Bribing for Words!

OliviaMarch3rd2010

Olivia is doing great! Here she proudly says "mama" and even tries to say "car"

After HBOT update

Hi Everyone!

I've been wanting to post a video comparison of Olivia before and after HBOT. Unfortunately my dad's camera isn't working, so I can't take a current video. Hopefully it will be fixed soon.

Olivia is doing wonderfully! She is still saying "mama" on command and has even said it independantly a few times. She has been very cheerful and vocal, singing and playing with her sister. Its funny, now Eve can say "mama" too, but also says it with a scruffy voice like Olivia.

I'm glad we did HBOT, we are unsure if we will do it again, but are considering it. My husband is hoping to hear "daddy" soon.

Day 39

The best way to describe Olivia today would be “cranky butt.” She was miserable gettting out of the car and never fully snapped out of it. Nothing was making her happy. Even so, she gave me no trouble getting into the chamber. She gave a little smile to the tech as we he slid us in. I wonder how the HBOT makes her feel. Honestly, I don't feel much different. However, if we were going in for me, we'd be diving to a stronger pressure.

Yesterday, I didn't blog, but there really wasn't much to say. Olivia was super super happy to be there. Completely opposite of today. Maybe she knows we are finishing tomorrow. I know she will miss them!

Day 37

Olivia did great today! She was happy to be there, happy to get into the chamber, happy in the chamber, and happy after the dive. What more can you ask for? I think alot of it has to do with the people there. She loves them, its a cheerful atmosphere, and always a positive experience. We will miss them.

Olivia is saying “mama” more and more. I got a school note saying that she has showed them how she says it. She is even starting to say it on her own, without a request or in imitation. She has a new sign, “I'm sorry.” She uses this sign upon request at the end of a “time out” session. She is doing better in “time out” as well. She used to get up after about 15 seconds of putting her into a seat. Now, she is able to wait a full minute until we go up to her, discuss why she was put into time out, she signs “I'm sorry,” and then hugs and kisses. (her favorite part) Its something!

We're off tomorrow and then we go Wed, Thurs, Fri to finish!

Day 36

Olivia had big smiles for everyone at the HBOT center today. When I came back from the bathroom, she was snuggling up with the receptionist. I offered to trade jobs with her, I'd work the desk if she'd go in the chamber with Olivia, but she didn't accept. Olivia wasn't too bad today. We had the head of the bed all the way flat, so that offers a little more room for when Olivia likes to lay cheek to cheek. For a few minutes Olivia laid on her back at the foot of the chamber and watched tv. It was a beautiful thing!

Olivia continues to say “mama” upon request. She also says “aga” for again, and today she was repeating “gaga” for grandpa. I hope this continues! I think Daddy is starting to get jealous and has been working with Olivia to say “dada” much more lately.

Only one week left!

Exiting dive 33

Happy coming out and running for a sticker with grandpa!

Olivia After 33 Dives

What a wonderful smile and laugh! You can tell she understands what I'm asking, but is showing her new found defiance!

Day 34

Olivia did very well today. She was happy to be at the HBOT center and went into the chamber with ease. The only issue she had was her need to bite the blankets, my clothes, her hands, the straw, etc. I got nervous a couple times that I was going to accidentally get bit. Luckily, I didn't.

Olivia continues to say “mama.” She isn't calling out to me independently, but when she hears it, she'll repeat it. Its a start! She is pointing nicely, loves to look through books of animals and point to them. She has a book that has big pictures and matching buttons that say their name when you press them. She enjoys pressing those buttons and makes a sound after hearing the word. She understands and wants to repeat the word, but just can't yet. Its coming!

Day 33

Back to the chamber! Its been 2 weeks since our last dive, and we missed it! Olivia has been doing wonderfully. We are very excited with the progress Olivia is making. "Mama" is sticking! She continues to say it with a scruffy voice, but you can tell she's proud of herself! She is also saying "agah" for "again" when we are playing with her and stop, she'll say "agah" and wait for us to continue. She's using it very well and all on her own. She's also using the "more" sign appropriately and on her own.
Only 7 sessions left.

No HBOT today..

The whole family has a cold. We can't go into the chamber because it would be uncomfortable. Olivia enjoyed a day at home and grandma's! If our noses and sinuses are all cleared up, we'll be back in the chamber for Wednesday.

She's saying Mama!

She said "mama" so great, but of course daddy missed it! So we tried to get her to say it again, and she did! (not as good as the one we missed, but oh well) You also get to see adorable eve steal the show (or camera) and say bye!

Counting, pointing, and trying to say mama.

