Very "Dairy" 'Round Here........

We got a HUGE surprise the day of the fair...we woke up from our nap to this cool livestock in our living room!! His name was "Smores"...but we renamed him Donkey!



It was an exciting, anxiety filled, super fun, terrifying, absolutely joyful week. We got to go to the fair with Safi's school, I went to school two days in a row and was much better this week afterwards, we ran errands with mom...just a lot of stuff. We're all tired so we're going to bombard you with pictures and video...enough to hold you over until next week when we'll do a real update! Soooo...enjoy!

Peace
Nixi

Video from the fair........

No still shots this week...but check out the great video!!!
Singing our ABC's on the fly...literally!

Dressing up my "baby"....

Our new train!!! Check out my happy feet and joyful clap!!


Crazy week. We had the long weekend, which was super fun...then Tues was Nixi's first day at her "preschool academy"(we'll call it school from here on out). We woke up on a roll. We had military precision in our morning routine and were ready to hit the road just on time. Heather went with us and she got to see one of my new nervous habits. See, when we're going somewhere new or doing something out of the ordinary I become the back seat driver of your nightmares. I get nervous about the cars around us, the red lights ('cuz who knows if mom sees them) and yell out things like, "Watch out!", "Stop black car!", "Yikes!!", and "Help". I think it makes perfect sense, clearly 4 or 6 eyes is better than 2...mom thinks its annoying and a bit jarring. So, I was on full alert all the way up to the Early Intervention center...and we got there safe and sound!

Mom and I hung out in some super lame room with no toys or anything...but there was a ton of cool physical therapy equipment taunting me in the hallway. Cruel really, but I digress. Nixi went into school with Heather with no problems. They commenced class and mom let me play with the iPhone, so it was totally horrible. I did a great job of staying put and coping with not being in the class...really great given the fact that that place used to be MY therapy center. Mom was super proud, and toward the end she said the heck with it and took me out in the hall to mess with all of the cool stuff. Nixi did a great job in class. It was just as chaotic and overstimulating as it was when mom went with her to the mommy and me class. Heather was there to try and provide additional structure and warnings for transitions. When class was over Nixi was happy as can be and so overstimulated that she was tripping over her feet...what mom calls "stim drunk." By the time we got to the car ans started driving home, shut down completely...sucking her thumb and twiddling her hair while she stared into space. By the time we pulled in the driveway she hit the wall and started getting screechy and weepy. For the rest of the day she was really brittle. The next day was the worst day Nixi has had since we can't even remember when. She just screamed, and screamed, and screamed, and hit, and trembled, and kicked, and cried some more for the whole day. A break here and there, but hour long meltdowns for the better part of the day.

By Thursday when it was time to see her OT, Teacher Jo, she was a little better. Her Early Intervention teacher came to the house, too. That was ok, a little confusing, but ok. Sadly, it ended pretty poorly for Nix and sent her back into the space she was in the days before. Friday morning we had an appointment with our psychologist in Fresno. We both were a little nervous because we haven't been there in a while, but I pulled it together. Mom had to scrape Nixi off of the floor and strap her into the car...she just couldn't pull it together. The ride was punctuated by lots of ear piercing screams, but we also got to watch Backyardigans so it was ok. We did great at Dr. Wells, sadly, mom was so frazzled by the time we got there that she didn't was pretty incoherent. She only had 50 minutes to give an update, toss out concerns, and hope for referrals. She was all over the place and didn't really get the help she was looking for, no fault to Dr. Wells. It was just one of those days.

Heather's grandpa has been sick so we haven't seen her since Tues....we hope he feels better soon. Its been intense, and just mom with us during the thick of it. We made it through the week and things are looking brighter heading into this week. Nixi will go back to school on Monday and Tues and we all get to go on a field trip to the County Fair with my school on Thursday! Woohoooooo! Should be pretty exciting...so make sure to check back in next week for pictures and such!

xoxo
Safi

So, the week dragged a little. After Safi got sick, mom and I got sick too. Even our BIA, Heather, got sick! So, no "preschool academy" for me and Safi missed school on Monday. That was ok, though, 'cuz Heather came over and we all hung out together feeling cruddy. It was fun!

The rest of the week Safi was able to go to school and she had a great week. The routine in class is more predictable and Safi is getting the hang of it so she had a great week in and out of school. I'm doing a lot better at leaving Safi's classroom, too! Mom instituted a sticker chart for me for when we take Safi to school. When I say "goodbye" to Safi I get a fairy sticker to put on a piece of construction paper that mom keeps in the car. So, while I still hate to leave Safi's school, I'm not having a meltdown because I know I'll get to put a new sticker on my chart and mom and I can count all of my stickers before we drive home. Its pretty cool!

