That was fun. It will be over someday...

From his speech therapy sessions, we have ascertained that Aulton knows all his colors, animals, body parts, most verbs and can answer "where" questions (example: does a bee live in school or in a beehive) He picks the correct picture 90 percent of the time. I'm working with him on numbers right now, as well, using the same types of "games" he does during speech.
To strengthen Aulton's facial tone, I do mouth and lip exercises with him everyday and he uses special straws once a day. This also needs extra explaining in a different blog entry if anyone is interested in the specifics.

Aulton has a few words and is attempting to verbalize more frequently. He also makes more sounds than he used to, which is definite progress and improvement. At his last neurology appointment, I asked his neurologist (who specializes in muscular dystrophy) if Aulton would ever talk. He said most CMMD kids talk between the ages of 5 and 7, so I'm optimistic.

Aulton's sleep has improved slightly, we have an appointment with a pediatric sleep specialist in March. His sleep study was not very valuable, as he was diagnosed with "unexplained insomnia." REALLY?!? (for all you SNL fans).

In short, everything is going really well for our family and I can't imagine how 2010 could be better than the previous year, but it's all about outlook and we plan to make this the very best year yet.

Thanks to all of you for your support of and prayers for Aulton and our family. His myotonic page will be up shortly and please donate if you feel so inclined. Researchers are so very close to a cure for myotonic and duchenne muscular dystrophies, but they can't do the work without the funds. (All donations through Aulton's page go directly to myotonic dystrophy research).