Farina Face

Getting messy feeding himself

We had a fun and unexpected break through this week. Connor showed interest and a little ability to feed himself!  It started with him sticking his hand in the bowl of Farina (kind of like grits) I was trying to feed him and then he licked his fingers with a little encouragement from me.  He did this several times and was quite pleased with the results!  His movements were a little jerky and his aim often off, so quite a bit of the stuff got on his face but he managed to get some of it in his mouth.  The next day at Carrie’s house he picked up the biter biscuit, put it to his mouth and licked it several times.  He’s also into holding the spoon himself for a few bites during meals.  Usually just three or four times and he’s had his fill, but he always smiles a big grin when he holds the spoon with me and we guide it to his mouth. Not sure where this little development will lead, but it’s exciting that he’s taking interest in doing it himself.

Aside from this new interest, feeding has been quite miserable the last few weeks.  With a cold right before Christmas and another one right after the New Year, his appetite and tolerance for anything but his bottle of Pediasure went right out the window.  Even now that he’s feeling better, meal times are hard.  He’ll take a few bites and then start crying and shaking his head.  There have been many days lately that he gets less than 20 bites of food all day.  He’s still drinking 2-3 bottles a day, so he’s not starving or anything but fighting to get food into him is not our idea of a good time.

So far so good with wearing the eye
patch again!

Connor has also started this strange head swaying.  He swings his head from side to side and his eyeballs roll up into his lids.  It’s a little dangerous when you’re holding him and he starts doing it as he doesn’t have a sense of where he’s swinging his head and it hurts when he makes contact with your jaw.  I’m pretty sure it is a sensory stimulation thing, but will ask the neurologist when we go next month. 

In other news, the ophthalmologist thinks it’s best to start patching Connor’s right eye again.  His left eye’s vision is worse than the right and it hasn't caught up like we hoped it would.  The doctor also thinks it’s time to introduce Connor to eyeglasses, so a pair of those will be in our possession in the next few weeks.

Never a dull moment in the Dean household!

Current requests for prayers and good thoughts – for Connor’s eating habits become more pleasant, for his leg braces to come in, for continued growth in self feeding, for an easy adjustment back to the eye patch and to the glasses.

Bonus pic of the kiddos reading together.  So sweet!

Connor's Top 10 for 2013

Happy  New Year!

Happy 2014 everyone!  A regular update blog post will be coming in the next week or so, but I thought I’d post Connor’s Top 10 for 2013 list as we reflect on the year and think about the one ahead.

10.  The end of 2013 brought Connor’s first successful attempts at munching or chewing on dissolvable  solids (cheese puffs, baby puffs).  While still very much a work in progress, he took some important first steps in this new adventure of feeding.  His awesome speech therapist and feeding expert, Deirdre, has been an awesome addition to the team.

9. Connor’s second eye surgery happened in May 2013.  This one was for strabismus.  We were so thankful and relieved when everything went well!

8. On October 26^th, we celebrated Connor’s 2^nd birthday.  Due to Clara’s insistence we had a great dog themed birthday party with family and close friends.  Connor took delight in the frosting this year and loved being the center of attention.

7. We’re hearing more and more sounds out of the little guy.  This fall he learned the sounds for four animals – sheep, horse, lion and cow (which sounds more like “ma” but we’re counting it anyway).  He can also identify the sheep, cow and horse on his puzzle.

6. After months and months of doing it for him, Connor learned “So Big” this fall.  Mama and Daddy both got teary eyed the first time he did this one.  Patience and practice paid off!

In his new stander

5. In January of 2013 we ordered three pieces of equipment for Connor.  If you’ve been following the blog, you know that it’s been quite the ordeal to get them.  By mid-October we had all three pieces.  The bath seat makes tubby time much more pleasant and safe, his positioning chair makes playing easier and his stander is a great way for him to build strength without us hanging on to him all the time.  While frustrating, the wait was worth it.

4. In the last month of 2013 Connor learned a new “trick”.  He can now follow the commands “legs up” and “arms up” while sitting or lying down.  It’s a huge thing for a little guy who has trouble with motor coordination.  He’s so proud of himself and likes to do it over and over.

3. This fall, Brent spent a lot of time working with Connor and his ring stacker.  Brent would go over the colors with him and I thought it was cute, but really not sinking in much.  Connor sure proved me wrong!  He can identify four colors (red, blue, yellow and green) with almost 100% accuracy!  A totally unexpected development, but we’ll take it!

Connor loves picking up the pieces of
his puzzle

2.  In September Connor started grasping things and he has made excellent progress with it.  He now loves playing with blocks, rings, rattles and puzzles.  He’s also started to pull Clara’s hair when he can get a fistful of it – never thought we’d be happy about him doing that, but it puts a smile on all our faces (except for Clara who says it’s starting to hurt because he’s getting stronger).

Sitting with our dog, Kota

1.  Topping off Connor’s Top 10 of 2013 list is his huge accomplishment of learning to sit.  In the spring he started sitting for short periods by himself and by summer was adding more and more minutes.  By the end of the year, we could sit him down and walk away without too much worry of him toppling over.  He’s sitting up straighter now, too, which means increased muscle strength in his core and back.

Those are just ten of the many blessings this year.  There were so many other ones along the way.  Here’s hoping 2014 brings days filled with learning, growth and love for all!

January 2013

December 2013