Olivia is counting the pictures on my shirt, she then points to me and attempts to say mama. Eve makes an appearance too showing us how well she is walking and pointing!

Hanging with my favortie friends at HBOT!

Olivia likes the mobiles they have at the center. Happy Thanksgiving! We have so much to be thankful for!

Day 32

Olivia was lively, energetic and happy today! She was alert and excited to interact with people. She had a great day at school and was smiling getting off the bus. After having her snack in the car, she took a nice nap on the drive to the HBOT center. I think she could've slept longer, but we had to wake her when we got there. She woke up slowly, but livened up when she saw her favorite people in the office.

Olivia was very cooperative going into the chamber. She lays right on me and puts her head down. Today the center was full of people, so Olivia waited patiently with her head down on my chest until we slid into the chamber and our movie started. Today we watched “Snow White and the 7 dwarfs.” When that finished, we watched “Lord of the Dance.” Olivia likes the music, singing, dancing, and the rhythm of the tapping and drums.

Olivia was happy during the dive. I can always tell when there is someone outside the chamber nearby because Olivia starts beaming with happy smiles and sounds. She likes to play games with the people outside the chamber. A simple game of putting her hand on the glass and having her playmate matching their hand to hers is great fun.

When we came out of the chamber, Olivia was full of energy and strength. She was pulling me and her favorite people around the office to find the special stickers. She used to not have the strength to pull anyone, usually I had to slow my walking to stay at her speed. Wow, how that has changed! Her happy run looked even more peppy than before. Her legs look much stronger. I'm thinking that they are now strong enough to jump, but she just needs to learn how. I'm also wondering if she still needs her ankle braces. She looks great! When I pick her up and spin her around, her body is much tighter and stronger. She can pull her body into me and bring her knees up. I'm loving it!

Today was our last dive of the week. I'll try to take some home videos to demonstrate her new strength and skills. Our next dive will be next Monday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Day 31

We are in the home stretch! Today was pretty good. It felt more like a Tues. than a Friday. Funny huh? Olivia was tired coming off the school bus and slept the entire ride to the center. . She woke up very sleepy, but happy. She was calm getting into the chamber and for awhile inside.

Then she started army crawling me. She just wanted to get up close to me. I think she wanted to count my freckles, but her nails need trimming, so she was scratching me instead and I had to stop her. She sang a little in the chamber and was pretty calm throughout the dive.

When we came out of the chamber, that all changed! She was super energetic and excited. She was checking out the center and all the people in it. When we finally left, she went running throughout the parking lot.

Olivia is getting a bit more defiant. She'll shake her head “no” when asked to do something that she doesn't want to do. Thats pretty new. She has an opinion now... She used to just go with the flow. I could take a toy away from her and it never phased her. Now, if its something she really likes (like play dough) she'll get mad! Its not making my life easier, but I guess its a good thing developmentally.

This morning we we finished getting Olivia ready for school, I told her we need to get her coat on to go to school. She got all happy and said “go go go!” It was really clear and appropriate!

HBOTOLIVIAwithMommy

Cheek to cheek with Mommy!

OliviaInHBOTchamber

The tech signs "all done" Olivia responds to this and gets ready to come out! She then runs out of the room to get a sticker!

HBOTOlivia

Here Olivia is hanging out. Grandpa tries to play with her, but she's not that interested. She gets very excited when her favorite receptionist comes to visit!

Day 30

Wow! ¾ done! Today was a great dive. The air was cool, Olivia was cute, and the time flew. Olivia stayed up by my pillow today. She went to my side, which is better than right on top of me. The only thing is that she kept wanting to put her face on my face. At first it was cute, her soft little cheek felt nice, but after 20 min or so, it got old. We started playing little tickling and peek-a-boo games, sang some songs together, and then we started counting. Olivia has taken a liking to counting. She can't say the numbers, but she uses her pointer finger, points to objects, and makes the right rhythm and tone of counting. Another really good advance is that now whenever I ask her to say something, anything, she responds back to me with a sound. Its just coming out with vowels or G sounds, but she's trying! I wonder if it sounds right in her head.

Olivia made friends with an elderly lady yesterday as we were waiting to be seen for an appointment. This woman was talking to Olivia, showing her the jewelry she was wearing, and asking her questions. I told the woman Olivia didn't talk, but she kept asking her questions and to repeat words. This woman told me that 16 years ago, she had suffered a stroke. When she came out of the stroke, she thought she was talking, but no one understood her. She said it took 6 years of speech therapy to regain her ability to speak intelligibly. She said she thought Olivia was talking, but we aren't understanding her. Maybe she's right. I'll try to listen harder.