Ryan's Medication

Ryan has always been my most active child. As a baby, he would wiggle and squirm at all times. If he was ever still, he was asleep. During church it was like holding onto a bucking bronco. All the other babies in the mothers lounge would relax and fall asleep while nursing. Not Ryan, he would kick and swing his arms and wiggle the entire time! At home, he began walking and then RUNNING at 9 months old and he could climb ANYTHING! Before his first birthday he could climb in and out of his crib in matter of seconds. He would build scaffolding to climb anywhere he wanted to go, including ON TOP OF THE FRIDGE... several times... before he was 18 months old! I literally feared for his life.

Because he was ALWAYS in a hurry, he didn't take the time to complete, or steady, or perfect most things he did. We was a very wobbly walker/runner, but rarely fell 'cause he was always moving so fast. He has been in speech therapy since age 4 because he didn't take the time to pronounce the sounds/words properly as a child and now needs to reprogram his brain with he proper sounds. His handwriting has always been messy (along with his desk, bedroom, etc). It was all something we hoped he could learn to control on his own. We strongly believe he needs to learn how to adjust his struggles to fit in the world, not make the world adjust to fit him.

In school, it has been something he has been able to control for the most part, so we didn't intervene. He is very bright and has been able to complete his work without much struggle (he is usually on the honor roll) while still being very active. This year has been different. Third grade curriculum is more challenging than previous years for most kids because they are starting to build skills leading into Jr High and High School. Ryan was having significant trouble focusing and completing assignments, even though he fully understood all the concepts. His teacher has been very understanding and worked with him and us, but we were all getting very concerned with the unfinished work he had in addition to homework etc. He was falling behind. He wasn't finishing assignments or turning in assignments he had finished. By mid-term he had all A's and 3 F's, due to zero's and incomplete work. We contacted the academic counseling department at school as well as his Dr. to help. Over the last month we have been working with his Dr, teacher, special ed dept, and others around him to evaluate Ryan's struggles and gather as much information as possible.

We met with Ryan's Dr yesterday. Based on the information gathered he diagnosed him with combination form ADHD, meaning he has both inattentive symptoms and impulsive/hyperactive symptoms. They usually outgrow the impulsive/hyperactive form as they begin puberty, but the inattentive problems tend to last into adulthood which causes difficulties in school/college, socially and maintaining a well paying job (employers are less understanding when they can't focus or complete a project).

The Dr recommending starting him on medication within the month, beginning with a low dose and gradually increasing until we find the right dosage for Ryan. He also recommended not telling people exactly when we begin the medication so we can monitor the changes and see if others notice the change as well. The Dr recommended Concerta, which is a 12 hour extended release medication, but our insurance needs preapproval first. So we will start him on Metadate initially, which is only a 8 hour extended release medication. It should help with school, and hopefully completing his homework and other activities before it wears off (which is why the Dr recommends the 12 hour Concerta instead). Once the Dr can show a history on the Metadate he can switch him to Concerta.

While we believe this will ultimately help Ryan focus and concentrate, there will be some side effects to watch for. Appetite loss is the most common, it will be important for him to get enough protein when he eats. Initially headaches, stomach upset and difficulty falling asleep may also occur, but should go away quickly. Our bigger concerns are zombie-ness, additional hyperactivity, blurred vision, dizziness, lightheadedness, and irritability. We want him to be the same person, just able to hold still and concentrate when appropriate (making him much happier).

We appreciate any feedback (good or bad) you notice, since different people interact with him in different ways it helps us build an overall picture of how he is reacting to the medication. If it isn't helping him, then we need to try something else. Positive comments to Ryan would really help him continue working hard to improve.

Ryan's New Glasses!

