Maddie Begins Ballet!

Today will be Maddie's first day of ballet classes! 

I'm so excited!

This morning I showed her the leotard and ballet shoes for class and she couldn't wait to put them on and try them out!

We are keeping things low-key.  

We chose to sign her up at the YMCA rather than a dance studio.  

I think she's going to love it. 

First position, second position, here we come!!

Lens Love!

So, I rented this little beauty and took her out for a test run yesterday.

She's very lovely.
All of these pictures are SOOC (straight out of camera).
No editing. 

1/2000, f/2.8, 200mm

I was probably 25 feet from Maddie when I took this photo.
I love the compression.
See how the pole she's leaning against appears to be the same scale as the tree behind her?
In reality it's more like a scale of 2:1 or more.
I love how this lens seems to pull in the background to make things "tighter".

The main reason I love this lens though is how it changes the relationship with the subject.
The physical distance creates this mood that I'm just LOVING!

1/1250, f/2.8, 190mm

1/1250, f/2.8, 135mm

1/1250, f/2.8, 95mm

 It feels more natural to me.
I just love it.  

It also performed really well with motion and keeping the focus.

1/1600, f/2.8, 70mm

I was panning to get this shot as she was running on the bridge.

I did discover this lens is all about distance.
I tried a familiar shot I get of Maddie all the time because it's one of her favorite things to do.

1/1250, f/2.8, 70mm

Peek-a-boo around the tree.  I was right there, maybe 1 foot from her.

1/500, f/2.8, 70mm

The lens couldn't find focus this close, so when there's action going on with little ones in close proximity, this is NOT the lens for the job.

Here are some of my favorite shots at 70mm.
I was probably 5-7 feet from her in most of these.

1/2000, f/2.8, 70mm

1/3200, f/2.8, 70mm

And here are my favorite shots at a longer focal length.

1/2500, f/2.8, 200mm

1/3200, f/2.8, 135mm

Another amazing find I discovered with this lens is the lack of chromatic aberration.

1/500, f/2.8, 70mm

Normally, with this much contrast between the chains and the sky there would be some green lines that appear between the transitions (aka chromatic aberration)
Look at this!  It's amazing!

Well, now that I have proven what a nerd I am, I have just ONE more observation/conclusion with this lens.

This is NOT your lens for macro photography.

On the left, 70-200.

On the right, my 100mm Macro.

No comparison!








Choosing the right tool for the task at hand is an artist's first decision to make when creating art.

I love this lens for the mood it can create with the distance between me and the subject.

If I want to capture the essence of who a person is, I'll reach for my 24-70 f/2.8 L II.

If I want the details, details, details, I'll pull out my 100mm Macro.

Bottom line:  I would absolutely love to have this lens in my toolkit!

Thank you for reading and allowing me to get all nerdy on you.
I know I really need a blog my photography can call all it's own, but who has time to create another blog ;)  

Homeschooling: Creating the Right Learning Environment

We have begun our homeschooling adventures here at the Schasteen house!  

I was hoping to find a "perfect" private school for Maddie like this one but my search came up empty.

Since I couldn't find what I was searching for, I decided to create it myself...and here we are homeschooling!

We are actually doing a hybrid version of private school/homeschooling.  

She is still attending the private preschool she went to last year two days a week, and I am working with her the other 3 days.  

I still felt it was important for her to be in a "typical" developing environment for a couple of reasons:

1) Maddie can learn so much from her peers.

2)  Since she's an only child, she really benefits from the social interactions she gets while at preschool.  

Although we just celebrated her 6th birthday, she's in the 3-year-old class.

This fits her developmental needs best.  

With the struggles we have had with Sensory Processing Disorder to regulate her system, last year was a tough year. 

We are super fortunate to have the same teachers she had last year again this year! 

I really love the flexibility we have with homeschooling.  

My favorite thing is when Maddie comes to ask me, "wanna play?"

And I say, "yes!"

And we sort Easter eggs.

 and then line them up to create a pattern.

As a side note, do you notice the rock-star-type device she's wearing?  

That's her bone conduction therapy device.  

It's amazing!!!

We began doing music therapy with her last October as an Integrated Listening System to treat her SPD.  

