5:30a Ugh! / Other progress

Last night, Nikko woke up at 5:30a. I went to his bedroom and put him back in bed. I didn't know what to do because morning was 1.5 hours away. So, I crawled into his bed and tried to go to sleep. I know I dozed off, but I felt him playing with his bulldozer cars and a PECs picture, and I don't know if he really ever fell back asleep. He was starting to talk to himself, too. So around 7:10 I decided we should get up, and then I realized that maybe my being in his bed later in the morning prevented him from falling back asleep because he was too distracted, or wasn't tired enough since I was there next to him. That should be resolve for me to NOT sleep in his bed anymore, right? The problem is that if he has another late waking, I MUST put him back in bed and let him cry it out, at least for 15 minutes. Even at the crack of dawn. He's got to get used to this, without me enabling him, and the others might wake up from his crying but we'll all have to put up with it. Right???

His Speech report today:
He is doing a good job - labels car, bus, apple, banana, ball, fish to request without a model. :)

That is great news! I guess I should use these words with him as well, to see if he can do this at home. Nikko will repeat a word if I say it first, and if it's a relevant word to him. I can't just say to him, "Nikko, say Cat!" He works better with visuals, or music, or if it's part of some physical activity. Or if it's a food he likes/wants. When he wanted more chicken nuggets for dinner, instead of pulling off the PEC picture he took my hand and led me to the fridge. We stopped short of the freezer. When I asked him what he wanted, he signed Chicken and said, Chick, Chick Nug. The Nuggets was a tad slurred, but of course I could make out what he wanted, and of course he got some. He's been trying to say Mickey Mouse because we've been watching more Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. One more thing to point out that I observed since yesterday: Atz had given us a Little People toy castle with two figurines, horses, a carriage, and other attachable accessories. I've noticed Nikko take a detachable gazebo with a fenced door, and play with it along with either the prince or princess figurine. He makes the figure walk or dance on top of the arch, but also makes it walk through the gate and stand on the grassy part. He babbles while he does this. I wonder if he's imagining something when this happens. This would be great improvement in his play skills if that's the case!