My OT, Miss Jo, came on Thursday and we played a "guess what's in the bag" game. She showed us items then put them in a bag and had us feel around to try to find the item by touch. It was fun, Safi was really good at it...I really liked pulling everything out! None the less, a fun and challenging game!

Friday Safi and I went to the doctor because Safi still has congestion in her chest. Doctor said we both had a cold but everything else was "ok"...Heather went with us and our doctor told her how amazing we were doing. He said, "Remember when I couldn't get near them?"...and this time Safi even did the weird big breath in and out as instructed when he listened to her lungs. The highlight...we each got two stickers! The big ones! So rad!

Now on to the best part of the week....the long weekend! Dad was on call the last week and a half so he got Friday off. We've been having a blast with him ever since. We couldn't wait to show him our stickers on Friday after the doctor's, and on Saturday we went to the park AND did water fountains. We started Sunday with some dress-up (as you can see, above)and then we went to the pet store and then the park. Later in the day we watched a Bugs Bunny movie then we got to go play in our green pool with the slide at like 5PM!!! It was soooo cool! Really special! We even ate watermelon in the pool and mom sprayed us with the hose. Despite the fun and excitement of getting to do things a little differently and a little special, Safi had a rough time transitioning after the pool 'cuz it was a change from our regular schedule. I came in early because I was starting to get anxious. Still, tons of fun! Tomorrow (Mon), dad has another day off! We're planning on bringing out the RV and hanging out in it in front of the house....too hot and too crowded to go somewhere, but we can still have a blast having a vacation day our front! SOOOO awesome!!!!

Also, wanting to wish Great-grandpa Cummings a speedy recovery and Great-grandma Cummings some well deserved rest! We love you. Happy Labor Day to all!

Peace,
Nixi

Check out our band...we have a FABULOUS lead singer!


Fun at the water fountains...check out Safi going under the water "umbrella"...and very gutsy first!


And here's some video of Safi rocking out...look closely and you'll even see a little "air guitar", and my sweet leg stomp move!

Sick but NOT technically challenged!

Teacher Mel took pictures of each of us on the first day of school!

Nixi, or "Buzz"(Toy Story) as she likes to be called. Turns out if mom calls Nixi "Buzz" when she's upset she has to calm down because its Nixi who's upset, not "Buzz". Mom is is "Jesse", I'm "Woody", and dad's "Rex." Example: Nixi didn't want to pick me up from school and was in a pretty decent meltdown...mom thought quick and said, "Buzz, Woody's in trouble! We have to save Woody!". Nix had her shoes on and was in the car in a flash, saying "I'm coming Woody!" Crazy kid!


So, we had an exciting week. I'm starting to get used to the fact that I get to go to school 4 days a week....AWESOME!

Nixi had 2 Early Intervention visits this week, and she's supposed to start "Preschool Academy" Monday. The bummer, I'm sick! I have a runny nose and a fever. So, hopefully I feel better tomorrow but mom's thinking she may have to miss Monday if I still have a fever. See, I have to go along and wait with mom while Nixi and Heather go to class. Mom tried explaining that to me and so far I'm not digging it. I hear the word school and regardless of who's school time it is...I wanna go. Mom anticipated that it could be rougher for me to not get to go than its going to be for Nixi to go without us. Maybe I'll feel better in the morning and we'll take it from there. I don't even want to think about not being able to go my school in the afternoon. That'll be rough. Fingers crossed for good health.

I'm just loving school so much. It just makes my heart want to explode! This past week teacher Mel has kept our schedule pretty routine and we have a cool song we get to sing whenever we transition from one activity to another. I've been singing it at home to help Nixi transition, 'cuz I figure if it helps me it'll be sure to help her! So, in short, I'm just loving life. Still struggling here and there, but nothing more than mom and dad had planned for. This year we were all so much more prepared and its paying off in spades...all of the social stories, visual schedule, etc. Its really helped me to keep my anxiety in check and, while its always there, I'm really getting to enjoy myself during the week and that's RAD!

Mom had her meeting with teacher Mel and feels it went as good as it could have gone. While mom still feels there's a level that teacher Mel just doesn't get, she feels a little more confident that if I'm struggling with something teacher Mel can try to help me through it. That's really what matters. Nothing is perfect, but it just needs to be good enough. Mom thinks its gonna be good enough.

Now, why isn't there a bunch of cute pictures and great video? Well, true to form...I got bored of the apps on mom's iPhone and decided to challenge myself with her utilities folder. It was awesome...I pulled up pictures and video and tossed them in the trash. Now, it took me a minute to figure it out, 'cuz its a 2 step process...but once you confirm in the prompt window those suckers are gone forever. It may seem like I didn't know what I was doing..however, I enjoy a good challenge and I believe mom deserves one from time to time too. So, mom...if you're reading this...I did it for you. So, now try to figure out how to retrieve them...challenge ON! See how much I love you!

