Shane Update

Our little buddy sure is growing up. Every week I can't believe what he can do and how old he acts. Here is a list of some of his most recent happenings:

**Over the weekend at Mema and Papa's house he took on saying "idea". He now will tell us he has an "idea" and then ramble on about his "idea" which can range from using a stick in the water so he doesn't get wet or to a toy he wants to play with. Cracks me up!!

**He is officially potty trained during the day. And hasn't woken up wet from naps in weeks (I'm just not ready to take the nap time diaper away) and is often dry in the mornings (again, still not ready for night time potty training even though he probably is). Except this morning at 5:20am, he came into out bedroom saying "pee, pee". He had his diaper off and his PJ's unzipped. We ran into the bathroom together and he went potty. Guess he decided to night train himself, as well. Doesn't matter if Mommy is ready or not.

**He is back into a naked phase. Last week he ate lunch naked, and he loves to run around with out a shirt on and only one sock. I often hear "not cold, Mommy". He likes to make sure I don't attempt to try and put any more clothes on him.

**Shane transitioned into a toddler bed a few weeks ago flawlessly. It was a breeze. We so far haven't had any problems with him getting up out of bed. The one concern has been that he is waking up more at night. He seems to wiggly around more in his new bed and get uncovered. Or feels more vulnerable in there, because there has been a lot of talk about "roars" (scary noises) at bed time.

**Last week we went to a place called Kindering Center where Shane took a developmental assessment. I was only concerned about his speech, but they have to do a whole evaluation which includes cognitive, social/emotional and motor skills (gross and fine)testing. It was an interesting experience to be on the "other side of the table" after being an elementary school counselor I was very familiar with the tests and procedures.

He easily qualified for speech services in the area of articulation. Which is what I had anticipated, so no surprise there. He fell into what can be referred to as the "shady 80's" for expressive language, but since he already qualified for articulation services, they will also provide him with expressive language services as well. He scored perfectly in the cognitive and social/emotional areas and very high in the motor skills area.

Shane will have a speech therapist come out to the house once a week (or we'll go to Kindering Center). Kindering only services kids birth-3. After he turns 3, he'll have to be retested by the school district and transfer to there if he qualifies still. It feels good to know that he'll be getting the help he needs. He is still picking up multiple new words every day and so far his articulation problem hasn't affected him, just those around him that are trying to understand the million stories he tells on a daily basis.

**His love for Sadie (Dede) and Dodger (Dodo) continues to grow and grow. This love I speak of can be a little overwhelming and I often think they are ready to pack their bags and move out. If they can't find one of their toys, they have learned to look high, since that is where Shane likes to hide them. But when he came home today, I don't think I've ever seen Sadie as excited before (and I've seen her pretty darn excited), so I guess they like all the rough love and games he plays with them. Maybe they won't be packing their bags any time soon....

**Shane's favorite toys continue to be anything involving modes of transportation: trains, cars, tractors and diggers. As well as building with legos. Coloring and making things in his kitchen are other daily highlights.

**We got our first "I Love You, Mommy and Daddy" this weekend. Very appropriate for Valentines Day. He said it to me first out of the blue Friday afternoon, and of course I had to call Daddy, Mema and Papa and have him repeat it to each and every one of them.

**He can reach the light switch! What a new found freedom for a little guy. And one less thing we have to do for him.