Escape Artist

Earlier this week, Teddy was having a rough morning. He was in a sassy mood, trying to climb over the stair railing and was sad because we kept redirecting him. So he went into his room, vocalizing his displeasure. I had 5 minutes until my timer went off for the granola in the oven, so I figured I'd join him in his room to see if I could improve his mood. I laid down next to him, and he covered me with a blanket, left the room and shut the door. It's not uncommon for him to do this and then continue to open and shut the door, but I decided to beat him to the punch by opening the door ...

... except the knob wouldn't turn. I didn't panic completely because sometimes the door handles stick with the safety locks on them, so I pried off the safety lock. Yet the door knob still wouldn't turn. I was locked in Teddy's room. He was locked outside his room. We were alone in the house. I had no phone. Yikes.

His OT should be impressed. I am, but I'm not.

Fortunately, we keep a screwdriver in his room in case this happens, so I went to grab the screwdriver. But I couldn't find it. Now I was panicking, praying and sobbing while pulling things down off the shelf to look for the screwdriver. I still couldn't find it. 

Now, I'm short, and the shelves in Teddy's room are tall, so he can't pull things off them. That means I can't see on top of the shelves without standing on the bed (or bouncing to see further back). So I was jumping on his bed trying to find it, flinging things off his taller shelf. There is nothing to climb in his room (to keep him safe), so I didn't have many options to look and feel in the far reaches of the shelf. 

After I ripped down most things from the shelves, I didn't think I had any other option to make sure Teddy was safe for the hour until our sitter arrived. So I removed his window screen, asked him one more time if he'd open the door and used the fire safety escape ladder to get down to our deck one story below. Then I ran around the house, unlocked the door and the safety lock from the garage and walked inside to find Teddy staring out the window down the street. 

It's a lovely view, minus the rather unsteady ladder.

That's when I grabbed my phone to photograph the adventure of the morning and the step stool to put his room back together. Of course, when I wasn't freaking out, I was able to locate the screwdriver. I knew I was panicking because I know the trouble Teddy can get into in an instant (as is evidenced by him locking me in the room). I had tried to calm myself and slow down, yet I knew time was of the essence.

Fortunately, we were both completely safe. As we put his room back together, I discovered all sorts of fun books that had been shoved out of sight on his bookshelf. And I got some valuable fire safety practice skills, along with the opportunity to have AJ practice that evening (since the ladder is intended for single use, so we just did it right out on ground level to practice the motions). 

And, I also realized that it will be nearly impossible without strapping Teddy to me physically to get him down the fire safety ladder. I honestly thing the best bed would be to lay his pile of pillows on his sheet, lay him on top, and scoop up the bedding and lower it as low as I can before I drop him onto the deck, which would be not horribly far. I mean, he fell further without cushioning when he scaled the railing from the second floor. Are parents supposed to contemplate these things? 

Sigh. This child will be the death of me. 

He's Got a Knife!

Teddy has a high interest in helping in the kitchen, coupled with limited safety skills. It's not the best combination, so we work with very close supervision and sometimes hand-over-hand assistance. He's gets so excited when we let him help stir dishes on the stove. Although it makes me nervous, he does very well holding the pan handle with one hand and the spoon with the other. 

There's no way, though, that we trust him with an actual sharp knife. He's been working with a butter knife. The challenges with that are that it's not as sharp as needed to cut some things, and the bigger challenge is his inability to know which way to hold it. He often tries cutting with the knife upside down.

So we discussed this with his OT, and she recommended several different options. We purchased a set of serrated plastic knives intended for young children, along with a wooden cutter. He is doing great with holding the knife properly and is chopping so well. And he's so proud of himself. And so are we.

Goal: Keep Him Alive

I was mostly mom today, taking time off work to hang with the boys because we didn't have childcare. I did hop on one work meeting while Dave watched the boys. Someone asked what I was doing on my day off, and my reply was that I was "teaching school and trying to keep them alive." 

