Some Of Our Favorite Things...For Now

The more I learn about Liam's sensory issues and autism, the more therapy tools and toys I come across.  I also realized that any time the word "therapy" is attached to anything the price triples.  Here are a few things that I have either made or found for next to nothing.

First is our weighted vest hoodie.  Weighted vests can be really expensive as well as stick out like a sore thumb. I have found a few patterns on-line but wasn't too crazy about any of them.  Then this idea came to me in a dream, literally.

This is an inexpensive lined hoodie, I think it came from walmart.  I cut the sleeves off just past the seam.  I then hand stitched large metal washers to the lining from the inside (the washers are between the inner and outer layer).
This has worked really well for Liam, his teachers use it during story time and he is able to sit though the whole story.  His speech therapist loves it too.  The other kids don't realize that it is any different than their sweatshirts and because the washers are flat, Liam can lay down while wearing it.  I can also add washers as he grows.  Recommended weight for a weighted vest is 10-15% of the child's body weight, and should be worn for 20 minute increments.

I haven't tried it yet, but I think that by putting the washers in a quilt to make a weighted blanket would work as well.

The Body Sock. So far, Oriental Trading Company has the best price on these.  We just got one for Christmas and Liam loves it.

Liam's OT made a lycra swing.  It's awesome!  I'm having trouble finding lycra locally, so I'm going to order it.  I will post pics and directions for the swing asap.

Wrist rings! Another fun, inexpensive thing from Oriental Trading Company.

Our new favorite game is "car wash".  I hold all 6 rings up and Liam runs through them, over and over and over again :)

The Diagnosis

About a year ago I started noticing that my perfect, beautiful, amazing baby boy was not developing quite like his cousin who's about 2 months older.  They were both about 2 years old at the time and while my nephew was chatting up a storm, drinking and eating from "big boy" dishes and beginning the potty process, my Liam had not uttered a word, insisted on drinking from his sippy cup while laying on the floor and was terrified of the potty.  Of course, you never want to compare children, but there seemed to be a developmental gap between the two that was only growing.  Liam's physical milestones were right on time, however, some even early, so we decided that it must be a language delay.  Having had a lot of ear infections as a baby (which ceased only after regular visits to the chiropractor and eliminating cow's milk) we decided to have his hearing checked.

The hearing test came back normal, but we decided to just give him more time.  Until, my aunt (the mother of my severely autistic adult cousin) gently recommended early intervention.  Within a month, Liam was receiving Speech and Occupational therapy, having been tagged with SPD (sensory processing disorder).

I dove right in, reading everything I could get my hands on and implementing every little thing I could as suggested by his amazing therapists.  Liam made great progress... his speech began to progress, he is now interacting with peers and animals, and he's happy!  But, we still have a long way to go.  Recently, he transitioned from the Early Intervention program to the school system's special education program.  Which meant another battery of evaluations, meetings, paperwork and a new diagnosis.  Autism.

And this is where we begin.......