« 2/5/08 | Main | 2/26/08 »

02/18/08

9:47 PM (Texas time) Last Monday, Susan and I visited with the Cognitive Psychologist that did Sophie's testing back in December. He was very helpful in explaining the various tests and the results that he came up with. Overall, he described Sophie as a very intelligent child, with average to above average intelligence in many areas. He does diagnose (?) her with some developmental delays or cognitive problems, however.

In particular, Sophie seems to have trouble with rote learning techniques (memorizing things just for the sake of memorizing them) or repetitive tasks and time constraints. His recommendation is that we make sure that Sophie receives instruction using a variety of techniques (Sophie can easily compensate for this issue with the areas where she excels) and try to ensure that she is given "extra" time as needed.

It's a little challenging swallowing all of this, but I guess I'd rather know now than see problems develop down the road and wonder why they're cropping up. Our hope, of course, is that this diagnosis is not a sign of future cognitive issues that stem from Sophie's treatment. We're going to stay on top of this, though!

On a sad note, my grandfather (PaPa) passed away over the weekend. He was 93 and lived a very full life. He was blessed to live in his own home up to the very end, and with the help of my dad, was able to keep up his garden (somewhat) even last year. I'm thankful that we got to visit with him last summer, and I will always cherish this photo of Sophie spending some quality time with her great-grandfather:

P1010050

Comments

First, I'm so sorry to hear about your Pa Pa. That must be so sad and hard, especially when you are so far away. It is wonderful that you got to spend time with him recently, and that the children got to know him. Second, I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your cat, and hope you are all handling that well. It is so hard to lose a member of the family, even if it is of the feline variety. Third, I'm still a little skeptical of the evaluation of Sophie. There are a lot of reasons (and for brevity I won't get into them here), but I can tell you that there is NO WAY to tell whether her cancer treatment has anything to do with her current functioning. However the fact that she is in the average to above-average range is good news. It means she can be anything she wants to be in life.

So sorry to hear about your Grandfather's passing but I know you will always cherish that last visit with him.

Dear Susan & Randall & Girls,
I am thankful that your PaPa lived such a full life and wow...he was able to get to know the girls. What a blessing! The picture was beautiful! Our prayers are always with you. Hugs and Love Debbie Frazier Evans and Family