Although we saw a bit of progress, we eventually hit a plateau and then digressed a bit.  

And then came the bone conduction therapy! 

At our last OT visit, Maddie is FINALLY looking like a regulated child!!!

What we spent 7 months trying to accomplish with music therapy, we finally accomplished within 14 weeks of bone conduction therapy!!!!

It basically bypasses the auditory system altogether and relays sound through the bones (like in utero).  This, in turn, trains the brain to receive and process information differently.

And this has made all the difference :)

OK, back on track wtih our homeschool story...

 We read one of our library books...

 I used this tutorial to make mini books.

 Maddie re-created the steps in the book, learning sequence and number recognition.

And then her favorite part...

We got in a lot of gross motor play running around the house from the bear!

We also worked on fine motor skills while practicing pouring beans.

She uses her ipad and this stylus to practice writing all of her letters.
With other ipad apps, she can name all of the shapes including pentagon!

But my favorite accomplishment of hers has to be her amazing puzzle skills.
By the end of the week, she put together a 24 piece puzzle all by herself!  Wow!

She didn't really want me to tape her, so I didn't push my luck, but later this same week, she did the puzzle from start to finish with no help from Mommy!!

I love this series of photos because it shows her sheer determination.
These puzzles do not come easy to her, but she's so stubborn she's going to get it done!!

So far, homeschooling has been working great for us.
I love that I feel like I've got a handle on where she's at developmentally and what goals are appropriate for her.
I love getting to see her accomplish tasks and persevere through her frustration.
I also love the flexibility.

That's some highlights of our first couple of weeks.
I hope to keep posting to keep me accountable and also have a record of her progress.
(plus it's great for Grandma to see what she's doing to help us set new goals!)
We are spoiled to have a Grandma with TONS of experience  and expertise in teaching little ones!

A Monumental Moment

This image probably won't stand out to anyone else but me.  

I knew it was worth capturing the moment I heard the words, "I did it!"

This image represents courage, facing fears, and overcoming real and present obstacles in life.  

And I'm so proud because my baby girl, "did it!"

We had somewhat of a traumatic experience with our second sleep study.  

The technician taking off the "stickers" on Maddie had no mercy!

He ripped them off, I'm sure thinking that was the best method.  

Maddie was wailing.

With 27 wires hooked up and several more "stickers" to rip off, it was torture.  

She looked like she had a rash when it was all said it done.  

Her skin was irritated with bumps and red spots which stuck around for several days.  

It hurt!

So, when we went to the cardiologist Monday morning and the technician announced she was going to put a few "stickers" on for an echocardiogram, Maddie was in full-on panic mode.  

Normally she's a flight responder when it comes to stress but that day, she was going to FIGHT!

While I had to hold her down (the worst feeling in the whole world, btw) the technician somehow managed to get all of the sticker tags on.  

Maddie was NOT going to let her connect any wires though!

She fought hard.

And won!

Looking back she probably saved us several hundred dollars ;)

The Dr. came in and did things the old fashioned way with nothing but a stethoscope and was able to ease all of our concerns about an irregular heartbeat.
She has what's called a sinus arrhythmia, which is very common and considered normal.

Now with were left with all these "stickers" all over her chest.
I tried reassuring her that we could use a wet paper towel and ease them off, or we could use soap and slide them off.
She was having none of it!

So we wore them home.

When her daddy came home, she showed him her chest and said "hurt" and started crying!

I decided we would just attempt to deal with them in the bathtub.
I put "magic bubbles" in to 'get those stickers.'  

She apprehensively got in and I stepped back and gave her some space.
I knew this was something she would have to have control over.

In my mind I was thinking we would have to wear these stickers for weeks waiting the adhesive to give out.

And then I heard her proud, tiny little voice exclaim, "I did it!"
She had taken off the first sticker all by herself.
She faced her fear of pain and conquered it.

All. by. herself!

She took every single one off.
Her skin is still irritated with red little squares marking the spots her "stickers" taunted her.
I'm so proud of her.

I hope she carries this lesson with her always.
And just in case she forgets, I have the documentation to remind her what she's made of!

Progress with Sensory Processing

We have a live-in house guest in our sandbox outside.  

