Musical Lightbox

Last winter we were gifted a switch adapted musical lightbox.  Sophie has become very proficient at using her switches so this was a nice addition to her adapted toys. I haven't used this with her as much as I should because she really enjoys the response she gets when she activates the switch properly.
 

 The lightbox is from American Printing House for the Blind.  It lights up and plays music when the switch is activated.  I am hoping to get a latch timer for Sophie because she finds it hard to hold the switch down for any extended period of time.

Since Halloween is on its way I added some little spider and pumpkin stickers for her to look at when the lightbox lights up.  She was very interested in them and I will have to think up more ideas of what to place on the lightbox to keep her visually interested when playing with it.

A birthday celebration

The day after Sophie's birthday we took a chance and headed out for a few hours to go bowling.  We had a little Sophie celebration with my family and it was more than enough to keep Sophie happy and wear her out for bedtime.

Sophie enjoys bowling even though it is loud with music blaring and lots of people around.  We went to glow bowling which adds a fun touch for the kids.  Lucas and Zoe were amazing bowling coaches/helpers for Sophie.  Although Sophie was often more interested in the little girls bowling in the lane next to us lol.

Game. On.

Lucas, my super competitive boy, ended the game with tears when he realized that Jason and I were going to beat him.  Even though I explained we had 30 years more experience than him it didn't help one bit.  He pouted his way home.  What can you do.

All was forgiven after pizza and cake arrived and Sophie was in her element having Happy Birthday sung to her yet again.  It is her favourite song after all.

I think 8 is going to be a great year.

Toys that have the touch

I am always on the hunt for toys that will work for Sophie.  Sophie's cerebral palsy makes it difficult for her to press little buttons but it is very hard to find toys that don't need that capability.  To find a toy with music and lights that is easily activated is a celebration in this house.

This past Christmas I came across a Leap Frog Touch Magic toy and I couldn't wait for Sophie to try it out. It just requires a very light swipe, very similar to the Ipad, to activate the music or instruments on the touch pad.  It doesn't captivate Sophie but it is definitely something she can do on her own which is fantastic.  I know that there are other versions as well, like the Learning Bus and Counting Train which I hope to find at some point for her. We have the Ocean Music School version and luckily it is a very reasonably priced toy, I paid about $15 on sale.

Sophie does very well swiping the different areas but I wish that the toy didn't turn off so fast with inactivity.  Sometimes it takes a while for Sophie to get into it and it has already turned off.  Kind of frustrating.  Other than that I love it and it is so nice to have something fun and musical that is new for her to work on her fine and gross motor skills with.

More recently I came across a toy on clearance that I had been searching for at Christmas and couldn't find anywhere.  So bonus that I found it super cheap ($7) and it has been another one that is great for her fine motor skills.

 This toy is a My First Crayola Touch Lights, it has a mess free gel pad with all different glow light colours as well as many different musical songs.  It is a really neat sensory experience for Sophie, the gel pad feels cool under her fingers and the lights and music keep her engaged.  Each time the button is pressed it changes song and colour, the button is large so I am hoping over time Sophie will learn to hit it.

I am always keeping my eyes peeled for new ideas and these ones were a hit!

January chills and thrills

This is the coldest January I can remember for most of my life.  When I lived in Montreal for a couple of years we regularly had days with -40C to -50C wind chill in the dead of winter but it isn't the norm here.  We had a record -26.5C at the beginning of the month and it is heading that way again it would seem.

Sophie has been having a great winter so far even though it has been so crazy cold and lots and lots of people have been sick in her school and in our community in general.  Influenza is quite rampant as well as gastro bugs and colds.  Then this weekend Sophie got sick with a cold.  She stayed home from school today and seems to be feeling better than yesterday.  She also had a seizure last week which may have been the start of this bug or it just could have been due to exhaustion.  She had been doing really well in the seizure department for a few months so I hope it was a one off.

We have been keeping busy inside with all the new toys from Christmas.  A week or so ago we had a glow dance party one night, Sophie and Lucas thought it was awesome.  We had on the music and pretty much every glow/light up object we own turned on and Sophie was up dancing in her HOPSA.

The photos are horrible because the kids were moving to the music and it would have totally ruined the effect to have the flash on.  So the photos are more to get the feeling of the night then to see it in any photographic glory.  :)

On the subject of photos, I am happy to report that I have some of my photos in one of the University galleries right now.  They are in a show as part of the photography club that I am a member of.  It is the debut show of our club and I have to say it is exciting even if not many people will see it.  I have been getting great feedback for the four photos I have up though and I am very proud of how they look!

Playing with light and mirrors

Now that Christmas is over, done in what seems like the blink of an eye, we are having fun playing with the new toys that are here.

Sophie received some great new toys, she seemed so hard to buy for this year but between Santa and I she has some new faves. 

This mirror is awesome.  It has a few buttons that when pushed it plays some music and lights up.  The mirror is large and can be placed vertically or horizontally.  Sophie loves it.  It has a really nice large steady base that fits on her tray or anywhere else we need to use it.  She has been having a ball checking herself out!

Another hit is the Dancing Water Speakers.  These speakers have a small amount of water in them that sprays with the beat of the music that is being played, it also has lights that come on and off to the sound of the music.

 

She had a great time watching the light show on the ceiling and listening to her music.  I am hoping to make this switch adapted so that she can turn the music on and off and make the light and water show happen herself. (the photos are horrible because the room was very, very dark except for the light from the speakers)

New apps for fun cause and effect

Sophie has been doing a great job of using her eyes and her hands lately.  She is focusing very intently when given something new to play with and I am finding that she has been having good control with her hands when aiming for something to touch. 

 

I have recently downloaded some new apps for her because it had been ages since I had given her any new apps to play with!  She is really loving most of them.  Afew of them...

Peek A Boo Sesame Street
Finger Bells
Splish Splash Inn HD
Black & White High Contrast by Fischer Price
Sing with the Wiggles

Finding cause and effect apps that aren't too baby but keep her attention is still a struggle.  I love when she is able to work an app all on her own so that Sophie can have the satisfaction of doing it all by herself.

I am going to be on the hunt for some more apps that will work well for her, hopefully some fun Christmas apps too.  We have ordered an Ipad stand that fingers crossed will hold the Ipad up for her at the right angle too.  It will make it nicer for Sophie to use the Ipad in her wheelchair if I don't have to hold the Ipad all the time.  We have never had a stand so this will be all new territory.