Kids On The Move

Aubrei is your typical five year old in many ways, a kid that’s everywhere and not really focused on anything. But for a little girl with autism, she’s come a long way says Jalee, Aubrei’s mom.

Aubrei’s family lives in southern Utah, where there are not a lot of resources for kids with autism. There were programs for children aged one to three years, “but we were left hanging for kids over three,” states Jalee. It was then that Jalee attended a conference on autism and discovered the Bridges program at Kids On The Move.

Now, two years into the program, Aubrei works with her therapists, Brittanie and Ari every week, and loves her sensory classes. The key was getting her to connect. “The main change in Aubrei is eye contact,” says mom, Jalee. “She is so much better at attending – being able to accomplish a task. Her follow through has more than doubled.”

At first, Jalee and her husband, Mark, were amazed at how hard the Kids On The Move program pushed her. And she comes out as happy as can be. “We realized that these are things that we could work on at home,” Jalee remarks, “So we are working toward that and rearranging some things.”

The ABA class offered by Kids On The Move helped Aubrei work on her sensory issues and social engagement.  “We feel great about doing that for her. As parents, we appreciate the ABA class and what it offers,” Jalee says. “Especially the fact that it’s in a realistic setting and at a realistic cost.”

The family enjoys the outdoors, going boating and camping every summer. But for Aubrei, water and swimming are number one. “We want to help her be her best little self, to have a happy life and to fit in,” Jalee states. “We really look forward to watching her grow as a little girl.”

Bryce was about 20 months old when he was diagnosed with autism. But he’s always been fortunate to have someone looking out for him: his twin sister. And if you ask mom, April, sis is such a strong personality, she’s become both his best friend and his caretaker.

When Bryce was three years old, his mom got in touch with Kids On The Move through the Autism Speaks website, and enrolled him in the Bridges program. Several times a week, Bryce goes to the ABA classes at the facility and works with his therapists, Ari, Matt, Brittanie and Kimberly. The three-hour classes are in a group setting for social and play opportunities, and help Bryce work on his sensory integration. “I love that Bryce is really into me, but the classes help him become more independent,” says April, “which is totally different than being prompt dependent. He’s much better at self-help and more responsive.”

April attends the parent university where she has access to a lot of resources, including the parent support group. She can talk with Bryce’s teachers after class, goes on field trips and really gets into the experience. “They are into what parents need,” she states.

April observes that Bryce works hard with his therapists and has this really focused face. “He is really adaptable, which is amazing for an autistic kid,” she remarks. “I just hope that we find something for Bryce – that he’s good at and that fits within society.”

The blessing for Bryce is that he has his twin sister to interact with, to chase around and to play with. The entire family is active and enjoys going to the park and swimming. “Bryce is a really sweet kid and is great with sharing… very innocent,” say April. “I just want him to find his thing.”

Cruise’s story begins August 7, 2007. We were so excited to be new parents and even more excited to welcome this little boy into our family. After 6 hours of natural childbirth, Cruise Dawson Ybarra was born 7 lbs 14 oz. and 19 inches long: perfect.

Cruise was a very observant baby. He looked at everything, but only occasionally made eye contact or looked at our mouths when we spoke.  He laughed when people cried, laughed when dogs barked, and had a constant need for movement. Before he could crawl, we would have to put him in a carrier if we wanted to get anything done. When he got too heavy, we’d lay him on a blanket and drag him around the house. If he wasn’t moving, he’d cry and scream for hours on end. The day he started to crawl was probably one of the best days of his life; he got to explore and move around wherever and whenever he wanted.

From early on we noticed Cruise’s sensitivities. If there were a lot of people talking in one room, he’d painfully cry, so we knew to remove him from certain over-stimulating situations. But despite all these intense needs, we still didn’t realize that most babies were not like this. After all, he was our first.

Once Cruise began to walk a week shy of 10 months, he not only walked, but ran, climbed and jumped! Physically he was above average. He was always a good boy; he slept through the night and took long naps, and generally was obedient. He was a joy to have around despite having to keep an eye on him every second for fear that he’d do something crazy, like climb up and jump off of a bookshelf.

Cruise began to say words, but never kept them. He’d learn a word, say it for a week or two, and then lose it; never to say it again. He began to grow more and more frustrated at the fact that we never knew what he wanted. He couldn’t communicate and we couldn’t understand. This began extreme tantrums and meltdowns and we just didn’t know what to do.

