Cire Family: August 2008

So while Jody and I lounged on the beach in Croatia, the boys got to spend a whole week with Nonie and Papa at CONNECT in Sopron, Hungary. I asked the boys if they missed us and both said "not really", which is good because Jody & I really didn't miss the guys. Either we are a really "healthy" family or not..... :o) Anyway, I think it was a very special time for both Zane and Tab. They made new friends from all over the world and are looking forward to visiting a few of them later in the year. One of the highlights was getting to be with Nonie and Papa all week long. They gave the boys a lot of freedom and I think they both responded well. They both appreciated Nonie reading to them every night before bed. They had a blast swimming, going to Kid's Club, playing at the park, feeding the Koi fish and playing Runescape. CONNECT is just that...a time to "connect" with people who work with CAI, mom and dad's organization. The organization was celebrating 40 years. Congratulations Hud & Nancy.

It was so much fun to have Melissa and Riley come for a visit....especially since the dollar is so bad. We had a great time. It was fun to see Riley growing up so beautifully and getting to visit with my sweet Mel. Mel and I had some great conversations late into the night. (Ok, maybe not that late into the night, but late for me.) We learned that we have a mutual friend, Caryn B. and even gave her a call to catch up. So much fun. The biggest blessing in talking with Melissa was that she had some great input into the lives of Zane and Tab. You know how sometimes God is just hanging out up there on his throne waiting for a special day and time that He ordained before the world began? I can just see Him smiling and tapping his hands together saying, "Oh boy, here it comes...I can't wait to see there faces!" It truly was one of those moments for Jody and I. I don't mean to go on, but I'm going to anyway, so if you need to skip ahead then feel free. I've known Mel now since about 1996. She's one of those people that you are grateful to count as one of your friend's....a true friend. One that really wants to know you and be known by you. Guy and her are terrific. Anyway, at my request, she took a look at Zane's writing folder from school. (She's a 3rd grade teacher.) She had some great insight, asked some questions and then hopped on line. Guy is a counslor and she hollered at him for some input with the guys. We started a journey with 2 weeks of school left to locate an educational diagnostician to do some tests on Zane and Tab. Yes, they've been through testing before, but this kind of testing would combine intellectual, visual and hearing testing. A full battery of stuff to help us see some of the boys unique learning styles. Both Zane and Tab have struggled somewhat in school from the get-go. After spending some time looking for some help in Germany (which, sadly we were unable to locate) we turned our focus to the states. In Colorado we located the GDC, Gifted Development Center, The Able Kids Foundation & Lynn Hellerstein and Beth Fishman. OHMYGOSH what an exciting time. We quickly made appointments for the short time we'd be in Colorado for our home visit. All of the people we were in contact with worked quickly to see us and help us out. What we walked away with after 3 weeks was an unbelievable amount of information and HOPE! The boys were willing, patient, and true champions with all of the testing that took place. I think they are just as excited about the out come as Jody and I are. Jody and I are reading like crazy to educate ourselves to help our fellows at home and at school. So you are probably wondering about the outcome, huh? Well so are we. This is just one part in the journey, but it's an important one. It will be interesting to see how the school year progresses. Both boys have been "labeled" Twice Exceptional. This is an unfamiliar term, but one we are learning more about. It's where the boys have very high IQ's, but most of their scores are "depressed" because of learning disablities and vision and hearing processing problems. Sometimes I feel like a bad parent, but I'm realizing that I've done the best I could up to this point. Lynn H. said "don't look back, the future is wide open for these boys." I think that this is good advice. Both boys are wearing "hearing filters" in their left ears. Neither of them have balked at wearing them. I haven't had to remind them to put them in...amazing. These filters are amazing. They "filter" out the high frequency noises so that they can more readily focus on what a person is saying. This will help tremendously in the classroom to cut out pencil tapping, paper rustling, whispering, fan and computer noise, etc. They are both right-hemisphere brain learners (most of the world learns with the left-hemisphere.) Through Lynn H. we have located the ONE Vision Therapist in all of Germany, trained by none other than Lynn H. herself. We meet with her next week to begin a year process of Vision Therapy. I consider this to be a miracle in and of itself seeing that Heike Schuhmacher is only an hour and ten minutes north of us and that she has a year long waiting list. Thanks, God. I won't go into all that VT entails, but needless to say this will be a difficult year for Zane especially because his eyes are so much more involved (Amblyopia in the left eye that wasn't caught early enough). If you think about Zane and Tab this year...PLEASE PRAY....for strength, self-confidence, and the ability to see and make progress. We are incredibly grateful and excited. There is always more to tell and if you need more info, email me and I'll give you all the "low-down" details. Thanks Melissa for being here just at the right time!!!!