This little guy has taken up residence and has been there all summer long.  

He usually hops on out as soon as the commotion of the building of the sand castles commences.  

Yesterday, however, he lingered a while.  

Maddie has never noticed our one-eyed guest...

until this day!

When she saw him hop away, she didn't hesitate. 

She had a plan. 

She grabbed and sifter and the chase was on!

Lucky for our frog friend, he narrowly escaped.  

Maddie, however, was clearly disappointed.  

She began calling out to the frog and looking for him. 

And then, finally, resided in the fact he was gone, she sat down for a rest.  

This seems like an every day childhood occurrence but for us, this is BIG, BIG progress!!

For instance, this is the first time Maddie even NOTICED the frog, which indicates an awareness of her surroundings.  

Before this, she would have been so defensive of all the information her brain was trying to receive that she would just shut everything out, therefore not noticing the world around her.

Secondly, she PROCESSED what to do with the frog.  

She thought through the idea of catching him with her strainer (brilliant!) and proceeded to try and make that happen.  

Of course all this happened in a matter of seconds, so for me I had never realized watching normal kids how amazing this is, but Maddie has a processing disorder that has never allowed her to fully process a situation like this...UNTIL NOW!!!

I am so excited and so proud of her.  

We have been using a method of therapy called Bone Conduction Therapy that has really been the turning point for us.  

I'm so grateful for our wonderful Occupational Therapist who didn't give up on Maddie. When the music therapy wasn't getting the job done, she was just learning about bone conduction and decided to give it a try.  

I'm so glad we did!

Even though she's been doing this for over 20 years, she's still pushing herself to learn new techniques and find the best path for the kids she sees.  

Amazing.

New discoveries like our frog friend are now happening every day and life is getting super interesting for her and me!

Purpose in the Pain

For the last three weeks, I've been attending a digital storytelling workshop for survivors of the Moore tornados.  

Here's my story...

Dodging a Parenting-Fail!

My life is full of most embarrassing stories. 

I could go toe to toe with Bridgit Jones and her diary and I just might win. 

While at the hospital, I narrowly escaped yet another story to add to my collection.

More on that later.

First, I'm happy to say that Maddie is home and although recovery has its ups and downs, for the most part we are well on our way to being good as new.  

So, back to the story...

There are a few things we do in life only because motherhood/parenthood requires it.  

For me it's things like:

1) Donning a bathing suit

2) Sharing my secret chocolate stash

Such sacrifices as these award you that ever-pleasing self-pat on the 'ole back. 

And then there are more serious times you just have to be there for your child because that's what love is.  

You are there to hold their hand and tell them everything will be ok (even if you don't know that it will be)

For some strange reason, the hospital has this rule that only one parent can be present in the recovery room after surgery.  

I was the chosen one.  

I was ready to be there for my baby when she woke up because that's what a good mother does.  

But then...

I saw it.

The blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth.

Uh-oh.

Did I ever mention that half of all my most embarrassing moments have something to do with blood?

Like the time I passed out cold because my friend's diabetic mother had to prick her finger for a reading?  

I don't do blood.  

It's not in my parent manifesto.  

I asked the extremely pleasant nurse if this was ok and like the good mother I was supposed to be, she reassured me it was just fine. 

After a washcloth was placed on the bed to soak up all that blood (seriously, we are talking like huge, pea-sized circular stain) I fought really hard to keep things together.  

And just then, the doctor comes by to talk to me about how the surgery went.  

He had pictures. 

Yay! Pictures!

Don't pass out...don't you dare pass out.  Keep it together Sam!!

I'm not sure I made eye contact because at this point the room was spinning and beginning to feel quite small.

I stared at what else but the pictures of the insides of my daughter's trachea.  

I had no choice but to disengage.  

When I finally snapped out of it, the doctor was pointing to the last picture and I heard him say, 

"so this is definitely something we need to watch out for in the future."  

Ummm, Say what?  

Luckily, he met us up in our assigned room later that evening and explained everything once again with Kyle and I both present! 

Phewww. 

Totally dodged that parenting fail! 

I stepped up my parenting game with an organized piece of paper detailing times medications were given.  Yay, that self-pat on the 'ole back is nice.  :)