Three things I've learned this summer

Hi everyone! Today, I am linking up to my other blog, Mrs. Miracle's Music Room, to post about three things I've learned this summer.
I know...because I've already blogged about this at my other blog, I've written about three things I've learned, so this seems silly! But since this blog is about my daughter Macy's speech development, I'm going to blog about three things I've learned about her and her development this summer!

#1: I can create things to help my daughter's speech development!

I had an "A-ha" moment early this summer, when I realized, "Hey, I have all of this clip art and all of these borders for my TpT store...why don't I use it to help out my daughter?!?!" So I did. I created these cards, shown below, for Macy to learn her animals. At first, she just said a few of the animals, and then she started naming every single animal. Even cuter? She said the words "that's right!" in between all of the cards, as in, "Sheep! That's right...sheep!" Um, I think I must say those words A LOT!

You can download the cards for free by clicking on the picture below!

I have also created other cards...houses, windows, of family members, etc. It's been so fun to watch her learn new words!

#2: Child development is a complex thing...

So we've had Macy in speech therapy since October, and it has been wonderful. However, we were still seeing some signs that she wasn't exactly "typical." Sometimes, we'd call her name several times before she would look up, and she still often preferred to play by herself. Then, there were other slight oddities, like the fact that she likes to have a blanket on her A LOT, and that she tracks movement with her eyes and spins around while she does this. She's also a pretty picky eater. Our speech therapist suggested we might get her evaluated, and that she might have sensory issues. We got her evaluated this summer, and she did show some somewhat atypical symptoms in the visual and sensory areas. They didn't give her a diagnosis, but thought that she would benefit from OT. We started OT (Occupational Therapy) with her recently, and she LOVES it. First of all, it's like the best playground ever, and secondly, something about the extreme play actually motivates her to talk more. Yay! After her speech therapy, while we were sitting at the dinner table, she looked at each of us, and said, "Hi Mama!" "Hi Dada!" "Hi Jenna!"

She has never done that. I almost cried. 

Child development, as I'm learning, is complex and tiered and different areas overlap with each other...but it appears we are on the right track, so that is good!

#3: More time is awesome

I am SO thankful for being a teacher, for so many reasons, but this summer, I was so thankful to have the time to spend with Macy. Her speech development has grown a ton. She's looking at us in the eye so much more, and she is more socially aware. And I wouldn't trade the times Macy has gotten in my face to give me a kiss, or cuddle, or when she's exclaimed "I'm happy!" No, I wouldn't trade that for the world.

What have you learned this summer? Feel free to hop over to my other blog and link up, or comment below!