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May 2008
Shawn has been having fun at Wild Rivers now that
the park is open for the summer season. Shawn got back
into the swing of things right away. It didn't take him
long to get back in the water. He wasn't even afraid
this season! Shawn loves slashing around in the water
and could stay in the water for hours! Since Shawn has
so much fun on activities in the community we may not
enroll him in summer school this year. Shawn loves to be
outside wheeling himself or using his walker. We are not
quite sure what progress Shawn is making in school but
at home Shawn continues to make growth in his
self-feeding and independent mobility. Despite severe
cognitive delays and significant cerebral palsy Shawn
continues to surprise us with his continued development.
Update: February 2008
Shawn gave us a little scare this month. While he has bouncing on his knees while taking a bath he accidentally bumped the water to HOT! Shawn has such a high tolerance to pain that he did not react at all.
We didn't notice anything wrong until the next morning. While getting ready for school we noticed big blisters on his lower legs. Ouch!! Shawn had to get burn treatment at our local hospital. Shawn has now almost completely healed from the wounds and although the burns were pretty severe Shawn never complained about the pain. We have now put locking devices on the tub and shower faucets to not allow the water to ever get too hot again.
November 2007
Shawn's new school program did not turn out to be as great as we had hoped. We are learning how very difficult it is to find a school program where teachers know how to challenge children with severe disabilities. We expect more than six hours of child care from our school program. We want a educational program where the teachers have clear and appropriate goals for the children. We want a program where our sons' are being trained in skills which well benefit them now and in the future. Unfortunately we are not seeing any of this in Shawn's current school program. Of course we will continue to advocate for the best educational plan for Shawn. In the meantime Shawn continues to thrive at home. He now loves to ride the ACCESS bus and can't wait to go outside and on activities after school and on the weekends.
September 2007
Shawn started at a new school this year. We were searching for a educational program where Shawn's health care needs could be met and he could be stretched developmentally. We have already seen how well Shawn does around children who are higher functioning. He really rises to the occasion when he is surrounded by active children. We wanted a program where Shawn's health-care needs would not limit his ability to be around typical children. We are hopeful this new situation will be a positive change for Shawn and we look forward to watching his continued developmental growth over the next school year.
August 2007
Shawn went to summer school for the first five weeks of summer. He seemed to enjoy the half-day school program then coming home and going out in the community. Shawn has spent a lot of his time at Wild Rivers water park splashing around. Shawn has also developed a fondness for Chuck-E-Cheese. When Shawn was younger he couldn't handle the noise level at Chuck-E-Cheese and amusement parks. Now Shawn gets very excited when he gets to go to one of these places. Shawn loves to be where the action is, and will attempt to move the group along faster by pushing his own wheelchair! While Shawn was playing most of the summer, I was searching for a more appropriate school program. Although Shawn has severe deficits, we believe that he needs to be challenged and not babied. He needs to be stretched and encouraged to be independent. It looks like we found an educational program where the staff not afriad of Shawn's medical issues and have lots of experience teaching children like Shawn. We are looking forward to Shawn starting a new school program in September.
April 2007
Shawn has enjoyed the nice weather we have been having lately. On the weekends Shawn loves to get out and about. He has recently discovered the beach, and simply LOVES it! Shawn enjoys sitting in the sand and the sand run through his fingers. Shawn also enjoys pushing his wheelchair up and down the aisles at the Orange County Swap Meet and the malls. Shawn just loves to be on the go! I'm sure he can't wait for summer!!
February 2007
Shawn had a wonderful 6th birthday party with his brothers and lots of presents. Shawn is still in the stage where he prefers the wrapping paper to what is wrapped up. Nevertheless Shawn had a great time opening his gifts then playing with the pieces of wrapping paper afterwards! This was also the first year that Shawn actually eat almost a whole piece of birthday cake and enjoyed it! All of this is big growth for Shawn who celebrated his first family birthday party at the age of three barely aware of anything that was going on! Shawn is definitely increasing his awareness and moving through some higher level developmental stages!!
