Yay Joshua!

Today was another socialization class. Like the class two weeks ago, things did not get off to the best start. We got to the children's clinic parking garage. There are two entrances to this place and I always go through the first one. Our car and van both have no AC right now, and by going through that first entrance I am able to park in the lowest level of the garage where it is nice and shady, and therefore a little bit cooler than the above levels. Today however, that particular entrance was taken over by one of those lovely trucks that are jacked up on oversized tires which causes them to be three times higher than my minivan. The driver was actually having to peer out their window to see if they could fit the thing under the height restriction bar. ~ Note to drivers of large vehicles: If you have to question whether your vehicle can fit, don't try!

So, rather than wait for that driver to decide whether or not they wanted to chance getting stuck, I went to the alternat entrance. Sweet Josh went into a total meltdown. I parked the van and looked back and he was in tears. I couldn't understand a thing he was trying to tell me because he was crying so hard. I undid the latch on his booster seat and told him we were there to see Ms. G and he dropped down in between the two middle seats where he knew I couldn't reach him and them proceeded to tell me he wasn't going to go in to see her. LOL What a session they were going to have today - it was already starting out great.

I finally coaxed him out of the vehicle. He cried all of the way to the building entrance and then was upset that we didn't have to take an elevator in the parking garage like we usually do. This is when it finally clicked with me what had set him off - I totally screwed up the routine that I didn't even notice I had set! I won't do that again!

We finally made it inside, checked in, and went upstairs to wait for the class. josh immediately headed for the house I previously mentioned. He did not want to share it. He at some point wound up tripping and hitting his head on a little fold down table that is inside of the house, which set his crying into motion once again. Poor guy was having such a rough afternoon. :(

After about 5 minutes, Mrs. G. came out with the basket. Joshua stuck his snack and cup into the basket and then immediately threw himself to the floor crying. I explained really quickly to Mrs. G. that I apparently messed up the routine I didn't realize I had even set by entering the garage on the wrong level and then parking in the wrong spot. She is so sweet...she never even flinched. She smiled and said I could walk him in. He cried for a good 5 minutes in her office and she finally got him settled down. Whew!

In the meantime, the other two moms and I were given handouts about what they have been learning in the past 4 classes as well as a mini-evaluation of our child. Joshua got a lot of praise! I was so happy to read it! According to Mrs. G., Joshua has shown little distraction compared to the last set of classes. He is very observant and makes spontaneous comments on the activities they are participating in. He seems to enjoy the social interaction and seems motivated to participate. She stated that "his play is slowly becoming less dysfunctional". She also stated that "when he is motivated to get something, like food, he can really put everything together: making great eye contact, asking in a clear voice and using the person's name." I had to laugh at the comment about food. I am part Cajun and Part Italian, and I guess that part is really coming out in him. LOL

So, overall he is really doing great. We have his OT eval tomorrow morning. I'm a little nervous to hear what they have to say. Sya some prayers that he doesn't have to go in too often since all of this is going to be paid out of our pockets because insurance does not cover it (that's a rant for another day). The OT office is right across the hall from Ms. G's office, so I'll have to remember to take the correct parking garage entrance. ;)