Archive for the Category »sensory integration «

Seeking feedback and review of new clothing line Soft

I want to pass along this opportunity for professionals to help do an important product review and offer feedback for a line of clothing geared for kids with sensory differences.  Here’s the info, please feel free to keep passing this on.

Greetings!

Feedback is very important to us at Soft.  We have been testing samples of our adaptive clothing line for children with tactile sensitivity for over 2 years–surveying parents and kids on what works and what doesn’t.  We continue to do this for each new round of design and production. 

This time, before we go into production again for our next collection, we are hoping to get specific feedback from professionals in the field: Occupational therapists, physicians, special educators and more.  Since you see such a range of sensitivity, and make recommendations to parents on therapeutic programs and approaches–your input will help us to be as inclusive as possible in our design.

If you are a professional in the field of Sensory Disorders, and wish to fill out a short survey on our clothing–we will send you a few samples to look at (and keep), and give us your feedback on.  Participants will also receive a 10% off coupon on any Soft purchase.  Please respond to this email, with the below information, and your package will go out today!!

Regards,
Jessica Ralli,
Director, Soft

softName:

Mailing Address:


email address:


Profession:


May we publish your feedback on our website?

 

 
 
 

Like stars on Earth Disney movie review & giveaway! Part 2

Like_Stars_on_Earth_DVD_artThis film brought me to tears. Several times.
The misunderstood child breaks my heart thanks to the experience I’ve had with my own daughters.

* I am writing the review while watching the film, so follow along.

This story is not one for young children though my 8 yr old daughter did enjoy the music. It is hard not to identify with the mother in this movie as she battles with her own lack of understanding in why her son can’t learn what seems to come very easily for her older son. When it is finally suggested that her son has a learning problem, she is overridden by her husband who refused to have a “retarded” son.  His words, not mine.

I cannot say enough about the actor who plays Ishaan. His emotions are extremely clear and express a wide range from frustration to rage and pure joy. He is ridiculed by everyone. His peers, his teachers and his father.
Every new teacher seems to only serve to further demean him and I’m hurt to think there are teachers like these in the world even though I believe my own daughter had a teacher like this last year.

It wasn’t until this last year that I found out dyslexia isn’t just about seeing letters backwards. It is letters moving, dancing, and not remaining in a still position. This movie depicts this in a really clear way that anyone without the disorder can see and understand. At several places in the movie, whatever it is that he is trying to read, from a book to the classroom chalkboard, the letters and numbers dance around in front of him.

I’m hoping it gets happier soon, because I’m feeling hopeless for this poor boy. Maybe it is too close to my own story with my daughter?

Okay…. finally, the happy part! The new art teacher ( I think maybe he was on Oprah recently) gets the class singing and dancing, but it looks to to be too late for our sad and emotionally detached Ishaan who simply stares at his desk top through the whole dance sequence despite the instructions for limitless art.
Oh, I have not mentioned that art is this boy’s one saving grace. The walls of his room at home are covered in artwork. His brother buys him paints and it is the one thing he is accepted for and accelerates at.

There are so many details to this movie that even if I told you the whole plot, I doubt I could ruin it for you.
Basically the new art teacher turns out to be someone who works with children like Ishaan and who once was a child with similar problems (I think). Did I mention the art teacher is really cute? He is.

The story evolves and addresses not only the emotional struggles of the child and his family, but the legal and educational ones as well. Okay, so I’m smiling now through my tears. There seems to be hope……..

Indeed, just like a typical Disney movie, all ends well. The boy gets help and his father comes to understand how special his son really is.
The most important lesson? The boy learns how special he is regardless of what everyone else thinks, or in spite of it.

STREET DATE: January 12, 2010
Pricing: US: $29.99 SRP; Canada: $35.99 SRP
Feature run time: Approximately 165 minutes
Languages: English and Hindi; English and Hindi subtitles
US Rating: PG, For Thematic Material, Brief Violence And Language
Canadian Rating: G

You can buy this 3 dvd set next week (01/12/10), but you can also win one copy here!

There will be 2 winners picked!
For all comments left, you’ll get one entry to win. Winner will be picked by random.org based on number of elgible entry.
1. leave a comment about someone you know/love with a learning disability.
2. leave a comment that you are now following specialneedskidstalkradio.com – you have to actually follow via rss or email updates (upper left corder of the blog)

3. Post this to your twitter stream or facebook page!

Soft Clothing launches today! Free Tee Shirt too!

officiallaunchThey have a ton of sales and their clothing is awesome! My daughter who has tactile issues liked the tee shirt she got from Soft Clothing.

It’s a red short sleeve shirt and it has everything they say they have. Flat seams, printed tag, and the fabric is soft as well.

I’ll be trying their pants soon!

Santa’s little helpers drive a fire truck

About 2 weeks ago I got a call oen a Sunday evening from someone who said they were with our local charity organization that supplies food and gifts for the less fortunate during the holidays. She said my daughter’s name had been suggested as a family who might benefit from the supplies which included food and gifts. (I said that already, sorry)

So, she talked with me some more and asked if I had other kids so I told her about Nove, who has Autism spectrum disorder. The lady verified ages and then wanted to know if we would rather pick up the items or have them delivered by the town firefighters.