December 2006
Shawn continues to stay very healthy despite his many medical complications. Shawn is also making progress in his mobility skills. He can self-propel his wheelchair all over the house. Additionally he can crawl from one part of the house to another without too much difficulty. Shawn loves to eat, and while he doesn't consume enough food to sustain himself and still uses a g-tube, Shawn does want to eat any time he is given an opportunity!
Shawn is a little boy who loves to get outside. He is beginning to really love amusement parks. Shawn enjoys the children's rides at Knott's Berry Farm and at Legoland. He smiles ear-to-ear when we go on one of his favorite rides.
Thanks to a generous donation from CD Baby.com, Shawn now has his very own Legoland Annual Pass for 2006-2007.
October 2006
Shawn started in regular kindergarten at Perry School this September. We are excited to see how Shawn will benefit from being around typical 5-6 year olds. This is a big step for Shawn. Last year he was in a classroom with children with severe disabilities. He also went to school for only a half-day since his grade level was considered pre-school. This year Shawn leaves the house at 7:15 in the morning and doesn't get home until 2:30 in the afternoon. Sometimes he gets home from school and immediately takes a nap! Guess the rigors of regular education kindergarten is catching up with him. :-)
July 2006
Shawn finished up summer school this month. He will spend the rest of the summer hanging out in the community with his brothers. Shawn loves to go anywhere. He gets very excited when he sees the ACESS bus arrive. Shawn especially enjoys going to the water parks where he splashes around with his brothers. Shawn has also been using his Walk-About a lot at home and in the neighborhood. He is getting very fast when he walks to the local park. In September Shawn will begin at Perry Elementary School. He will attend both a typical kindergarten class and a Special Day Class. This summer we are working with the school district to make sure all of Shawn's adaptive equipment will be in place when he starts at his new school.
Update: May
2006
Shawn is really starting to show that he is
attaching to certain people in the family. After
spending most of his life in a nursing facility, without
a family, this is real progress. Of all the family
members, Shawn is especially fond of Phillip. Shawn will
literally follow Phillip all around the house if
allowed. Phillip has developed a really skill of keeping
Shawn engaged in reciprocal play, such as rolling the
ball back and forth or playing clapping games. Phillip
has also learned how to do much of Shawn's care. Shawn
and Phillip spend a lot of time together, as a result we
can always get a smile from Shawn whenever Phillip is
around. It is wonderful to see that Shawn is really
benefiting from all of the social interaction our large
family has to offer.
March 2006
Shawn (5) continues to surprise us with his good health and his continuing development. It is great to see Shawn's wonderful smile. He rarely cries in the car or in the community as he once did. Shawn loves being outside and really seems to enjoy school. Soon Shawn will transfer to the same elementary school that many of his brothers attend. He will finish the school year in a more advanced pre-school class than he is currently attending. Next year he will be fully-included in a regular kindergarten class. We believe that Shawn will benefit from the exposure in the regular classroom and the companionship of typically developing children.
In the mean time, Shawn loves to hang out with all of his older brothers. Since he is the first one home from school everyday, Shawn spends an hour searching the house for the other kids. As soon as he hears the school buses starting to arrive, Shawn crawls to the front door and waits patiently for his brothers to come in the house. The boys really enjoy playing with Shawn. There is never a moment from the time the other boys get home from school until Shawn goes to bed that Shawn isn't fully in the mix of all the family activities.
January 2006
We are happy to announce that we finalized Shawn's adoption in December 2005! The adoption took place just short of Shawn's fifth birthday. We are excited that Shawn Derrick Silcock is officially our son now!
Shawn also completed his first acting job this month. He shot two episodes of "A Place of Our Own." This is a PBS television show that helps parents and caregivers work with preschool age children. A Place of Our Own: Homepage Shawn did an excellent job on the set. He participated in the activities and kept a big smile on his face. We don't know when the shows will air but as soon as the shows are scheduled we will be sure to let everyone.
  
Finally Shawn started a toilet training program at school. He is doing a fantastic job and making excellent progress in this area. We will continue the toilet training program at home as soon as an adapted toilet chair is available. Shawn is also eating quite a bit of food orally. He is beginning to learn how to hold the spoon and to scoop his own food. We are so encouraged by Shawn's progress both developmentally and socially. We look forward to watching Shawn make more rapid growth in the future.
 
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