Luke is enjoying his summer. He has started sleeping in the toddler setting of his bed. He is enjoying being outdoors and watching the trees. He also love to swim. What a change! He used to loath water, now he has to always touch it and play. I am so thankful for the growth. He is also eating a wider variety of foods. He ate his first peanut butter and jelly sandwich this past week while on the way to Waynesboro. He is chewing better and moving his food around his mouth with his tongue. His oral motor skills are improving. I give glory to God for all the strides Luke is making this summer. When I think about all of the positives that are occurring, I just can't help but total
ly know that God is in control. He should be glorified!Luke received his new gait trainer a little over a month ago. He is not responding very well to it. He is in denial of the fact that his old gait trainer is gone and he has to deal with the change of a new one.
We will get him walking, though. It will just happen. Just as everything has been- we pray, we wait, we praise.
There are a few new challenges. I have spent quite a bit of time quietly observing my little guy. I watch his face, his head, his hands, his arms and legs, and his feet. I quietly listen to his little voice as he yells, says "Dadada!" or "Bababa!". I watch him as he turns his eyes to the ceiling and shakes his head side to side quickly and laughs. I watch as he flaps and waves his little hands when he gets excited. I watch his sweet little facial expressions that are uniquely Luke. He cuts his eyes over as he looks a suspicious person or item up and down. He fakes a smile when he is considering his options. He laughs out loud as he hears a loud sound. He panics when he falls and it hurts. I watch him as he falls asleep. Only in those moments he looks at me as if I am the only person in his world that matters. My heart melts.
I watch him become frustrated with his feet. I watch as his facial expression changes and he bites his hands because he is feeling stress. I experience the new biting behavior and realize that he is only expressing himself and he will need to be taught a replacement behavior. Most of the time, I watch my little one from a far and notice how much time he spends engaging in self-stimulatory behavior. My head tells me why you do this. You find pleasure in scratching walls and baskets. You like the way it feels when you move your head back and forth vigorously. My heart continues to wonder- What do you see? What do you hear? What do you feel when you reach your little hand out?
So, emotions just seem to take over. I am hopeful, yet I hold back. I don't want to be the one putting limits on you. In my eyes, you have caught the moon and brought it down for me to explore.
