New Year's Update

Now that the holiday's have come to an end, I finally have time to update everyone about what we've been up to the last couple of weeks.

First and foremost, this past Wednesday was Ryker's evaluation at the Fraser Center in Minneapolis. If you missed my previous post about Ryker's challenges, click HERE. The team was amazing and so, so understanding of us and our little man! As we had suspected, he was diagnosed with Autism. Our lives have been turned inside out, but we are hopeful. No one wants their child to be autistic, but this will not define him-- nor will it define our family. He is still the same little man he was before his diagnosis and it can only get better from here. The diagnosis has opened doors for him that were impossible to open before. He can have access to more therapy, an autistic preschool, and many other services. So, although it saddens us that he has this challenge in his life, we are grateful to have caught as early as we have. I have known deep in my heart for a few months now that this day would come, so I have been through the "grieving" process already...which is why I am able to look at his diagnosis in a different light. It's a relief, really. Before, I was so frustrated that I couldn't get him what he needed-- now I can! He is an amazing child and has taught me more in his young life than I could have ever imagined!

We are getting used to the GFCF (gluten-free/casein-free) diet. It was overwhelming at first, but it has become easier. I've been able to make a lot of the normal foods with substitutes and tweaks. Sometimes it turns out good... other times not so much. :)

In other news... Makaylin has expanded her vocabulary like crazy in the last couple of weeks! She knows the names of most animals, can recognize letters, shapes, and colors. My favorite new word of hers is "robot". It really sounds more like "wobaaaa"--so cute! It is so crazy how much she has learned lately! She is signed up for ECFE classes again that start next month, so we are looking forward to going back to school!