Are. you. Kidding? I almost jumped up and down myself because Nove LOVES the firefighters and their truck even though it has bright lights and a loud horn and siren. She’s been to the station with her school, tried on the firefighter coat and hat, and even stood in their humongous boots.

Tonight was the night! I had warned her that Santa’s helpers would be coming by and that they’d be driving a firetruck. She thought the elves would be driving it, and then asked if she could open a gift when they brought them.

After dinner, Gramma came down the hallway and said she heard something so we opened the door to flashing lights and 2 matching firefighters named Cory. Okay, not exactly matching, but they really were both named Cory. Nove wasn’t shy and was hopping and up down while showing them to the kitchen to put down the over sized box of food.

I asked if she wanted to go see the truck closer and one of the Corys put her in the driver’s seat, then they let her push some buttons which made the variety of horns blare! I feel bad for my neighbors tonight. She was giddy! I forgot the camera. Dangitalltoheck!

I really wish I’d had the camera because it’s been a while since I’ve seen her so happy. It made my day and I think it made hers.

Now, we didn’t exactly need the food and gifts, but, I tend to let my pride get in the way sometimes and have put off my own health care for far too long. If I don’t have to buy some groceries for a week because someone was nice enough to donate some to me, I need to learn to accept help no matter where it comes  from.  I also don’t have the money to buy the experience of the big firetruck, lights blazing with horn honking ability, even if it were available to buy.

That my friends is the Christmas spirit, small town style. 

100_1594Apparently this was a long day. She was out by 8pm. She even said “I want to get into my bed now”.

She just wasn’t home

100_1560100_1559last night was Nove’s 2nd grade Christmas concert. This is the 3rd year she’s performed with her class on stage with the lights, the audience, the noise. She’s typically done okay in this situation, meaning no melt downs or over anxiety.

 

 

 

 

On the way in, she was happy to be there, if a little worried that we were late. We were not late, and after 3 seconds of panic when she thought she heard her class mates on stage, she walked into the band room and saw them all. Instant calm.  She sat where her teacher said to sit. Then another teacher gathered her and some classmates for a photo opp.

 

100_1561 Not that they wanted their pictures taken.

So, I told her I loved her, and have a good time. Then I went to sit with my older daughter and my mom in the auditorium.

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We thought we’d sit on the front row so Nove could see us, but we couldn’t see past the row of flowers! So, we moved up, and then across the way, and then up one more time. However, it was perfect because when the kids came out, we were directly across from Nove who saw us and waved.

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That’s her inside the circle.

Here’s the sad part. last year at her concert, she was engaged in the process. She sang, she did the actions, and she was “on”. But, like her first year on stage, this year no one was home. Actually, she was visiting somewhere else……

For the almost 20 minutes on stage, she was sliding her butt and back along the railing and looking to the left. I found out her crush was on the left side of the stage and she kept looking to see what he was doing. I can’t blame her, he has great hair! She’s the one in purple, top row, looking to the left in most of the pictures below.

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When she wasn’t looking at him, she was looking up at the ceiling or at nothing at all. She barely sang, and barely did any of the actions.

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And this, my friends, is what it’s like living with her too. We never know how much she’ll be involved, how engaged, or how much “in her head” she’ll be.

Today wasnt so bad

I still had to pretty much drag Nove out of bed, but at least it wasn’t a fight. She was being very clingy so she had to hug me as I tried to walk us into the living room.

Then, she wanted help (no, she wanted me to do it all!) with getting dressed. But, she allowed me to dress her and wanted to cuddle before we had to leave. She even let me out of her sight for a while so I could get dressed and go warm up the car.

When she got off the bus she was being her typical not – so – verbal 2nd grade self though. She refused verbally and physically to let me zip her coat andlet me tell you, it was 2 degrees from freezing. The kind of cold where it’s nearly 10 degrees colder in the shade and in the wind. But she did not even notice. This is typical for her also.

However, I got myself a nice new short coat today and I was toasty except where my nose stuck out. For the record, I haven’t had a new warm coat in years. The one I’ve been wearing is about 2 sizes too big and is a heavy cotton canvas barn style coat. Because it is big, the cold rushes in around the hands and neck so it never kept me very warm, despite being a really nice jacket.

Anyway, back to the story……….

Wednesdays, she has a drum group after school through her case management system. Her driver came a little late and Nove wasn’t sure she wanted to go, but Zeta and I convinced her. Again, I had to put her shoes on. (this girl KNOWS how and CAN dress herself)

She had a good time, got along with the other boys in the van and did well at group according to Zeta, upon her arrival home. She even told me that her class went to the high school today to practice for their Christmas concert which is tomorrow night.

But, she wouldn’t tell me anything about anything directly after school. That’s so typical of her.

smartknitkids seamless sock review

I don’t have sensory issues per say, but my mom does.

