We are celebrating two thanksgivings this year. It's not that unusual for us to do so since my parents are both from Canada and we have celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving with them in October. However this is a special Thanksgiving year for us as we celebrated early with the visit of Alicia and her daughter Lorelai. (See photos) We will be spending our second Thanksgiving on Thursday with Holly's parents at Smith Mountain Lake.
This season I am thankful that God has allowed me to attend Liberty University and gain new teaching skills. Working toward certification and licensure is not an easy process. Under the new legislation, "No Child Left Behind Act", all school systems need to show that their teachers are "highly qualified". Although this term is not clearly defined, the state of Virginia demonstrates teacher skill through testing. Most teachers need to take the Virginia Communication and Literacy Assessment (VCLA) or the Praxis 1, AND the Praxis 2. Special educators take the Virginia Reading Assessment exam. Students like myself, (those seeking double certification) must take all three exams. On Monday I took the four hour VCLA test. Unofficial reports show that I scored 97% in the Reading subtest while scoring 85% in the Writing subtest. Of course official scores will be mailed to me. In January I will take the VRA (a much harder test) that examines a student's readiness for special education work.
Samuel celebrated his fifth birthday this week. In addition to a party with his family, Sammy is having fun with his new remote controlled car. We have the perfect basement for such toys. Steven can't wait for March when we celebrate his 7th birthday. He never had a party before. I wonder if anyone ever celebrated his birthday. This will also be the first year Steven celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ.
The close of 2009 also marks the beginnning of an expensive but necessary readoption process for our two sons. Because Steven's official birthdate is inaccurate (by 2 years), we need to legally change the date and go through a readoption. So we will do it with both boys. This way, they will receive an official US birth certificate (which comes in very handy these days).
May your thanksgiving celebration focus your gratefulness upward as you praise God for his great goodness and grace.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
Congratulations Amy!
Another milestone was reached in the Nauss household. Amy passed her drivers examination and now has her provisional license! Congratulations to our 18 year old daughter. Notice her new braces! Now pray that she will find a job so she can put gas in the car and save money for her own vehicle.
Samuel turns 5 on Tuesday. Alicia will be here with baby to celebrate it. We'll share pictures on our next blog. Yesterday he told Santa Claus that he wants a kids digital camera. (Consequently, Steven said the same thing!) We went to Sam's school yesterday for a class presentation. They dressed as Indians and sang songs. How cute!
Steven has just been approved by the school system to receive occupational therapy. So they wrote up an addendum for his IEP. Whoever wrote it doesn't know a thing about arthrogryposis and has made both lofty and unrealistic goals for Steven's progress. "By 6/4/2010,Steven will improve bilateral coordination and overal proximal stabilty by 50% in order to maximize performance during functional mobility and school related tasks." This progress is measured by observation. How are they going to measure 50% improvement through observation? "BY 6/4/2010, Steven will improve developmental hand skils by 50% in order ot maximize performance during finre motor and graphomotor tasks."Again, this is measured through observation. If they accomplish this feat, they will have reversed Steven's condition! "By 6/4/2010, Steven will improve graphomotor skills by 75% in order to perform within the classroom setting." Again, if this were to occur, Steven would be miraculously cured. Remember that his condition, although non-progressive, he has contractures in his upper and lower extremities. His joints have bone deformities and he lacks physical muscle tissue. There are reasons why he is unable to clap his hands or turn his palms upwards. He is unable to bend his legs. (There is absence of a patella.) However, we will allow the school to work with him because he can benefit from OT and we're thankful that the school really wants to help Steven develop and grow.
They boys have been riding the horses at the therapeudic riding center and are developing good balance and posture. We'll have to take some pictures. Hopefully in the spring, they will learn to trot and begin to rein. This free program for children with special needs is a real blessing, especially for children suffering from Autism. Please pray that Spirithorse will receive a grant to build an indoor riding ring which is so desperately needed.
Holly still has lettuce, swiss chard and spinach in her garden! It's amazing to have fresh produce so late in the season!
Roger has been working part time, very sporadically as a substitute teacher. It has been a very interesting experience. Some of the kids say that he's the best sub; (it could be they are buttering him up or he's too easy with the kids). One kid said, "I learned more from you in one class session than what the teacher taught in a week! More lard I think.
Enjoy our latest photos. Have a blessed Thanksgiving! "O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His mercy endures forever."
Samuel turns 5 on Tuesday. Alicia will be here with baby to celebrate it. We'll share pictures on our next blog. Yesterday he told Santa Claus that he wants a kids digital camera. (Consequently, Steven said the same thing!) We went to Sam's school yesterday for a class presentation. They dressed as Indians and sang songs. How cute!