Around his second birthday, we decided to put him in a toddler bed since he was climbing out of his crib. Since then, Cruise hasn’t slept through the night consistently. We didn’t know why, and we couldn’t ask him why. We took him to get a 15 minute evaluation with a Speech Language Pathologist at that time. She said he was about 6 months behind, but not to worry too much. She gave us information on some sign we could teach him to help him communicate, and said that if his speech didn’t make any progress in 6 months, to bring him back for a full evaluation.

Six months came and went and it was now January 2010.  By this time our second son, Jett, had been born and my husband had been laid off. Over the 6 months, Cruise couldn’t focus long enough to learn and understand signs. He hadn’t made any progress. We went back for a complete evaluation this time with a different SLP. Cruise couldn’t sit for longer than seconds. The minute we entered the room, he was climbing all over the place, getting into everything, and never responding to questions, let alone his name. After working with him for less than an hour, the SLP told me that Cruise may have something called Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD), which would explain why he needed to always be moving and was sensitive to loud noises. She referred us to an Occupational Therapist, telling us that if those sensory needs were addressed first, he would have better success at speech.

Cruise began OT in January of 2010 with Angela. During the first visit, a Sensory Profile was done showing that he indeed had major sensory needs and sensitivities outside what is typical. We also were introduced to PECS and it was suggested that if the sign wasn’t working, that PECS would help Cruise communicate his wants and needs.

That day I went home and took pictures of a large majority of things he asked for on a regular basis. I printed them out, laminated them, bought a magnetic board, and had his PECS board up and running that weekend. It was an instant success and Cruise knew exactly what to do with all those pictures.

Towards the end of January, we started things with Kids on the Move. Things didn’t get really up and running until March, but once things got started, Cruise was able to make some great progress and I was given so many great ideas and skills. I just don’t know what we would’ve done without KOTM. We were provided with classes that helped us understand Cruise’s special needs and gave us the tools we needed to help him be successful.

During this time, Cruise continued to go to private OT, but because of the great success that was being made, he stopped in May. We had learned what calmed Cruise down (like deep pressure and heavy work), and found great ways for Cruise to meet his vestibular and proprioceptive needs (climbing at the local indoor rock climbing facility, open gym at a gymnastics arena, etc.). We were thrilled at all the progress he was making.

Close to his 3^rd birthday was when ‘autism’ was mentioned. I think deep down inside I knew that Cruise was autistic, but I didn’t really want to come to terms with it. His care provider at KOTM supplied wonderful information on Autism and suggested some resources. I researched and researched and researched, and made my peace with the fact that “yes, my son has Autism.” It was at this point that I was filled with an undying determination to do everything possible to ensure my son’s success and happiness in life, despite our lack of income.

We started a Gluten-Free diet, and it seemed to work wonders. He began making sustained eye contact, his speech was picking up more and more, and he was overall content. However, the last week of Early Intervention came and Cruise all of a sudden digressed. He was melting down constantly, screaming most of the day, and had begun hurting himself and others. Everything that used to soothe him didn’t work anymore, and once again, I felt helpless. What would I do without KOTM?

We returned to private OT and started again; learning what Cruise needed and what we could do to help him. I cried every night; I just wished I knew what Cruise was feeling, how he saw the world around him, and what he needed. We enrolled him in a therapeutic horse-riding class with hopes that his love for animals would help his speech and self-soothing skills. Finally, I remembered Laurie Bowen and the new preschool she was organizing. My husband was still jobless and our savings account was quickly turning into nothing. I was overwhelmed, exhausted, and more socially distant than ever. I wrote Laurie a venting e-mail, and she replied with sincere understanding and a desire to help.

After meeting with Laurie, I knew that Bridges Preschool was the right thing for Cruise. No matter what, I was going to find the money. I called up my parents and asked if they could pay Cruise’s tuition; they were more than willing to help us out. I was so relieved and excited. Despite Cruise’s qualification for public special-ed preschool, the only goals that had been included in his IEP were for speech. I was upset because no behavioral, sensory, fine motor or social goals were set. I knew Laurie would fill the giant gaps that had been left.

The first day of preschool came. Cruise blossomed immediately, right before my eyes. Even after just two weeks, Cruise has been making social attempts outside of class, his receptive and expressive language is progressing at an incredible rate, his eye contact is more frequent, and all he wants to do is go to school. Bridges is where he not only can be himself, but it is also a place where he is taught according to how he learns.

