October 25, 2010 - Erik back in school . . .

Hello all. So sorry it has been a while since our last post. We have had some ups and downs but the ups way outnumber the downs! Erik returned to school the end of August and is doing really well. He was moved to the older class and weekly reports indicate that he is really working hard! A focus for this year is on communication and they are using tools and strategies in the classroom allowing him multiple opportunities to make selections, decisions, and choices. He loves it! Health wise Erik has been doing okay. We have had periods of increased seizure activity but all in all we have kept them at bay or now. He is getting 4-6 molars which seem to be causing him quite a bit of discomfort. Thanks goodness for Motrin! August 25th, we did make a trip to the Emergency Department but it was not for anything we could have anticipated! Strange thing . . . his nurse was doing his regular stretches and he cried out in pain. We have not heard Erik actually cry in over 2 years! Seriously! The nurse stopped his stretching and waited a bit and when we touched his foot after he settled down he cried out again. We had to get it checked out. Really swollen and red and hot to the touch. X-rays were fine and blood work was fine. The days after involved follow-up x-rays and staying off of his foot but in time, it all worked out. We are thinking it must have been a torn ligament or over stretched muscle. He was a trooper though and kept on going! The only other bit of a challenge we are trying to work through is that we were told that effective July 2010 we would be able to receive $10k for home modifications. This is a part of the program Erik is enrolled with and is a 1 time offering. We set things up and began working to be ready to make changes to the home turning the formal dining room into a bedroom with a bath for Erik on the downstairs floor. Erik is getting so big that it is becoming a safety issue taking him up and down the stairs. The date for this to begin moved from July 1 to September 1, to October 1. When we had everyone come to the house to talk about this late September we were told that we could not add a bathroom to the existing room because this was considered an "addition" opposed to a modification. Our understanding is that an addition would represent additional square footage which is not what we would be doing at all. Please pray that we can identify some solution before the program is no longer available! Thanks for all of your prayers and support. As each day passes, we see Erik continue to interact and respond in new and fun ways. This confirms for us that he is indeed progressing. Love in Christ, Erik's Family