Steven has just been approved by the school system to receive occupational therapy. So they wrote up an addendum for his IEP. Whoever wrote it doesn't know a thing about arthrogryposis and has made both lofty and unrealistic goals for Steven's progress. "By 6/4/2010,Steven will improve bilateral coordination and overal proximal stabilty by 50% in order to maximize performance during functional mobility and school related tasks." This progress is measured by observation. How are they going to measure 50% improvement through observation? "BY 6/4/2010, Steven will improve developmental hand skils by 50% in order ot maximize performance during finre motor and graphomotor tasks."Again, this is measured through observation. If they accomplish this feat, they will have reversed Steven's condition! "By 6/4/2010, Steven will improve graphomotor skills by 75% in order to perform within the classroom setting." Again, if this were to occur, Steven would be miraculously cured. Remember that his condition, although non-progressive, he has contractures in his upper and lower extremities. His joints have bone deformities and he lacks physical muscle tissue. There are reasons why he is unable to clap his hands or turn his palms upwards. He is unable to bend his legs. (There is absence of a patella.) However, we will allow the school to work with him because he can benefit from OT and we're thankful that the school really wants to help Steven develop and grow.
They boys have been riding the horses at the therapeudic riding center and are developing good balance and posture. We'll have to take some pictures. Hopefully in the spring, they will learn to trot and begin to rein. This free program for children with special needs is a real blessing, especially for children suffering from Autism. Please pray that Spirithorse will receive a grant to build an indoor riding ring which is so desperately needed.
Holly still has lettuce, swiss chard and spinach in her garden! It's amazing to have fresh produce so late in the season!
Roger has been working part time, very sporadically as a substitute teacher. It has been a very interesting experience. Some of the kids say that he's the best sub; (it could be they are buttering him up or he's too easy with the kids). One kid said, "I learned more from you in one class session than what the teacher taught in a week! More lard I think.
Enjoy our latest photos. Have a blessed Thanksgiving! "O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His mercy endures forever."
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Shriner's Checkup
Shriner's Hospital for Children is perhaps the most awesome hospital dedicated for the healing of children with various orthopedic issues. Both Steven and Samuel were seen by the specialists this time.
Steven's visit revealed improvement with his range of motion in his upper extremities. We attribute this to allowing him to be a kid and play outdoors. There has not been any signficant change with his lower limbs. The occupational therapists feel that Steven is doing very well. As far as future prognosis, the doctors believe Steven would benefit from genetic tests to determine his type of arthrogryposis. Then they may be able to plot a more specific plan of action as Steven grows and develops. If his knees bend inward too much, they can insert plates to straighten out his limbs and improve his gait. This does not mean that his knees will bend. In fact, they feel if they perform surgery to release his lower limbs, there may be detrimental results. Steven begins occupational therapy in school very soon. They will help him to perform basic functions of daily life such as button, tie, snap etc... .
Samuel also visited with the doctor. X-rays showed that Samuel has an elbow (this is good), but his radial is detached (not unusual for his condition). They are impressed with Samuel's ability to adapt. He met with a pediatric orthopedist who construct prosthetic devices for children. He believes that Samuel would not benefit from the artificial limbs. However, if Samuel wanted to play a musical instrument, Shriners will construct a special limb to accommodate the instrument. He told us of a man who built a saxophone that could be played with one hand.
On a side note, we're doing our best to keep dry as the hurricane Ida (now a tropical storm) moves up the coast, dropping several inches of rain in its wake. Thank the Lord we are perched on a hilltop and have received very little water in our basement.
Visit our site soon for other family news.
Steven's visit revealed improvement with his range of motion in his upper extremities. We attribute this to allowing him to be a kid and play outdoors. There has not been any signficant change with his lower limbs. The occupational therapists feel that Steven is doing very well. As far as future prognosis, the doctors believe Steven would benefit from genetic tests to determine his type of arthrogryposis. Then they may be able to plot a more specific plan of action as Steven grows and develops. If his knees bend inward too much, they can insert plates to straighten out his limbs and improve his gait. This does not mean that his knees will bend. In fact, they feel if they perform surgery to release his lower limbs, there may be detrimental results. Steven begins occupational therapy in school very soon. They will help him to perform basic functions of daily life such as button, tie, snap etc... .
Samuel also visited with the doctor. X-rays showed that Samuel has an elbow (this is good), but his radial is detached (not unusual for his condition). They are impressed with Samuel's ability to adapt. He met with a pediatric orthopedist who construct prosthetic devices for children. He believes that Samuel would not benefit from the artificial limbs. However, if Samuel wanted to play a musical instrument, Shriners will construct a special limb to accommodate the instrument. He told us of a man who built a saxophone that could be played with one hand.
On a side note, we're doing our best to keep dry as the hurricane Ida (now a tropical storm) moves up the coast, dropping several inches of rain in its wake. Thank the Lord we are perched on a hilltop and have received very little water in our basement.
Visit our site soon for other family news.
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