"Potty"

For a couple of months now, I have been regularly stopping by the restroom (I know... TMI!) after Gracie's VitalStim appointment - - both as a necessity prior to the drive home and for the opportunity to practice potty related signs. It's an ideal time to work on them because 1) there is space for both of us 2) she's in her chair so she has better access to everything and 3) there are mirrors for her to see me signing even if she's not directly in front of me.

This afternoon, I bypassed that regular stop because we were in a hurry to get to her ENT appointment several buildings away. As we passed the hallway where the restroom is, I saw her arms and legs wiggling about like crazy... and a little hand shaking a "t" (the sign for potty) out from under the KidKart canopy. She was reminding me of the routine. I was so excited and proud of her! I signed that we had to go to the doctor first and then go potty second. She didn't get upset and moved on to signing about the elevator which we also do every single time.

This evening (again, this will be too much information), I was in the kids' bathroom, with the door open, going potty (I know... I know...!). All of the sudden, I see the face of my sweet, smiling girl appear on the floor in the doorway... then her shoulders... then her torso. I hear the familiar sound of her diaper unfastening as she continues to grin. I know she thinks it's bath time. I sign, "No Gracie, your diaper must stay on." She signs "potty." I sign back to her, "Yes, mommy is going potty." She keeps shaking her little "t" furiously then adds her other hand, apparently for extra effect. Because, as I washed my hands, I noticed that she had gone potty right outside the door on the floor! I was thrilled!!! Not about her going on my floor, of course, but her signing (or two handed "shouting!") and awareness of her own potty on that level sure thrilled me! So exciting!

I have noticed lately that she often takes off her diaper the minute she goes, so I am going to try to get her interested in sitting on the toilet again. (Previously the potty chair was scary for her.) I don't expect that this will be the start of "true potty training" just because of her mobility issues, but I am excited that she's clearly making the connection with her own body again. She had started doing this when she was much younger, but it just "went away" like things sometimes do with her - - skills, expressive language - - things come and go in little waves. In any case, this is the most enthusiastic she's ever been (and independtly expressive) about "potty." So exciting!

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Gracie had a good ENT appointment. Like yesterday's appointment, this was long, but mostly because we waited in the lobby for 45 minutes. Like yesterday, though, she was super happy, playful and loving the whole time. We signed songs, made a scene with excessive amounts of Eskimo kisses and she even asked to get up from her chair... so she could stand between my legs for a few minutes and watch all the kids play. It was fun and the fact that she wanted to stand thrilled me to no end!

Her doctor was great this time - - he answered my questions and concerns, agreed to order a test (that her speech team is interested in getting done to obtain more data regarding her swallow function) and he was wonderful with Gracie. (He is an incredibly knowledgeable and experienced doctor - - so he's great in those respects. But he's often in a hurried state because he's overbooked... thus, his bedside manner is often terrible.) She made him laugh a couple of times when she helped him place the stethoscope in all the places that she knows he needs to check (and she does know!). She leaned to the side to let him look in her ears when she saw the otoscope and she even complied when he wanted to look up her nose and in her mouth. This is the most amazing transformation of Gracie's appointment experience. It used to be so stressful that we would leave visits with an exhausted, sweaty, limp child who was literally passed out and physically ill from the stress she felt trying to cope/understand being at an appointment. Just a couple of years ago, we absolutely had to have two adults present at every appointment. You've come a long way, Gracie!!! I am so proud of how well you cope and how mature you've become with waiting (and waiting and waiting) and being examined.

(So far, I'm diggin' February!)