I'm Moving

I'm moving my blog to the new Blogger beta, which required me to create a new blog address (www.amntp.blogspot.com). Under the new blogger, I can select who can view my blog, so if you are a regular visitor to my blog and want to see the new one, let me know and I will add you. So far, I've added Ali, my sibs, Marina, and Don. I believe you will be getting an email with the new url. I'm not sure how the login process goes, though. Can somebody let me know?

I like being able to choose who can view my blog. Since I haven't disguised the names of family members, this will allow me some privacy/anonymity. An easy way to remember the url is to think of the first initial of all the family members and then our common last initial.

See you all in my New Universe!

The Daily School Report

Man, I'm sleepy this morning. I spent a fair number of hours yesterday getting the house in order and I feel like I barely made a dent. But any progress is progress, so I shall keep chugging along.

I picked up Nicholas at school yesterday, and as I do every day, I arrived a few minutes early so I could peep at him through the window. He saw me, pointed to me, and told his teacher, "I see my Mom." Busted! :) The last part of the school day is story time and it always amuses me to see all the boys sitting together in one place and all the girls together in another place.

Stephanie and Elizabeth said that Nicholas slept like crazy during nap. I knew he would be tired because he got up at 4:50a, ran to my room and in a semi-panic voice said, "Mom?!" I waved to him from my bed and he crawled in with me for the rest of my morning, which unfortunately for me, started less than an hour later. I secretly loved him joining me in bed. Tonight will be slumber party Friday and I can't wait.

At school yesterday a local police officer came to the classroom, presumably to talk about safety. The kids got to play in the squad car for a little bit. How cool is that?!?! Nicholas and the other kids wore junior patrol badge stickers on their shirts the rest of the day. Need I mention again how awesome this school is?

For some reason, when I picked up Nicholas at school, a handful of kids migrated toward me and made a small semi-circle in front of me. We had a lot of conversation, and at one point, Nicholas came up to me and put both his arms around my neck as if to take possession of his Mama. I think he was either a teeny bit jealous that I was paying attention to his classmates or maybe a teeny bit proud that I was his Mama and not theirs. I'm not certain. Either way, I gobbled it up.

Asking Nicholas about his school day is like pulling teeth. He never gives up any detail at all. I have to practically beg him to tell me anything and he always says "I don't know" or "I don't remember." I try to ask specific questions so that it's easier for him to answer. The other day I asked him, "What number did you study today?" and he replied "siete"!! Yup, he learned that in Spanish class.

Pedar is going to pick Nicky up today so I will be able to go straight home and tackle more house chores while Thomas naps. Since school ends so late, Ali will be able to pick Nicky up on his way home from work without having to burden P&G with too many hours of babysitting.

CW has a hot lunch program where you can order the meal online at least one full day before. I just finished ordering Nicky's lunches for the rest of October. Ali and I figure that we could use this hot lunch program to get Nicholas to expand his food palate. He will have some peer pressure to eat what is given to him. Plus, he will get bored of his turkey and cheese sandwich if he has to eat it every day. I hope this doesn't backfire on us and he throws up at school. This week I ordered lunch for him one day: cheese pizza. No problem there. For next week I ordered cheese pizza one day and chicken nuggets the next. Nicky already eats chicken nuggets, but he is very particular about what kind they are (he likes the dinosaur ones from Costco). And for the following week, I ordered the cheese pizza, chicken nuggets, and a grilled cheese sandwich. I think he will like it if he can manage to get through the first bite. The meals cost $4 for regular size, $5 for large. This is pretty much the same as what I pay for lunch at my work cafeteria! I ordered large meals for Nicky. I don't want my boy to be hungry, even though according to Dr. S, he has "reserves."

When we get home from school, I pour Nicholas a cup of cold milk and give him a snack with it. I feel like such the American mom giving milk and cookies to her child. The goal for me is to get that extra milk in during the day. The goal for Nicky is to see how many cookies he can squeeze out of me. Yesterday he drank his entire milk before starting his snack to "get it out of the way," I'm guessing.

Last night I caught up on the entries in the Milestones binder. The tutors take notes at the end of each session about what activities they did and how Thomas "performed." Most of it was positive, so that made me feel pretty good. It's only been 3 weeks. I hope they start to change some of the activities soon and push him to the next level. He picks up on new stuff quickly, so I hope they don't stay on one activity for too long. And like I said before, I got some ideas from May and will try to get that started on my own soon. Just a few minutes a day every day. I don't want to bombard Thomas with studying. He needs some time to just play, too.