Keeping it short and sweet 'cuz I'm sick. Have a great week!

xoxo
Safi

Every silver lining's got a touch of grey............

Ok, so it was a "WOW!" kind of week. Safi started school on Monday and I've started services back up. First things first, school.

In preparation for the start of school, mom made Safi a social story book and slide show with pictures of the school and the song "Touch of Grey" by the Grateful Dead. The slide show takes you frame by frame from the parking lot, to the gate, down the hall, to the front door, new teacher Mel, etc. Safi loved it and I thought it was pretty cool, too. So, when we left for school on Monday Safi asked to listen to "school song"...and again when we picked her up and every school day thereafter...only now she knows to ask for "Touch of Grey." First day Safi asked to wear her vest in. She was really excited to see her friends, but confused because the coming in routine was changed. Seeing Teacher Mel there was ok, because the social story and slide show prepped Safi for that. Safi was a little thrown off but just so excited to be there. Mom and I were able to check her in and take off! Unfortunately, the taking off part has been rough on me because I want to go to school, too. So, I've been struggling when we get home. Anyways, Safi got to try to play Teacher Mel's guitar and got a turn to sing on a karaoke mic...soooo cool! Totally understandable that I would be bummed to have missed out on that! The rest of the week was filled with lots of excitement and lots of confusion for Safi. The class routine was changed up a couple of times and the visual schedule isn't being used in a way that Safi understands. On the last day of classes for the week Safi was showing the stress...crying a little in the car on the way there. When we picked her up she ran over to mom and start pouting and was tearful. Poor big sis was so stressed that she had been biting her lower lip until it scabbed! All of the confusion caught up to her and she was feeling out of sorts. Mom mentioned some of these things to Teacher Mel but she just sort of smiled and said "I know" but then didn't change a thing. Mom also saw her motoring (physically touching/leading Safi here or there)Safi, and that's always been a problem for Safi. Safi's peak in self-injurious behavior was during the time that she was being motored by our old ABA program. Remember, once mom and dad pulled those services out of our home...Safi stopped hurting herself and hasn't since. Mom called Teacher Mel to talk to her about it and she was blown off again. Teacher Mel didn't recognize that she was motoring Safi, saying "Well, we'll remember that for when we start doing that" Mom gave her 3 examples of motoring that she had seen and she said, "Oh, I know"...and changed the subject. She then said to mom that she thinks that "sometimes its us parents who have a hard time with things and our kids are just fine." That bummed mom out because Safi was pretty clearly not "just fine" by the end of the week...and Teacher Mel just didn't seem to get it. So, mom has a meeting set up with Teacher Mel and Safi's old teacher, Jenn, for Friday to troubleshoot so Safi can continue to love school and have an amazing year! Heather, our BIA, will also go with Safi to school on Tuesday to try and see what areas are potential problems for Safi. At the end of the day, mom and dad just want her to have a great year and they're optimistic that with everyone working together and being open with each other that Safi can have just that! In spite of it all, a true testament to Safi's love of school...she was excited each and every day to go again! Yey, big sister!

I had my first visit from any of my peeps on Thursday...my Occupational Therapist, Miss Jo. She's just so awesome! If you remember, we had a rocky start last year with the OT services, or lack there of...but by the time services ended for summer Miss Jo had us doing some amazing stuff. So, both Safi and I were overjoyed to see her. She kept it really mellow and just hung out with us, taking into account that this is her first week back. Next time she comes she's gonna bring something really cool for us to do. Mom talked to my Early Intervention Teacher about me going to "Pre-school Academy"...unfortunately, there's no openings in the only class that I can make due to timing. However, this week they'll see if anyone would be interested in moving to later class...if not, the earliest they will have an opening is November. So, regardless of when...I will get to go at some point! Yey for me!

Mom kept the week really low key to account for all of the overstimulation and chaos that naturally comes with a new schedule. Saturday we went to the "sand park"...it was really fun but Safi had a moment there and ended up lightly kicking me in the face and headbutting mom in the nose. Now, since June mom has been headbutted in the nose 3 times by Safi when she was upset and a number of times by me when I'm excited and dysregulated. So, its never really had a proper chance to heal and this last one has left it slightly crooked. Mom's a little bummed. Its not too noticeable, but its been mom's nose for 36 years so for her...it's a drag. Despite the blip at the park we had a really great weekend, we were even able to enjoy the rest of our time at the park after Safi had to do a "chill out" in the car.

Crazy, exciting, sometimes unsettling, never boring week! Hoping for a great week to come! Make sure to check back in to see how Safi's second week of school is and to see how the teacher meeting goes!

Peace
Nixi

Just a quick video of me showing off...see, for the first time I asked dad to push me high and didn't freak out when he did!!! I'm a daredevil!

With each ending there is a new beginning....

