Update on how appointments went this week.

So we saw Nate Nobel on December 30th. He was very kind, and charming and spent a lot of time telling me that my kid has a lot of strengths, that I am a good mom and that it would all be okay before telling me, yes, Finn is most definitely Autistic.

He spent some time explaining that I needed to apply for a medicaid waiver - one for children with intellectual disabilities. That with this waiver, Finn's therapies, that are not covered by the insurance that I pay for every month, would be covered by medicaid. So, we had to go this week and get an IQ test done. I haven't gotten official results, but I cannot imagine that Finn's score was very high.  He was over being in that office before the psychologist ever saw him. He was in melt-down mode before their first interaction, and didn't want to participate or engage with anyone outside of me. Which, really was best case scenario - since this waiver is the only way I am going to be able to afford the intensive therapies that Finn needs.

We are on waiting lists for Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and ABA with The Homestead. It will likely be months before we are able to see anyone. So, I have Early Access also working with Finn. His assigned teacher has been out to see him twice, and today brought his speech pathologist with her. They will be coming out twice a week to work on evaluating Finn to develop an IEP before he starts Preschool in March. They are awesome - and also focus telling me all my kids strengths and the hope that they have that he will be verbal, which is very reassuring.

It's all good timing, really, that I only have three more shifts at work left, then I will be off of school and work for three months, so my schedule is wide open for interventions. Today they provided Finn with his new favorite book, and he interacted with them in small amounts, especially when they first got to the house. I feel lucky to have access to services like this through the Des Moines school system.  I feel like I am raising a legion of people that are very team Finn.

I also have a behavioral analyst from the state department coming out to counsel me on how I can begin to be therapeutic at home with Finn while I wait all these months for interventions to begin. She will start to come out next week. This will be helpful because the nurse in me cannot sit by and wait for months without attempting something therapeutic in the meantime - at least for his speech and sensory issues because I feel like lost time could equal further regression.

In the meantime, we are just waiting. Waiting for the IQ test results to come in the mail, so I can send in the waiver applications, then waiting for medicaid which will hopefully be approved by the time our name is up on all these lists we are on.  Waiting on Nate Nobel's notes to forward onto Homestead. Waiting for appointment times and dates for OT and ST., ect.

But I am so, so grateful that we are going to be able to have access to early intervention, and be able to afford it with help from our government. While it hurts our pride to have to accept help from the government to care for our kid, it is completely worth the insult in trade - if my kid is one day able to look me in the eye and finally say that he loves me.

And, it's something I will never, ever take for granted.

P.S. The baby is still cooking. No contractions yet, no progress. Ultrasound will be done on Tuesday to estimate the size of the baby.