Learning from Another's Experience

On my way to the bathroom this morning, I bumped into May, a coworker of mine who had quit a few years ago and just started working here again. I was out on maternity leave with Nicholas when she had quit and she was gone when I had returned to the office. The reason she left was because her son, Aaron, had just been diagnosed with autism and she needed to stay home to do his ABA therapy, 4 hours a day -- 2 in the morning, 2 in the afternoon. We chatted for a long time in the hallway and I was very interested in hearing how her son's progress has been. He's 5 now and can read but doesn't have much comprehension of what he's reading. He can also write and talk and goes to school in special ed class. I was very happy to hear that he can talk, read, and write, but he has other areas that are still lacking, and although I am optimistic after hearing her story, I still have a small knot in my belly. I know it's just one person's story and all children are different, but I am soooo hoping and praying that Thomas has greater success. Luckily, he has started his ABA therapy much earlier than Aaron. Nine months earlier.

May said once Thomas turns three, he will be turned over to the school district, which has been a frustrating experience for her. They work like a typical government agency, taking months to respond, and they are rigid and unaccommodating. She said that some people hire attorneys and other advocates to push through a curriculum that is age-appropriate because the schools have a tendency to "dumb it down." I am very thankful to learn of these things from May's experiences so I can prepare myself mentally and come up with a strategy before we get to that point.

May told me about all the things that she does with Aaron and it made me realize that I need to do more with Thomas. I told her that he is not interested in "studying" with me and she said Aaron was the same way with her but each day got better and now he enjoys playing with her. I think I need to step it up with Thomas, not pressure him too much, but do some more structured playing. I'll try to involve Nicholas so he won't feel left out or neglected, but I need to figure out how to make it so he doesn't monopolize all the activities.

I have a lot of work ahead of me and I know I can do it. I just don't have a clear head these days because the house is a mess and I have papers and bills scattered everywhere. I will need to dedicate a couple of days to getting all this nonsense in order so that I can concentrate fully on what is most important.

On a good note, Nicholas's school situation is settled and is going so well, so that gigantic headache is out of the way. Not once has Nicholas talked about his old school. Yesterday when Ali dropped Nicholas off, he was being shy and clingy. Stephanie picked up on this right away and engaged him in a plate of... SHAVING CREAM!! How fun is that?!?!? Nicholas poked away at the cream and Ali slipped away easily. Gawd, I love this school!!

Okay, so now I'm totally psyched to go home, attack the mountain of paperwork and messy house, and get my life in total and complete order. Then Thomas and I (and Nicky) can have school in the evenings and maybe I can squeeze in some exercise for myself, too. Go Minnie go!

First White Lie

I worked a full 9 hour day today. It wasn't so bad, but I am quite spoiled and didn't enjoy sitting through traffic, albeit not quite rush-hour traffic. Two things I especially missed today: (1) not being able to pick up Nicky at school and (2) only getting to see Thomas for less than 2 hours (he went to P&G's house this afternoon).

Ali pinged me at work this morning and said that he was having a frustrating time with Nicholas. While Ali was showering, Nicky woke up and asked where Mama was. When Ali told him that I was at work, he went into meltdown mode (short on sleep, I'm guessing) and it just went downhill from there. When I got home from work this evening, I asked Nicholas if he cried this morning with Daddy and he totally fibbed. I can't believe he is already telling untruths. I know it was not just a lapse in memory because I could totally see it in his face. He had such an odd facial expression. Anyway, it's no big deal, he was probably just embarrassed.

I dropped off Kina's old clothes at Cori's house today. She had to work tonight so Nicholas and I hung out with Chris and the girls for about an hour. It's rare for me to spend so much time with Chris but it was fun, and naturally, Nicholas didn't want to go home. Abby said that Nicholas could sleep over in her ladybug sleeping bag. Cute.

Tonight is the season opener of Lost. I had mistakenly thought last week was the big day and was terribly disappointed to find out it was just some stupid recap episode.

Anyway, that's all. Quite uneventful day.

Learning All Around

This morning I laid out Nicky's school clothes for Ali to dress him in. I first saw Nicky in his new jeans and shirt (hand-me-down from Rod) when I went to pick him up. I arrived a few minutes early and peeped through the window... and what a gorgeous sight my boy was!! He was so cute and then on top of that, he and the other children were acting out parts of a story that Stephanie was reading -- waving arms and hands, sticking out their tongues, just being silly little kids. He was so participatory and having such a good time.

