Friday, December 15, 2017

Scenic route

My favorite analogy to describe what it's like being a parent of a special child like Bun Bun is that we get to our destinations by the scenic route.  Everything is accomplished at a slower pace.  The key, though, is that everything is accomplished.

Bun Bun  has very recently finally mastered drinking from an open cup.  We were able to transition from bottle to drinking from a straw when she was a little over a year old.  But, it has taken much longer for the open cup.  For any typical kid, this is a natural transition that happens very quickly and pretty early.  For Bun Bun, she had to learn not to tilt the cup all at once and to seal her bottom lip to the cup.  She is now working on tilting her head back as she sips.

Learning almost everything is at a much slower pace.  But, celebrating each accomplishment is so much sweeter.

Her speech is slowing picking up some pace recently.  This fall, we are celebrating her starting to speak sentences, like "I want chips." or "I eat."  Her babbles sound a lot more meaningful.  When she flips through books, she "reads" the words as her little finger runs through each line.  She can recognize and read about 25 high frequency words.  That's actually enough for her to read very simple books:  "This is my dad.  My dad is running.", "I see a table.", and "I like to swim". 

I like the scenic route, have always preferred them over the expressways.  Along the way, we can make frequent stops, take in the local scenery, and soak in some fun.  She still calls me "Wom" and says "Dook" (instead of Book).  These are little things I will always cherish.

"Oh!  I am just so cute!"  Bun Bun admiring her school pictures...

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