Ryan gets to be part of the club now too! He brought home a letter from the school nurse during the first few weeks of school saying he failed the eye exam and needed to see the eye Dr. Tyler needed a new pair as well, so we waited a few weeks and took them together (because the insurance only allows 1 appt every 365 days). Turns out their vision is nearly the same. They almost picked out the same pair of frames too, but I quickly turned that down - can you imagine getting them mixed up all the time! Ryan ended up with some shiney silver rectangular frames, Tyler with some black rounder shaped frames (he had rectangle ones last time and wanted something different.) I think they both look great!! Welcome to the club Ryan!!

Ryan's Dog Bite

We were at my mom's for dinner. Tyler, Ryan, Cameron and Madi walked down to the park to feed the ducks. A lady had 4 dogs walking on leashes, but the pit-bull slipped out of it's collar. It bit through his jean shorts on his bum and leg and knocked him down. The security guard and passer-by's made the lady leave, but didn't get any information from her (name, address, shots etc). By the time the kids came home, we checked him out, and then went back, everybody was gone. He was bleeding, so we thought it would be best to have him checked out at Urgent Care. I think he was really more embarrassed because they had to look at his bum and cleaned and bandaged it to prevent infection (No Stitches or anything needed). The dr said he should be fine, but put him on antibiotics just in case. Animal control is patrolling the area, but it is very unlikely they will find anything. Usually they would only quarantine the dog for 10 days anyway watching for rabies, and chances are the dog has had his shots (being a family dog, etc). Kenny teased him that he would turn into a werewolf on the next full moon, and he thought that would be great to get revenge and bite the dog back! He's a little more afraid of dogs now, but he should be fine! He went to school the next day and only told a few of his friends.

Pumpkin Farm Fieldtrip

Mckay's Preschool class went on a field-trip to Schnepf Farms and Brayden and I got to tag along. It was a long WARM day, but LOTS of fun!

Tyler's 11th Birthday!!

Tyler's 11th Birthday was October 1st! He's been riding his bike a lot recently and Kenny and I thought he had outgrown his old one. So he got a new bike for his birthday (and a key for the new bike lock).

Instead of a party, we let him choose where to go for dinner. I offered a few suggestions (of places I had seen online that offered .99/free kids meals... yeah I'm cheap!) He chose Old Country Buffet because it had a lot of options for everybody - and an ice cream/dessert bar. First off, the kids were no longer .99 - that was a special they ONLY ran over the summer, so full price -GREAT! Second, we were the YOUNGEST people there, by about 30+ years! Third, the food was TERRIBLE!!! I got a cup of homemade looking chicken noodle soup - It had NO taste!! NONE! How is that even possible??? I also made myself a fajita with some pico on top, it had HUGE chunks of jalapenos in it that BURNED my mouth and lips. I didn't expect the food to be fabulous, even bland - like hospital food, but this was WAY worse!!! GROSS!! We will NEVER go back. On a good note, the kids had a great time (what does that say about my cooking?). There was a guy in a bee costume walking around, but since we were pretty much the ONLY people with kids there, he kept circling our table. Brayden was fascinated and LOVED it! (Luckily he's not one of those kids that freak out, or we would have had issues!) They all ate pretty well, and especially LOVED the dessert bar. They even announced Tyler's birthday over the intercom and all the olds clapped for him. Also, Grandma and Grandad called during dinner to wish him a happy birthday, so it made his day complete!

Happy Birthday Tyler!! We love you so much!! You are such a help to me and an incredibly loving big brother! I don't know what we would do without you!!! XOXO


Tyler's Webelos Award, Arrow of Light Award,

and Cross-over !!

Before turning 11 Tyler also earned his Webelos and Arrow of Light Awards. The Arrow of Light is the highest award you can recieve in the Cub Scout program - like the Eagle for the boy scouts. We are so proud of all his hard work! He also crossed over to the 11-year-old Scouts - beginning the Boy Scout program. They signify this cross-over by changing from his blue boys scout shirt to his tan boy scout shirt. He has an awesome leader, Brother Drummond, that works really hard to teach the boys. We know he is super excited to be in Boy Scouts and start camping and hiking soon (hopefully Kenny will still be serving with the Deacons when he gets there next year).