At school the kids learned about mail carriers, made houses out of envelopes (if you flip up the flap, it looks like a house), delivered the mail (dropped shapes into paper bags stapled to the wall by first matching the shape to the one on the paper bag), discussed the number three, and played kickball. I really like that they throw in some (semi-) organized physical activity, and Nicholas loved it. He wanted to practice at home, so we kicked the ball back and forth like a soccer ball for 45 minutes or so. He's pretty good and kicks righty.

It's funny but Ali and I can totally tell what kinds of things Nicky is picking up at school based on what he talks about at home. For instance, today Nicky kept talking about who he was older than. He said he was older than Thomas, older than Mama, older than Daddy. :) Nicholas has started to get pretty aggressive and disobedient at home and we are wondering if that comes with being 3 1/2 or if he is also picking this up from school. I told Ali that as long as he has this same aggressive personality at school, I'm okay with it at home. But if he's being a totally pussy at school and then taking it out on us at home, then I don't like it. I certainly don't want Nicholas to be a bully at school (how could he be? He's such a softie) but I don't want him to be a punching bag either.

On my way home from work, I stopped by the Montessori school to pick up some of Nicky's belongings. It was awkward, but I held my head high and gloated with the knowledge that Nicholas is so much better off now.

I asked Nicholas who he liked better, Stephanie or Leslie -- phrased this way purposely because he has a tendency to just repeat the latter of his choices -- and he replied Stephanie. Stephanie or Amy? Stephanie. Stephanie or Elizabeth? Stephanie. And Elizabeth or Leslie? Stephanie!! Music to my ears.

Nap was Nicky's favorite subject again today. He said he actually slept.

Today was Tanya's last day with Thomas. :( She said that he is a total expert at the shape sorter and does it so easily that he looks bored. And he is doing well with his puzzles and peg board. And they practiced brushing teeth (he didn't like that). Thomas is doing well overall and doesn't hardly cry at all. I think he enjoys his school, too, although he still refuses to play with any of his school toys with me. Mama is for nonsense play, not studying.

Jamie, Thomas's case manager from the RCEB, called me yesterday to set up a time for her to do her 1 month evaluation of Thomas and also to discuss/setup Thomas's speech therapy. She has a therapist in mind who has extensive experience working with very young children. Sounds good to me. I simply cannot wait to hear that boy start talking.

More Gushing

Ali just called me at work and told me that Day 2 at CW is off to a good start. This was Ali's first time visiting the school and he loved it. He said that it looked like an actual classroom. And he loved Stephanie and thought she was totally in tune with the needs of preschool-age children. I also think he liked that she is totally hot, too. Haha. :)

And Nicholas sat down right away and started cutting away with his scissors, which I know he LOVES to do because it's totally new and feels kinda naughty since he's not allowed to play with scissors at home. I need to buy him some kid-safe scissors for home. And what did he cut? Play-Doh. HAHAHA.

Ali said bye to Nicholas and he said, "Bye, Daddy!" and continued cutting next to his classmates. No crying. Oh and they were being supervised by adults -- wow, what a novel concept!! (sarcastic).

My friend Grace's brother David is an MD who just moved to the area. I was talking to him at Natalee's birthday party a few weeks ago and he was telling me that we need to address Nicholas's anxieties now because his current behavior will continue to compound and start to really manifest when he is about 5. When he told me that, my heart sank and I got a really sick feeling in my stomach. Now that Nicholas has switched schools, I think this will help to get him on the "right track" emotionally. He is so fragile and needs some nurturing and stability.

I need to call Rojan's mom and thank her for suggesting this school.

"Details" of the First Day

I think CW is going to work out for Nicholas. When I picked him up, Miss Stephanie and Miss Elizabeth said that he did great and only cried once, very briefly, before nap. I think Nicholas was a little confused about the nap situation and didn't quite know what was going on even though we had talked about it a lot over the weekend. The rest of the day went smoothly, though. Yippee! When I picked him up, he was sitting on the rug playing next to the other kids. It was such a lovely sight for me to see. At Montessori, he was often playing off to the side all alone.

