Tales of a Giant Toddler

See the picture below?

I have a giant baby. Well, I guess he's a giant toddler now. I was trying to take a picture of his new boots because it got just a tiny bit cool in the air so we decided it was time for boots!

But, alas, my child is just too big and I am just not talented enough to take a picture and hold this giant child at the same time. So no picture of the boots. But, instead, I got a picture of a child that seems half my size. Yowza! And I not-so-secretly love this picture because look how relaxed he is! No arching, no extension! It's given us some problems with head control BUT (and this is a nice "but") it allows for some very comfy snuggling time.

So guess what the giant toddler got today...a light box!

What's a light box, you ask? It's a big box that illuminates while different shapes and colors are placed on it and light shines through. This allows Christian to use his vision to see shapes and colors using contrasting light. Our wonderful vision therapist from ASDB brought this toy for us to play with for a while. 

Look, Lola helping Christian understand just how it works. Such a good little helper! 

Another great sensory toy that I've known about for a while is the space blanket! No, Christian isn't cold. This is a regular camping blanket sold at Walmart for just over $2. It's huge and it's such a great sensory tool. Christian can touch it, pull it, hear it, and see it. Every time he moves underneath it, he gets some kind of feedback and/or sensory input. I put the blanket on him to get him going and it works every time. He can't resist the space blanket!

And what do giant babies that turn into giant toddlers get to sleep in? A crib? No way! Not anymore! The giant toddler gets a big boy bed! And not just any big boy bed. No. This bed is actually specially made for Christian by his awesome daddy. He built the frame tall enough so that lifting the giant toddler wouldn't be hard on our backs. The base was welded together and painted and allows enough storage for our home hyperbarics chamber. It looks small because it's deflated, but when it's inflated it's bigger. We'll use underneath the bed to store it and roll it out for HBOT sessions (which will be starting again soon).

This giant boy is definitely a lucky boy. I've been noticing some good things lately. Christian now has very different cries. Without looking at him I know his tired cry. He has a different cry for when he's hurt, he has a whimper that sounds like a puppy, and he also whines until he's held. Then he miraculously stops crying when he's being held. Hmmmm. I think he's playing us. He seems to be able to tell us every "no" emotion in every which way. Now if we could just get him to work on the "yes"...

So the giant toddler has a big boy bed to sleep in and he's already ahead of the game tonight as he's off in dream land. During sleep he's been moving a lot, which is interesting. While he's sleeping he can roll from his back to side and back again, he stretches his arms above his head, and sometimes he's found in different positions then where I left him. Can we please do this while we're awake, Christian?

New bed to sleep in, new light box to play with, sensory stimulation from the space blanket...all the makings of a very tired and very beautiful giant toddler.

(He's still my giant baby, but don't tell him I called him that, okay?)

 Look at those big boy kissy lips!