Josephine, sadly, was not called to be a model in the Toys R Us Differently-Abled Catalog…
BUT she IS in the running for the COVER of PARENTS Magazine contest.
Please click below to vote!
http://photos.parents.com/category/vote/photo/316744
And vote EVERY DAY!
Let’s get our Pigtail Princess on that cover!
Happy Belated Memorial Day!
And another milestone for Josephine…
As mentioned in the last post, Josephine developed a love for the “Baby Shark” song from Uncle Brian Hoover.
We have been asking her, by using ASL (American Sign Language), if she wants to hear some music. This weekend, not only did we get a response from her – SHE SIGNED MUSIC – Josephine was able to communicate what song she wanted to hear and do! This happened, not once, not twice, but at least 4 TIMES! And with both Sheldon AND ME!
We are trying to do this many times a day to instill this new concept of communication in her life.
Here’s to this milestone not being a one-hit wonder (and even if it is, no biggie…we are on Josephine time, after all).
Major kudos to our wonderful friend, Brian Hoover, for introducing Josephine to the “Baby Shark” song!
This song was sung to me within a few moments of knowing Brian and I always thought it was cute and entertaining. Then again, it doesn’t take much! Ha!
When Little Sheldon came into the picture, Uncle Brian started singing it to Sheldon. So, it seemed natural to sing it to Josephine as well, especially since she has such a love for music and singing…
Josephine and Baby Shark (CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO)
Now Josephine is hooked! And we just giggle watching her.
I heard it! I swear! In my heart, I know what I heard and felt…Mama.
Only once and very brief, but it was there. And that’s all I need.
The sharing milestone, while great for Josephine, does NOT do wonders for my figure! However, I will take one for the team.
Seriously, though…Josephine has discovered the idea of sharing snacks with Mama, mostly, and an occasional Daddy. Goldfish crackers are a new favorite, as are Cheerios (the ole’ standby) and cookies of any kind. She gets a real kick out of turning toward me and putting the food in my mouth, belly laughs and all.
Another milestone achieved. Now to get her to eat Weight Watchers snacks instead…well, maybe not quite yet.
Last weight check was 3 weeks ago when I took Josephine in for an ear infection. She was 16 lbs, 14 oz, which was a loss of 1.5 ounces from her weight check at the beginning of April. But Josephine was sick and had a pretty bad infection, so I will just toss it to that.
Happy to report Josephine is back on track and is now 17 POUNDS even!
Every ounce is a celebration.
As an aside: I must take this time to say I just found out about a big loss at our pediatrician’s office. Becky Larsen, a fabulous medical assistant, passed on to Heaven on April 24, 2010, as a result of a blood clot to the heart. She was 36.
I feel the need to mention her on this blog because she was a true fan and supporter of Josephine in so many ways. She brought a smile to my daughter’s face, to mine and to every other patient and staff member that had a chance to know her. I know she will be cheering on “Josephine-A-Bean” from up above.
Rest in Peace, Lovely Rebecca. You will be missed more than you know.
We have a new Pediatric Ophthalmologist! Her name is Dr. Anita Breckenridge and I love her (www.kideyedoc.com)! We have seen her in the past for Little Sheldon’s eyes and were very happy at the time. However, Dr. B was no longer taking Oxford Insurance (and I can’t say I blame her), so we were forced to go elsewhere.
As you have read from my previous post, I was not happy with the level of service with Dr. Wagner’s staff.
The same day I received poor service from one doctor, I received the opposite from Dr. B’s staff! Not only did the receptionist say they DO give reminder calls, she booked Josephine for an appointment within 3 days.
Josephine and Dr. B met this morning and are now buddies!
The diagnosis is the same: Mild exotropia in the left eye. The treatment is to patch the eye for 2 hours daily for the next 3 months and Dr. B will see us again in August. Excellent optic nerve and no concerns for glasses at this point.
At least the patches are adhesive and look pretty cool, I must say.
And I know I will get a reminder call in August – from a doctor that takes time for her patients and goes out of her way to keep them.
Check out her practice at Pediatric Eye Associates, LLC., http://www.kideyedoc.com.
Wheels on the Bus by Josephine (CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO)
What can I say? This video says it all for me…
While talking with Carrie (the Speech Pathologist), Josephine started to make the motion for The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round. This is NEW. Between the therapists and Stepping Stones, we have been singing the song to her, but Josephine has never done any of the movements, until this morning.
We think she heard Carrie and I talking about objects and songs that motivate her and Carrie mentioned the song title. That’s it. Then, about 30 minutes later, she makes the motion.
Just when I start to wonder when she will move to the next level, Josephine pulls another gift out for me to gush about!
Let’s go back to mid-October 2009…whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…Are you with me? Good.
After many accolades about Dr. Caputo and Dr. Wagner (the Pediatric Ophthalmologist Gods of Essex County, apparently), Josephine was scheduled for an initial visit.
Dr. Wagner was wonderful, no doubt. But there wasn’t much to go on. Just initial observations that were to be followed up with in 6 months. Josephine had exotropia in both eyes (when the eye wanders outward, like a lazy eye). But because of her hypotonia, Dr. Wagner wanted to wait 6 months, after Josephine improved her muscle tone through natural development and EI therapy.
Now…let’s travel to early April 2010…whoosh, whoosh. Wait, I think we left someone behind…nope, they’re here…
Without going into detail, let’s say Mommy accidentally damaged her phone (hey, the coffee got in the way!), thus rendering the calendar and all contact information unavailable. I knew Josephine had a follow up with Dr. Wagner sometime in April, just not a clear date.
Now…a short trip to Tuesday, April 27…whoosh.
I called Dr. Wagner’s office at 8:30 AM to confirm if Josephine had an appointment THAT day and if so, the time. I left a message asking these questions, along with my cell phone number.
No return call.
It’s now 10:00 AM and no call from the office. I make another call.
“Yes, her appointment was at 9:30”, says the receptionist.
“Oh, sorry. I called at 8:30 this morning and left a message, but nobody called me back. Can I reschedule for next week?”
Slight laugh of irritation from the receptionist. “Uh, no. The next appointment is June 15 at 12:00 PM. Would you like that?”
“Why didn’t anyone call me back?”
“We have too many patients to call and remind them. Would you like to schedule that time?”
Really? No, really?
So, I took the appointment, with obvious hesitation for the lack of consideration from this lovely receptionist.
Needless to say, I am now searching for a different doctor. A doctor that actually cares about the patients and not about the numbers.
Here I am! (CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO)
Watch and adore! I know I do.