I asked Nicholas about his day. Of course, he never gives me any details, but I did manage to find out that he made friends with Rohan S. (but not Rohan B. or Julian). Just Rohan S. I think Nicholas thinks he is only allowed to have one friend at a time. I told him it's okay to have lots of friends, but he said no, only Rohan S. The two new buddies rode bikes on the playground during recess -- another first for Nicky. Yes, yes, we are terrible for not getting Nicholas a bike. Actually, he has one. He has had one since his 2nd birthday but it is still sitting in the box in the garage unassembled. P&G got it for him and it kinda looks like a low-rider motorcycle with a long banana seat. Anyway, I think the bikes were fun for Nicky.

When I asked Nicholas what his favorite part of the day was, his answer cracked me up! He said he liked the nap the best and that he "sleeped at school." Too funny. I wonder if he held his teddy bear.

Finally after weeks of sitting by the door, I opened up the Gymboree clothes I ordered. The weather got cold all of a sudden and shorts are no longer appropriate attire in the mornings. I had Nicky try on his size 6 Husky and they were humongous on him. The waist is adjustable but I couldn't adjust it small enough. Thanks goodness for Walmart. I picked up 2 pairs of size 5T jeans -- fit perfectly, even the length-- for $4.50 apiece, some thin black cotton pants, and a few pairs of sweatpants for the weekends. Then we headed out to the mall for some pretzels and more shopping.

I went to the Gymboree store and the sales lady told me that the Husky sizes are the same length as the regular size but one size up in the waist, so basically a size 6H is the same length as size 6 but with the waist of size 7. I had Nicholas try on a pair of size 6 regular and the waist was too tight. But the 6H was humongous. I went home and looked at the size chart online and the saleslady didn't have a clue. I ordered a bunch of size 5H which I think will fit perfectly, requiring no hemming, and I will return all the 6H to the store today. I just love shopping online. And my Nicky will look so cute going to school in his new cuffed corduroys.

Successful School Dropoff

I am UNBELIEVABLY happy with our decision to enroll Nicky in CW. I dropped Nicholas off ten minutes early so I could meet Miss Stephanie and Miss Elizabeth (asst teacher). Physical appearance aside, these two women were exactly what I expect in a preschool teacher. They were sooooooooooo nice and soft-spoken and gentle and attentive. The differences between Stephanie and Leslie are endless.

As expected, Nicholas was very shy at first and clung to me like Saran wrap. We walked around the room and Stephanie showed everything to Nicholas. He didn't speak a single word until we got to the science station. He liked the things there and said, "Oooh, Mama, look at THIS! And THIS! And THIS!!" :)

Other kids started rolling in by then and the teachers engaged Nicholas and the other students in cutting out jack-o-lanterns drawn on orange construction paper. This was Nicky's first time using scissors and he liked it a lot. In fact, he liked it so much that he didn't even look up at me when I said that I was leaving. When I got to the door, he looked up once and I blew several kisses to him. I left and he didn't cry. I think he will be so much happier at CW. My heart feels so light right now. I can't wait to pick him up and hear all about his day.

One of the things that I like about CW is that the children are dropped off in the classroom. At Montessori, dropoff was on the playground. For someone like Nicholas who doesn't have many close chums, it is much better to have a smaller place to get settled and situated.

Thomas is with Samia right now and I have her on the baby monitor. I didn't have time to setup the webcam. From what I can hear, she is doing fine. I think she probably has the personality where she does better when she's not in front of others. I can sympathize with that since I'm like that, too. Still, if given the choice, I'd prefer to have Tanya here, but I will call Blanca later and give her some positive feedback on Samia.

Thomas has changed a lot this last week. Believe it or not, he is even more affectionate and huggy than ever, if that's even possible. He has been babbling a lot more with a nice variety of consonant sounds. And he seems more participatory in play with Nicky, which is really nice for both boys.

Anyway, that's my report for a Monday morning. I will call CW in a little bit and see how my boy is doing.

Lots o' Birthday Presents

I've got a climber. Actually, I should say that I've got another climber. Thomas has been climbing the furniture like crazy these days. Yesterday, I was in the kitchen and turned around to see Thomas standing on the kitchen table admiring the bouquet of flowers I bought for his birthday and doing a little stomping dance for them. Luckily, the glass table top can still support his weight.

One morning last week, I tuned the TV to the Disney Channel and started getting ready for work as I always do. I was brushing my teeth in the bathroom and decided to check on Thomas. He was sitting on top of my laptop on top of the end table. I used to be able to hop in the shower quickly while he watched TV but no more. I can't risk him falling off that table. However, when Nicholas is around, I can since Nicky gives me the play-by-play report on his brother's activities.

And there are days when I take Thomas off the coffee and he just climbs back up and we end up doing this dance fifty times in a row before I finally give up.

