What's Up Next?

    Chloe got into the action kneading the dough for cinnamon rolls.

  Lots has been happening with Chloe lately.  First of all, Praise the Lord, we got funding for a neuro feedback machine in our home.  I started learning how to operate the system at our last therapy session and it should be up and running by the end of next week.  I am anxious to see how much more effective it will be when it's used more often.

    Chloe has begun to see a speech therapist.  The clarity of her speech has been a concern for a while, but we've had a difficult time finding a therapist that recognizes the importance of early speech intervention for a child without an established first language like Chloe.  Thankfully, we found Concorde Kids through a friend of ours and they work with many adoptive kids.  Chloe is able to pronounce most of her letters, but when she speaks in a conversation, she leaves out middle syllable sounds.  Instead of ki-tt-en, she will say ki-en.  This will require weekly trips about an hour away.  Thankfully, it isbe covered by our insurance because Chloe had trouble with her ears as a baby.

    Also at Concorde Kids, Chloe saw an occupational therapist to test for Sensory Processing Disorder.  We have been suspicious that Chloe had this problem for some time, but chose to work on other things first.  Her symptoms include lots of climbing and crashing with no fear, smelling lots of things, and lots of rubbing on my skin.  You may remember that last fall Chloe dislocated her elbow and gave no indication of pain.  Lack of pain recognition seems like the most serious problem and our real motivation for having her assessed.  Sensory Disorder in orphanage kids comes from lack of stimulation.  They lay in a crib staring at the ceiling with little or no stimulation.  Now Chloe literally craves stimulation, both in touch and in joint compression (crashing).  Once we fulfill her need and fill her tank so to speak, her craving for stimulation will come down to a normal level.  Weekly trips to O.T. with lots of crashing and stimulation should help greatly.  If you have questions about Sensory Disorder feel free to email me at  thebeachfamily@cs.com