Posts Tagged ‘journey’

A Journey Through Infant Development: The Sixth Month

Saturday, March 27th, 2010

Development is a complex process, and truly amazing when you break it down. Each little gain that a child makes is a miracle, especially when you begin to look at the complexity of the brain. The ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) is the part of the brain used to read and understand emotions. This is one small part of the brain; but what if this part of the brain isn??t firing at the same time as the part that comprehends the words coming in with the facial expressions? A lot of meaning within communication would be missed. Research shows that the brains of children with autism do not fire as quickly as children who are developing neuro-typically. It??s not because of anything the parents have done (or not done) while raising their child with autism that caused their child to develop this neurological disorder. Instead, for whatever reason, the child??s brain is not firing as quickly as a child on a neuro-typical pathway. As a result, a child with autism can miss many of the vital points of development.


Over the past several months, I have written about observations I??ve made about my son. With each child that develops neuro-typically, you will see common goals being reached. Are these things you have noticed in each of your children as they developed? Are you or other people the most important thing in your child??s environment? Below are more things that I have observed about my son, now 6 months old:




  • You continue to become more aware of your surroundings. I can no longer lay you down in bed and simply walk out. You know whether or not I??m in the room and you scream the second I walk away. If I come back, you stop screaming once you see me and give me a huge smile, like saying ??I just won!??


  • A month ago, you were just starting to roll over; but now you roll over and over and over again. You find yourself in many interesting places around the house, such as getting stuck under a blanket, under the coffee table, or you??ve rolled away from your toys and can??t seem to get back. You look to me for help, and I??m always happy to come and pull you out of the trouble you??ve gotten into.


  • I took you out for coffee with me the other day to meet a girlfriend of mine and her 8-month old son. The two of you found each other immediately, and began to communicate instantly. You??d scream, and then he??d scream back. You??d hit the table with your hand, and then he??d do the same thing. The two of you also began to fight over the same ??toys?? ?? you both seemed to like the crinkly paper best!


  • You are so interested in everything around you! You love to explore new things, and I can??t keep up with your grabby hands. I??ll be changing your diaper, and you??ll pull a blanket over your head. If you are sitting on my lap at the table, everything within reach is in your mouth or on the floor. You are also grabbing at my face, jewelry, or hair all the time. I know we are going to be in trouble when you start crawling!


  • It??s clear that you recognize people who are familiar to you. You always give daddy the biggest welcome when he comes home. You also give a scream when your sisters are coming toward you. The other day we visited grandma in the hospital, and she looked different than normal. You looked at her and studied her, but would not let her give you the hugs and kisses you normally receive. Once grandpa took you, you settled right down; but you wouldn??t take your eyes off grandma. The amount of time you study and observe things is fascinating. You did eventually warm up to her.


  • You played peek-a-boo with daddy, and laughed harder than I??ve ever seen before. Daddy started pulling the blanket off his own head, and almost immediately you were reaching for the blanket to pull it off. Daddy would make a funny face or say ??boo,?? and you would crack up. Then daddy put the blanket over your head, and you figured out immediately to pull it off and laugh even harder. Soon daddy would run off and hide after he put the blanket over you, and you would immediately look around to find him. Once you found him, you would laugh harder yet. We all were in tears laughing with you. I noticed later that if I walked into a different room, you would keep looking at the door waiting for me to walk back out. What an awesome and fun development!


  • You love listening to the sound of your voice. I hear you practicing all kinds of sounds now: ??aaaaaa, dadadadada, phthththth?? – as spit flies! You think that??s really funny!

If you find that some or all of the developmental goals that my son is making have been missed by your child, consider the RDI??? approach to bring your child back to the neuro-typical pathway of development. This is a great quote to keep in mind as we forge through the journey of development, which at times can be very trying: ??Forget the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey instead!?? (Dove??? PROMISES??? Message) The RDI??? journey may be hard, but the outcome won??t disappoint!

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A Journey through Infant Development: The Third Month

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

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A Journey Through Infant Development: The Ninth Month

Sunday, December 27th, 2009

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A Journey Through Infant Development: The Fifth Month

Friday, July 24th, 2009

This has been an amazing journey, and I thank all who have joined me in it! The feedback has been great, and I’m so glad to have you share this amazing adventure. This past month has proven to be a time of even more milestones in my infant son’s development. How is it that infants can grow so much in such little time?

