Thursday, September 18, 2014

Small Success (Vol 6)



Small Success Thursdays at CatholicMom.com 

It's been a while since I've participated with the ladies over at CatholicMom but let's be real...it's not like I've posted with any regularity. I always feel better when I blog regularly, it's like an outlet I think.

1) We made it to two different playgroups this week. We went to the gym for the romp around yesterday, and today we went to the community building for the free parent and tot play time. We got there right at the beginning, and nobody showed up for an hour, so Christopher was almost done by the time that  other kids got there.





2) I've started some one-on-one down on their level play time. I have a tendency to put on a movie or even let the boys play on their own for long periods of time. Which is great, I'm glad they can entertain themselves, but since we are not able to do a real pre-school curriculum with Dominic right now it's best to get in some learning play. And this week it has gone well. Dominic is letting me read to him, and is often doing searches in the pictures. Christopher is pointing and building blocks with me.

3) Even though I'm spending more time one on one with the boys, my house is pretty clean-ish. I mean, let's be real...I'm never going to win any awards for housekeeping. But I kept feeling like I had to sacrifice one for the other. I could have a clean-ish house or play with the boys. But that hasn't proven true this week.

Head over and check out everyone else's Small Successes!

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Insurance, Autism, and Gymnastics <--summary

We had Christopher scheduled for an Autism clinic/evaluation last Friday, but on Thursday we got a call that our insurance wouldn't cover it. According to our insurance, Autism is a developmental delay, and our insurance doesn't pay for evaluation or treatment of developmental delays.


So right now we are trying to figure out waivers for Medicaid (we would never qualify normally) or some other options with our insurance. An adjuster told me that we should be able to have the evaluation covered under the mental health portion of our insurance, so we are looking into that as well.






And we are looking at another option as well. Though more hesitantly. If you've read the blog, you know that we plan to homeschool, but there is no public school provided assistance if you homeschool. So that is kind of our last option. If we put him in school he will get services through the school. If that is the best option for him, we will do it because we know that it is important for him to get the services he needs. But, it definitely isn't what we want to do. So, prayers are appreciated that the best option comes out and we get Christopher the help he needs.





On a bit of a brighter note, we started a romp around class for the boys today at our local gymnastics gym. It's mostly free rein; there are trampolines, foam pits, a bouncy floor (like what they do floor techniques on), bars, and balance beams. On top of that there are some extra mats and other fun gymnastics things. The boys loved it. It is from 9-11 and for most of the time it is free, and the last half hour or so they do some parachute games and sing songs. The boys were pretty much done by around 10:45 so we didn't do that well during that time. Christopher just wanted to be under it and Dominic wanted to be on top. But, they got to play with other kids and Christopher did pretty well with that even. He touched a baby nicely, and he let another baby sit with him in the toy bin. Those are big wins for us. Dominic was, of course, in his element as he loves being around people. Meanwhile, they are both napping right now. :)




Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Misfit Shine vs Jawbone UP-A Review

I've never done any sort of a review on my blog here, so I'm not sure of all the rules. But I'm just going to say that nobody is paying me for anything. :) Everything you see is my own opinion based on purchases I made (even some I wish I hadn't!).

So around November of 2013 I think I purchased my first activity tracker. After doing a lot of research on the Fitbit Force and the Jawbone UP I decided to go to the Verizon store and check them both out as I knew they stocked them both. The salesperson they directed me to was great as he had USED both! After a long discussion, I decided on the UP.

I used the tracker diligently and I got some interesting tips and information. There aresome great graphs and long-term tracking, so you can really see trends. The app is user friendly and smooth.


While I was having good luck with the app, I was actually having hardware problems. From trouble Charging (twice) to trouble syncing (once) and even a problem with my lights not working. But, Jawbone's warranty and customer service were awesome, they replaced every faulty UP.

So why would I have switched you ask? Well, there are a few things that the UP can't do. Like go for a Swim. And it doesn't track cycling well. So I looked for a tracker that was waterproof and did cycling. What I found was the Misfit Shine.

So the Shine uses a points system instead of just steps, so if you aren't taking steps (cycling, s winning Shine uses a points system instead of just steps, so if you aren't taking steps (cycling, swimming, weights) you're still going to get credit. But, it seems that those people at Misfit are Apple fans and those of us on Android devices got a VERY basic app and experience.



So the real downside to the activity tracking is that if the wrong thing is chosen (for example- I NEVER run) you can't change it. So if you are using your tracker to tell you how many calories you've burned and using that info to know how much you should eat, it's innacurate. I have chosen cycling as my main activity So if I triple tap it will start that activity and the Shine knows if I'm walking or running (supposedly). But! There is no way to END an activity besides being at rest for 5-10 minutes. That doesn't work for me as I cycle to the gym do the elliptical then cycle home. Oh, and there is no option for those kinds of workouts. No elliptical, stair-climber or the like.

And while both track sleep, the Shine app graph is difficult to understand.



I can also set smart alarms on the UP as well as an idle alert. Both cause the UP to vibrate and annoy me into getting up.


In the end, well for now anyway, I've gone back to the UP. The options available at this time just make it a better fit.