Elle REALLY on the move (sort of.........and with the help of a giant contraption)

Elles got a walker this week from her physical therapist. The fit didn't end up being good (she is unhappy about how her armpits are positioned), but we are keeping and practicing with this one until she finds something better.

So far, Elle is less then fond of it. She starts crying within about 5 minutes of being in it.

Maybe it's the pressure of being able to move now.
Maybe it's the pressure on her armpits.
Maybe actually moving is a bit frightening.
Maybe it is the chest cold accompanied by two ear infections.

At any rate, we are practicing for a few minutes a day.

Scout thinks it is fantastic. Could it be the running horse?




I know the horse plays a part, but I think it is mostly because when Elle isn't in it, it is a great car for foxy.




Best I could do in ways of a smile.
(It's kind of unsure and verging on freak out, but she is trying anyways.)






Go, Elles go!!!!

When you have a minute (or 13)

I came across this on youtube and I used to watch this show all the time (when we had Discovery Health) and this is one about a baby with Angelman's. It was so interesting to watch and I saw so many similarities to Elles. Although this little girl has had more trouble eating then Elles. Also Elle doesn't or didn't scream a lot. Once in a while she cries without any real symptom wrong, but never for long. I would guess this baby was crying because she had a harder time eating and was hungry or in pain. Anyway, you guys should watch it, it's very interesting. I didn't include the first clip cause it is labeled differently and is hard to find, plus it's just about her long crying jags and puking (it does talk about her smiling all the time at 2 weeks old!) anyway, her first few months are different enough to Elles that you really aren't missing much.

What Emily's Been Watching, April Edition (finally)

This is Life's 200th post!
Yes I am totally skirting the fact that we are well entrenched in May.

Gigantic (2008) [R] Hipster vomit. Once upon a time, a hipster exploded and they picked up the pieces and put it on film. That about sums it up, I think. We rented this when Matt and B were in town from a Red Box. We read the synopsis: mattress salesman wants to adopt a baby from China, but his plans go awry when a girl falls asleep on one of the mattresses in the showroom. We read the cast: Paul Dano, Zooey Deschanel, John Goodman, Ed Asner, Zac Galifianakis........ come on! Wouldn't you have rented it too? I like independent movies. I like quirky (it turns out in small, tasteful amounts). I like Paul Dano. What I don't like is when a movie is made that tries so hard to be quirky that it annoys the crap out of you. Done and done. I put the fault entirely on the filmmaker and the screen writer. Just looked it up and it was his first movie. Dude. Knock it down a notch. The actors weren't at fault to me, but they certainly didn't save the film. No one could. The only one that came close was John Goodman, I enjoyed his part. But not enough. Emily doesn't recommend this movie unless you are a posing hipster that has no taste and thinks any indy film that appears quirky is awesome and meaningful. Let me help you out guys- it's totally fin.


Jane Eyre (1997) [NR] Drama-romance. I saw this at the library and figured I might as well. It was ok. It didn't commit any grievous sins. I actually really liked the person that played Jane for most of the movie, at the same time I was scandalized by the dude that played Rochester. Oddly, by the time I started thinking he might be ok, I started disliking her performance. Also, they massacred the scenes when she comes back. No playfulness. No fun. No bueno. Emily can't recommend this movie. Especially when the "other" one exists. BUT you won't die if you happen to watch it.

No trailer, but here's a scene.

Zombieland (2009) [R] Action adventure. This is back in Red boxes and Rob and I wanted to have a movie night and I remembered that Rob didn't watch this with us when we rented it last time. I knew he would at least get a few laughs and find it tolerable. Turns out, he did indeed enjoy it. I really do enjoy this movie. I like the film style a lot, I like the humor a lot. I like the writing a lot. I am not usually much of a Woody Harrelson fan, but he really tickles me in this movie. He is so funny and perfect for this role. I love how he plays off of Eisenburg, and his quest for a twinkie. Eisenburg is great too. I love his rules of survival and how they keep popping up throughout the film. Just very clever and funny. Emily totally recommends this movie if you haven't seen it. There is language and an excess of gore, they kind of go over the top for humor's sake (plus, we're talking zombies here) and I must admit- it is funny.


