To answer your question, "What's going on with Theo's adenoids and all that?"

I think I'm going out of my mind. Phone calls, appointments, tests, more phone calls, and I still don't know anything and nothing changes. This frustration keeps me at a high stress level constantly and I feel so helpless. I can't help but feel like it's my fault and other moms would have gotten this solved long ago. I feel like there's more I should be doing but I'll be damned if I know what.

The spark for this vent was a call from the ENT, saying the xrays showed the adenoids are not obstructive and at this point, Theo needs nothing done. Nothing removed, no tubes, just more nasal spray. And check back with him in a month. His decision is based on the xrays, and the sleep apnea test that wasn't as bad as we thought it would be (only 2 apneas, despite snoring).

I have appointments now to see him again, to see an allergist to see if maybe there's something there, and to see a neurologist, where he will hopefully have his awful PDD title removed. I have an appointment on Wednesday at CPSE to start the evaluation process so that if necessary, and it most likely will be, he can start his schooling by September.

Appointments, appointments, appointments. Since we started the year of appointments August 2005, I'm trying to access the progress that his been made. In that year, we've learned that Theo has fluid in his ears that comes and goes. But he scored perfectly on his hearing test. We learned that one doctor thought he was on the autism spectrum and that we do not agree, but we are not in denial either. Theo receives treatment as though he were on the spectrum. He's got his early intervention, his two speech therapists, and that's the only real, tangible thing that has been done for him. He has really come a long way with his therapy. When they started, he said nothing. Now he says many words and is starting to grasp 2 word phrasing and at the very least, the concept of a sentence. He knows his colors, numbers, and letters.

He is a happy child. I try to hold on to that. If we can get him caught up by grade school, nothing would make me happier. I think at the rate he's going now, that is entirely possible, even likely. The move now is to get him out of the daycare where he hears what is probably 75% Spanish, and into a learning environment suited to encourage his use of language. For a while I thought it was best to keep him with "normal" kids his age so he can jump to their level, but I was wrong. Now I realize that he needs the specialized attention and work this CPSE program can provide, and not to mention being in a larger facility with more physical space to play as opposed to the tiny room he's in now.

I know I started this entry in a frenzy, and I almost erased the first paragraph. But such is my train of thought. Here it is for my loved ones to experience with me.