max update.

Max and Maya at his social group.

There have been a lot of moist eyes around our house lately. We find ourselves tearing up on a regular basis -- tears of joy, of relief, of being a proud parent. Max has had a tremendous month. Starting senior kindergarten was no big deal. After an initial melt down on day one (along with several other kids), he settled right in. This year, instead of reading his daily journal and seeing messages like "Max had a hard day" I get reports from his EA telling me that he is now sitting at circle with his peers, interacting with kids his age in the playground, and was able to stay for the entire music class. I haven't had a single call to come pick him up early (and when I arrive to pick him up he is usually still sitting with his friends eating lunch). It has been a joy to see that all of last year's hard work pay off and to know that we made the right decision for Max by integrating him into public school.

Max and Maya as babies.

One of the key factors in Max having success at school has been a social group that he has as part of his ABA therapy. Every Sunday morning, he, and several other children (a mix of kids on the spectrum and neurotypical kids) participate in a group that is facilitated by Max's therapists. In this group he is learning how to communicate  and play with his peers appropriately. We are seeing the benefits at school and at home. Our friends, Jen and Brad, bring their daughter Maya to the group every week so that he has a peer his age to bond with. (I already had a special place in my heart for Maya because I took care of her for a few months when she was a baby. Now I love her even more for what she is doing to help Max.) He has also started talking a lot more, though language is still used primarily to tell us what he wants and doesn't want (but that is such huge progress since last year and we are excited about it nonetheless).

One of my favourite picture of Max and Maya.

The other piece of exciting news is that last week Max was approved for another 6 months of funding through Erinoak. While this doesn't pay for all of his therapy (it covers approximately 50%), it certainly helps. The psychologist who reviewed Max's progress was really excited to see how far his has come in the last 6 months and was very positive about Max in general. She even told me that he is one of the higher functioning kids in the funding program. It's interesting to see Max through other people's eyes. She pointed out that most of the kids who receive therapy directly from Erinoak did not have the benefit of early intervention like Max. He started behaviour, speech, occupational and music therapy at 32 months of age. It's easy to get hung up on how much he still has to learn, but as his Clinical Psychologist pointed out to me, "He's only five".

Max wants to go to sleep, but Cameron won't leave him alone.

While I'm on the bragging train, I also want to add that this past week, when Cameron and I traveled out to be BC to see my folks, Max was just fine. In the past he has had disrupted sleep and increased behaviour when I have been gone for any period of time. This time he seemed to enjoy having time without his little sister and getting one-on-one time with his dad. I can't imagine why...

One last cool development is that Max is going to start using an iPad as part of his ABA therapy. The geek in me loves this, but I'm also excited that Max will be using technology as well. When I think back to the little boy who had to wear a helmet at daycare because he would bang his head on the ground when he got upset, and I see how far he has come, I am filled with optimism about the future. This isn't an easy journey, but it is the most fulfilling experience I've ever had.

autism and transitioning smoothly into senior kindergarten.

Officially speaking, yesterday was Max's first day of senior kindergarten. We got up late (due to some middle of the night poop shenanigans), which was less than ideal as I was hoping to get to school early. Over breakfast I showed Max pictures of his favourite EA and of the kindergarten classroom he would be returning to. I explained that "Today we're going to school again - yay!!". Max looked at me and said "Nooooooo". I would have laughed if I wasn't so nervous about the whole thing. Surprisingly, we managed to hustle out the door with time to spare. As I pulled into the bus loop at school, Max started repeating "No Thank You! No Thank You!". He tearfully got out of the car and proceeded to lay down on the sidewalk and start crying. My heart broke a little bit -- last year's rough start is still fresh in my brain. His EA, Mrs.W, came out and helped me bring him inside, and he continued crying. After giving her the run down on the summer, I left, with the agreement that if he hadn't stopped crying by 10am, she would call me. When the phone rang at 9:30am, I was ready to go, but it was Max's teacher, telling me he was doing just fine and had even gone to the school assembly (a first!). Apparently after the initial tears, he remembered that he actually likes school, and settled right in. Yay Max!

This morning, we got up, had breakfast, got dressed, and were even out the door in time to stop for a treat at Tim Horton's. Max got out of the car and stood in line with the other kids with no problems. I took this picture when his face lit up at the site of Mrs.W. What a little rock star! Once again, Max has risen to the challenge and blown me away. I could not be a prouder mama!

max update.

With school starting on Tuesday (yay!!), I've been reflecting on how much progress Max has had over the summer. He has a lot more language, he is following instructions more consistently, and best of all, he has developed a really strong relationship with his little sister Cameron. Granted, I'm a little nervous about how the first day of senior kindergarten will go. Big transitions are always tough, but hopefully Max will be happy to see his favourite EA Mrs.W and pick up where they left off in in June. The good news is that Max is in a JK/SK split, so he will be in the same room and have the same teachers as last year. A lot of the kids will also be the familiar, so we're crossing our fingers that his Fall goes more smoothly than his initial entrance into JK last year.

One of the things that has brought both Scott and me a lot of joy this past month is observing how well Max and Cameron have been getting along. At least once a day we find them giggling up a storm together (usually jumping on a bed or a couch). Of course, Max is still a stinky older brother and he enjoys teasing Cam (I never thought I'd hear her say "Max is touching me! Make him stop!"). Max thinks poking Cam is tremendously funny and has an impish grin on his face when he does so. Teasing strikes me as a very subtle action, and as much as Cam finds it annoying, I think it's awesome.

We have also been working on Max's receptive language, which is much stronger than any of us suspected. I'm finding that if I give him an instruction, and then wait for a few seconds, giving him a chance to process what I've asked, he usually follows through and completes my request. (It's easy to be impatient and repeat yourself before giving him a chance to do what you've asked.) What happens when you repeat yourself is that he has to start processing what you have said again, which starts a vicious circle of both of us getting frustrated. As always, patience gets you everywhere.

Yesterday, I asked Max to carry his new backpack to the car. He picked it up and started dragging it along the sidewalk. I corrected him and told him to "pick it up" and much to my surprise, he looked at me, and then picked it up and carried it properly. We got to the car and I asked him to put it in the car, and he did so. He will also clear his plate and fork from the table and bring me maple syrup from the fridge for his pancakes. Did I mention he can also dress himself completely? This little boy has come so far in a few short months - I am excited to see what sort of progress he will have this school year!