Colin's Vacation in Martha's Vineyard!

Hi everybody! Colin, Auntie Jenn and I returned yesterday from a week's vacation in Martha's Vineyard. We had a great time and got a much needed rest from family problems. Eleanor

Colin loved playing in the sand on the beach. Eleanor

Enjoying a sunset. Eleanor

Colin watching the sun set on Martha's Vineyard. Eleanor

This message was edited Oct 6, 2008 5:37 AM

Colin wanted to go swimming but Auntie Jenn saved him from the fun. Eleanor

We watched the rough seas on a very windy Friday. Glad we weren't on the ferry that day. Eleanor

Colin found letters at the Polly Hill Arboretum. (I found beautiful trees and shrubs - wish I could see them in the spring when they were all in bloom) Eleanor

Glad you had a great time.

Our ferry. Eleanor

Thanks ge. I had lots of better photos showing Jenn and Colin having fun but they were of faces and I thought it best not to post them. Eleanor

Good idea. I always wondered about family pics. on the internet anywhere.
My children were grown with kids of their own befor the internet was inventd and became another lurking place for kreeps.

Great photos!!!

Eleanor it's so nice to see you post! Great pictures , I love the stormy ocean shot. I'm so glad you got away from all the drama for some peace and quiet.
Colin has grown so much! My goodness!!! ^_^

Glad you were able to get away for a bit, Eleanor.

Beautiful Eleanor, I got a cold chill looking at the windy ocean!

Same here. Glad you all got some r & r.

Glad you had some time to recharge! What a perfect way.

Swimming looked like fun!

Thanks everyone! Another pic of the ocean waves. Eleanor

Awesome, Eleanor!!! I'm so thrilled to see that you had such a great opportunity to escape and just relax and enjoy being together in such a lovely setting. Good stuff for Colin! Lucky, adorable little guy!!

Louise

Great shots, glad you enjoyed yourselves.

Thanks Louise and Jen. Eleanor

Update on Colin:
Colin had an appointment with the Developmental Pediatrician today. The diagnosis is Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified. I copied the explanation of the disorder and I'm still trying to digest all of this.
("The pervasive developmental disorders, or autism spectrum disorders, range from a severe form, called autistic disorder, to a milder form, Asperger syndrome. If a child has symptoms of either of these disorders, but does not meet the specific criteria for either, the diagnosis is called pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)." )
Colin behaved very well during the screening and showed high cognitive ability for which we are very thankful. The doctor and an intern were in the room with us and he paid no attention to either of them. He did not respond to his name, made no eye contact, babbled unintelligible sounds, and showed other characteristics of the disorder. He did know where the screening toys were coming from though, and tried to break into the cubboard!! The doctor will make his recommendation to the county Early Intervention Program and they will get him into the programs he needs. Right now he is getting speech therapy 3X a week and special instruction 2X a week at my house. The doctor suggests that Colin be in a school setting so that he can be around other children and learn to interact with them. There is so much work ahead and I just hope I can do it - everything has to be reinforced constantly. Auntie Jenn now has custody of him and is providing the love, stability and routine that he needs. Eleanor

My bet is, that when it comes to Colin, you can move mountains, Eleanor.

Sounds like he has some good people looking out for his well-being.

Positive thoughts and well wishes continue.

Thanks Willie. I sometimes feel like it is a mountain I'm moving!! Eleanor

Thankful that Colin has Aunti Jenn and you, Eleanor, to be his advocates.
My DGS around the corner is also showing some autistic tendencies. So, they will be getting him screened. Sometimes he seems so "normal", whatever that is.
I read a statistic that the rate is about 1/150, but here in NJ it is about 1/76. HMMM... that seems strange. Actually he was born in VA.
I'll definitely be sending hugs your way.

Eleanor - there is a lot of power in knowing what you are dealing with in order to find just the right therapy. I think it is great that Colin has access to such good resources and is loved and guided in all the right directions by you and his Auntie Jenn. Good luck and God bless!! I've said it before......what a lucky little boy!

Thanks for sharing that with us! Our prayers are with you!

Thanks Jan and Louise. It gives me encouragement and strength just knowing that my DG family cares. I also wonder why the number of children with autisim is rising. Were the children on the less severe end of the spectrum labeled as ADHD instead? When the therapists came to the house today to work with Colin they both said they knew what the diagnosis was. They could tell when they first met Colin, but are not allowed to make a diagnosis. We went out for dinner tonight and it was a disaster. You feel like everyone is judging and thinking he's a terrible child and needs to disciplined. One of us would eat and the other would take him for a walk or carry him around and we switched on and off until we were finished. Next time it will be take-out!!! Thanks for the prayers - they are so appreciated. Eleanor

My niece also was diagnosed and goes to a school in FL specifically for learning disabilities. During all the evals that she received my sister found out that they are putting all kinds of learning disabilities under the label of autism. When you think autism you usually think "Rain Man". My niece exhibits only a few mild signs of autism, but they put her under that label. It's a shame.

