One Down Three To Go

Jason and I had Jackson's first appointment out of four for his autism screening. I think that it went very well. I felt really prepared and did my part to help the process along. I had evaluations printed from his speech teacher and preschool teacher, the parent packet was filled out and all Jackson's medical documents were faxed over in time. Yay!

Jason and I didn't really know how this meeting was going to go or what to expect but mainly it was just a chance for us to go through the parent packet and discuss any concerns we had, have any questions answered and give a little more detail into Jackson. I asked if we go through this process and it turns out he does not have autism if they are able to guide us in the right direction or give a diagnosis if something else is there and they said that they would be able to do that which was a relief for me. I don't know if anyone knows but we were on a waiting list for 3 month before even being able to schedule our appointments then it was about 3 weeks before we could even go in for our first appointment. Needless to say it has been a long process already so I didn't want to get to the end of it and be left with no clue if something else is wrong with my child or what I should do next.

Now that the first appointment is done Jackson will be going for the next two appointments. His first is on Jan. 29th and that is the speech and language development. It sounds like it is very similar to his speech sessions with Emily which is play based so I was relieved to hear that. They will also be having a snack and do a few other things during the evaluation. I was nervous that since he still has some separation anxiety from me that it wouldn't go well, but I get to be in the room so I can observe and let her know if this is typical behavior for him and also to help with some of the language difficulties. Also, I was worried because the session is an hour and a half and I don't know how well he will last during that in one small room.

This process has been very interesting for me since I've read about it and semi-studied it during my teaching courses, but there is nothing like going through it with your own child. Fortunately for us Jackson continues to grow and be happy through all of this and isn't getting very frustrated. He is continuing to make progress with his speech and surprises us all the time. (Last night he wanted to read me his bedtime stories and he did very well with Little Blue Truck and part of Max the Minnow). I get excited as he continues to try new words and continues to practice stringing together two word and some three word sentences because he has the cutest little voice and it's so fun to hear. He is also starting to make more of an effort with the kids at school to make and maintain his friendships. Ellis and Arya are always going to be his go to buddies and it takes us extra time to leave now due to hugs and fist bumps. We will continue to keep everyone updated as things progress.