This is a collage of what we did this afternoon... GO HAYDEN!
I know what you're thinking... why are images on a movie screen, and a kid passed out in his seat worthy of celebration? The one where he's standing there (seemingly) without a shred of enthusiasm isn't helping either.
Yes, but he lasted through a movie. An entire movie. That is the WOW part. I don't care if his eyes were closed for 20 or 30 minutes of it, and if he still looked half-asleep by the time we left the theater... because my ADHD child actually lasted through an entire movie. (I know, I said that already.)
We have waited nearly a month and a half now for everyone else to go run and see Cars2. We intended to take him on a beautiful day to increase any chance of the theater being pretty empty, but already the show times are extremely limited-- as well as theaters where it's playing.
So even though it was an overcast day when we left for the movie, with a likely chance of rain, we decided it was time to give it a try. I almost changed my mind because he went to the bathroom twice this morning and new outings are generally discouraged on a 'poop-day', but following a third bm after lunch I figured there was nothing left in him to come out.
The movie started late-- or, maybe it's been so long since Dan and I have seen a movie that we forgot about the gap between the ticket-time (2:50) and the actual start-time (3:15ish).
Before the lights dimmed we had to repeatedly remind him it was starting soon, as he kept getting out of his seat. It was a blessing in disguise that we ended up in the back of the theater for that reason alone.
Initially we went in to scope it out, and we planned on sitting in the first row of the 2nd tier-- extra walking room, and the guardrail in front of us instead of someone's back. But after we returned from the concession stand (he wanted all of us to go together), it ended up working out because the rear of the theater meant less attention drawn to us.
We bought two snack options to help him stay seated: a small fifty-dollar popcorn and a seventy-dollar order of nacho chips. The napkins were free. I also had back-up granola bites and cheese crackers in my purse.
Hayden actually thought the previews were the movie but I told him they were commercials, and the Cars movie would be on soon. I think we all enjoyed the short Toy Story animation thrown in there-- he got excited when he saw Buzz and stood up and clapped :) He said, "me have one!" I said, "that's right-- you have Buzz at home!"
He lasted over an hour. UNREAL. Again, he did stand up a bunch of times-- at one point even handed me his sippy cup as a signal that he was ready to go-- but eventually he sat back down. He had been blinking a lot even though he was still hyper, so I knew he was exhausted.
Eventually I looked over and he was asleep.
After the movie ended he was still sleeping. We gently nudged him awake during the credits. The theater was empty at this point, and he looked confused for a moment. But after we got up and headed down the dark hallway to exit, he repeated, "best movie! best movie guys!" With his hand in the air, of course, because he tends to put his palm out when he really wants to emphasize what he's saying.
He continued to thank us for most of the 25-minute drive home.
So, again, GO HAYDEN! This was a WOW day (as his teacher would say)
:-D
Just like Dan, Hayden is completely capable of functioning among messiness for an indefinite amount of time without it ever bothering him.
I am jealous, and I wish this was contagious.
The transmission went on my husband's car (I suppose that's not exactly an UPP, but keep reading) so we borrowed my dad's this week. It's Hayden's favorite.
Hayden likes to give his favorite things a lot of attention. A few days ago he was cleaning it with a washcloth for no apparent reason. The other day after it rained he grabbed a bed sheet and dried it. Then he tried to cover the hood with it:
It wouldn't stretch as much as he wanted but you'll notice he got the sideview. (My apologies, I can't seem to get the picture to rotate.) He told me he wanted to "keep car nice".
Anyway so the next time we went to use it, his shoes got a little wet walking from the house to the car. And when Hayden shimmied himself into his booster seat, he stepped on the edge of the backseat leaving a few blades of grass and some specs of dirt.
He pointed to it and wanted me to clean it. I can not even name how many substances this child has gotten on my backseat, my front seat (sometimes he plays in the driveway, sans keys), the floor, the dashboard, the windows, the doors...and whatever other parts I am not thinking of. But heaven forbid a few blades of grass are on the seat in Poppa Z's car...
He really is a car snob. Just like my dad said. (If you saw the blog post from the other day, I drive a Chevy and my father has a Cadillac-- which I don't think most people would be able to tell from that picture.)
I've missed blogging about a few other instances here and there-- such as Hayden riding his tricycle naked on the way to the bathroom when I was getting his bath ready last night, or this morning when he flushed the toilet so I would get out of the shower, or when I caught him standing on a chair in front of the kitchen sink shaving his face with dishsoap and a paintbrush earlier--
but I'll try to be better about keeping up with his ideas :)
I hate that we have to rely on other people to get through every single work week.
I HATE IT.
The End.
Earlier this evening I was taking an acid reducer-- it was a pill that I swallowed, not chewable-- and Hayden happened to be standing next to me (surprise, surprise).
He asked me what I was doing, and I told him I was taking my medicine.
He said, "Me mes-sin." I said, "you want medicine? I'll give you medicine."
I knew I didn't have any chewable vitamins, but we do have a dissolvable lemon-flavor aspirin powder. I diluted it in way too much water to make it a little more bland, took a sip, and I thought it still tasted like sweet, gritty lemonade-tea. So I added even more water and stirred it to dissolve better. I drank more than half, and then Hayden wanted to try.
He smelled the liquid, and then he stuck his finger in it. I told him that it sort of tasted like iced tea. Over the course of a few minutes, he actually took 2 or 3 sips. Very tiny sips, but he did it.
But wow. Maybe we'll be able to get something in him one day? Maybe?
