My Little Drummer Boy: Update

A quick update for y'all...

Today was Ty's appointment with the developmental pediatrician and since Sean is home sick from work (sinus infection so he can "rest," while helping with the kids since he's not contagious. Ha!) so we both got to go and sit in the room while the testing was going on.

We felt good about whatever she was going to find because since, (like all kids,) he has good and bad days we weren't sure but that he'd totally freeze during the test and then we'd feel like it wasn't a fair evaluation. Our prayers were answered by him acting totally normal. In fact, he answered questions more/better than we thought he would coming from a stranger. We may or may not have told him we were going to see a teacher instead of a doctor. Scary word-doctor. Safe, fun word-teacher.

Anyway, long family-only-cares-about-the-details story later, she said he isn't on the Autism scale at all and will not progress in that direction since he's already 3. His cognitive testing showed he was above average (woohoo) but his verbal skills were level with a 2 1/2 year old. No surprise at all, well maybe about the cognitive part but we knew he was behind on speech. She said over time he will catch up and she recommended keeping him in the PPCD program, (that he started yesterday and seems to love,) and during the Summer to put him in private speech therapy so that he doesn't lose any ground during the time away from school. That's it, she said. Keep it up and call her if we need her again. Like I said to the perinatologist that I saw with Joy, "You've been a true pleasure to work with but I hope I never see you again."

Grin. No, really, I did. She smiled back as if to say, "That's not the first time I've ever heard that!"

We are processing everything she said and trying to let it sink in but we know this: God made Ty the way that He did on purpose and we now know it is our job to work even harder at figuring him out. Since there is not a diagnosis that he falls under and we are to treat him behaviorally like his siblings, we've got some work cut out for us. Well, us and all the other parents of three year-olds that we know :)

We are breathing a sigh of relief. We are grateful to have gotten in quicker than we should have to see this doctor that everyone recommended to us. And we are smitten with our boy.