Zemiel's Favourites

For all of you who have way too much time on your hands, here's a little puzzle about Zemiel's favourite things that could help you procrastinate...



Good Luck!!

Progress Report

We've been really impressed with Zemiel's progress over the last few weeks. He is certainly progressing much faster than anyone could have hoped he would. Zem is now making 'ar' and 'mm' sounds.

We are working hard to ensure that he will hear and use different pitches as well, as that is something that deaf children have trouble with. Sharlene has also been kept busy talking to representatives from different deaf groups and other parents who are all very interested in Zem (mainly because he signs) and he is interested in them (mainly because they give him food). Zem's main party trick, wherever he goes, is to beg food.

We have also been given a number of Auslan DVDs and other resources on loan. These have come at a great time. Several weeks ago, Sharlene and I began a basic Auslan course. For 3 weeks we had a hearing teacher who went through some basics, but last week and for the next 3 weeks our teacher is deaf and the class is 'voice off' - signing only. This week coming there will be an interpreter present and we will be able to ask some questions.

Several weeks ago at the Morisset Show, Sharlene signed Zem up for some professional photos. In the week up until the photos, Zem got 2 fat lips, 1 puffy eye (which didn't go black thankfully), and chipped a tooth. The photos turned out very nicely though. Zem now has a proper black eye, given to him (with love of course) from a draw that opened too quickly.









Last Sunday we organised and planted out 2 of our garden beds for this coming season. Mainly beans and peas in at present with some spinach and cauli Rabi thrown in. Our capsicum plants are doing well, we have one in particular which is 1 and a half years old and still going great. We will be doing the other beds tomorrow hopefully.

This week we found out that our dog has gotten a taste for stolen eggs. So we just need to be a bit more vigilant about closing the chook pen when the chickens are out. Composting and worm farms are going great. We've decided that instead of turfing the backyard, we are going to try spreading the compost over it and planting the grass that we pull our of our gardens into it. It may take a bit longer but should have the same effect...if we can save it from the chooks.

Our next project in planning stage is to build a greenhouse where we can get seedlings growing and keep some of our garden supplies. Hopefully it will also use up some of the excess wood that we still have from our back yard retainer wall.

Anyways, you are now up to date...'til next time.

Water...

One day of rain when I'm riding my bike to work is okay. Even 2 days of rain is okay... but 3 days of wet while riding to work...?? Nope....I'm catching a lift in tomorrow.

Today's swimming carnival turned out very well also. Even the parent-teacher interviews afterwards went well. Got to meet an old friend that I hadn't seen for 11 years.

New sounds, beds, courses and operations

Well, school has started up again. This year I am teaching Year 2 children and that is really keeping me on my toes. Not just in trying to talk at their level but also ensure that I know the new curriculum and having all the activities ready for them to do. On top of that, I have been riding my from Gosford train station to the school. It has certainly made me more tired over the short term, but I know that I have already lost some weight and my fitness level has risen, so I am looking forward to keeping that up - except on rainy days.

Last Tuesday, Sharlene and I started our Auslan tuition course. We knew most of what was mentioned already. I was the only bloke there, and most of the ladies were from an educational background. We are constantly amazed at the intensity of the rivalry between Signed English and Auslan.

Zemiel has started at Kindergym on Tuesdays and is reported to be enjoying it very much. He is now making "ar" sounds, which is more exciting than I could express right now. Although he is picking up all frequencies when internally stimulated, Australian Hearing want to find out what he is hearing externally. So they want to give him another puppet test in the next couple of weeks. Sharlene also took him to a child surgeon today to have a look at his hernias. He has 3 at the moment. 2 of them definitely need to be operated on and the other might heal itself up. In any case, they will have to be seen to before he turns 3 years old.

Zem is now sleeping in his big bed. He has given the cot the flick and has decide he is a big boy now. It is really nice to see him make the transisiton now, rather than forcing him to do it when the new baby arrives.

Not much happening in the garden. It has been too hot to plant. Hopefully now that March is near we can start our Autumn/Winter crops. I have asked to see what I can do school concerning some nearby bushland that the school owns. I think I might end up having to write a proposal for a grant to do some of the things I want. All that is a scary concept for me, but I still want to do something.

Sharlene is still very tired and now hitting 19 weeks! We have been spending quite a bit of time getting our Adventurer club up and running again this year. We have been promoting it at the local Show, Pathfinder registration day and with friends and neighbours. Hopefully the club will be a significant size this year and others will see that it is worth being involved in.