This evening Jennie came over with bags full of birthday presents for both boys. She went to a Lakeshore Learning Center near her house and bought the store out. Wow, thanks, Jen!!! Totally unnecessary, but really cool stuff. She got a nice variety of toys that will be great for Thomas's therapy. And Nicholas loves them all, too. Then Jen treated the boys and me to dinner at Fresh Choice. I am so full right now I want to puke. Nicky ate his usual cheese pizza and soft serve ice cream while Thomas munched on a corn muffin and cheese pizza sliced lengthwise to look like breadsticks, which he loves. What a fun evening for me and the boys.

Nicholas is lying in bed next to me wide awake after taking nearly a 3 hour nap this afternoon. And I even had to force him up then. He tried to convince me to send him to the other school tomorrow by saying, "When I wake up, I'm gonna go to my old school." Ali wants to come along to the new school tomorrow, too, and then head straight to work but I asked him if he wouldn't mind staying at home with Thomas. I think the sight of Mama, Daddy, and Thomas leaving all together would be too devastating for Nicholas. He's already so fragile right now. I hope he sleeps well tonight so he'll be rested tomorrow.

On the Eve of Another First Day of School

Okay, I couldn't resist. I bought something for Thomas for his birthday. Every time we picked Nicholas up at school, Thomas would migrate toward a particular set of objects in the classroom: globes. I saw a globe at Costco yesterday and bought it. It is 12" in diameter and is very similar to the one that Jim had growing up. Both my boys enjoy spinning it around and I love to look at all the places I've never seen, heard of, or been to.

All my in-laws came over for a birthday celebration last night and it was fun. We ate steaks and chicken, potatoes au gratin, grapes, cupcakes, and ice cream. After everyone left, the boys went straight to bed and passed out quickly. Thomas practically fell asleep on the floor while I was getting his brother dressed for bed.

Today Ali finished up Nicky's room with some touch-ups. The red paint required 5 coats!! And the smell? Well, after just one day, it smells less than our bedroom painted last week. People, don't buy Olympic paint from Lowe's -- it stinks forever! Nicky loves his red wall and so do I. It is so bright and cheery.

Nicky did his gymnastics this morning and I thought for sure he wouldn't cry, but he did, just for a little bit. Then he was great the rest of the time and did so well in the class. He isn't as limber as most of the other children, but then again, he is much bigger than they are, too. He is probably a good 4-5 inches taller than his friend Adam, who is only 1 month younger.

Despite going to bed past 10p last night, both boys were up by 6a. Nicholas would have slept longer except we were having a slumber party and when one boy rises, we all do. Thomas napped early and Nicky is sleeping now, snoring away next to me. I just finished up a couple of hours of work. I'm spoiled; it's so hard to work on the weekends now.

I've been trying to prepare Nicholas mentally for his first day at the new school tomorrow. I can tell he is terrified, poor thing. I told him that he is going to a new school because Mama didn't like Miss Leslie and he said, "but I like Leslie." Oh dear. I hope Miss Stephanie is as nice as Mrs. Hand made her out to be. I have yet to wash his nap bedding, but I did order his hot lunch online for tomorrow: cheese pizza. The other 4 days I will pack his lunch. Every Monday will be pizza day for him at school.

When we went to Babies R Us to buy the crib sheets and pillow, I told Nicholas he could pick out a new stuffed animal, his naptime lovey. He said he didn't want one, but I thought maybe it would be good to have one just in case the other kids had them and then he wouldn't feel silly without one. Every one that he picked out was pink. I told him that maybe we should choose something other than pink and he said, "But I like pink." I told him that pink is fine for home but we should go for something more neutral for school. He choose a brown bear with a blue bow. Perfect, except for the fact that he really doesn't like it.

I've gone over the school routine a few times now and I know Nicky understands it because he frowns as I talk to him and then shakes his head no at the end. I think I am just as nervous about it as he. I hope school eventually becomes fun for him. And I hope he can find a way to come out of his shell and take to school some of the silliness that he has reserved only for home. I think he is so fun and funny.

