The Talking Hamster isn't new, but Noa spent quite a while with it one day experimenting with the different ways she could make it respond. This video is a bit on the long side, but I thought it was pretty interesting to watch her try to figure out what make this toy tick. 

Another development: Noa agreed to get out of bed in the morning with Daddy (rather than insisting on Mommy.) This is another great development for home life... especially for Mommy's home life!

Noa also did great work at Horsey this week. Last week she really didn't pay attention to directions much (it was windy and she enjoyed that), but this weekend she was more focused.

On Sunday we spent most of the afternoon on the road. We went leaf-peeping, and then enjoyed a stroller walk on the Northern Rail Trail. For Noa, it was mostly about enjoying having the windows rolled down.  The great victory of the day was that Noa agreed to eat a lunch/dinner combo meal (she is generally agreeable to brunch, but has never agreed to lunch/dinner before.) There was a bit of negotiating - Noa won five pushes on her spinning swing. 

Noa had a great weekend. Overall in a good mood. She loves being back at school. On Friday, she seemed quite tired after her "good week" at school. You can see in the photo below, she is dozing off with a water bottle in her hands.

The big event for Noa this week was getting a new desk. We wanted her to have a work space that allowed her to move from one activity to another on her own a bit more. She was VERY happy with the desk and spent quite a bit of time there (mainly playing the piano and sorting coins) but I showed her around to where other items are and she helped to pick where some went. I'm brailling items for her as well so she can find them. She even has a built in cup for doggy to sit in, and she likes the star stickers. The white board directly in front of her is magnetic. ​

She did a bit better standing up out of the stroller this weekend. Of course we also started every walk with a long discussion about standing up "fast fast" after stroller. While we still had delays and mysterious demands, the situation as a whole was a bit less emotional and not as lengthy or difficult to get past. 

In the spring and early summer, Noa enjoyed spending time on her treadmill. She would usually spend about 20 minutes on the treadmill with Daddy.

Later in the summer, Noa shifted her focus to a stationary bike that, until then, she couldn't really reach the pedals on. At first she struggled to turn the pedals smoothly but in recent weeks - with the help of some upbeat music - seemed to get the hang of it.

One of the most exciting developments has been Noa's desire to be independent, to do things, as she says, "self." She will also sign "self" though it oten looks more like "ten." Noa has been very interested in getting around the house by herself.
​
Noa likes to go up and down the stairs on her own. She is able to cross from the top of the stairs to (and from the bathroom), and likes us to set up her walker so she can walk from the bathroom to bed (and from bed to the bathroom in the morning.) She is interested in trying to get around on her own, and is doing great with understanding her left and right.

She also now dresses herself (which we know she's done at school for a while, but she hasn't wanted to do at home) and has shown an on and off again interest in wiping herself. Sometimes, if she wants to pull up her pants using both hands, she will lean her head against my chest so she can bend down. 

She also sometimes wants to stand on her own - for example standing up from the potty on her own - but sometimes really wants to walk on her own someplace where there isn't anything secure for her to hold on to. She's been using the walker more at home, though there isn't much space for walking more than one or two steps.