Ibises and Woodpeckers and Dinosaurs, Oh My!!

Hi all,
I know there haven't been many posts lately. Truthfully, since I have had to go back to work to prepare for school and Bear has been with my parents, I haven't really gotten to spend enough time to have a lot to tell. I feel sure that once kindergarten begins, there should be more to tell. So, hang in there with me.
He was awfully cute today, though. Last Spring, he was really into birds. He loved to listen to their calls and learned to recognize some of them. He particularly fell in love with a bird called the Glossy Ibis. I had never heard of a Glossy Ibis in my life. I guess it was our doing really. He was listening to a Birds of the Carolina CD we bought him on a trip to the Outer Banks when he was 2. Well, everything was Glossy Ibis this, Glossy Ibis that. Anything he did, said, ate, drank, read or sang had some relation to the Glossy Ibis. Then, for a short time, it was Woody Woodpecker and the Pilated Woodpecker, then crows and gulls. I never knew there were so many different gulls!! We spent hours listening to audio clips of birds.
Now, its dinosaurs. Everything is dinosaurs, dinosaurs, dinosaurs. He asked for stegosaurus milk to drink for breakfast (then triceratops, and T-Rex) I'll bet you didn't know dinos gave milk, huh? We also spent a happy hour looking and listening for dinosaur sound clips, dinosaur songs and anything else dinosaur he could think of, followed , of course by a delicious cup of chocolate pteradactyl milk.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

Aunt Betsy Buble

This is just a quick post. I happen to love to listen to Michael Buble. I especially love the song "Home. " Bear loves all kinds of music from jazz to kid's music to "Jesus music" to classical and more. We have tried to introduce him to a variety of different types of music. The other day he heard Michael Buble on the radio. So, when we got home he wanted to hear more. I played it for him and he has really enjoyed it. However, he has gotten a notion in his head that I can't seem to shake. He has a cousin named Michael and his wife Betsy. He calls them Uncle Michael and Aunt Betsy. Well, he figures if there is a Michael Buble, there must be an Aunt Betsy Buble. so he is constantly asking for me to play Aunt Betsy Buble. I keep trying to explain that there is no such person(as far as I know) but he is not one to give up easily. If I say there is no such person, he says, "Well, we'll just look for it." So, Aunt Betsy, I know you are reading this. I guess you better get your demo ready.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

Children know how to come to God

Hi everyone,

Hope everyone had a pleasant weekend. We have been busy. Some family issues have had us spending a lot of time on the road this weekend. We did manage to get to church again this morning. It was really nice. We had a wonderful guest musical group and Bear enjoyed sitting on my lap and up in my arms dancing to the music. He was so sweet giving me kisses and rubbing on me. Then, after church, we were doing our ritual walk around the sanctuary. We got to the altar and he said is this where we pray? I said yes and reminded him of when he and I went and said prayers at the altar. He immediately got down on his knees with his arms out and his head down. If you are not religious, this may not mean anything to you, but to me it was huge. Bear may not understand exactly what he was doing, but the total giving of himself is how God wants us to come to him, holding nothing back. I never taught him to do that. I only showed him how to get on his knees and sit at the altar. I think children know how to come to the Lord. It is only as we get older, we want to take it all on ourselves and let it weigh us down rather than giving it to the One who can help us.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

preparations and concerns

Hi everyone,
Well, we like milions of parents and children are in definite preparation mode for "Back to School" Bear doesn't actually go until the day after Labor Day, but that is sooner than it seems. We have bought some new clothes and shoes for when it turns cooler. We have purchased the obligatory classroom supplies- notebooks, paper, pencils, crayons, tissues etc. Although he will have limited use of most of those items in the classroom, we are donating it to the class to use. We do not have to purchase new backpacks and lunchboxes, because last year's are still fine. However, we have to think about a few extra things that the average kindergartener's parent doesn't. One of my biggest concerns is that Bear will be able to eat independently. He tends to let you do as much as you are willing to do and as been seen opening his mouth like a little bird accepting his daily nourishment. Unfortunately, there are family members who help promote this dependence. It has been a struggle for 3 years now for Bear to learn to use a spoon and fork properly. It is getting better, but he tends not to scoop. He tends to just dip the spoon or fork in and right back out. We do hand over hand occasionally, touch his elbow, oral reminders and at times just leave him to it. No matter what we try, it is still a struggle. Last year in Pre-K, he had someone in the cafeteria at lunch time who could assist him as needed. I don't know if he willl, have that or not this year. I continually talk to him about how he is just going to have to dig in and try. He can't wait for someone to help him. I am really hoping it sinks in. I can't stand thinking that he will sit there so long waiting and run out of time to eat. One thing that I have done though is make sure that he can independently eat finger foods. He had trouble getting to some of his food items last year independently because he needed help getting the lids off his containers(we tried baggies too). I looked all over for containers that he could get the lids off easily. I couldn't find any except for sandwich boxes. They were too big. My solution was to find a local Tupperware lady- yes they are still around- and she very generously allowed me to bring Bear and let him try some containers at her house. They were still quite tight, so she even more generously allowed us to bring them home run them through the dish washer and put the lids on hot and that helped. So, every day Bear gets to "hunt for treasure" by opening and closing lidded containers containing little treats. This way, I am confident that he will be able to independently get them open at school without spilling the goodies. This may not be a problem any of you have experienced or you may be already ahead of the game, but maybe our experience will help someone out there.
I'd love to hear your comments if this blog is helping anyone out there. I would also love to hear how other parents have solved the spoon and fork problem we are still experiencing. Also, please pass the word to any parents that you think might be interested in reading BEARZ View.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