Apparently that response is a bit shocking to other people, at least those who aren't familiar with Teddy. When I heard shocked laughter, I explained that one of my sons has significant special needs, no safety awareness and likes to live on the dangerous side. I shared that he managed to open a pocket knife this morning. After that explanation, they agreed that keeping my kids alive was an accurate description. 

What I didn't share during the work meeting was that the pocket knife incident occurred when I was in the bathroom, using the bathroom. I was in the middle of doing my business when I heard rustling and knew Teddy was digging around on a shelf that is newly in his reach. Then the bathroom door flung open, I caught a quick glimpse of Teddy holding something, and then he shut it and ran away. I immediately processed that something he was holding was not something he was supposed to have.

I flung open the door and chased him a few steps, with my pants still around my knees. Sure enough, he was holding an open pocket knife, by the blade of course, with the biggest grin on his face. I maneuvered the knife out of his hands without either of us getting sliced.

His OT should be proud he can open this knife. Me, not so much.

Then I took the knife with me, locked the bathroom door and finished my business.

Sometimes, just sometimes, I wish my life was boring.

Farm Therapy

We spent Mother's Day weekend at my parents' farm, and both boys thoroughly enjoyed their weekends. They spent the majority of their time "helping" my dad and uncle. They rode on the 4-wheeler, in the golf cart with my 94-year-old grandpa and in the tractors. They were covered in dirt from head to toe, and Teddy licked the windows of  the tractors clean ... ish.

This window is delicious!

Since Teddy's favorite place to be is outside or in a cool vehicle, he couldn't have been happier bouncing from one fun farm toy to the next. He actually rode in a tractor for nearly a 2-hour stretch, which is rather remarkable for his attention span (and the sanity of my uncle if we're being honest).

When we first arrived at the farm, Teddy made a beeline straight for the first tractor he saw. He circled it and couldn't seem to figure out why no one was there to give him a ride. He got his rides soon enough and apparently decided he was capable of climbing all the way up the ladder to the tractor. When you look at the pictures, you can appreciate the muscle coordination, planning and strength that went into that feet for this little daredevil.

At least the ground was soft.

But he made it. And he's rather proud of himself. And I'm proud of him.

Teddy's making progress in scooting along in toys and is experimenting with pedaling. He understands the concepts and is starting to get a few rotations in with the pedals. He had fun playing on a tractor more his size when he couldn't convince the adults to give him rides.

Little farm boy.

If you've never walked across a farm field, you might not appreciate that it's not the easiest walking because the ground is uneven and quite soft. That didn't stop Teddy from walking darn near everywhere in the field when the tractor was stopped to reload seed to plant.

After all that hard work, Teddy found a new way to ride in style. His favorite thing about my grandpa used to be his cane. Recently my grandpa switched to using a walker more of the time to help him get around easier, and Teddy thinks that's even better than the cane as a toy. (But he still was happy to have the cane to use as a weapon while riding!)

This is one of my favorite pictures! They're both so happy.

So Many "New Skills"

When Teddy masters something, it's referred to as a new skill in our house. Lately it feels like he's made so much progress. In reality, it's probably all the little improvements are now coming together into noticeable progress.

At his occupational therapy appointment last week, his OT called Teddy her star pupil because of how well he attended to tasks and did at completing those tasks. The fact that he twisted off a jar lid was particularly impressive to her, earning him that high praise.

One night this week, Teddy pushed his chair by the light switch, climbed on his chair and began turning the dimmer switch causing the lights to go off and then back on and then back off and then back on. He giggled at what he could control, AJ narrated the situation, and Dave and I both snagged videos of it after watching in amazement at first. He rotated his wrist to turn the dimmer switch like it was no big deal.

