Conversation with Fishes

Little Fish that is.

Picture the scene. Mog lying on the settee; she seems to be modeling herself on a Jane Austen heroine and spends most of the day "resting on the sopha". Little Fish balancing herself on a stool munching chocolate shavings practicing her fine motor skills. Our carer walks in.

Little Fish (LF) "Pa Pa"
Me - "no, that's Kathy"
LF "Pa Pa"
Me "KA-thy, Ka Ka"
LF "Ka Ka?" pointing to her chocolate
Me "That's your Chocolate, Cha Cha, Chocolate"
LF, firmly, "Ka, Ka". Picks up chocolate, puts it in her mouth. Points to Kathy; "Pa Pa".
Me "I am going to make Coffee, Co co Coffee, for Ka Ka Kathy"
LF "PAH, (translation SPLASH) Pa Pa".

I think I'll go and talk to the platys; might get more sense there.
It bothers me; I can understand what she's saying, but who else will? She does supplement her speech with some signs, but again, I understand her signs but the wider world? She starts at mainstream preschool after Christmas and how will she make her needs known? Or will it be a good thing, will it show her that the world at large does not understand what she's saying and she needs to make a greater effort to make herself understood? I know that she has limited speech sounds, but why can't she use the sounds she does have more appropriately?


Meanwhile in other news, today we were back at hospital. Just for a change. Mog's wheelchair doesn't fit now that her hips are full of metalwork, so the wheelchair service took a cast of her bottom for the new one. We pick it up in a fortnight. I asked about Little Fish's power chair, and was told that yes, it was now in, but no, we couldn't pick it up until she had her own clinic appointment and no, they couldn't offer us a clinic date yet. Grump grump grumble mutter mutter, exit one physiotherapist who returned ten minutes later to inform us that the power chair clinic had had a cancellation and that we could in fact have the chair all fitted up and kitted out and take it home with us today. Sometimes grumbling works!

So now, age 2. Little Fish has a manual wheelchair, an electric wheelchair, a big wheeled standing frame, a comfy cosy slobbing out chair and a special car seat. And people wonder why I'm not pushing for her to get a hand cycle...

Think I'll go and clean out that fishtank.
Tia