I’m sure I could write a novel here, but I’ll try to keep it brief.
1. Nate got permission to drive again in June. It’s been so nice to not have to deal with bus schedules and hauling the kids out in bad weather and such anymore.
2. Gus has gotten MUCH better. He was dismissed from PT in June. His torticollis is gone, and as of our follow up with the ortho, his scoliosis has gone from 28 degrees to 18 degrees.
3. Gus is no longer developmentally delayed and is fact now ahead of the curve! Starting in May, he just suddenly started changing. He caught up with rolling skills (although to this day, he has a preference to roll one direction, the one that’s easiest for his back), started engaging more actively with toys, and began pushing up on all fours. In no time, he was scooching, and then only a few days later he was crawling. Not more than a couple weeks after that, he was pulling to a stand and cruising! By August, he was actually letting go and trying to balance, and from there, it was a short road to walking. He’s now been walking for a little over a month, and as of the last week, he can get to standing without having to pull up on something first. A remarkable change for only four months!
4. As part and parcel of all this, though, his sleep has gone to hell. He used to be a decent sleeper, but since June, it’s gotten progressively worse. All I can figure is that it’s related to how many milestones he hit very closely together and probably teething (although he still only has four). Whereas he used to take 2-3 naps a day, including at least one good one, he’s now lucky to take 2 45 min naps per day. And where he used to sleep a minimum of 6 hours straight each night, I now jump for joy over 4. The typical stretch is 2-3 hours. It’s wearing, but I hope now that he’s gotten through all those major milestones, maybe it’s going to get better again.
5. In May, Maggie was invited to be on the pre-competitive team at gymnastics. She was only the 2nd 4-year old they’ve ever invited to be on the team. I was very excited to have her go at first, but my excitement soon turned to doubts. The other girls were 5-7 years old, and even though Maggie is very coordinated and strong, there’s still a certain amount of skill that comes simply with age. Plus, having never been in school, she didn’t really have the classroom behavior the other girls had, and this is an INTENSE class. (It’s 1.5 hours, twice per week – she used to do 45 min, once per week.) They’re really getting serious already, and I was concerned she was just too young. However, I decided I’d give it 2 months before I made a decision, and I’m glad I did. Although I think she’s still nowhere near the “top of the class,” which is weird for me to witness because she usually is when she’s in her peer group, she’s adjusted to the class and is thriving. Most importantly, she really loves it. If she didn’t, or if she was feeling stressed, I would’ve pulled her out in a heartbeat. But she’s doing great and really coming along.
6. Maggie is also taking a ballet class again. We’re on the border of overscheduled here! Again, though, if Maggie showed any signs of burnout, we’d take her out of something in a heartbeat. But she is SUCH a high energy child, and honestly, she’d be up to doing even more. I’m the one who is tired out shuttling her around! LOL. The really nice thing is that a new dance studio opened literally right around the corner from us (gymnastics is right around the corner the other direction), so no more 20 minute drives to ballet class. Yay! Heck, if there were decent frigging sidewalks here, we could walk there when the weather is nice.
7. Maggie’s biggest news – she started kindy! And, no surprise here, she LOVES it. Things are going really well so far, except for her adjusting to having to sit still more often. She doesn’t like that part, LOL.
8. As of early Sept, I’m back to work again. I’m working from home, 2 hours per day, 6 days per week. I’m really hating the schedule, though. With Gus’s bad napping, it’s hard for me to find the time and the focus I need. I’ve decided I’m going to try to find work in a bookstore one day per week (when a friend should hopefully watch Gus) and one weekend day per week (when Nate can watch the kids). I think I’d enjoy getting out of the house, and I know I’d appreciate not feeling like I have to work and care for my child at the same time. My job (I’m an online tutor) requires a lot of focus, and it’s just so hard to get it. And beyond that, because I work so many days per week, I feel like it’s hanging over my head everyday. I never go out with Gus because then he’ll sleep in the car and I’ll lose one good nap and then it will be harder to finish my work. So I like the idea of just working two longer days per week and being DONE. And having worked at bookstores before, I know I’d love the work! Books are my thing, man. LOL.
9. Nate’s health is about the same. The kidney and brain tumors have not grown. The only issue right now is that the cataract in his eye that is a result of the vitrectomy is not resolving itself. We’d like to have it removed to help Nate’s sight improve further (right now, he’s on the border of not being able to drive – even a small change for the worse would mean he’d lose his license), but the problem is that surgery is dangerous with his tumors. Disturbing the eye can reactivate the tumors, and that would be BAD. So for now, we wait.
Well, I think that’s the main news of the last 6 months. I’ll try to start keeping up with this again.