Exciting but kinda sad week. We graduated from summer school, which was super fun...but that also means its over, super bummer. We had a graduation ceremony where we got certificates, stickers, and sunglasses and after our group picture we had cupcakes and played at the water fountains. It was a really great time...but I was kind of sad because mom and Heather reminded me here and there that it was our last day. We had such a great summer hanging out with our friends. As you can see in the picture, I even got a hug from my friend Kameron's sister, Jewel. I may not be entirely comfortable with the unexpected hugging thing, note the tension in my neck and body, but I sure liked making a new friend! I'm so glad we got to do it and I hope we get to do it again next summer. So, closing that chapter opens another....regular school.

If you remember, this year I go an extra day and I have a new teacher. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I have a tendency to be pretty contextual so its going to be an adjustment for sure. For example, whenever I play with the toy school bus I say that we're going to school and Teacher Jenn...because Teacher Jenn IS school. I also refer to anyone wearing a necklace as a teacher because Teacher Jenn always wore really neat necklaces. She's the only woman I saw on a consistent basis that wore necklaces so it MUST be a teacher thing! Mom made me a social story and this week we went by my school and she took some pictures. She'll put them in a slide show for me to watch after we read the social story tomorrow(Monday, also my first day of school). Mom's waiting until tomorrow morning to talk to me about it because I have a tendency to get really anxious if I have too long to think about a big change. Once I see pictures and a social story I want to go right then and there...the longer I have to wait the more stressed I get and the worse I end up doing. So, we'll wait until a couple of hours before to start prepping. I'll be sad when I get there and there's no teacher Jenn...but I guess seeing my friends will be cool. Heather, our BIA, is going to come with us to help if needed. Pretty sure Nixi is gonna want to stay for class, so she might have a hard time leaving. We shall see!

Mom is gonna call Nixi's Early Intervention teacher to see if she can get her into their "Pre-school Academy". Its pretty much the same as the group her and mom went to last year, except this time the kids go by themselves. Nixi would go with Heather, 'cuz she's not ready to go alone yet. Also, Heather can maybe help provide the level of structure that Nixi needs to cope better than she did in the group last year. If you recall, her and mom stopped going because Nixi was having such a hard time coping after the group. If Heather is there providing more structure and support than the class provides on its own, Nixi may be just fine. It would be cool if she does get to go because she loved summer school so much and she'd feel really cool if she got to go to "school", too. Even cooler, I would get to go hang out at the park with mom while Heather and Nixi did their thing. Fingers crossed that it will work out! By the way, can you tell from that last picture how much we ALL love Heather?!

So, that's the major excitement in our house. Make sure you check back in next week to see how it all went!

xoxo
Safi

Summer school song time......


Summer school storytime....


Summer school graduation....

What an exciting week! We're getting used to sleeping in our beds...ok, I'm getting used to it, Safi loved her bed from moment one. I've had a few night with screaming and carrying on, but on the whole I've been somewhat sleeping through the night. I really like my bed because its small and I'm able to wedge my head and my legs in such a way that I have constant pressure on them. Its when I shift and this pressure is gone that I wake up. Much easier in this little bed to get in a good position and stay there. Mom's pretty pleased that's she's getting more rest, so its pretty cool.

Summer school was awesome. We read a cool book where we got to act out lots of animals and we teamed up with a friend to do cool stuff with balls. My favorite was sitting and bouncing on the ball, with hugging the ball a close second. Safi really like throwing it and bouncing it. We only have 2 more days of summer school left. What a bummer! Its been such a great summer.

Ok, now the most fun thing we did this week was going to our friend Gideon's birthday party. It was so awesome! They had a pool full of dried corn, a sand box, a swing set, pizza, cupcakes, and goody bags! I LOVED the corn...as you can see from the picture above, I had a blast with the birthday boy! Gideon's big brother, Sebastian, was a perfect host...passing out cupcakes and giving us a great "good bye" when we had to leave. I even got to play with their little sister, Penelope, in the corn pool! Just the most fun day ever. I was a little overwhelmed by the awesomeness and I lost my words a bit, so I screamed and grunted instead of asking for what I needed...but no major meltdowns! Safi did great, didn't seem too overwhelmed, even eating some pizza and finding familiar toys to help herself regulate when she started feel a like out of sorts. Our BIA, Heather, even got to go with us! It's just so neat to have good friends!

To cap off a great week, today we went to a park down the street that we haven't been to in at least a year! It's a sand playground...and you know how we feel about sand! I was having a hard time sharing so I got in a little trouble and Safi started to get a little anxious about motor imitating a boy there and we ended up wrapping things up a bit early. Overall, though, we had a great time and Safi and I are already asking mom to take us back tomorrow!

There's our week in a nutshell. This week should be interesting, with ending summer school and all. The week after this week Safi starts her new school schedule...3hr/4days a week and I start all of my crazy stuff again. Make sure to check back to see how we're transitioning!

Peace
Nixi