Finally, Sharlene has also found the time to give some Bible studies to some friends of ours, whom we met through Pathfinders. It is very exciting to see these lovely people grow in the knowledge of God and his love for us.

Zemiel's Hearing Progress

Well believe it or not, (we find it hard to believe), but Zem can now hear! Already he is trying to mimic the sounds that we make with his toy animals. He seems to hear sound effects and background noise better than our voices. Sounds that he recognizes include, clapping, squeaky balls, "quack", and "moo". We have been concentrating on the long vowel sounds that are found in animal performatives. eg. grOWl, mOO, bAA, etc. We have been very encouraged by the speed at which he is attempting to imitate the sounds.

He has begun to realize that he always gets attention when he takes his "ears" off. Cheeky boy. He still gets excited when we put them on though and we have been trying to teach him to put them back on himself...but that will take a bit more time.

We will also be starting our Auslan training in the next week and we are very excited that the next stage in our learning and Zem's schooling has started. At the moment, Zem's schedule involves the following: Monday - SCIC mapping and learning sessions, Tuesday - Gymnastics, Wednesday - schooling with itinerant teacher, and Thursday - RIDBC early learning centre schooling session. All in all, it means that Sharlene is going to be kept very busy trying to keep up with all these appointments on top of what she already does at home.

In an effort to give Sharlene more mobility, I am going to travel to work via train and bicycle this year. At the moment it may not be so imperative, but when the new bub arrives, it is going to be important that she can use the car when she needs to, so we might as well get started early.

School starts on Wednesday. I am teaching Year 2 this year, which will involve a big change in thinking on my part from my previous Year 4 students. It is exciting to contemplate the possibilities of this year. God willing, it will be a happy year.

Zem's switch on

Today has been a really big day for our family. This afternoon Zem had his processors turned on. It is a long process where they beep test each electrode in the cochlear through the speech processor until Zem makes a reaction. At first Zem's teacher, Daniel or I would get Zem's attention by playing with him. Then the audiologist would commence the beep testing and all of us would watch for a reaction while continuing to distract Zem. Zem's reactions were quite obvious - he looked towards the audiologist and sometimes clapped or stilled when the processor reached a sound he could hear. The audiologist would then continue increasing the stimulus so they could find the range of comfortable hearing for that electrode. The process for both ears took a little over 2 hours - which is why we are all soooo tired.
We go back tomorrow to get his processors 'tweeked' to give Zem a good range of hearing. This process of adjusting will take place about every 3 weeks for the next 12 months. Its still amazing to see Zem react to sounds around him. He doesn't react to everything yet - it must be really weird for him - but you can tell his brain is trying to figure things out.
To be continued.....

Paddy's Markets

Today we all took off down to Paddy's Markets in Sydney. We took the train for the whole trip and did a little bit of exploring while we were at it. I found some sunnies, Sharlene got a 101-ways-to-wear dress, Zemmy got some new socks from Nuna, and Poppy Brian bought some fresh produce. There were heaps of people and the day was beautiful - not to hot or cold. On the way back Zemmy checked out the birds in the park and even chased some of them while he was still in the pram. We we were all fairly tired on the way home so some of us slept while others watched Zem.

We've had a few spots of rain over the last couple of days but fortunately our cement slab for our new garden shed had enough time to cure beforehand. Now we are just waiting for the shed to be delivered (which should be Monday.)

So many big people...

The last few days and nights have been quite busy at my house. Firstly, there was uncle A, who I saw at the hospital and then on pretty paper day and then I saw him again when aunty R and uncle P appeared. It was lots of fun having more people here just to play with me. I think that they should be around a lot more. I also got to see Nuna Patti and Poppy Brian again. I remembered them from when I last saw them.

One thing that I have noticed, is that everyone spends so much time at the table. They shake some little blocks with spots on them and they raise their fists and tense up. I do like to watch them, and I even like to copy their actions. I also like to join in when I can. I am beginning to stand up a lot more now and if I stand on my tippy-toes, I can just see over the edge of the table to see what is going on. Sometimes, mum is nice to me and lets me roll the little blocks. She insists that I take turns though, which is a shame because I would love to keep them.