Balance in the Universe

Yes, there is balance in the universe. Soon after I celebrated Nicky's acceptance into CW, I find out that Samia will be Thomas's main therapist, coming 3x a week (Isabel, the other 2 days). Up until now, she has never come solo, always assisted by a more experienced and seasoned therapist. She is the classic case of academia versus experience. I have no doubt that she has completed all her studies in occupational therapy, but her hands-on experience and demeanor are not up to par. First of all, she wears sooooooooooooo much perfume, perhaps a bottle a day, which to me is such an obvious no-no when working with kids with ASD (autistic spectrum disorder) since many of these children are extremely sensitive to smells (luckily, not my Thomas). Second, she is too reserved, too conservative, too quiet, and too monotone. The other therapists are so loud, animated, and exaggerated in their expressions (cheering-YAY!; rewarding-GOOD JOB!; etc.), silly and wild with their gestures and movements (dancing, etc). I'm sure Samia would be very effective working with adults, but she just doesn't seem to have the right personality for children, especially very young children like my little guy. I shared my concerns with Blanca and she welcomed the feedback. She said that she and Melinda would work with Samia on changing, but I added that you simply cannot change somebody's personality.

Ali is also quite displeased with this situation. And I told Mom, too, and her reaction can be summed up as "Ewwwww!" I told Ali that we should give her a chance for a couple of weeks and see how it goes. I will definitely be putting in the webcam AND the baby monitor in the room now. I'd love to stay and participate, but I do have work to do and I really don't want to mess up my deal with Robin.

I called the Montessori administrative office and withdrew Nicholas from the school. They asked if I could provide a reason for withdrawal in writing and said that the teachers would never see it. I said no but that I would be happy to share my reasons verbally. I gave some very specific examples as well as some general comments, nearly all complaints about the staff, not the school. After I was done, the administrator thanked me for sharing my reasons and said that she would let the teachers know. Huh? I guess they have to give feedback to the teachers but what happened to "the teachers would never see it"? Oh well, sometimes the truth hurts and I did not lie or exaggerate at all. And if the shoe fits...

Ali opened up the amazon box that had been sitting by the door since it's arrival. When I got home from work on Friday, I flipped through one of the books I ordered, Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew, wondering when I would have time to read it. Well, I know now when. I read the whole book, cover to cover, yesterday. I couldn't stop reading it, it was that good. So upbeat and positive. I loved it. As I read the book, I just couldn't stop thinking how lucky we are to have started Thomas's therapy early. Then hopefully, he won't develop some of the more classic, common traits of the typical autistic child, by nipping them in the bud before they even manifest, not that they ever would necessarily since he seems to be on the mild side of the spectrum. We will never know, but who cares; I would rather play is "safe."

Yesterday was Thomas's birthday. My sweet little perfect angel baby is two. And it was also Ali and my 5th wedding anniversary (the LA ceremony). We didn't celebrate either occasion. P&G, P&B and the kids will come over for dinner tonight and that will be fun. And Jen will stop by on Sunday after naps. In the morning, I told Nicholas "Did you know that today is Thomas's birthday?" and Nicholas responded, "Again?" which I thought was so hilarious and clever since we had cake with G&G a few days earlier.

Thomas did something super cool yesterday during dinner. He did his first REAL sign, unassisted and unprovoked. After eating a number of bites of his sandwich, he shook his hands signifying "finished" or "all done." I tried offering one more bite but he pushed my hand away. I was sooooo excited and impressed! Thomas has made a similar "all done" hand gesture before, but this one was different. It was so perfectly correct and unmistakenly clear. Yippee!

Thomas definitely understands the concept of "more" and is willing to sign it but just hasn't figured out how to sign it by himself. I've mentioned before that he offers up his hands and waits for you to push his fingertips together. Good enough for now. At least he is trying.

Thomas has also made HUUUUUUGE improvements in his ability to release his death grip on his comfort hand toys. If you count to 3, he will usually release the toy all by himself with no fuss, no meltdown. But the context has to be right, has to make sense -- you can't just take the toy out of his hand for no reason. This will make him scream. But he will let go if it's milky time (he has to be able to hold his own bottle), time to go (the toys stay home), or time to change clothes (toys don't fit through the sleeves). My favorite is clothes-changing time. Before he followed the 1-2-3 release trick, I would put his toy in my mouth so he could clearly see it while I changed his shirt. Now when I change his shirt, he automatically feeds me his toy. It's one of my favorite parts of his daily routine and I look forward to it.

One last funny story: Ali and Nicholas took a shower together. Afterward, Ali told me that while he was washing Nicky's butt crack, Nicky farted on his finger. BWAHAHAHA! I asked Ali what it felt like and he said it felt like "wet bubbles." HAHAHAHAHA! That's my boy! Nicky very much enjoyed listening in on this conversation. He loves to hear stories about himself.