Last Two Weeks

We have been busy since my last update! We went to a picnic for foster parents in our region, and Raul LOVED the fire truck they had for kids to explore. He also explored a SWAT vehicle, and we watched a K9 dog exhibition. The even was held on the ocean, so we also saw lots of boats. It was fun to get to see lots of other foster families, and my mom got to meet my social worker.

 The next weekend we went to Rockport for one night, and met up with my grandparents for lunch and a walk. Raul loved being in Rockport! He could scoot through the whole house because there were wood floors, and he really explored a lot. He also liked being with the whole family in one place and having everyone to play with all the time! The next day we took Raul to a Touch a Truck event! There were about 30 vehicles that kids could sit in, honk the horns, explore, and look at. Raul got to sit in the drivers seat of an ambulance, dump truck, police car, Prius, and check out the back of a moving truck. We looked at all the different trucks. Raul was a bit overwhelmed by the noise, but once we got in the car he kept saying "car, car" and "truck, truck". He of course liked the fire truck best!

The last few weeks Raul has had his school assessments for starting preschool after his birthday. Because he is in Early Intervention, once you turn three you transition into public school preschool. Raul is going to be in the intensive needs class, which unfortunately is further from home, but it seemed like the best placement for him. He will receive his PT, OT, and speech in school, and also get to spend time with the other kids in the classroom. He did so well during his assessments! Even during circle time when he was a bit overwhelmed by the clapping when they introduced each child. There were eight other kids, and Raul even shared cars with a few of the boys both weeks. The second week he also sat at the table to do some stringing beads, puzzles, playdoh, and Mr. Potato Head work. We have his IEP meeting this coming Monday, and he will start school on October 22nd!

Raul has been having a lot of trouble lately with choking and gagging on his secretions. He has a lot of mucous in his secretions, and it is really hard to get it out. He gets so scared when he chokes, and it seems to hurt too. Yesterday it was so bad that he actually threw up formula twice. Then his voice was high pitched and hoarse, and totally totally gone. This means he liked aspirated, and irritated his upper airway and vocal chords. Because of his EB, that skin is super sensitive, just like his external skin, so the aspiration can cause a lot of irritation. He was also started back on antibiotics yesterday at the doctor as he had a 103 fever during the day, and the skin around his wounds looked somewhat red. Luckily his blood work looked pretty good, and he should be able to make it a few more weeks at least before his next blood transfusion! 

You can hear how Raul's voice is affected in this video: