Speech - Ruby "graduated" from speech therapy. She was supposed to celebrate with Teacher Pat after the holiday. Unfortunately, Teacher Pat fell, broke 12 bones and wasn't going to be back at work for a few months. We had our own celebration and will visit Teacher Pat when she's feeling better again.
Didn't even know Ruby was in speech? That's because I'm a bad blogger. She started last summer. Ruby got her first words at the developmentally appropriate time and hasn't stopped talking since. We started to notice a "slushy" /s/ sound when she was three (think "mushdash" for mustache). We could still understand her, the pediatrician wasn't worried and my speech therapist friend at school said she was no where near qualifying for early intervention. As a Kindergarten teacher, I know 1) how difficult it is to qualify for services in public schools and 2) the earlier the intervention the better. Additionally, I could tell that kids at her pre school were having trouble understanding her so I decided to pay for a private assessment. We found a great speech therapist who confirmed she had a lateral lisp and started working with her once a week. There was a little concern that since she was only four, she might not cooperate, therefore making it a waste of time and money. On the contrary, Ruby loved her speech teacher and speech class and we started noticing an immediate difference. The best part was that Teacher Pat gave us specific instructions to remind Ruby how to self correct her sounds so she didn't get frustrated. After six months, she was able to produce all the sounds correctly in isolation so she no longer needed to weekly speech therapy. I've been in many conferences where our speech therapist says the same thing to parents. The parents are always a little hesitant because the sounds aren't always 100% in normal conversation. I get it now. I was hesitant too. But, Teacher Pat is the expert and will check in with us in a few months...after the 12 bones heal and she can walk again.
Ella - I'm using my camera roll to catch up on the blog. While Ella isn't in school shows, taking field trips, playing with her friends, etc., she is enjoying life to the fullest.
Soccer - Ruby has been going to swimming lessons since she was 1.5 years old. Other than that, we let her pick one activity at a time. She's tried all the girlie activities...ballet, tap and gymnastics. She told us she wanted to take basketball and soccer next. A friend was going to sign Ruby's friend up for soccer so we joined her. About five minutes into the first session, it was clear Ruby didn't love soccer. She couldn't quite articulate it but we think it's because all the kids are chasing after balls and the natural instinct is to push and shove when you're in a group. She would do the drills and play the fun games but when it was time to actually play soccer, she would steer clear of the group. We don't care. If she likes it, she likes it. If she doesn't, she doesn't. We told her she had to finish what she started. Soccer ended last month and she hasn't asked about it since =)
I think Ella liked soccer more than Ruby. She especially loved running the opposite way of the soccer field and never coming back.
Goodnight Moon - Ruby's been on a few field trips this year. Since I work part time, her teacher asked me in advance if I wanted to drive to Goodnight Moon at the Palo Alto Children's Theater. After the show, the kids had snack and played at the local park.
P.S. I sent the field trip picture to my baby BFFs. The first thing they noticed was Ruby in a booster seat. Yes. She's in a booster seat. No. I didn't switch her to a booster. That's her five point harness car seat on the right. I was always annoyed when my field trip drivers didn't want to install extra car seats. Again, I now get it. I don't even think I can install a third car seat but I don't feel like it's my choice to make for other kids. We were just driving down Middlefield Road so I put Ruby in the built in booster and her classmate in the car seat. Ruby thought she was the bees' knees.
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