Something Interesting Happened at Our House.

This morning I had an interesting experience with Sarah. Sarah, who is closing in on 5 years, still uses a sippy cup. She can also drink through a straw but the use of a regular cup has eluded her as the majority of the liquids runs down her chin and all over her front and the floor, etc.
Her oral motor delays are the culprit and this is an issue we have worked at a little but her teachers have really been working with on. I am ashamed to say at home it is much easier to give her a sippy cup and not worry about the mess. But the reality is it is a skill she needs to learn and we have been lacking in our aggressiveness in this area. Actually using a cup is pretty complicated although we all do it multiple times each day. Any OT will tell you there is a lot involved. Just think it through. All the muscles and coordination involved, its pretty complex. You must lift the cup, hit the target (which you can't see--your mouth), cup your lips and sip using your tongue to push the liquid back in your mouth, then sip more and also keep it from running out at the ends of your mouth, etc., etc., etc. So you see...not really that easy. Okay...I've digressed. What happened this morning is this. I offered Sarah a drink of water first thing in the morning. She is thirsty and highly motivated so I gave it in a regular cup. I give some support under her chin and help her hold the cup too. (I need more hands and arms!) So she had a drink and then after we had worked a bit I poured the rest into a sippy cup and offered it to her. SHE PUSHED IT AWAY!! She wanted nothing to do with it! Yippee!! So I went back to the regular cup, put a bib on her and that is all we used this morning for drinks. Is that cool or WHAT??? She wants to be a big girl!!