It's been awhile

It's been awhile since my last post. I hope you enjoyed seeing Emmie! She loves her shirt and wears it often.

A lot has happened since my last post. We received the full report from Carol Gray, the Speech & Language Pathologist, that completed Emmie's most recent evaluation. She was given the SCAN-C, Lindamood Auditory Conceptualization Test, Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language, Woodcock-Johnson III Cognitive Abilities-Verbal Comprehension sub test, and the Token Test for Children. Mrs. Gray also completed a parent interview, reviewed Emmie's previous eval, and observed her during a clinical observation during the three day long adventure. Most test were administered during Emmie's first eval with The Listening Center and some were new. Either way, the results were not surprising. She obviously needs speech and language pathology...intensive speech and language. It was the conclusion of Mrs. Gray that Emmalyn has a Receptive Language Disorder.

TriCare has been given the updated IEP and report from Mrs. Gray. According to the Pediatric Case Manager, we now have a strong case. Apparently TriCare doesn't recognize CAPD, but does recognize a Receptive Language Disorder. Hello TriCare.. CAPD IS a Receptive Language Disorder. I think trained monkeys are running our insurance company. According to the Pediatric Case Manager, we should know something early next week about the approval of services. According to Mrs. Gray, Emmie needs 2-3 times a week therapy. My luck, TriCare will approve once a month. We'll see. I have hope, but it's slowly fading.

Emmie, now, is limited on her dairy intake. I noticed she was having digestive problems when she consumed most dairy products and took her to the Pediatrician. The doctor, based on Emmie's symptoms, thinks she has a pretty severe case of lactose intolerance. She doesn't have an allergy, but she is intolerant to dairy. She is on a daily medication, which the doctor recommended. However, the company that manufactures the children's version is no longer making it because they didn't find a huge need for it on the market. Supply and demand, you know how that works. So, I purchased 6 months worth from the company in the hopes of locating something else that will work for Em. I now monitor her dairy intake..which is difficult because EVERY thing has dairy in it in some form. Some dairy items she can ingest with no problems, but others we have had to change. It's a trial and error process. The problem I am having is when she goes places..for birthday parties, or when someone in the neighborhood offers the kids a treat...they don't know she can't have dairy and obviously if you are offering her a cupcake...she's 9..she wants the cupcake!! It's a learning experience for all of us.

I don't want her to feel different. She is obviously different and knows that she isn't like her friends. Which, when you are 9, is a problem because you want to be just like your friends! So, I have tried my best to make her feel special, not different I guess. She gets her own special shopping trip to Trader Joes, or The Nugget Market. She gets to pick ice cream JUST for her or try different milks because SHE has to pick a special one just for her. So far, it's working!!! I have found a "milk" that she will drink and she enjoys. We are using Lactaid regular milk, and Trader Joe's Soy milk. Trader Joe's brand is the only soy she likes. She will also drink almond milk, which has always been a staple in my house! We have found a few "treats" that she enjoys and Carrington and Jensen will also enjoy! The tofu ice cream is non dairy and all three kids LOVE it! SCORE one for mom!!!

Summer is fading fast and 4th grade is on my mind everyday. I was offered a job with the County as Paraeducator, but not sure which site. If I'm offered a job at Center, that's where Emmie will be and I pray the extra speech and language that TriCare may approve will help us get through 4th grade. If not, Emmie also has a spot saved at Travis. Although I'm not excited about Travis, we'll see. Scandia is certainly NOT an option and I'll homeschool her before she goes there!

More later :)