  • You continue to grow so quickly. The thing that amazes me most about your last month of development is your ability to notice everything around you, and then grab for any and everything! What once used to be an easy trip to a restaurant now proves to be much more of a challenge. Your ability to seek something out and then grab it in an instant is amazing! My beverage, plate of food etc. must be on the other side of the table, or you are diving forward to grab it.
  • You are much more intrigued by things now, and are beginning to explore more. For instance, my earrings and grandma’s glasses are easily captured, and must be removed before holding on to you. If you do get a hold of them, they go instantly to your mouth.
  • Rolling over has become much easier, and you’ve almost reached the goal of rolling from your back to your front. Several times now, I’ve seen you roll to the side to grab something. If it weren’t for your arm getting in the way, you would have found your way over to your stomach by now. It won’t be long!
  • I thought that feeding you last month was difficult, but has it ever become more of a challenge now. Both your grandma and aunt made note of that as well when they were taking care of you and trying to give you a bottle. They both asked me, “How on earth do you feed this boy? He is so nosey!” I just simply agree, and say that I do the best I can. It’s quite a trick to hold the bottle and move it along with your constantly moving head.
  • You are beginning to pick up on social routines now. When you are holding on to something, you like to put both hands up over your head. When you do that, we say “So big!” You then smile, and put your hands back down. Seconds later those little arms are stretching up high again. I haven’t yet seen you put your arms up because we say “So big,” but that should come soon as well. Another little game you like to play is “peek-a-boo.” We are at a very early stage of it, but you think you are hilarious. When you are under a blanket and I pull it off, you look around like “Here I am world” with a glowing face, making sure that everybody is watching.
  • The mornings are much better now. When you wake up, you lay in bed and practice talking. This happens after your naps now, too. It’s so nice to be at the stage where you don’t need to eat the second you get up.
  • You have eaten your first solids. That process is so amazing to me as well. The first spoonful that went into your mouth immediately came out, as you had no idea how to use your tongue for swallowing. You pulled the funniest face, and your sisters got a big kick out of that. Now you are able to get about half the food down while the rest goes all over your bib, which you like to pick up and smear all over your face. It’s quite a messy process. You have no idea how to drink from a sippy cup yet, but we occasionally put one in front of you just to keep trying.

I continue to look at the gains my little boy is making each month, and am blown away by how quickly this stuff really develops. As an RDIฎ consultant, I have come to understand and cherish each one of these foundational gains in his development. Has your baby missed any of these critical steps in development? Does your child with autism lack any of these abilities? RDIฎ is a development-based program that evaluates these early foundations in development, and fills any missed ones through age appropriate approaches. The gains we have seen children make have been fascinating. If you see these as gaps in the development of your child(ren)Article Submission, I hope you come to join us as we revisit this journey through remedial development with our RDIฎ families.

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A Journey Through Infant Development: The Seventh Month

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009

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A Journey Through Infant Development: The Fourth Month

Monday, May 4th, 2009

It’s already been four months since our little man joined our family, and I can’t remember life without him. He has been such a joy to have in our family. When I was pregnant and thought about what it would be like, I couldn’t imagine a baby being added to our already busy lives. I look back now and wonder how it was that I found as much joy in life as I do now with another wonderful child. It kind of makes me wonder what other beautiful characteristics could be added to our family with yet another. What am I missing? I won’t go there, though; three children are plenty! Here continue my reflections for my baby boy:

  • You are so funny! You already know what gets a reaction out of us. You started coughing the other day and I responded with “Oh, you’ve got a bad cough,” in that annoying motherly voice that we adults all use with babies. You found that to be quite hilarious, so you began this silly fake cough that then made me laugh. We had some good laughs about that. The next day I was laying you down for a nap when you looked right up at me and coughed, and then gave me a big smile. You remembered that it made me laugh before, and you threw it out there again.
  • On the same note, you are now becoming quite opinionated. If you don’t like something, you let us know – this horrifying scream comes out of your mouth! It’s not a cry, but a “I’m being attacked” kind of scream. It’s usually for good reason though; like when your sisters are on the attack or when I’m trying to clean out your ears or nose. I guess I don’t blame you – I’d probably scream too.
  • At the beginning of the month, I held you up in front of a mirror and you saw me. You kicked your legs and smiled at me through the mirror. I even saw some gaze shifting as you were looking between me and my image in the mirror. You looked at yourself and didn’t know what you were looking at, so you quickly shifted your gaze back to me. Just a few weeks later I did the same thing, and you looked at me first; but when you caught yourself in the mirror you were quite impressed by the handsome little thing you were looking at, which was evident in your kicks and squeals.
  • This was a big month for strengthening motor skills. Your sense of balance and ability to hold yourself up is getting much better. You can sit with much less assistance now, but not independently. You fold in half once your start to reach for something, and get stuck in that position. I find it quite hysterical, but you aren’t so fond of it. You also rolled over from your stomach to your back for the first time. When it first happened you had a look of shock on your face, as you had no idea what just happened to you. You settled down quickly, though, as you saw the toys that were once behind you were now right above you. The next time you rolled over, there were no toys to stare at; so you cried until your oldest sister was in your face, and you realized you were fine. Then the scream returned.
  • Your reach is getting much better. You are so cute when you are focused on trying to grab something. Your lips round out and your eyes get all buggy. You are concentrating so hard on being able to reach and open those precious little fingers. When you grab on, the look on your face is priceless. You are so proud of yourself! Just achieving this goal is a reward in itself!
  • Feeding you is getting much more difficult. As you are drinking your milk, you will turn to see what is going on around you and forget that you are eating. Once you turn back, you see me, then smile. I of course have to smile back. This then turns into a game. You suck once and then smile. This is fun for about three or four times; but I eventually have to look away so you’ll eat, or we’d be there all day!
  • You love to play with your voice. You are making so many sounds, and playing with the intonations while you make your “oohs” and “ahhs”. Watching these early forms of communication already developing in you is so amazing.

