Update At Last!!!!

Hello Everybody, thanks for being patient with me. I finally got my laptop back from the repair shop and my O key is fixed at last. I plan to be updating my blog multiple times weekly, as I think it really helps me think through my feelings about Ben and my situation in general. As for Ben, the IEP meeting went okay, though not as well as I had hoped, but about as well as I expected. As usual, the administrative official was not very receptive to my pleas about getting more help in Ben's classroom. The Occupational Therapist and Speech therapist both seemed kind of pessimistic in regards to Ben's constant stimming and although they agreed that his cognitive skills have seemed to improve and he definitely works better than he ever has before, if left on his own, he will stim almost nonstop. We interviewed for a place at a different school called Frank Porter Graham, but Ben was one of seven students applying for a single spot in one of their classrooms and I am not even really confident it would be a good fit for him anyway, because of his desire to stim over doing anything else. Ben is off the gluten free, casein free diet, with the help of the enzymes, at least for the holidays. Then I will reasses any regressions that I've noticed or any digestive problems he has and decide what to do in the new year. He had macaroni and cheese for lunch for the first time in four months. He was in heaven. I think I got him to say "nana" today for banana, but boy, it's like pulling teeth to get him to say anything. He really has almost no words at all, although he's definitely improved in other ways. I will write more soon I promise!