2014 Special Needs Fine Arts Camp

	Fine Arts Camps for Children & Young Adults with Special Needs July 14-18, 2014 It isn’t too late to register for this exciting camp experience. This week-long camp is only $35, but there are a few spots remaining in each camp. Tanner Dance at the University of Utah is pleased to offer fine arts camps for children with special needs, focusing on dance, music, theater, and visual arts. Please call the office at 801.581.7374 or register online. Please share this camp information with anyone who may be interested.
		These unique fine arts half-day camps for children and young adults with special needs will include dance, music, theatre, and visual arts. With our positive approach and engaging philosophy, this experience will be different from any other. The faculty are trained to work with children of all abilities. Class Day Time Tuition Register Ages 5-10 M-F 9:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. $35 Register Here Ages 11-18 M-F 1:15 - 4:15 p.m. $35 Register Here
	Tanner Dance is located in the beautiful new Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts and Education Complex on the University of Utah campus.  For questions about the camp, please call (801) 581-7374.

Fine Arts Camp for Children with Special Needs

Creating Worthwhile Human Beings – One Artist at a Time
	Celebrate Your Artistic Capabilities August 6-10, 2012 Announcing Tanner Dance Program’s New Summer Fine Arts Camp for Children & Adults with Special Needs With the success of our Dancers with Disabilities program, Tanner Dance is excited to offer more artistic opportunities for students with special needs. Our unique fine arts half-day camps for children and adults will include dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and literature. With our positive approach and engaging philosophy, this experience will be different from any other. Discover and celebrate your artistic capabilities!
Disabilities Camps August 6-10 The arts of dance, music, visual art, drama, literature, and creative writing are natural disciplines that help children grow through experience and find joyful ways to express themselves. During this unique fine arts half-day summer camp, participants will have hands-on experiences in at least three art forms each day in this delightful week-long camp. With our positive approach and engaging philosophy, this experience will be different from any other. Discover and celebrate your artistic capabilities! Class Day Time Tuition Code Disabilities Camp, 5-10 yrs. M-F 9:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. $142.00 DC2-U12 Register Now Disabilities Camp, 11-18 yrs. M-F 1:15-4:15 p.m. $142.00 DC3-U12 Register Now It isn’t too late to register for this exciting camp experience.  A limited number of partial scholarships are available.  Please call the office at 801.581.7374 or register online. Please share this camp information with anyone who may be interested.

Photos from Dance Performance

More backstage photos from Bertrand's 5/13/2012 dance performance.

2012 Dance Performance

Bertrand and Dean waiting to go on stage.

Bertrand with mama dancing on stage.

Loudest applause of any group!  :)

Dancing with the Star (Cart)

Bertrand has been using a donated Star Cart at his dance class. Since the Star Cart is no longer manufactured, he now has a very similar Ready Racer of his own! We're hoping he'll learn to push his own wheels in it, opening up the possibility of using a self-propelled wheelchair in the near future!

Another Busy October

Bertrand at his dance class today.

Every year, October ends up being the craziest month. This year is proving no exception. I just got a call from Now I Can, the intensive therapy program in Provo, Utah. They have an opening for Bertrand... NEXT WEEK!

So starting next Monday, October 10th for three weeks, Bertrand will have therapy in Provo from 8:00am to 12:00pm Monday through Friday. He'll also have school back up in Salt Lake City from 12:40am to 3:10pm. On top of that, he has dance class on Tuesdays from 3:30pm to 4:30pm, hippotherapy on Saturdays in Park City from 11:20am to 12:00pm, and therapy at Shriners on Fridays from 1:00pm to 2:00pm.

To preserve my sanity, I'm going to cancel/move Bertrand's therapies at Shriners. I am also going to temporarily bow out the MOMS Club playgroup (I don't think Victoria will care too much yet), as well as cancel/move several doctors appointments. With Matthew's travel, pre-emptive sanity preservation would be a good idea anyhow.

Fingers crossed that I don't run into any more meanies!

Can Bertrand ride the school bus?

There are so many reasons why I love Bertrand's "Dancers with Disabilities" class! Not the least of which are the people we meet there and the wealth of special needs information that gets exchanged. Below is the email I just wrote to our constituent liaison, at the encouragement of one of the volunteers in the class.

My family and I live in district 4. My 3 year-old son, Bertrand, has many disabilities and is in a push wheelchair. He attends the special education preschool program at Ensign Elementary.