Isn’t it amazing how much develops in an infant in one short month? The best part about having infant development at home is that I can take the early objectives in the Relationship Development Intervention (RDIฎ) program and see how perfectly they fit into infant development. What seem like such small achievements are so critical to human development. Can you imagine speech without the use of intonations? It would be boring. Can you imagine communication without the feedback of facial expressions? It would be meaningless. Through RDIฎ, we start with such foundational objectives so that kids who missed this the first time can have a second chance at developing these critical components of development. I had a family describe these foundational objectives to me this way: “I tell people that my son is a building, and that there are several gaps in the building that are missing. If we don’t do something now, as the building continues to get taller it will become even more unsteady. We need to go back and fill in the gaps so he can have a solid foundation.” This is a great way to look at itPsychology Articles, and a wonderful way to summarize the RDIฎ program.

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A Journey Through Infant Development: The First 12 Weeks

Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009

I am currently enjoying the amazing experience of having newborn development right under my nose. My son is now 12 weeks old, and I see such amazing differences in him on a daily basis. It’s incredible how much children grow and develop in only a few weeks time.� No wonder babies sleep so much given the amount they are learning each day! We would all have to sleep that much if we were processing and learning everything for the first time! As my little guy is growing, I’ve taken some time to reflect on what I’ve seen so I can share this information with him when he’s older. Here are my notes to my son about his early development:

2 weeks old: You are growing so much! I just love to cuddle with you on the couch as you sleep, but it doesn’t happen often with two older sisters in the house.� I treasure the time I spend with you in the middle of the night when the house is dark and quiet. I’ll be happy to sleep through the night again, but I know it won’t be long before you are awake more often during the day and will be more interested in other things than cuddling with your mom.

4 weeks old: You are starting to be awake more now.� You are eating more, which is helping you sleep longer stretches at night. You’re vision is obviously getting clearer, as you are beginning to notice our faces. I can’t wait to see you smile for the first time. I know it’s coming soon!

6 weeks old: What a difference two weeks makes! You are now smiling, but it’s not without effort. It makes you very tired to figure out that beautiful facial expression. I’ll start talking to you with a smile, and you’ll respond with your lips out, then a kick, then your head turns to the side, then your arms flair out, then a yawn—and then, for one precious second, you’ll give me a smile while looking right at me. That second passes quickly, and you’ve done all you can for the time you are awake. Another yawn and you are ready to rest. I’m ok with that, because I know there are more to come when you wake again.

8 weeks old: You smile all the time now! It’s amazing how easily the smile comes compared to two weeks ago. When your dad walks near you, your arms and legs start moving and a big beautiful smile radiates across your face. We can’t get enough of that beautiful smile, and yet already we are pushing for a little giggle. It’s starting to come now. I hear a little grunt, and I can tell you want to giggle but aren’t quite sure what those funny sensations of a tickle are yet. �We love the beginning sounds of your giggle, and are anticipating you laughing soon.

10 weeks old: You have been nick-named ‘guy smiley,’ because anytime you see someone you give a big radiating smile. You are now giggling easily, and your sisters love to make you laugh. You are following a typical developmental path, as it’s already evident that you enjoy the dynamic world.� What once made you giggle (other than tickles) is no longer as funny; we have to work harder or try something new. It’s the new, unexpected things that make you giggle. It’s amazing to me how you are already picking up on patterns in your life and anticipate the continuance of something you enjoy. Your dad was tickling you the other day, and when he would pause before he tickled you would giggle in anticipation. It’s so fascinating to see this already!

12 weeks old: You are now visually scanning and tracking what’s in the environment all the time. Lying down is getting boring because you can’t see what’s going on around you. You love to sit in your exersaucer and watch your sisters play, but you do get tired quickly in it as you are still developing head and neck strength. It won’t be long before you’re bouncing up and down in it. You are also beginning to notice toys, which is new this week. You like the black and white visual contrast, and are more interested in toys with faces than toys without. You are also starting to vocalize, and you love to play with the intonation of your voice. The baby babble is so cute!

If you are the parent of a child with autism, reading about the developmental progress I’m noticing in my infant may be difficult for you.� It may cause you to stop and reflect on the fact that some of these developmental milestones are not yet in place for your child. To me, this is one of the most important reasons to choose Relationship Development Intervention (RDI)า as your primary treatment approach. You will learn to guide your child to develop these critical developmental milestones that occur in the early months and years of life.� You will receive guidance to understand your child’s development in a new way, and to begin building the foundations necessary for more advanced communication and relationships. Is your child missing some of the milestones I’m seeing in my son? If soFree Articles, RDIา can help you fill in those gaps so that you and your child can get back on the neurotypical pathway and have a second chance at development.

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