Editor's Page

Editor:
Tammy Bangs
earlyed@bigfoot.com

Preemie Child:
Allison and Rick Martin
5martin@bellsouth.net

Topics
"When you expect
your baby to die"
Ed Martinelli
martiea@mail.auburn.edu

E-Male:
Jon Burks
jburks@grci.com

Inspirations:
Deb Waltman
HarrisonIV@aol.com

Notice:
The copyrights to all
columns contained in
this newsletter belong
solely to the authors.
Please contact them
directly to request
reprints on specific
columns.

Editor’s note:

It feels good to get "The Early Edition" back into production.  I took an unintended hiatus to care for my Father-In-Law at the end of 1999, and the beginning of 2000.  Since then, it just seemed that lots of other minor things came up that took over my attention. I hope now that I have gotten back into the swing of things, the newsletter will stay on it's quarterly production schedule.

This month Taylor will turn 8 years old. I am amazed every day how far he has come.  The noticeable effects of his early start become less and less each passing month. Eight years ago he entered this world at only 1 lb. 15 oz. (895 gms).  Today, he tips the scales at 42 lbs., but, he is NOT the smallest in his class! Eight years ago his future was in great question, he had a grade III IVH in utero, and the prognosis was not good.  Today, his future, though slightly cloudy, is pretty bright.  Taylor has some disabilities that will forever shadow his accomplishments.  He has very mild CP, some auditory based Learning Disabilities, and ADHD. He will never be an athlete.  He will face prejudices and teasing for the way he walks, and holds his body.  He will probably dread PE classes. His academic classes, on the other hand, will be his strong point. Taylor was in Special Education from age 3 to this past year.  He has been in a mainstream class for second grade. Our school district tests all second graders for the GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program.  We just received Taylor's results.  He tested in the 99.8 percentile.  This means that not only does he qualify for the GATE program, he qualifies for the advanced GATE program. This means that in the span of only a year, he has gone from the Special Ed program to the Gifted program! We get to officially add another label - GIFTED. Not bad for a kid who was not expected to ever talk, eat, or potty train!

It has been a very tough journey for my little man.  And his road ahead will be filled with many rocks and hazards.  But we have gained the confidence that the road IS passable, and his future has great promise!

Tammy, Mom to:
Taylor (born at 28 wks, now 8 yrs.),
Taylor's identical twin, and guardian angel - Alex,
and Travis (full term, now 6 yrs.).
Wife to Gary (retiring from the NAVY in 15 mo, but who's counting).

If you are reading this newsletter on paper... it is because someone has taken the time to download it off the internet, print it out and share it with you. If you have internet access, maybe you can do the same for others.
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~earlyed/welcome.htm

Disclaimer:   The writings and opinions contained in this newsletter are strictly the opinions of the writer, and do not contain any endorsements, or guarantees, of any kind. Further, these opinions  and writings are in no way meant to be considered as medical advice. Nor are they meant to replace any medical advice. Always discuss concerns and questions with your physician.