POSTS WITH TAG: developmental delays

Toddler

My Daughter Makes Me Believe in Miracles

Posted by Aunt Becky
on Jan 19, 2012 at 8:49 AM

Last night, as I was tucking my 2-year old snugly in her bed for the 7,364,732th time, she looked at me with her big brown eyes and said, "Mama, I'm so excited for my birthday. I'm gonna be FREEE!"

The tears welled up and I was thankful for the darkness in her room, so she didn't try to poke at my eyes as I said, "Yes, Baby, you are."

There was a time when everything was not so clear. A time when I couldn't take for granted that my daughter would turn one, two, or, as she likes to say, "freeee!"

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Toddler

Should Parents of Kids With Genetic Disorders Have More Children?

Posted by Adriana Velez
on Dec 27, 2011 at 10:48 AM

cribI just read a story about a family with three children who have the rare genetic disorder called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. The youngest, Finley Green, is a toddler who has been in and out of the hospital his entire life. He has a cyst on his brain and for the first 11 months of his life he was fed through a tube in his nose. This Christmas Finley received the gift of special equipment that will help his development.

It's wonderful that the Green family is getting some help, but I keep wondering -- what motivated the Greens to take a huge risk after that first child and have two more children? If you find out your first child has a genetic disorder, you know there's the chance that your next children could also have that disorder. Then again, those next children could be fine. How do you choose?

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Toddler

This Is How You Raise a Genius

Posted by April Peveteaux
on Oct 26, 2011 at 4:30 PM

is your kid a genius
My Two Geniuses & One Not-So-Smart Dog
Since every time I read a new study it basically tells me what I'm doing wrong as a parent, imagine my relief when I stumbled upon The Daily Beast article, "15 Signs You'll Raise a Genius." It appears, based on this article, that my kids are totally going to be geniuses. My work here is done. Moving on! Next stop, raising kids who never get allergies, cancer, or put their foot in their mouth. Surely there's a list for those things that I could simply check off and move along to that Pilates class I've always been meaning to take but don't have enough time given the focus on my children.

Just so I know what kind of company I'm in here, are you doing all of these things to make sure your child is a genius?

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Toddler

Toddler's Extreme Picky Eating Is Heartbreaking for Parents

Posted by Julie Ryan Evans
on Sep 22, 2011 at 1:41 PM

Picky EaterIf your toddler's picky eating is consuming your worries and making mealtimes miserable, know that your battle is likely nothing compared to that of the parents of 19-month-old Alex Tesoriero. The toddler will literally eat nothing. In fact, he's never even tasted food.

His story is heartbreaking, and if your child will eat nothing but mac and cheese, it will make you grateful he or she will at least eat that.

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Toddler

Your Toddler Is Ignoring You for a Reason

Posted by April Peveteaux
on Aug 31, 2011 at 6:30 PM

spacey kidsDoes your toddler seem to have selective hearing? Does she look right at you when you're talking, then turn away to do something more "interesting"? Is he so lost in space that you wonder if he knows something you don't? Mine does all this and more, and to tell you the truth, I've been wondering about him lately. After repeating, "Look at me, look at me, hey, why don't you look at mama?" ten times, I think he must be deaf, or worse. Granted, I might turn off if a lady three times my size was leaning over me and saying the same thing over and over again. And part of the problem is the comparison trap. His sister has such laser focus, when he drifts away I can't help but wonder if something is wrong.

Which is why I was a relieved to read a physician's piece about how small children actually have good reason to stare off into space, or shut down.

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Big Kid

Colin Farrell Discusses Angelman Syndrome & How It Affects His Son

Posted by Michele Zipp
on Aug 6, 2011 at 7:07 PM

Colin Farrell with sonI'd never heard of Angelman Syndrome until Colin Farrell opened up about his son having it last night on David Letterman. Farrell seems to be quite a private guy in recent years and him opening up and speaking so tenderly about his son's neurodevelopmental disorder made me admire him that much more.

I knew he was a dad to two sons. Henry (seen here with Colin) is almost 2 and his mother is Alicja Bachleda, Polish actress and singer. His son James with model Kim Bordenave is who has Angelman Syndrome.

James is 7, and started walking when he was 4. Originally it was believed he had cerebral palsy.

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Toddler

Now Tracy Morgan Thinks It's OK to Joke About Special Needs Kids

Posted by Nicole Fabian-Weber
on Jun 29, 2011 at 5:49 PM

tracy morganTracy Morgan really needs a newer, fancier shovel because he keeps digging himself deeper and deeper. Ready to be outraged? On the heels of his anti-gay "comic" spree, Tracy's on to, er, against a new group of people: Mentally disabled children and their mothers. He goes as far as to use the word retarded.

I wanted to forgive him the first time, but now he has gone too far and disgraces moms and children. Prepare yourself ... these are the disgusting things he said during his stand-up routine ...

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Toddler

This Is Why Your Son Has Autism

Posted by April Peveteaux
on Jun 13, 2011 at 6:30 PM

boys and autismI've mentioned before that I've been on the alert for signs of autism in my kids, since we have multiple family members in various places on the spectrum. I admit when my first baby was a girl, I breathed a sigh of relief because I didn't feel like I had to be "as worried" about autism as I would be if I had a boy. Then, I had my son.

He recently turned 2, and I'm constantly monitoring the poor little dude for signs. I'm much more likely to think a quirk is a neurological issue. Yes, it's paranoid. But it turns out, my fear for my son is actually somewhat justified, since four times as many boys are on the spectrum than girls.

And now they know why.

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Toddler

(barely) Surviving the Terrible Twos

Posted by Aunt Becky
on Jun 2, 2011 at 10:43 AM

By the time you read this, I may be dead. See, I'm pretty sure my daughter is going to kill me while I sleep. She's currently all Furious George because I didn't buy her a pair of hooker heels. She doesn't seem to understand that she's 2. The rule is, she's not allowed to wear hooker heels until she's at least 4.

"No" was NOT a satisfactory response to her demands, so I'm waiting for the day when I wake up to her shoving one of my high-heeled shoes into my eye socket. 

It's a pretty extraordinary way to go out, so I'm okay with that.

It's the terrible 2s tantrums I can't handle.

I have successfully managed to avoid the shoe-in-the-eye-socket trick twice before. My older children are 4 and 9 and while they're convinced I'm a dumbass (because, well, obviously), they're not ready to murder me.

My daughter, however, is another story.

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Toddler

(barely) Surviving Sleep Regression

Posted by Aunt Becky
on May 19, 2011 at 11:13 AM

This morning, I woke up from a delicious dream in which I was finally married to one of my television husbands, and promptly freaked out. I was certain it was Friday and I'd somehow forgotten several important deadlines. I also forgot my name. Thankfully, my iPhone comforted me by informing me that, in fact, it was Wednesday.

(I still haven't figured out my name.)

I assure you that no matter how it sounds, I don't normally flit through life forgetting my name, the current president, or where I left my pants.

No, I'm living in the Land of the Sleep-Deprived. My 2-year-old daughter has decided that sleep is, in fact, bullshit. In turn, I have decided that my 2-year-old daughter is an alien.

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