My sister and her sons came to visit this weekend. My nephews are 4 and 2 and perfectly normal little boys- if more adorable, smarter and generally awesome-er than the rest of the kids their age. (I hear they take after their aunt, cough, cough. :)) When they come, they say hello to me and then we see all the kids when they want to be fed. In short, they disappear to play and we get to chat!
At dinner time, I would ask all the kids what they want to eat. My littles respond in one word phrases because a) I'm lazy and have been slacking on making them say things like "more milk please" and b) at the end of the day talking and eating can be too much. They reserve those cheek muscles for chewing. Anyway, my boys will say "milk!" and get milk, so my nephews said the same thing. I went to get them all milk and my sister said, "Wait! Boys, how do you ask nicely?" and both boys responded, "I would like some milk, please."
In my mind I was thinking, "Holy smokes, are these kids some kind of verbal geniuses?" (I think the correct answer is, "yes" but anyway.) In the next minute, I remember that her boys do not have Apraxia and thus can speak in complete and coherent sentences that people can understand over 90 per cent of the time. I looked at my sister and said, "Sorry. I'm so used to kids who can't speak that I forget what to expect from kids who CAN." She laughed.
When Joseph and Camille were little, I didn't video record much. We have a video recorder (you know, before smart phones did everything) but I didn't use it much. What I do have I don't know how to get on my computer... well, I lack the time to find all the cords, plug it in and do it. I have my phone now with video of George talking but I'm not really one who records everything. I write down what they said but I don't really remember much of it. I mean, I remember but... I've been in Apraxia Land for so long, this is my normal. Most of the parents I hang out with have kids with special needs, so their children talk like my boys.
It actually didn't make me sad to hear my nephews talk without problems. In fact, I think it was good for George and Cole to hang out with them. They need more NT role models and more people who accept them just as they are, without reservations.
Speaking of the "Rest of the world" food issues are going to heck in a handbasket around here. When George gets overwhelmed or over tired, we see it. One night we were having dinner. It was pork, which he generally likes but meat is hard for him to chew. There was a sauce on it and sauce is the debil- or it is, on days when he is overtired, over-talked and Not in the Mood. I served him a very small portion of the pork, which he ate. Yay! Then he said he didn't like it and wanted PB bread. Our rule for him is that he has to try it and then may have a simple, alternate dinner after a grown up has eaten. In short, try it and if you don't like it Mommy will make you PB bread but only after Mommy has had a chance to sit down and eat something.
This went over like a dead duck. He was not amused that he had to wait and voiced that he did not like dinner and loudly. Table manners aside this can be normal for him. At least he tried it, which is huge but he needs to work on eating a normal amount of normal food. And when days are really bad, the non-preferred food can't even be on the same plate as his other food. UGH.
The good news is that his SLP's office is moving! They will have a new office in a new location and be able to offer their feeding therapies groups! We briefly talked about how feeding therapy would work and it looks like it won't cost us any more than we are paying now! One day would be straight speech and the next would be speech/feeding. Woohoo! They don't move until the spring, so we have some time to work out details but.... HOPE that feeding hell will end this year!
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