The teachers at Bridges are some of the brightest and most talented women I have ever met. Their passion for what they do is obvious through the lesson plans they prepare, their interactions with the children, and their sensitivity to each individual child. Each child is seen as an individual with unique needs; the teachers identify those needs, create goals with the parent, and make things happen. To me, they are miracle workers. I am amazed at their dedication and love for what they do.

All I can really say is, despite the days I sit with my head in my hands, trying to regain courage and sanity, I am not worried any more. After the first day of Bridges, I came home and told my husband, “I think Cruise is going to be okay.” And since Bridges began, I have the opportunity to sit and watch my son in every day situations with the constant, relieving thought, “Cruise is going to be okay.”

When Ellie turned two, we noticed her verbal skills were not increasing. She could speak two to three words and could not pick up new words. She did not want to be around anyone other than immediate family. It was difficult to engage her socially.

We told our doctor about some of the problems we saw in Ellie and he referred us to Kids On The Move. When Ellie turned 3 she was no longer eligible for KOTM. As the months went by Ellie began to face new challenges and difficulties and we did not know how best to help her. We were informed that KOTM was starting a new program called Bridges that would extend services to children Ellie’s age. We wasted no time getting connected. After a thorough evaluation, which allowed us to see Ellie’s strengths and weaknesses, an individual plan was developed to help Ellie through her challenges and to continue to move her forward. We knew the Bridges Program was the right program for us because they did not have a cookie cutter approach to their program. They were not trying to stuff Ellie into some pre-existing steps. Their program was to help Ellie as a person. They cared about our child more than anything else.

As a result of their intervention, Ellie’s transformation has been nothing short of incredible. Her language and social skills have increased to the point where some people can’t even tell she has ever had problems in these areas.

We are so grateful to the work of the Bridges Program and thank God for their work.

Kylee was diagnosed with autism at age two, at about the time that her father was diagnosed with DRPLA, a neurodegenerative disease that causes involuntary movements and deterioration of intellectual function. The challenges for mom, Traci, were almost insurmountable.

Discovering the Bridges program for Kylee was a very positive and emotional experience. “As a single mom with not much income, I want to do what’s best for Kylee,” says Traci. “The biggest change is that she is much more aware of us and of what’s around her.”

The interaction with other children at Kids On The Move is beneficial for Kylee. She starts every day out happy and makes progress with her social interaction, motor and cognitive skills. But it’s difficult for Traci to manage the three hour classes and her other responsibilities. Plus, money is tight, even with a fundraiser that helped a bit with the cost. “Right now, I’m hopeful about getting on the scholarship program, Traci states, “because it’s tough to work a full-time job when Kylee needs to go to therapy all the time.”

For now, the family plans to keep Kylee going to the ABA classes where she is doing so well. “I wish I could see into the classes through a mirrored glass,” Traci says, “So that I could get more insight into what they are doing. I want to learn what to do at home, too.”

Traci admits that it’s difficult to always know what Kylee needs and wants. “I just want to take care of her. I look forward to Kylee learning to talk and really communicating with us.”

Logan is a very active and curious kid who just happens to have a speech delay. Not that you’d know it, since he’s attended the Bridges program at Kids On The Move. In fact, where he once only repeated what he heard, he now talks non-stop in his own words. “And we love it,” says mom, Selma.

Logan’s speech delay was identified when he was three years old. Through a friend’s referral, the family contacted Kids On The Move and Logan has been working with therapists Ari, Megan and Brittanie for about a year. “We love taking him there,” says his mom, Selma. “He loves it, too. We’ve been tracking his progress and he’s improved a ton.”

His father, Sam, enjoys taking Logan to the park, and having him play with all the kids and exploring what things do and how they work. For a family that does everything together, Logan’s newfound words are an exciting experience for every one. And it’s given Logan’s parents hope that he will someday be at the level for his age and attend regular classes.

With what they’ve taken away from the Bridges program, Selma and Sam have incorporated many fundamental practices in their home. “We’ve learned how to talk to him on his level,” Selma remarks, “and don’t use ‘can’t’ or ‘no’ whenever possible.”

When Logan’s parents learned of his speech delay, they were relieved that it wasn’t something more serious. Yet they still had no idea what would happen in the future. “Was it going to be forever?” Selma questioned. “It was so hard before but Kids On The Move has given us hope and made us much happier as a family. It’s great to be able to communicate with your child.”