Yesterday, everyone went outside to throw some dirt and grass around. Of course, I wanted to help out. (I'm like that). But I think they didn't take me very seriously because they were looking at me a lot and laughing. Anyway, I tried my best to help, I even got to work with some big people tools! Boy, didn't I feel important.

Today was an interesting day. Mum and dad took me out of the house for a long time. We went to some building that had cool toys and nana taught me to play hide and seek, while mum and dad learnt about some blue gadget that goes on my ear and head. I know it goes on my head because they tried it a few times. At first I didn't like it so much, but my game with nuna was too interesting and I soon forgot about it. They were a pretty colour, but I wasn't allowed to play with them very much - so I don't see why mum and dad showed them to me. I probably won't see them again.

Tonight ended as it usually does. Mum read me a book about birds and then put me in my bed. The things in my room changed position recently, but I like it better now that I can see out the window. I wonder why mum and dad would move it?

Anyway, I am tired. It has been a big week so far and all the visitors that are here are making me not get enough sleep during the day. Goodbye for now.

Zemmy.

PS. Here are some pictures that mummy took of me.

I know I eat a lot, but do I have to earn my keep THIS way? Can't someone else push the wheelbarrow?

Here's the tool you wanted!

Is this the pen you were looking for?

This is the box that dad, nuna Patti and poppy Brian were working on.

Here we go a visiting

We had a big day today. We were all up early to travel down to Sydney. First stop was with Luke and Amy. It was our first real visit since they had returned from New Zealand. Zem hadn't slept on the trip down like we had hoped, so he was a bit over-tired and therefore a bit loopy. After initially trying to destroy the christmas tree decorations he soon found that there were two puppies in the house: Jack-Jack and Dash. The energy of the pups soon overwhelmed Zem though and it took some stern and consistent handling to keep the pups from chewing off Zem's fingers (which he offered freely) and licking and jumping on him in general. At last, Zem slept for a while while we caught up.

We left to collect Adrian and then head over to Gemma's mum's place. We didn't get to do any gardening, but we did have a great meal. Zem also had a great time playing with all sorts of balls, trains, and other toys that officially belonged to the cat.

We then headed for home, and just as well too, because we were all getting pretty tired. Zem slept all the way home. Now Sabbath is coming on and we have just finished cleaning and tidying, eating, bathing and playing.

2008 proved to be a busy, VERY challenging year. 2009 promises to be even more so.
So to all who read this blog we wish you a Happy New Year!

Christmas 08

We've had a relatively quiet Christmas this year. Instead of the 4000 km trip through Queensland this year, we've decided to stay closer to home and enjoy the quiet life. It hasn't only been myself, Sharlene and the boy though. Adrian was kind enough to spend some time with us a couple of days before and after the 25th. Shar and I really enjoyed his company although he ended up coming down with tonsillitis.

Christmas day was enjoyable enough. We unwrapped our presents around 9 ish (and then played with them until lunch time). I got the first season of 'Hogan's Heroes', which we watched progressively over the next 4 days. Sharlene was struggling with the quietness and eventually got her randomness and conversation fix when her mum and dad called. In the afternoon, we pulled up roots and went over to some friends of ours to spend the afternoon - which turned out really nicely actually, because we were all beginning to stagnate a little in our house and needed to get out. As always, Zem was the center of attention and didn't he love the limelight. Also played some good Christmassy type games that I think I will try out for next year. (Bingo, A-Z Christmas words game and a word/picture association game).

There have been some really hot days down here. We're starting to take Zem to the local pool during the mornings some days and on other days go down to the lake in the afternoon. Recently, we have said goodbye to our close friends, Janice, Gerard and their kids. They are on their way down to Adelaide where Janice will be teaching. We miss you guys already! We also got a surprise visit from our friend Naomi. (Thank you for stopping, we loved seeing you again.)

Finally, we are off to Sydney tomorrow to catch up with Adrian and another friend, Gemma. (Gemma's mum makes really good cordial). But that is not the only reason we are going. While we were at the hospital with Zem, we stopped over for about 4 minutes and promised to come back to spend some decent time. Well, tomorrow is that day. We did intend to go to the Australian Reptile park this week, but things have been a bit too hot for Sharlene to do that comfortably. The reason being that she is about 12 weeks pregnant. (Hooray!)

Anyways, happy new year to you all and may you keep all your resolutions (if you made any). I didn't.

Some photos of our christmas celebrations:
Our nativity scene


Zem's present from mum and dad


Zem's present from uncle Adrian