Bertrand can't ride the school bus because the alleyway behind our house is unaccessible--it is far too uneven and rough. He practically got launched out of his wheelchair the time or two we have attempted it. We tried putting bigger front wheels on his chair to help with the bumps in the alleyway to no avail. (The front of our house is facing a steep hill with many steps & no ramps, so it is unaccessible as well.)

Basically, there is no access for him from the house to the sidewalk to get to the bus. So, I currently drive him into school Monday
through Thursday, but it breaks my heart that he can't ride the bus like the other kids. He would love it.

Is there a way for the city to pave the alley so Bertrand could get to his school bus? As far as I know, it is public property.

Thanks for your time and consideration!

First Day of School (2011-2012)

When Bertrand gets asked to smile, this is his interpretation.

Don't you just love Bertrand's "smile"? He was so excited for the first day of school! He recognized all of his teachers and did really well! He was alert for most of the time, bore weight on his legs, and socialized lots.

His physical therapist at the school wants to bring in a C.P. walker (which I guess is a kind of gait trainer?), to get him moving around, and a stander, so he can stand for some table work. I am excited to see how he does for her! (He tends to last longer for others than for me because he knows I am a pushover.)

After school, we rushed over to dance class (he ate a snack in the car) and he lasted for 45 minutes before passing out asleep. He was cheerful the entire time.

What a positive change since last year! My boy is all grown up. ;)

A Day at the Ballet

In celebration of Purple Day, Bertrand, Daddy and I attended the University of Utah Tanner Dance Program Children's Dance Theatre production of "Through the Looking-Glass" at the Capitol Theater in downtown Salt Lake City. Bertrand proudly wore his Epilepsy Warrior t-shirt to the show and behaved like a seasoned theater-going veteran. It was our first time using Bertrand's wheelchair for a public outing of this nature.

From buying wheelchair accessible tickets, to finding wheelchair accessible parking, to getting the wheelchair in and out of the theater, to finding our seats... the entire process was tedious. Even though the theater was located less than 10 minutes from our house and we budgeted over 30minutes to get there, we should've budgeted over an hour. I sincerely hope we get better at working the system/timing/etc. because Bertrand deserves a chance to be out and enjoy things like other children. He shouldn't stay cloistered at home simply because the act of going outside is too big of a hassle.

Other than having to watch the first few dances from the lobby, we all enjoyed the performance. Bertrand was fascinated with the light changes on stage and throughout the theatre. He spent the first portion of the performance watching the Audio-Visual technician next to him work at the control board and he actually watched the dancers for the second half! Hopefully, this experience also helped Bertrand acclimate to a theatre setting for his dance recital in May. :)

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A day at the ballet could inspire just about anyone to take a second look at their health. While I am certainly eager to get back into shape this summer, Bertrand's well-being is my bigger concern. His weight has been holding steady for the past 2 weeks. That needs to change--for the sake of his bones, muscles and respiratory system. Bertrand's calories were set at 1076, but he has only been consuming between 800 and 900 without further weight-loss. We're changing his yogurt to a lower calorie version in an effort to enforce a new 814 cap. And, we will keep increasing his stander time along with other calorie burning activities, such as taking steps in his gait trainer and playing in prone position.

Yo-yo

Bertrand displays his preference for music over toys.

PAST WEEK

The last few weeks have been tough as we've dealt with Bertrand's medication changes in an attempt to achieve further seizure control.

After a 25mg increase in Lamictal, Bertrand's seizures increased. Reducing the dose--in preparation for the addition of Depakote--brought seizure numbers down a bit. (Paradoxical seizures perhaps?)

This Thursday, we will be starting Depakote (valproic acid) in the hopes that it will nix some of Bertrand's nasty remaining seizures. We won't see it's full effects until late March.

Through it all, Bertrand's continued smiles and laughter have powered us and pushed us. We don't want to lose our happy, sweet, little trickster to the fog of seizures again.

TODAY

In this morning's occupational therapy session, Bertrand successfully played with switches, sensory bins, and other toys. He demonstrated his improved reach (gross motor) and finger usage (fine motor), along with developing memory and the comprehension of cause and effect!

Nana took Bertrand to his afternoon dance class. Apparently, he protested his new aide and demanded his Ms. E back! --attempting to lure her with eye contact and indignant squeals. Hopefully, his demands were noted and he'll have her back next week. :)

Bertrand's final coup for the day was reaching up and pulling off his Nana's glasses! We were all overjoyed and so proud of Bertrand's reaching & grabbing! We can only hope to lose earrings, break necklaces, and have lots of hair pulled soon! :)

Dance Sensation! And More Sedation...