I can not believe he asked me for medicine. And he actually tasted it.
Wow.
Dan was working late, and sat down to have some dinner just before Hayden's bedtime.
He was talking to Hayden about cars... Cadillacs and Chevys to be specific; Poppa Z's car and my car. All of a sudden Dan blurted out the lyric to the Billy Joel song:
...traded in his Chevy for a Cadillac-ac-ac-ac-ac you ought know by now..."
I found the video on youtube to show Hayden, and then he went to get his keyboard and brought it to the table to play along.
When it was over Hayden put his fists in the air and exclaimed, "Rock Roll!"
Dan said, "Rock n' Roll!"
Hayden said, "Best kid world!"
Dan asked, "You're the best kid in the world?"
Hayden said, "Yeah!"
Dan asked, "Where do you learn these things?"
Hayden exclaimed, "You guys!"
<3
Just this morning I was thinking how I dread the day when Hayden is stronger and faster than I am. Lifting him using the hands-under-arms method is getting pretty tough, but if I use my arms like a harness I can still carry him. Even if he's resisting, I can put my right arm in between his legs and hook my left arm around his torso and at least carry him a short distance.
So our first struggle on this fine Monday was over the fact that Hayden wanted to play in my Dad's truck, and I wanted to take a shower before the physical therapist got to the house. (We are borrowing my Dad's car because the transmission went on my husband's.) Unfortunately the doors were not locked so once he realized he could get inside, he invited some friends to join him. Hayden put Curious George in the backseat with a couple other people from his toy bins. I was still wearing what I slept in, and did not want to go outside unless I had to. So, from the front door I yelled to him to come back inside. Apparently they all refused.
Finally, Hayden got out of the truck at one point and I quickly pushed the lock button on the remote. Eventually, he angrily made his way back in the house. I closed, locked and bolted the door and took my shower.
Our second struggle began when I finished getting ready. Now I needed to clean him up before the therapist arrived, and he didn't want to get off of his swing. I used my harness-hold to get him in his room and he fought me the entire time while I changed him. As soon as I was finished, he unlocked the double-locked door and went back outside. I was straightening up his room and making his bed when I heard the front door open.
This time he was "washing" my Dad's car with his bare hands.
The physical therapist pulled up and he followed her inside. She came in with a scooter, and after H pushed about a dozen or so steps on it he was done. I mean, finished for the remainder of the hour. My original intention was to take him out to lunch today, but following his behavior this morning I was not brave enough.
Later on when it was time to leave for speech therapy, he was not only happy to go but anxious. "See Step-y!" he exclaimed. I said, "yes, you're going to see Stephie!" I heard how well he did when my mom took him there last week, so I was looking forward to seeing him work with her again. (We can only fit her in during summer schedule.)
He started out beautifully and then it turned to musical chairs. Then throwing his hat. Then laying face-down on the floor. Then whatever else he could think of to avoid completing any single task. Every so often he'd calm down enough that she almost had him re-engaged, but it never stuck.
After forty minutes of this she asked if I was ok cutting the session short, and I agreed. Now, of course, he didn't want to leave. I had to carry him to the car and just as we were about to pull away, I heard Hayden say something. I turned around and his seat belt was unbuckled. I told him to put it back, but I couldn't tell if he was really trying or just faking it. Either way, it was still unbuckled.
I got out of the truck and walked around the other side, opened his door, leaned in to reach for the buckle, and he slapped me across the face.
I grabbed his hands in mine, looked him in the eye, and told him he can not hit me. I buckled him in and we left. I had been hoping to take him to DD after speech, and I really did want an iced coffee, but he never cooperated with Stephenie and I thought was a bad idea. I settled on a diet soda from the closest drive-thru. On the menu board I saw that the kids meal toy was a mini instrument, and knew Hayden would love that. I got a 4-piece meal just so I could offer him the toy.
We ended up with a mini piano, which was perfect considering his current obsession with the keyboard from my sister. He immediately reached for it, and I said, "tell me you're sorry for hitting me and I'll give you the toy and the food."
He sulked for five minutes and then fell asleep.
He woke up when I stopped at the mailbox. I told him a new car magazine came today. He wanted to see it, and I reminded him I was waiting for him to tell me sorry. When I pulled in the driveway I think he mumbled it, but it was low and whiney so I said, "what?"
He didn't answer.
I went around to the other side to get him out, and when I opened the door he said, "Sorry, Gad."
"DAD?!"
"Sorry, Mom!"
"Thank you, Hayden. Here's the mini piano, and your food, and the car magazine."
"Kicken in there?" he asked.
"Yes, there's chicken in there."
"Thanks, Mom!"
"You're welcome. Thank you for telling me you're sorry."
At this point I really hoped-- I thought-- we would end the day on a positive note. Until it was time to change him again and he had another meltdown.
After I finally cleaned him up I went to use the bathroom, and by the time I was done he was already outside "fixing" my Dad's car. He found two pieces of scrap wood, put one on each side of the passenger tire, and aimed his toy drill at the headlight.
I stopped him just before he broke something or potentially scratched the $@%# out of it.
...
I was on the phone with my sister a short while ago, and after updating her she asked whether or not we were still considering medication.
I received an email on July 27th, after following up on the status of Hayden's Clinical Trial participation, that they are still waiting for approval and hopefully it won't be much longer.
Not that we have any idea how the heck we're going to get any medicine in him (if you've been following my posts you understand), but on days like today I'm reminded that we likely don't have a choice.
