Oksana update

Yesterday Oksana turned 8!  I think it is time for an update about her, and most of the reason I want to give this update is because I'm so thrilled to have good things to report!  First, let me share about her birthday:

Those of you who know Oksana know that no celebration is complete without balloons.  She has literally talked about the day she would get an 8 balloon since the day her 7 balloon deflated last year!  This was by far the highlight of her day!

She got a Strawberry Shortcake RC car that she saw at Nina's house and has talked about non-stop since then.

She got a lycra tube.  All of the kids love crawling through this.  Actually, I do too :).

She got her lycra sheets which she calls "Squeezy sheets".  She slept with them for the first time last night and loved them.  Evan loved them too and he is going to put Anya's on his bed tonight to try it out and see if he might want some too!

 

Her dinner of choice was chili and her birthday treat choice was brownies and mint ice cream!



Anya's birthday is in May so in a couple of weeks they are having a combined birthday party for friends and family at a place with inflatables. 

So now a quick update.   Oksana recently had an increase in her medication and it has made a huge difference!  She is doing great!  First let me tell you about school.  The week before her med increase her teacher documented every instance of major behavior and/or aggression.  There were instances daily, sometimes multiple times a day.  The week we started the meds it went down to 2 instances in the whole week, and the very next week she had ZERO.....ZERO instances of significant behavior or aggression.  WOW!  I don't expect that this is a miracle cure and I know she will still struggle some days but what a difference!  When I think about where she was last year I'm just in shock at the difference.

At home we've seen a difference too.  She is accepting correction better, she is handling her anger better, she is regulating herself better, she is apologizing for her misbehavior, she is happy, she is less frustrated, she is gaining new skills, she is proud of her accomplishments.  Big stuff.

The other day we were at therapy and a little girl said "Where is your mom?"  Oksana ran over to me, threw her arms around me, and said "This is my mom!"  Then she squeezed me and smiled the biggest smile at me.  Big stuff.

I could also share many areas where she is still struggling but if you don't mind I just want to enjoy telling you the progress because this has been a long, long time coming.  I'm so proud of her!