Update

It's been forever since I updated the blog, I know! It just seems that we've settled into so much more of a routine now that there's not as much to report anymore. We really haven't taken many pictures lately, either. It's been a long, cold, snowy winter here, so we've all pretty much been homebodies!

Katie has had a few routine doctor appointments this winter. She went to see her craniofacial surgeon in November. He sees her yearly to check her cleft lip and palate to make sure everything still looks OK. He saw no changes since the previous year--everything still looks good.

In January, she went to the dentist for her six-month check-up. She did really well there--I think this is the first time we didn't have to hold her down for him to look in her mouth. He said her teeth look good--no cavities. However, he said he's probably going to have to pull her two top front teeth if they haven't come out on their own by the next time he sees her. Those teeth are abnormal looking because of her cleft, and they are currently capped. He said we'll probably need to take an x-ray to see if any permanent teeth are in those spots.

Last week, Katie saw her ophthalmologist. She did really well for this appointment, too. Her eyes looked really good--no changes in her prescription since 18 months ago. We are probably going to get new glasses over Spring Break, though, because her current ones are pretty scratched up.

Katie also had an augmentative communication evaluation last month. Since she still doesn't use a lot of expressive sign and also has trouble forming many of the signs because of motor planning issues, they wanted to see if maybe she might benefit from some augmentative communication in addition to her signing, in order to be able to request things and express her feelings more. She caught on quickly to the device they tested her with and seemed to really enjoy using it, so the speech therapist recommended a Dynavox Maestro for her. It will take about five to six months to get it by the time all the referrals, paperwork, and insurance approvals are done, so we'll probably have it by early summer. That will give us some practice with it at home before Katie takes it to school with her in August. We hope she's able to master it quickly and that it gives her more of a voice and some independence in her communication.

Other than that, nothing out of the ordinary has been happening. Katie continues to do well in school and is going to day camp a couple Saturdays a month, which she still enjoys. We're just waiting for spring to arrive so we can get outside and enjoy some warm weather for a change!