Gabe's Story

Our son Gabe came into this world with a quiet strong will. I use the word Quiet because the first two years of his life he was silent. Gabe could laugh and cry BUT other than that he never made a sound. Don't get me wrong he was a great baby never fussed, slept through the night, breast-fed like a champ, and was happy!! It never even hit me until it was time for him to physically move. He never rolled over or sat up on his own unless I helped him.

My mom being a nurse was worried and voiced concern. I worked on him for a month and finally got him to sit up on his own at 9 months. He sat up for another 4 months BUT never attempted to move any other way. On his first birthday I watched him learn to scoot on his bum positioning his entire body and using only his left hand to reach a balloon. I was so happy he was moving only to realize 3 months later at his first evaluation he was low toned and would need to start physical therapy.

After the first evaluation Jordan and I were shocked at what we heard and were sent on to a pediatric specialist to rule out possible genetic syndromes.

Within the first 10 minutes of the exam Dr. Sampson-Fang told me she was not worried about his lack of movement that he will get there with therapy BUT she looked right at me and said "Does Gabriel talk?" "Has he ever babbled?" It hit me like a ton of bricks my son doesn't speak! How as his mother did I not notice he never cooed or babbled. He never mimicked back an utterance. Had I been so busy not to pay attention to the milestones Gabe should have been hitting. I felt like such a failure. That is when I heard the term Apraxia for the first time.

Three months later , tubes in his ears , glasses on his face and his strong will Gabe took his first step. His voice came much later.

Gabe is now 4.5 years old and has been going to speech therapy twice a week for 2 years. He has a component of childhood speech apraxia and auditory processing disorder. Gabe physically fought to take his first step and has to fight even harder to FIND HIS VOICE. When I hear him say anything it takes my breath away because it truly is a miracle. How we all take for granted how easy it is to speak. Speech therapy with Maria has been the key to unlocking Gabe's voice with that being said its also very expensive .

Jordan and I have tried to come up with numerous ways to fund raise and that is why we are changing our blog. This coming spring we will be having an annual garage sale and we will be hosting a 5K to raise money to help with the cost of therapy and schooling. In the meantime if there is anything anyone would like to donate I will be selling items on KSL and Ebay. This blog will keep everyone updated on any new information.We feel so grateful and blessed for all the support we have received and want you all to know we love you! One day Gabe can look back and say THANK YOU !

Thanks for helping me find my voice!!

Thanks for helping me find my voice!!

Friday, April 29, 2011

March/April Update

It has been a crazy long two months in the Sandberg house. The winter months are never fun with 3 boys under the age of 7 . We are looking forward to spring but unfortunately here in Utah it will go from cold /rainy to super hot in a matter of days. Lets start with some positive news Gabe's speech is doing GREAT !!

He turned 5 in April and he's already letting me know that he will soon be 6. Why are kids so eager to grow up? He discovered what April fools day is all about. He tells me at least a dozen times a day "Mom, I just peed my pants?" and my response is "Are you serious?" and then in return he says, "April Fools" HAHAHAH . Gabe is our complicated splendor.

We feel that Gabe in some ways is frustrated being one that cannot say everything he wants however we know he is trying, learning and getting out everything he can. He is the sweetest boy however when it comes to Xander and brotherly conflicts he really will go to blows pretty quickly if things don't go his way. Part of that is normal I believe and some of this I think is amplified in that he can't defend himself with his words so he goes to his fists.

He does love his cousins and friends in a big way. We had a birthday party for him and his best buddy from school showed up and they all just played, talked and laughed together with him and all the other people at the party. One great thing is Gabe is loved by all that meet and know him. Over the past few months we have noticed his social skills speeding up as he is not shy to put his words out there and have fun with people he doesn't even know.

He is now showing signs of what is called Expressive language disorder and a Phonological disorder. Basically what means is he is missing some vocabulary. For example, when a person would say "I want to go to the park" Gabe in turn would say "I want to go Park now". It also could be a struggle for him to read and write later on. The good thing there is he does like to read and write so we are working on it daily. I know what you are all thinking How many freaking disorders can this kid have? We are ahead of the game and our prepared to take this on just like his speech . Maria has brought it to our attention and we are doing everything we can to help Gabe overcome this trial.

So in this regard I want to update everyone on our fundraising this year. The garage sale will be on May 20-21 if weather permits. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. I will even pick them up (801)-628-7274.

All proceeds will be put towards Gabe's therapy. This summer Maria offers seven Language & Social Skills Group Outings. Each outing cost 125.00 that insurance does not cover . He will simultaneously be doing his twice a week sessions as well. We are in awe with the support we have received thus far and our doing everything we can to think of more ways to cover the expense.

We are all preparing for the Midnight Legacy Run... Jordan is running his butt off and Xander joined a triathlon group to help him with his running, biking and swimming. We will be ready to have fun and show Gabe we love him by putting in the time and effort to train for this very special event. I too will be ready for the 15th and look forward to an emotional event.

The Legacy Midnight Run will take place July 15 for all those interested please visit www.legacymidnightrun.com use code GABE for 5$ off . We are also making t-shirts and will have more info to come. Thank you for all of the support .
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