I just HAD to share photos of Bertrand at his dance class today. He had such a blast! His wonderful aide, Ms. E, rigged up a special carpeted rolling platform just for him! He LOVED it. Bertrand was relaxed & compliant (allowing Ms. E to help him reach for the sky, touch his toes, clap his hands, etc.) for most of the class, and toward the end he really enjoyed shaking his bumble bee shaker. Look at his grin while he "buzzed"! Precious! :)

Bertrand also had a dental check-up today. His teeth aren't looking good. His bottom front teeth in particular are so ground down that there is big concern for the nerves. He may need caps added to those teeth to preserve them. Bertrand will have to undergo a more thorough dental exam, cleaning & x-rays UNDER SEDATION. Yes, most people go under general anesthesia maybe 4 times in their entire lives, but Bertrand? Four times in a little over 2 months?! Not cool. I put all my special needs mommy ninja skills to work this afternoon and managed to arrange his EGD & dental exam together.

This means I am wiped out! 9PM bedtime, here I come.

PS - Bertrand's eye is still improving. He needs another week's worth of antibiotics and has ANOTHER follow-up with the ophthalmologist next week. We'll both be happy if we never see a bottle of eye drops ever again.

Bonding over dance, special needs and legal issues

Bertrand had preschool, occupational therapy and dance class today. What a busy boy! The biggest surprise was that he stayed concious for all 3 big, interactive activities! The zonegran wean is definitely working and worth it--even if we did see the return of a few small myoclonic seizures as a result.

While at Bertrand's dance class, one of the moms invited all the other parents out to talk in the lobby. Turns out that on top of being a special needs parent, Lisa is a lawyer. She gave out stacks of information on social security, trusts, guardianships, estate planning and other legal hurdles. She did a good job explaining lots of things, such as why you don't want your special needs child to have his/her own bank account (more than $2000 of assets disqualifies them for social security at age 18), and passed out resources--including fill-in-the-blank Last Will & Testament forms--for the DIYers in the crowd. It was really helpful! So, a new goal of mine for 2011 is to have an "estate planning night" for our family, thereby laying the groundwork for Bertrand and Victoria's (due April 2011) futures. Or, at the very least, soothing the rampant anxiety of a pregnant woman. :)

What will we be covering at next week's dance class? iPads, of course! I didn't expect Bertrand's dance class to be as fun for the parents as for the kids!

Dance Class for Bertrand?!

Studio room at Virginia Tanner.

This past weekend at a birthday party, a new friend mentioned a Dancers with Disabilities Dance Class through the Virginia Tanner Creative Dance Program at the University of Utah. (Up until this point, I'd though "Virginia Tanner" was a near mythical institution for dance prodigies in Utah for which you had to sign up at birth.) Understandably, I couldn't believe my ears! And then I couldn't believe my eyes once I was sent the class description**:

Creative movement classes designed especially for children with disabilities who, because of their unique challenges, may need special attention in order to fully enjoy the freedom of movement, creative self-expression and therapeutic benefits of dance.

Classes maintain a smaller student teacher ratio. For children who use a wheelchair or may need assistance in moving, dance partners (senior members of the Children’s Dance Theatre or other volunteers), are often available. Students are invited to participate in the annual Virginia Tanner Creative Dance Program spring show.

When I read this, I started to cry. I hadn't even realized that I'd given up on the possibility of Bertrand being able to do NORMAL extracurricular activities until this moment. I mean, he does Musikgarten and hippotherapy, but dance? when he can't crawl or walk? and a spring dance show?! The entire concept was moving (no pun intended)!

Since he is turning 3 this December, Bertrand can no longer attend Musikgarten because it is administered through Early Intervention in our state. Anyone who knows Bertrand knows how much he loves music. This dance class could be the perfect transition! Plus, I can finally fulfill the dream of being that glowing (read: annoying) parent sitting in the front row with camera, video recorder and an entire cheering section for my son!

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** A typical class (one hour, once a week) for a child Bertrand's age at the Virginia Tanner Dance Program runs $222.00 for a semester and $422.00 for a year. The Dancers with Disabilities Class is only $25 a semester and $50 a year! Clearly someone realizes that medications, doctors' appointments, wheelchairs, etc. don't come cheap! But the opportunity to see your disabled child have fun and dance is priceless. :)