In addition to his twisting and wrist rotation skills, he's also becoming much more interested and capable in helping to dress himself. Recently, he's managed to get his shoes on (without his braces, but still). He's also managed to pull on a pair of AJ's socks. He's gotten AJ's pants on correctly and pulled nearly up to his waist. He's had an interest in putting everything on his feet, but now he's starting to understand and be able to coordinate how his clothes go on his body. He actively assists when getting ready for swim class by stepping into his swim diaper and then his swimsuit. (Now it would help if he looked, so he had some idea where he was stepping in relation to the diaper or swimsuit.)

Today, instead of napping, he decided to raid his closest instead. After the poison control fiasco, he's pretty well limited to diapers and wipes that he can reach. (Oh, and that screwdriver that apparently fell this week. Nothing like walking into your child's bedroom to get him ready for school to be greeted by him holding a screwdriver like he's about to shank you.) Usually he pulls out all the diapers and arranges them as artwork around his room. Today he decided he would much rather go swimming that sleep, so he pulled on a swim diaper. He might have been able to get it all the way up had he not put two legs through the same hole.

Sleep? No, I'm ready to swim instead.

It's just amazing to us how much progress we've seen in the past few weeks. As his teacher was praising his wrist rotation skills, my comment was, "Nothing's sacred now, is it Teddy?"

Nothing is folks, nothing is.

And that's a good thing.

You'll Shoot Your Eye Out!

If you've ever seen the movie A Christmas Story, then you're familiar with the line, "You'll shoot your eye out!" in response to the child's request for a Red Rider BB gun. The 9-year-old eventually ends up with his coveted request.

Where's this going? Teddy is now the proud owner of a Red Rider BB gun, a Christmas gift from his uncle. This is the same uncle who has given Teddy a really sweet buck knife and a hatchet. Let's just say Teddy gets incredibly awesome gifts, although the age appropriateness of them might be questioned. (Had this uncle made it to Green Bay prior to Christmas, there is a chance Teddy would have received throwing knives ... maybe next year.)

Relax, mom, it's fine motor skills.

Now, before you question our sanity or report us to Child Protective Services, Teddy's hatchet and buck knife are tucked safely away in his keepsake box on the top shelf of his closet. Even Teddy can't climb up there (only because there's not enough items in the bottom of his closet to give him enough height).

The BB gun is mounted safely above Teddy's window, where it won't cause any issues for either child (and the rest of our guns are secured in our gun safe). It serves as a reminder of how much Teddy's uncle cares about him ... and as he grows older will be great fine motor practice for isolating his index finger and strengthening it.

No eyes will be shot out any time soon.

Speaking of index finger, in the past two weeks, Teddy has been isolating his index finger more and more ... for the first time. This means he's poking and pointing with his index finger, leading with it to push it across the table, tablet, tent or whatever surface he finds. This is a tremendous milestone for him, considering his OT has only been working with him on it for more than 2 years (pretty much since we started OT when he was 1). Whohoo!

Fine Motor Mess

Yesterday I was putting away laundry upstairs, and Teddy was upstairs with me. I know there's a few more things he can get into upstairs, such as eating books if he gets hungry while reading them or opening cupboards to find interesting things. I heard him playing in AJ's room, and then he went into the bathroom and shut the door. (He doesn't shut the door for privacy. It's just that he likes playing with doors.)

As I opened the door to check on him a few minutes later, I was really hoping he wasn't splashing in the toilet. Thankfully, he wasn't. Instead, he was working on his fine motor skills, and I really applaud his initiative to do therapy exercises all by himself.

He unscrewed the lid from the red bath soap (that resembles finger paint) all by himself. Then he squeezed soap out of the tube with enough force to splatter it several feet away on the wall. He also applied a good amount to the counter and was using his hand, and isolating his thumb, to swipe through the paint.

Check out that thumb swiping!

What a tremendous amount of fine motor skills he used! I was equally impressed that although he had plenty of soap on his face, he didn't appear to have intentionally eaten any of it.

He was mighty pleased with himself, rightfully so.