My younger daughter does

 I just hate socks!

That being said, I may have found some that I really like!

Smartknitkids makes a line of seamless socks for kids (and adults) that don’t bind or rub and are generally easy to wear for those with extreme sensitivity to clothing on their skin.


Jenn: I wore two pair of the kids socks, even though I’m not a kid anymore. (I can act like it with the best of them though) My shoe size is a 6.5 in sandals or flip flops and about a 7 in closed toe and heel shoes. I wore the kids XL.

   The first day I wore the black pair with my high heel boots. Let me explain why I did this….. Often, when I wear the heeled boots, the socks or hose will either slip down over my heal and bunch up, or will pull up on my toes and cause a lot of pain to my toe nails. (eww gross feet)  Anyway, neither of these things happened when I was wearing the smartknit kids socks and I was in them for at least 9 hours, if not 10 or 11.

  The second day, I wore the bright pink XL with my tennis shoes to work. I have the same problems sometimes as with the boots, where the socks will slip down over my heel and bunch up under my arch, but again, no slippage with these socks.

 I stand quite a bit, and walk back and forth a lot at work, on concrete floors. So, comfort and cusion is pretty important to me no matter what the shoe is. When I wear my athletic shoes though, I often sweat (here we go again with gross feet stuff), but my feet were fresh even after 9 hours later. No sweat, no rolling, no bunching, no binding.  


Company Information:

Knit-Rite was contacted to create a truly seamless sock for children with SPD in 2003.  Knit-Rite began to create a 100% seamless sock that is comfortable for children.  The result was SmartKnitKIDS.  The socks are knitted like a caterpillar spins its cocoon by starting at the toe and knitting up toward the ankle. This process does not leave a seam and provides a super comfortable socks for little feet.  Knit-Rite also tried to eliminate wrinkles and bunches in the socks to make them even more comfortable by choosing a super stretchy fiber so the socks are form fitting, snug and comfortable.  To make the socks even better for kids, Knit-Rite chose a no heal design which allows the sock to be put any which way. Now available in many colors and sizes for kids and adults. 

  “Our goal is to provide a product that helps children. We are proud to have created a product that makes mornings easier for children and parents.  We are trying to spread the word about these great sock so more children who hate seams, wrinkles, lumps and bumps can be helped and find a solution.  “  Rose Pener


Nove: Since She’s not speaking much today, I’ll share what I saw when she put these on. She wore the purple pair in a Medium and they matched her shirt almost exactly which I thought was funny and ironic.

Unlike many autistic kids, Nove doesn’t seem bothered by clothing in a lot of ways. She seems to almost not even be aware of what she is wearing, but I’ve seen her often remove socks because they slide around or slip over her heel (like her mama) because she has long, narrow feet.

   So, I was hopeful after having tried these that she would be successful too. She was!

 Not only was it a warm day (flip flop weather), but she changed clothes at least once after putting them on. I think the fact that these have light compression (general all over snugness) helps them to stay in place. Not once did I see her mess with them or attempt to remove them. Even when changing her pants, she left them on. Usually the socks come off with the pants, in her case.


Sherry: My mom has some pretty strong (severe) sensory issues. She can’t stand scents (like candles, perfume, cleaners) and her clothing must be of a certain type. So, she tried the adult size smartknitkids socks which were a little bit too wide for my short, narrow feet. (Hers are very wide and a little longer) I noticed today that she had them on again for a second day, so she must have found them to be fine.  

 When I asked her, she said they were……… fine. She is short on words some days, just like November. But, the fact that she had them on again and that they were not relegated to the kitchen table with the rest of the socks and information from the company, said a lot to me.

*update* Sherry added today that even after she washed them and wore them again, they hadn’t lost the elasticity and felt really good, but she might need the next larger pair because she tought they cramped her toes a little.


So, overall, I think these socks are winners! 

  By the way, they also make pantyhose. All these products are good for diabetics who need compression for circulation issues. Maybe that was why my feet didn’t hurt as early in the day? I don’t have diabetes, but I do have crappy circulation. 

  So, the great people at SmartKnitKids are offering a 10% off coupon code to everyone who reads this post and wants to try these socks out. Just go to http://www.therawear.com/kids_socks.html

Use coupon code kids10


A little more information: The kids style socks, are not molded into a shape with a heel. They are more like a tube sock, but without a toe seem. I was worried when I first put them on that the upper edge would be shorter in the back than in the front, but it came out even. Magic, I tell you! (probably has to do with the stretch going where it needs to and other scientific stuff)  

I was also concerned about the top edges of the socks. It isn’t stretchy like the rest of the sock body, but it did fine too. It did roll slightly. Just barely.

 Not anything that affected the sock staying up or in place. In fact, I don’t believe the sock moved unless I made it.

  The adult version was molded. It had a heel and clearly defined area for the foot which is probably why it felt a little too big on my little ol foot. But it wasn’t bad. Don’t take that impression from what I said, please! I could have worn the socks, but figured I’d pass them on to Sherry (my mama) so we could get even more feedback!