Never Let Me Go (2010) [R] Drama. Now, this movie was promising and I liked it quite a bit. Here is the problem: It is based on a book, and from all I have heard, a very good book. I have heard that people that have recommended this book (before the movie existed), were very tight lipped about a big reveal at the end. Kind of a "the first rule of Catfish is you don't talk about Catfish" kind of a thing. Well, apparently (and I am pretty positive I know what the reveal is)- the movie reveals the plot point in like the first 25 minutes or so.) So for one thing, the movie takes a different approach then the book. I don't know any different, so it was ok with me. But after seeing it, I can see that as being a pretty shocking reveal at the end. The next thing about the movie, is while watching it, I was constantly thinking: "I bet this is really sad in the book" or "I bet this book is really good". Instead of thinking these things, you should be thinking: "This is really sad" or "this movie is really good". I just couldn't, cause it just never quite pulled it off. My advice? If you've read the book, see the movie. (If so, let me know if you liked the movie). If you haven't read the book, read it, then see the movie. I say this without having read it, I know that's weird, but I REALLY don't recommend the route I took. I guess I just went over my advice on seeing this movie or not. Guess I better read the book, but I really wish I wasn't spoiled. But it may not be too late for you! My guess is that the scenes that the movie tried to pull off as emotional will be emotional and a lot better if you have read it. Otherwise, they just didn't quite make it. Close though- it really was good, just well, I think I've explained myself enough.


The King's Speech (2010) [R] Drama/Biography. Yeah, we finally saw it. Yes, it was good, inspiring, well done, yada yada yada. Do I really need to praise this movie? It's been done and every one is correct. See it if you haven't seen it. Don't be afraid of the swearing scene. Very rarely is there swearing with a purpose. Well, here it is. It is a feel good scene, the character really has a turning point that is important for his growth, plus, it's pretty %$@#&ing funny. Haven't you heard worse walking the halls of your high school? And there is no feel good message attached to that (usually) See it.

Elle Update (almost) 20 months

Remember Elinor's Everest? That was Elle doing container play at 18 months. Here she is today, about 6 weeks later. I think some of her hard work is paying off.

(The duka duka pep talk doesn't seem to hurt either)



SO PROUD of this girl.

It's been a weird 6 weeks though. The week following the (kind of) diagnosis, I didn't do much with her by way of her exercises and stuff. It was a time where that wasn't quite on my mind, I was devoting a lot of time googling and researching and just holding her and cuddling. I was trying to wrap my mind around it a little I think. Plus Scout was out of school that week, I think I just concentrated my efforts on surviving. The next week, we did some stuff, but I wasn't as devoted as usual. The week following, sort of the same. This was coupled with a weird scheduling thing with two of her therapists. In fact, because of various things we haven't seen her OT since we went to Primary Children's. So, I don't know if it was the diagnoses, or the lack of therapy sessions or just getting out of the habit (perhaps a combo?) Anyway, I guess I am kind of confessing that my routines with her have been less then par these last 6 weeks and I have just in the last week started really attacking it again.

Learning about this syndrome has done weird things to me. It's like I was almost thinking- wow! She's got more troubles then I imagined, so part of my brain kind of was trying to tell me that this stuff is pointless. Most of me knows that this stuff is more important then ever, because everything I have read tells me that kids with therapy have a much better quality of life and independence and all that good stuff then kids that don't. I know this, but I think I needed some sort of balancing out or adjustment phase or something, but I think I have passed that phase of easing off a bit. So, this is my confession and also my public call that I am determined to see this little girl succeed and thrive and be the best Little Little that she can be. Tonight's session and seeing some improvement has really given me an added strength I think I needed, so..........welcome to baby boot camp Tiny E! Bring your A game.

My favorite Scout drawing of the week

This is a story she wrote about losing her first tooth.

(She hasn't lost any teeth yet, but is quite obsessed with the concept.)



close up.......
Note: I have a small issue in being portrayed as a complete hag, but it's so funny I am willing to overlook it.
By the way, I imagine that the little squares falling at Scout's feet are teeth, but I'm not sure.
(Perhaps I will try to get a clearer picture of what is going on in this story from Scout when she gets home from school, because now I am starting to think that both are of her and the one that I thought was me, is really Scout with her "found" tooth.)

***UPDATE***
Ok, I have now been informed: so, both pictures are of Scout and the squares on the ground are toys, the square in the air is the missing tooth.

Budding Book Worm?

Scout has been learning to read in kindergarten this year and she has done really well. But, just the last few weeks, reading seems to have really clicked. We have actual moments during the day now where she grabs a few books, sits down, and reads them all. I love it. It makes me happy and it's really quite nice (she reads to herself so the silence is golden sometimes).

In addition, she really has started getting into reading at bedtime. She goes to her book shelves and grabs a giant stack when she goes to bed and gets to work. Because of this, I have walked into this scene twice this week:
I love this one, cause I like to picture the moment she got so tired she propped the book up so she didn't have to hold it anymore.






Here are some stacks of books. One stack is books to be read and the other are the finished ones.

I'm so glad she has embraced reading already and I happily picture myself walking into similar scenes for many years to come.