With a few minutes of wiping up with a bath towel, all the red soap was removed from the bathroom. I didn't wash Teddy off because we were 10 minutes from leaving for his annual checkup, so I just wiped the visible soap on him. He played in his swimming pool yesterday afternoon. Soap in the morning plus water in the afternoon ... sounds like we can count that as a bath.

Hinge Pin Doorstop

Yesterday when I walked into Teddy's room, the bottom hinge pin of his door was removed and in his hands. I had no idea how he managed that, but I didn't put much thought into it because I was exhausted after a poor night's sleep and in a rush to get things ready for the sitter who arrived in 15 minutes.

When I walked into his room last night to get things ready for bedtime, I stepped on a small piece of rubber. It looked like it came off a doorstop, which is a really fun toy in Teddy's mind. Then it dawned on me. Teddy managed to pull out the hinge pin of the door by pulling up and leveraging the doorstop.

Sure enough, a search of his room yielded this:

I just shook my head and laughed. A 2-year-old with poor fine motor skills and the attention span of a gnat (known as "lack of attention" or "inability to focus" in more clinical terms) managed to pull out the hinge pin of a door using a doorstop as leverage. Most of the time when I try to remove hinge pins, it takes a screwdriver and quite a bit of muttering under my breath because they're usually stuck or at least pretty tight. Considering the odds against him, I'm amazed he accomplished this.

I know who's in charge of removing all future hinge pins and inserting any new doorstops.

Fine Motor Finesse

Teddy attends occupational therapy most weeks and has since he was roughly a year old. When he first began OT, we were perplexed as to what it would entail for a child who was barely a year old. The running joke in my family was that he was too young to pick an occupation for his future career. We quickly discovered that OT essentially focused on the fine motor skills, which Teddy greatly lacked.

Since that first OT appointment, we've discussed the pincher grasp at just about every appointment. (That's how babies learn to pick up small objects with their thumb and pointer finger.) Teddy's preferred method is to shovel entire handfuls of food into his mouth, and he's mighty efficient that way. So efficient, in fact, that I doubt he sees any reason to learn how to use a pincher grasp for food.

He has made progress with his OT, learning to isolate and use his thumb and become more deliberate using fingers instead of his entire hand. But progress with his fine motor skills always felt so slow. Even the skills he gained, such as clapping, which has been an OT goal for quite a while, he refuses to show his occupational therapist. He first started clapping just before he turned two, and we were lucky enough to capture one of his pictures with him clapping. I'm glad I had that to give his therapist to prove he could do it since he still hasn't done it for her 7 months later.

I adore those blurry clapping hands! (And that smile and those dimples!)

I rarely felt I had anything new to tell his therapist each week in terms of progress. Maybe it's because large motor skills are more obvious because it's kind of hard to miss your child climbing on your kitchen table.

That's all changed in the last month. I feel like he's made such huge bounds in his fine motor skills. From holding onto the sled to holding onto the swing, his ability to maintain a grasp on objects for balance and steadying himself has greatly improved.

He has a stacking toy that all of the sudden, he loves and can stack rings with relative ease. He's taken an interest in coloring, knows the purpose of writing utensils and loves to make marks. He handed objects to me and to his big brother AJ at his last OT appointment. He also figured out how to pull push beads apart and pull apart the tubes that scrunch together and pull apart. This past weekend, he played with mega blocks for 30 minutes straight and was actually stacking blocks together.

I realize to most people, these things sound ordinary. I understand that most children can do all these things before they are a year old. But Teddy's never done any of these things until the past month. I could put an exclamation point after each description because that's how excited I am to see all these new skills he's developed. He's worked hard for these skills, and it's so neat to recognize so many of them clustered together.

(And I'm excited for his next OT appointment because I get to report his ability to A) pay attention to a single task for 30 minutes and B) tell his therapist he can stack mega blocks together.)

P.S. I realize finesse is an exaggeration. I like alliteration. And for Teddy, it is finesse.