My thirty four year old son was diagnosed at around fouror five then spenttime in the daycare center(now closed) possibly you know the one I mean. We had to fight for years to get him "mainstreamed" and he did finally graduate from the High School here.It was a long hard haul but he has been working for seven years now , I'll be driving him in tomorrow morning. On ballance I think he has given us more happiness than grief' although I don't think I'll ever forget some of those fights we had with the handicaped comitee at school. Hang in there and you will make it. And have fun. He plays the guitar, he likes to fish-with me yet and he just told me to appologize to his mother because I snapped at her!!

When the Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified diagnosis is used, I think it is better for the child unless they are absolutely sure of where the child is on the spectrum. Colin is a little young to be specifically labeled. Pervasive Developmental Disorder is a whole spectrum of disabilities ranging from mild to severe. Autisim is on the severe end of the spectrum. Every single child on the spectrum has different needs and disabilities - no two are alike with the exact same characteristics. Some people will unknowingly use the word autisim to include the entire spectrum. The PDD-NOS diagnosis allows for early intervention services to be obtained for Colin and I'm glad we have that. I certainly could not help Colin by myself. I wouldn't know what to do without guidance. At 2 1/2 years of age he still doesn't know how to ask for a snack to eat when he is hungry. He throws a temper tantrum instead if I can't guess what he needs. Some might think that is a discipline issue but he just plain doesn't have functional language. We have been working for weeks to get him to say and sign "help please" when he needs a toy container opened. Many times he will just go to something else if he can't open it, or throw a temper tantrum. He has gotten to the stage where he will sometimes take my hand and put it on the container and that is a start. He recoginzes that I'm there and can help him and now he just needs to verbalize the request. Colin is absolutely delightful and I wouldn't trade him in for a perfect model. He is very high maintenance but I don't consider it my cross to bear (his mother is a different story). The doctor was encouraging about his future and thinks he will do just fine. He is young and getting the proper services and help, and will be ready for kindergarten by the time he is 5. Thanks everyone for the support. It helps just to talk about Colin and his issues. Eleanor

That's what we are here for, Eleanor. Is there a support group in your area? They might have some concrete answers for any specific questions you might have.
So glad Colin has you and Jenn loving him.
If you ever need a smile please check out my niece's website. Her daughter has Down's Syndrome and this site is a celebration of "ability"
www.emmasage.blogspot.com This is Down's Syndrome Awareness month so Tara is blogging almost every day. Visiting the site always gives me a smile, sometimes even amid the tears.
Hugs to you (plural) today.
Jan

Hang in there, Eleanor. The great thing is that there is early intervention today. My younger one was diagnosed with PDD at age four - mainly to get him the services. It's a catch-all term that is not really a diagnosis. It often does take time to make a definitive diagnosis. However, that is not really important at this point. Many of the same techniques and approaches are used for all of them.

I think a major factor in the high autism rates is the ability to diagnose it now. Years ago it would have been lumped into being hyper, or 'slow', or even a 'brat'. I do believe there is some type of environmental factor though. I don't believe vaccines are the cause and too much time/effort has been wasted on that. They stopped using the mercury-based preservative and the rates have increased!

Praying for you and your family too Eleanor.
There has been a big increase in lymphoma recently, and my doctor said she thinks it is environmental. Not that it's related to autism, but how we treat the environment will effect everyone, and unfortunately, these are probably some of the results.

Many thanks again! What an awesome web site - I will have to read it more carefully when I get a chance. I also feel that a lot of our problems these days are caused by the environment. Eleanor

Sounds like Colin will be fine, look who's watching his back! You are a very special woman Eleanor and Colin is one lucky little boy!!

Thanks Pixie. I consider myself very lucky to have such a sweet little grandson. Eleanor

Now, Eleanor, you need to start telling us all the cute, embarrassing toubles Colin gets into!!

My suspicion is with plastics as food containers, same situation with aluminum / tin.

I cannot wait until everything starts returning to glass containers.

Anything is possible. I always prefer glass.

Of course, I live just down the stream from Love Canal! Remember that continuing fiasco?

They've allowed families (with babies even) to move back into that neighborhood! Now, it's leaking again?

Well, I am a few miles away, anyway, and have yet to start glowing.

(Not trying to start a poli discussion, just that you never know what's around you, as Victor notes -- and boosting thread post totals, of course!)

Of course!