Getting familiar

Hi everyone,
Well, I think I mentioned before that I am also a teacher. so while I am getting Bear ready for kindergarten, I am also getting my classroom ready. Just as a side note... appreciate your child's teacher. You have no idea how much work goes into preparing the classroom before the teacher even meets a student. Try to let your child's teacher know that you appreciate what he or she does. While I was working on my room, Bear was walking aroud the hall my room is on. I was worried, because he knows his way around the hall. He knows what rooms he can go in and what rooms he can jsut feel the door. That is a real blessing for us. You see he attended Special Ed Early Start there and he is familiar with the surrounding and the people who work there. I hope that if you have a visually impaired child attending kindergarten this year - or pre-school-that you have taken your child, or have plans to take your child to the school. It will be very helpful if your child has some familiarity with the building and if possible with the teacher. That way, they will at least know something before the first day. Kindergarten is a time of gaining independence and experienceing new things. Hopefully, your child has an IEP or a child study/eligibility meeting has been set up to discuss what types of services your child will receive this year. Bear will be in an Inclusion classroom. He will have the classroom teacher and assistant, plus at times there will be a Special Ed teacher or assistant in there. He will also get time with the VI especially for language arts. He will get PT, OT and Orientation and Mobility. If you have any questions about any of this, write me and I'll explain what I can. Have a great day tommorrow. I will be working on my classroom , again. : )

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

R* E* S* P* E* C *T*

Well parents of sighted children, just so you know that blind children are not much different, my sweet little Bear is sitting in time- out as we speak. He was not listening to what his dad was telling him. Although I expect him to act up and get in trouble. I(f he didn't, he wouldn't be a kid.) However, I am determined that he will not be a disrespectful brat. that may sound harsh, but as a teacher, myself, I have spent a great deal of time with children whose parents allowed them to do whatever they wanted to do because if they didn't get their way, they would cry, pout, or heaven forbid, not like them for a few minutes. I happen to believe that its perfectly okay for Bear to not like me for a few minutes, if the trade off is that he will learn to be respectful. Oops, gotta go for now. More later.

Blessings,
Bearz Mom

"What comes after that mommy? Then what, mommy?"

Well, today we went to church for our obligatory touching trek around the sanctuary. We had to name each thing we touched and what came first , next etc. Then, later, I am quizzed over and over and over. "What do you go in first, mommy? What do you go in second, mommmy? What came after the sanctuary, mommy?" This is a daily occurence for us. Somedays, I just really don't want to answer him after the 32nd time he asks, but I do answer because I realize that this is how Bear makes sense of his world. Its easy for us to see what is beyond where we are standing and that gives us comfort that we are in a safe place surrounded by familiar things. Bear doesn't have that. He needs to know what is where in relation to where he is and what comes next and so on. I think sometimes its just a game for him and he enjoys testing my memory to see if it is as good as his. (It definitely is NOT) However, the rest of the time I think he is genuinely trying to make sense of his environment. He wants to know where he has been and how it comapres to where he is currently. I am extremely lucky that the people at our church, as well as all the people who have joined our lives are so accomodating and encouraging to Bear. To borrow a popular book title, "It Takes a Village to Raise a Child." It definitely does take a village to raise a blind child. If you are the parent of a blind child,or any special needs child, reach out for the resources that are available to you. You need other people in your life. You need a support system. They may be in your church, your family, your neighbours, or your school system, but they are there. I'll tell you more about the amazing village of people that we have embraced and who in turn have embraced us in another post. Have a wonderful evening. Welcome to my new followers. Feel free to comment on anything you read.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

123... you're older

This post will be quick, because little Bear wants to sit in my lap right now. I'm enjoying it now. All too soon he won't want to do that anymore. Bear asked this morning if we could go see Cinderella. He listens to the story on his CD player. I told him that Cinderella was at a place called Disney World. He of course said"want to go?" I said well, we can't right now. I said maybe when you are older. He replied," 1 2 3.. you're older" Which in Bearspeak means I'm older. We still are having issues with him saying "I" for "you" and "you" for "I". I said getting older doesn't quite work like that. Undaunted, he replied"Well, we can go see Snow White tomorrow then.

I think I'll leave that one alone for now.

Blessings,

BEARZ Mom

In the beginning

This is the first post to BEARZ View. This blog is being set up to share the adventures, good and bad that we will experience as my son enters Kindergarten this year. This is an amazing time of change and growth for all parents, but it comes with a few extra challenges when your child is blind. I'll begin by giving a little background. My son, who I will refer to as Bear to protect his privacy was born with a very rare genetic disorder called Norries Disease or Norries Syndrome. There is not a great deal of knowledge about Norries at this time. Studies are currently being done. If you google Dr. Katherine Sims and Norries, you will see some of the research that is being done as well as a more clinical explanation of Norries. If you are a parent of a child with Norries and you happened upon this Blog, there is a fantastic Internet Support group that includes parents of children with Norries as well as adult males with Norries. It is an amazing group of people who lean on and help each other out. E-mail me if you desire more information about that group.
As far as Bear goes, he has no vision and we do not think he has light perception. There is a definite possibility that he will also lose his hearing. We keep a check on it, but we do not dwell on it. Bear loves music and has terrific rhythm. He has an amazing sense of humor and a really interesting understanding of things.
I do not think there are many blogs that share the day to day nitty gritty of raising a blind child. I won't say that it is more difficult than raising a sighted child, but it is definitely different. There are things that come up and things that must be taught that a parent of a sighted child would never have to think about. I will be very honest and share the good and bad days as well as how I handle it as a parent. It is my hope that maybe I can help you and sometimes you can help me too. I hope that you will enjoy reading about Bearz View on the world

Blessings to you,
BEARZ Mom