Isaac has fixated on certain things ever since he was little. Sometimes he gets "stuck" on things. It isn't necessarily a bad thing... always. Sometimes it can be rather annoying to us that spend lots of time with him but we live with it. The important thing for us to remember is to expose him to lots of things. Always give variety. Allow him to be excited on the things he gets "stuck" on but branch off of them too. For example trains has been his thing for a long time, he still loves them but doesn't obsess about them like he used too. He now loves diggers, garbage trucks, and school buses too.
The number 8 is another one of those things. At church when we lived in Coaldale he started with this "8" thing. He was only 3 at the time but loved the number 8. He could barely speak words but he knew and loved the number 8. During the church service he would point out the number 8 on the board hung at the front of the church and get excited. " Mom, mom, mom a 8!" He would say it numerous times throughout the service and wait for us to acknowledge him. He would flip through the book of praise and find "8's". Sometimes it was difficult because we would be trying to sing and he would want to keep flipping pages until he could find more "8's". It was actually pretty cute, and we tolerated it, because he would get a twinkle in his eye when he found one, and a huge grin on his face.
It kind of became a game for us too looking for an "8". All of us would do it. We branched out from church "8's"to him noticing the number "8" in picture books, on random licence plates, clocks and on road signs. We are not so sure what is so special about the number "8" but he draws them in his church notebook, and he draws them with sidewalk chalk all over the driveway. He even has a muscle shirt I found that has a big "8" on it. We have a playdoh bin of playdoh stuff and cookie cutters etc. I will make playdoh, haul out the bin and Isaac will frantically search for the number 8 cookie cutter. He will make a whole plate of playdoh cookies, all the number "8". Then say "I'm done playdoh now."
I have also been picking up games at the thrift store. I came across rummikub. he sorts through that bag of number chips and lines up every "8" he can find on the game board. On his birthday he wanted to be "8" and has even told people he is "8". When we sing memory work with the kids after supper and he can choose a song is always picks the "8" song written by Daddy. The lyrics go something like this...." 8,8,8 I love 8's. shake your bum and dance 8,8,8. Isaac loves the number 8." Sometimes the lyrics change. We have even once sang this song as a family when one of the kids had a friend over. The friend has returned I think so it must be okay. Anyways now that you know a bit more about Isaac and "8" you will see the picture above with his soccer jersey on and the number "8". He was so excited to pick out his jersey and get the number "8" on it. He points it out to everyone.
Occasionally Isaac gets to skip school and attend a birthday party with Emma and I. I figure it is a great opportunity for him to work on his social skills and meet some kids from church. He connected quite nicely with a new boy that moved here named Carter. I kept my distance throughout the party but I saw lots of great back and forth conversation and initiation from Isaac. I was pretty proud of him. His conversation can sometimes be a bit awkward and he sometimes says really random things that have no context but we are working on it. I think he wants to be excited about friends and is trying to be like his brothers and their friends. One Sunday when the older boys were lining up playdates he blurted out " I want Josh to come for a sleepover at my house." Kind of random since he hasn't really played with Josh much and Josh is Brian and Jo's youngest who is just 3. It's interesting because out of all the playdates I've arranged for him and friends I've tried to connect him with the last few years he has really taken to a boy named Luke in his class. They are little BFF's and they have built that relationship on their own, at school, without me prompting him. The teachers have commented lots on it. Luke and Isaac sit on the bus together back and forth from school unless they are separated for having a case of the giggles and silly's. Luke has a super nice mom too that I have met at school workshops so we have arranged a few playdates. I'm a little nervous for next year since him and Luke won't be in the same class.
This is a picture of Isaac "regulating himself" with a weighted blanket. We are trying it out from our OT specialist. When he is over stimulated and acting out it is supposed to help calm him. It worked this particular night. The blanket is supposed to be 1lb of weight for every 10lb of child so this one is about 4lbs of blanket. They can be quite expensive so it is nice to try it out first.
This boy is growing right out of my lap.
Daddy and Isaac having some bonding time.
Isaac loves water too. Waterfalls, fountains, taps, storm sewer crates on our street, swimming, hoses you name it. We checked out Wabbanum lake with Nana and Papa. He was pretty stoked to play in the water.
This is the boys playing with Jenna who is from our service provider. She comes twice a week for an hour and a half each time. She is lots of fun for Isaac and always brings fun toys and activities. She also helps us as parents set goals and target certain behaviours.
Isaac's artwork at school. He didn't finish his "8".
This was his Spring concert at school. He's standing next to his buddy Luke on the right.
Our house has been visualized this month. Isaac seems to respond well to visuals outlining expectations. They use this tool lots at school. The one above is his bedtime routine.
The one on the right is posted in each of our bathrooms as a reminder of the steps. The one on the left is how to wash your face.
This one is how to brush your teeth.
The above one is our suppertime routines. After each step he moves the label over to the square beside it. We often ask him what he has finished and then what is coming next. Emma was a little jealous so they even made her one for supper routines. These schedules are hopefully going to help Isaac become a bit more independent in personal care and everyday routines. He still struggles with dressing himself, brushing teeth, and sitting still through suppertime so
these were a few areas we wanted to target right away. The idea is for him to follow his chart step by step so he knows what is expected of him. Gradually he should be able to follow the charts without prompting and eventually do the routines without the visual. Thankfully our service provider has designed all of these visuals. For me personally it would be time consuming finding all the pictures, cutting and laminating everything. I really appreciate their help.
This is a cute video clip from Isaac's spring concert. His buddy Luke is on the left of him.
