It’s hard to believe my sweet little babies – actually they’re no longer babies – are to be 3 years old in just a couple more months! Where does the time go?
Paige is really becoming a big girl. I’ve been working on potty-training with her and just today she showed off her crazy new skills for her dad by going poo-poo in the “big girl” potty. She had never done that before for her daddy so I think dad was pretty excited about that. It's nice when Mike can be apart of some of these happenings because he works alot and I know he often feels like he misses out on some of the twins' achievements. I’ve also got Paige in a pretty good routine during the day – going, or at least sitting and trying, potty on the “big girl” potty when she first wakes up in the morning, before and after breakfast, snacks as well as mid-day naps and again before and after dinner and then again before bedtime. Lately, she’s even been waking up from her naps with completely dry diapers - a sign that she’s beginning to get some good control of her little bladder/bowel. YAY! I was beginning to think it would never happen, but alas all things in due time and in their own season.
Taylor on the other hand is still not quite there yet and that’s okay. After all, she’s got a few notches working against her chiefly with her cerebral palsy diagnosis, so as with so many other developmental issues we’ve encountered with her, this too will continue to take her a little longer to master than say a “typical” child might. She tries but still lacks some of the controls that a "typical" child possesses. (Some of her doctors and therapists have been encouraging me to postpone potty training entirely for Taylor until she is 3 or 3-1/2 years old because of her cerebral palsy.)
And, while at first that recommendation surprised me, because after all, 3-1/2 years old is a loooong time to be in diapers, I then realized that’s really absolutely okay and actually makes a lot of sense….early on I learned that Taylor doesn't follow the well-traveled path and tracks as many other children do – she doesn’t fit the typical milestones for child development and never has but eventually she gets there, but always in her own time.
As her doctors put it: “There’s no reason to add this additional complication to Taylor’s life and routine until she is truly ready for it and can truly manage it.” Again, a sound reminder to me, that when raising a child with special needs, you just can’t compare them to other kids, they don’t do things when “everybody else’s kids do things”, they’re unique in their own right and accomplish and master new skills as their abilities or disabilities allow them to. So, the bottom line, it'll happen but only when Taylor is ready and can really manage that skill.
For those Twinsanity readers who have inquiring minds or who often appreciate new insights into children with disabilities and enjoy hearing about the details, and often minutiae, of my experiences raising a child with special needs, these details are for you:
When it comes to Taylor's potty-training abilities, maintaining a comfortable, stable seated position and being able to balance on the “big girl” potty also continues to be a real issue for her. Because of the weakened muscle tone in her trunk/abdomen, it’s difficult for her to sit upright on the potty without assistance. Without my assistance, Taylor literally sinks into the toilet bowl beneath her and can not hold herself up on the toilet seat.
I spoke with one of her therapy service providers today about this issue and we’re now going to invest in some additional equipment to help give Taylor greater control, independence and balance while sitting on the “big girl” potty. Envision the handicap side rails that often run alongside a toilet to allow a person to grab hold of the rails for support, well that’s what we’ll be adding to a couple of our bathrooms for Taylor in the near future to help provide the logistics that will help her gain more independence and balance when sitting on the “big girl” potty. Of course, it’s not THE complete answer to the potty-training challenges for Taylor, but it’s going to be one additional tool to help her gain greater independence and self-control. And, that is always a good thing for kiddos with special needs!!!!
In other news, I had a couple of doctor appointments for myself this week which were not fun. A dentist appointment one day, then a dermatologist appointment the very next day. Much to my chagrin, my dermatologist appointment turned out to be far from what I expected. I went into the appointment just wanting my dermatologist to check out a couple moles – one on my shoulder and one on my thigh. I left 30 minutes later with both moles removed, a gaping hole with 2-3 stitches in my shoulder and another gaping hole with 4-5 stitches in my thigh. Owwwww.
The doctor told me “I’m 95% sure these are nothing but think we should remove them and get them looked at by our pathology lab. I’ll be in touch Monday with results of the lab work, and if need be, I’ll want you to come back to possibly cut-away more skin from the areas where we removed the moles.” Oh, great, I thought. It’s Melanoma. I wouldn’t be surprised really…I was one of those young college girls who when not studying and dating boys was out sun-worshipping with her girlfriends at the beach and pool in our free time. My mom has also had her share of Melanomas removed in recent years so genetically speaking, I guess I may have a predisposition to it as well. So, I’ll be interested to see what I hear from my doctor this coming Monday…I’m also encouraging my hubby to now go see the dermatologist too. I’ve spotted a mole on him that looks very suspect! Now, I just gotta’ make sure he takes time out from his busy work schedule to actually go to the doctor – and THAT will be the real challenge since he’s nearing a workaholic these days.
