Belle turned 2 years old this month! How is it possible? She is full of life and joy. I am so proud of this little gal. She celebrated her birthday with family and friends and even blew out her own birthday candles! I know this wouldn't have been possible for her without TalkTools. She has had a lot of practice blowing bubbles so she knew how to carry that skill over to her candles. Belle has more than 45 words now and is even starting to name a few colors. Her favorites are blue and purple! She loves to try to sing along to kids songs on the piano and wants to be heard in all social interactions.

As Belle strives to make more of her own decisions and become more independent, she pushes back on some of her daily therapy exercises. Through working with Whitney, we have altered our oral motor placement routine a little in order for Belle to have more of a role in the decision making process. I try to make our sessions shorter and also reward with reading books. Reading is absolutely Belle's favorite thing to do. We are welcoming the 2's with open arms and look forward to another year of great progress, fun, and learning.  

Belle Repeating Words She Commonly Says on Her Own

-Lanie Beetsma

Annabelle has Down Syndrome and has been using TalkTools Therapy since she was born. Her story is a great inspiration for parents seeking help for a child with Down Syndrome. Follow Miss Annabelle’s journey from the beginning here.

Belle is doing well and consistently adds to the lively chatter in our home :) She has approximately 35 words that she says regularly, although someone from outside our family may only understand about half of those without an interpretation.

Belle has been working with Whitney, our Speech Language Pathologist with TalkTools, for about 18 months now. We get to see Whitney in person about twice a year, we email regularly, and have video conferences as needed. This month, however, we decided that it was time to start scheduling therapy sessions for Belle via Skype 2-4 times per month.

Belle has reached a point in her development that I need additional assistance with her oral motor placement exercises. She is striving for more independence and understands that speaking is a way for her to be heard and quickly get her needs met.

Working with Whitney this month has allowed me to better understand how each exercise is used to encourage a particular mouth posture, sound, etc. She has helped me to revamp our current TalkTools program to minimize frustration on many levels.

In a matter of a few days, Belle no longer needs the straw to blow bubbles through the wand. She can do it all by herself!  I am so thankful for these additional therapy sessions, and Belle is making great strides!

Here are three quick videos that highlight Belle's progress in month 23.

Belle Practicing with TalkTools' Apraxia Shapes

Belle Chomping on Her Red & Yellow Chewy Tubes

-Lanie Beetsma

Annabelle has Down Syndrome and has been using TalkTools Therapy since she was born. Her story is a great inspiration for parents seeking help for a child with Down Syndrome. Follow Miss Annabelle’s journey from the beginning here.

Belle is starting to imitate words more which I am excited about. To date, she has approximately 18 words and 18 signs. She is very animated and quite dramatic at times :) Annabelle continues to eat well and is doing great with her new Straw #4. She has improved tremendously with her "chomping" exercises in the past few months. I can tell that her jaw has gotten a lot stronger. When it comes to our horn exercises, however, it's a power struggle of who gets to hold the horn. Her pouty face typically wins or at least initiates a compromise. She has no problem making a noise with it, but we have a long way to go until we can track 25 breaths through it in a row. Overall, I think Belle is making great progress. I am really proud of that joyful little gal!

Above is Annabelle doing her "chomping" exercises right before bed. I know that her sitting on my bed isn't the ideal place to practice these but it is a part of her bedtime routine and she is really used to it. It's also our little time to hang out together and giggle a little bit too. Her jaw strength has really improved over the past few months. Prior to this time, it was a struggle for her to "chomp" even one or two times, and as you can see in the video, she has come a long way.

This video is of the very first day Belle tried to blow bubbles. She did great! This is one of her favorite activities (and one of her brother's too as you will hear in the background). I am amazed by all the things that she can do. She is capable of so much at 19 months!

-Lanie Beetsma

Annabelle has Down Syndrome and has been using TalkTools Therapy since she was born. Her story is a great inspiration for parents seeking help for a child with Down Syndrome. Follow Miss Annabelle’s journey from the beginning here.