UPupupupup! DOWNdowndowndowndown!

GERBER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That has nothing to do with this post, I just think the picture is funny.

Little had his physical evaluation today by a physical therapist who I will refer to as PtH since her name starts with an H and I don't like to use people's real names. She was so nice and so positive! Andrew warmed right up to her. She asked more in depth questions on the areas he scored low on from the first screening and then did her hands on portion that Andrew was none too pleased with.

PtH pressed on his feet, twisted his ankles, pushed and pulled his arms and legs, set him on his tummy, put things he wanted out of his reach, etc. She said his lowest area of muscle tone seems to be across his shoulders and neck (which I was expecting) but that he does have hypotonia all over. She said the "floppiness" seems to be confined to his upper half - which is GREAT news for future walking. But speaking of walking, PtH said he may end up with shoe inserts that help correct ankle rolling like a brace would. Here is a picture I took of him yesterday that better shows what I mean about that than the pictures I posted last time:

She had asked me questions about his birth and his motor development timeline and from those answers she said she believes he was probably just born with low muscle - that it wasn't bc of anything we did or did not do for him, it wasn't bc he's lazy or anything like that - it seems to just be that he was not born with Herculean strength (I. AM. SHOCKED.)
He initializes movement on his own, even though he fails to perform whatever skill it is he is trying to do, so that's a good sign. it shows that he is motivated but just doesn't understand what he has to do to get from point A to point B. For example, if he is laying on his back and he wants to be sitting up, he just kind of flails around and cries because he doesn't know that to get there, he needs to roll over to his side then push himself up. <------ homework assignment #1 PtH said that since he has not been standing and bending and pushing and pulling, that the pathways for those brain-muscle connections just haven't been formed yet. So we are going to form them for him through repeated exercises and encouragement.

Then she began the harder tests.................and Little turned from believing he had made a "fun new friend" to believing he was being attacked by evil minions of hell. It was torture to watch that sweet little face just melt down and scream and cry and look at me not understanding why I wasn't rescuing him. I had my own tears streaming down my face at that point. I should have worn waterproof mascara.....I'll know for next time. PtH promised that it would get easier on him as he gets used to the new positions and starts taking on some more of his own weight but that anger was surprisingly helpful at this stage.

As she did her tests, she kept pointing out positives to what he was doing - as in, "He may not be able to get on all fours, but he's got his weight distributed evenly!". She was just so nice and so upbeat. She even told him he'd have to try a lot harder if he wanted to show her a fit she'd never seen before. PtH said she was excited to get to work with a baby with so much potential - I can see how sometimes she would want a baby who progresses quickly when you have so many that have so much farther to go. She really seems to think he will pick up skills at a pretty steady pace. So hopefully we're on track to have those 1st steps before his 2nd birthday! I've decided that I will make his walking path down the hallway towards the bathroom so that as soon as he heads off on his own the potty training can begin. HA!

The whole time she was checking off boxes and filling in bubbles and scribbling notes in her Andrew File. Tonight she said she will input everything into her computer program and she will get back a score that tells her what program is best suited to help my little nugget (she believes he will qualify for fine motor as well as gross motor). From there, she will arrange another meeting with me and the Services Coordinator where we will discuss what steps need to be taken next. She gave me 2 more homework assignments (clapping and bending), a shopping list (step stool, yoga ball, and Pediasure) and said she'd call me this weekend to arrange that meeting for next week.
*This is taking FOR.EVER. The referall to start all this was put in on Jan 23*

So that's where we are today. Oh, she also said I should get him enrolled in EFMP on post - so OHO ladies with experience in this, could you PM or e-mail me? I don't know anything about it yet but I will definitely be googling it tomorrow.

So now on to a section I'd like to call PHOTOS TO SHOW HIS FUTURE GIRLFRIENDS (yes Maddie and Bella, that means you):