31 for 21, Day 21 - 2012

  More about playdates.

It was good to see Maya playing with her friends. It's still parallel play, but it's getting closer to actively playing with each other. This time when T and G started playing with the doctor set. Maya sat down and also wanted to play. With a little coaching she started to check Jessie's heart with the stethoscope.

Then T brought out the Break the Ice game. One of Maya's favorites. They all helped me set it up by handing me the ice cubes. Ironically this process usually takes longer to put together than actually playing the game. When it came time to play, they did it so well. They took turns and even shared one of the mallets.

When we went outside, the kids played on the little slide and ran around the yard. We changed the level of the slide so Maya was hesitate to go up it, but she did with some help. She also enjoyed watching her friends go up and down the slide. Maya, T and Christina pretended to be airplanes, soaring through the grass. That was a precious moment.

These are the little things in life that I appreciate more than anything. From the time she started to crawl, I've tried to have Maya interact with her peer, Whether in playgroups, classes, or story time. Sometimes it feels like a struggle because the level she is at is not the same as others her age or even younger. It takes time to get her there. It's a daily challenge, something that others might not realize. Whether it's walking, jumping, how to hold a crayon, or learning how to appropriately play with her friends...it take effort. But always the reward is worth it. When I think about the way I am raising Maya, I think it's exactly the way it is supposed to be. It is hard work to bring up any child, and yes, it take a wee bit more effort to do it for someone with special needs. I don't think that it would be much different than if she didn't have Down syndrome though. We all want the same things for our children. Among love and happiness we want them to be the best person they can be. This is all of our goals in the end.

Three doctors working hard.

Break the ice.

Down the slide.

Watching her friend.

Soaring.

31 for 21, Day 18 - 2012

Play date and the pumpkin patch.

We had an awesome play date with some friends yesterday.  It's so nice to see Maya playing with her peers.  After a while we went to the pumpkin patch down the street.  It's our favorite pumpkin patch because it's quiet and free.  The kids loved it.  They actually entertained themselves really well.  This year Maya was really into the pumpkins.  Next week we are taking a field trip with the school to another pumpkin patch.   Even though Maya hates field trips, that one Maya does pretty good with.  I'm looking forward to seeing how she does this year.

Pumpkin hugger.

Three musketeers.

Going for a ride.

One for you and you, and you.

Happiness is having a pumpkin.

Dancing a jig.

Found a hat at the patch and put it on.

31 for 21, Day 9 - 2012

Play time in the tub.  

A few weeks ago Maya discovered a new play space.   It's always been there but for some reason she's never been that interested in it.  One day she dumped her dolls in there.  Then she wanted to go after them.  That's become her new favorite place to hang out.  She actually stays there for a long time (in Maya terms).  When I watch her, I pretend like I can see her thoughts.  When she talks to her dollies, when she makes them dance or hugs them.  I hear her making up stories and pretending.  It's magical to see her play in this way. 

31 for 21: Day 15, I wonder.

After you helped me put together your Mr. Potato heads,

You took them from hands,

and held them close.

Then you gave them a hug and kiss.

Who taught you that?

I wonder.

31 for 21, Day 10: best friends.

Best friends are made of this.

Riding in the car together.

Piling sand on a shelf, then cleaning it up.

Running together on the grass.

Playing peek-a-boo with a tree.

tooting maya's horn

For a long time I tried to teach Maya to blow bubbles.   I suppose I started way to early because she really wasn't into it at all.   Soon after I let it go and didn't push it any further, still wondering when I was supposed to try again.

Here and there when Maya gets sick, I try to encourage her to blow her nose. Most of the time she just looks at me with a straight face.   I imagine she may be saying, "Hhhmmm, what the heck is mama doing?"

She never has tried to imitate my actions, not once. 

Mid November I caught a chest cold and we ended up spending a lot of time at home together. I always feel bad that I'm not getting Maya out with the other kids.  Especially now I think she needs the exercise since she is walking.  She did pretty well the whole week though.  I feel very lucky because she can pretty much entertain herself with the mirror,  her toys and music.

One day I found her playing in the front room.  The sun was shining down on her through the big window.   The room felt like it was glowing and I loved watching her silently entertain herself.  First she was playing with her puppets and then she started to empty out the toy bucket.  She was going through everything in that box,  every single toy came out one at a time.  She inspected each item carefully, tested it out and then moved on to the next toy.  It was really interesting seeing her train of thought. 

exploring her toy box

When she came to the horn (the horn we have used during speech therapy), she looked at it and then put it up right against her lips.  She hadn't played with it for a very long time, but she knew what to do.  She didn't blow with her mouth but with her nose.

trying to give the horn a blow

It was the best little blowing sound I have ever  heard!  This is the moment I thought to myself, this is the moment when she has put it all together.  This was a step towards another milestone.  Sometimes they don't seem like much but they are there. When she blows that horn for the first time or blows a bubble, this was the moment that led up to the big event.

And when the horn didn't make a sound,  Maya decided to make her own tooting noise.  "aaaaaahhh" she said.  Then she was done and crawled into the box to get the next toy out.

making her own noise

31 for 21, Day 28: park adventures

We went to the railroad park again today.  I am really loving this park, it has a train, carousal, snack bar and a huge playground.  We met up with some other mom's.  I'm super excited that Maya is starting to be a little more lovable.  It's always so cute to see her giving hugs.  Today she surprised me by not only hugging her little friends but a couple of the moms too.  Now Maya isn't only known for pulling  hair, she is also known for hugging everyone too. 

Now that it is cooling down I'm looking forward to getting out to the park and exploring different environments.  I love encouraging Maya to try different things.  Here are some photos of our adventure today.

Hello friend!

First time on this slide.  Ready to go...

weeeeeeee

whoooooa

So proud of me!

Hug for L's mom.

Found a leave in the sand.

Next stop, mouth.

Guilty as charged.

Maya giving L another hug.

Blurry but I love their expressions.

Happy playing together.

31 for 21, Day 19: Maya and her friends

This week we started a little workshop at the library which gives children from 0-5 the opportunity to socialize with each other.  Basically there are 10 stations of toys set up in the room and the kids play on their own and together.  When we took this workshop earlier this year Maya did not have a good reaction to the space.  It does get pretty noisy with all those kids and parents in the room.  I think there was just too much going on.  She seemed very irritated and would make her growling noises the whole time.   This year I noticed that she was not so upset by the noise and now that she is walking she really seemed to get around to all the stations.  The music section,  kitchen and the tunnel were her favorite places to roam.

Like all other toddlers Maya is learning to share and play nicely with others.  She seems to be following other's footsteps in grabbing and fighting over toys.  In the last few months though I have really seen that Maya is interacting with her buddies more often.  I do feel like I have to keep an eye out for what she is doing at all times.  It only takes one second and then she might have her mouth on someone's arm.  Yikes!!!  I try my hardest to give her space, to let things go naturally but I do worry that kids a little older/larger will push her around.  I have seen it happen. 

There have been some really nice moments in the last two months that I've been able to witness.  Like the time she fed her friend cheerios just out of the blue and the time she actually played nicely with a friend in the little kitchen at a play center.  I often repeat to Maya that these are her friends and I think she has finally picked up the cue.  Now when she sees a little buddy she will sign the word "friend" and then the word "nice" all by herself.  I think it is sort of stuck in her head that those two words go together.

Making pizza together

team work

Laughing and Dancing

Sharing Cheerios

Watching Signing Time together

Playing nice