1st round of preschool in the books

I continue to be amazed by the resilience my daughter has. Our first year of preschool is coming to an end. What a journey it has been! Besides getting every virus out there and spending way too many sick days home with me, Audrey has thrived. She started preschool this January in a moderate to severe SDC (special day) class. It runs Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 10:30am.

Once I pick her up, we head straight home for three hours of ABA therapy. This means that until 2pm, Audrey is having demands placed on her which work her mind and body thoroughly. Some days she has additional therapy after ABA. After seeing the toll this schedule takes on my four year old (and myself), I have decided this summer that we will be taking Fridays off. No therapy, no schedule, a day to have zero plans. A day we get to do something fun, or nothing at all!

I’m proud to say that as much as Audrey has grown this year, so have I. I have learned to go with my gut and believe in myself. I pride myself on advocating for my daughter and the number one way to advocate is to truly believe that I know my child best. No matter what a doctor, therapist, teacher, or friend may suggest, at the end of the day, my decision is exactly the right call for our family. I’m learning to be confident in these decisions and realize I’m doing my best regardless of the crazy learning curve that is constantly being thrown my way.

Although Audrey will not be in school this summer, she will continue to have a very busy schedule. ABA four days a week, weekly horse therapy, weekly OT, possibly some treadmill training in July and we will be back at our amazing intensive PT in August! I am excited for all the potential growth this summer. In between all the work, we have some fun adventures planned. Hiking trips, lots of family time and a few beach trips are on the calendar as well.

As I look back at the year, I am so proud to see the gains she has made. It hasn’t been easy, our rough days came in waves but we had some really great moments too.

Some of Audrey’s 2019 highlights so far:

1)She has tried SO many new foods and continues to be interested in things outside of her comfort zone.

2)She continues to get stronger, able to walk (assisted) further distances when in the right mood.

3)She has learned to interact with peers every day at school and tolerated table time activities without as many behaviors.

4)She has adapted to being exposed to new people, environments and schedules.

The three biggest goals we have for this summer are to continue to work on her adaptive living skills, of course walking and really trying to target effective communication.

Stay tuned for all of our #kickingCASK updates this summer.

Author: Rachel Alves

Hi there! I am a special needs mom to a beautiful, sweet girl. Audrey has a mutation on her CASK Gene. This is a rare genetic disorder that effects her globally. It has caused a seizure disorder as well as gross motor, fine motor and speech delays. A Microcephaly diagnosis comes along with it as well. Our last 8 years have been filled with therapy, learning about our daughter's disorder and also learning to cope while finding joy. Thank you for taking the time to read about our journey. For more information on the CASK Gene, please visit my Instagram @alvesmomkickingCASK. View all posts by Rachel Alves