Sprinkler fun

It has been sooo incredibly hot here this week that we have been having quite a bit of water fun. Last year, the CIs were still new to me and I was paranoid about getting any amount of water on them. This year, I have learned to mellow out a bit. I just don't have the capacity to be nervous over every little thing! So, I am letting Kevin play with squirt bottles, hoses, and yes, even run through the sprinklers. He has enjoyed it and I love the fact that he can hear while getting in a water fight with his brother. The ears never get drenched, but they do get misted. I faithfully put them in the dry-and-store at night, but I just not stressing about it. According to the marketing material from Cochlear, the kids can 'run through the sprinklers', so that is exactly what I am letting Kevin do! So far, so good, and most important... Kevin is having a blast!

'ing'

Kevin started to say 'ing' at the end of words today. I was really excited because it means that he is really hearing the ending of words. For example, we were working on saying 'sliding' and 'swinging' and he actually said the 'ing'.

Our therapy sessions are getting increasingly more difficult as he is getting more and more '2', but we still seem to be making progress, so I can't be too concerned about it. Everyone assures me that he is very typical, but his strong-will personality doesn't make doing 'therapy' for 45 minutes easy. Just when I think he isn't getting anything out of a session, he goes and says 'ing'. Go figure!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to everyone! This video should say it all as to what type of Mother's Day I had. What a wonderful day!!! By the way, you will notice that Kevin says 'Happy Mommy's Day' instead of Happy Mother's Day. We didn't tell him to say that, he just created that on his own.

ooop....wrong ear!

Well, this really fascinates me! Kevin is now putting his ear on by himself 100% of the time. (Just the coil, not the ear piece). Because Kevin received his implant in Feb 2007, they did not yet have the id chip installed that will lock the processor if it is put on the wrong ear. I was always afraid of what would happen if he put the coil on the wrong ear. Would he be in pain, would he cry, what would happen? Well, this morning, he took one of his 'ears' and put it on his head. He looked at me, smiled and said, 'other ear', and put it on the correct ear. Wow! First off, I am so thankful that he didn't cry! Second, I guess it didn't cause him any pain. And finally, how in the world did he even know that the coil belonged on the other ear????? That just amazes me! There must be some kind of natural intuition that made him realize he needed to switch ears. I wish I could ask him what it sounds like. I can't wait for that explanation!!!

Boys will be boys

I just have to share how cute Kevin was in music class today. He really LOVES his music class and he was dancing around and singing with his new friend. There was a song that everyone was in a circle singing and the next thing I saw was Kevin, his friend, and 2 other boys sitting in their own circle just playing and singing to the music. It was so cute to see Kevin join in this music group and be so happy there. He is just a happy little boy enjoying all the things that a little boy should!

a normal life

Kevin is at a point where little accomplishments happen daily it seems. It is so fun to see him becoming a little kid. Things are somewhat normal for us now. After living with a deaf baby for 2 years, I don't remember well what my old 'normal' was, but with the whirlwind and chaotic life of the past two years, I think I can safely say that things are normal again. Yesterday, Kevin ran out of his room and said, 'Ethan, where are you?" (more like ee-an, where-r-ooooo?), but he said it and all 3 of us understood him! Ethan, told him where he was and Kevin ran there. They then proceeded to have a little conversation (mainly Ethan talking and Kevin saying 'yes' a lot) but it was happening. It seemed like such a normal sibling interaction. Can this possibly be happening???

This morning, the boys were watching tv while I was getting ready and Kevin was singing very loudly near Ethan's ear. Ethan said, 'not so loud Kevin' and the next thing I knew, Kevin was singing softly. The communication is really there!!!

Another 'normal' experience happened today on the way to his preschool. We listen obsessively to the Music Together CD in the car because both boys like it so much. I knew Ethan loved it and knew all the songs by heart, but I didn't exactly know how much Kevin got it. Well, I was driving and the last song came on that says 'good-bye everyone'. Kevin immediately said, 'uh-oh, bye-bye'. When I asked him if he wanted me to play it again, he said, 'hello', meaning he wanted the hello song which is the first one.

All of these experiences are normal interactions with a toddler! I can't believe it! I really hoped we would get to this point, but to finally get here is amazing. Now, I am not kidding myself. We still have a long way to go with full comprehension and speaking, but hey, this is a first step!

The crazy thing is that while I seem to try to do 'therapy' all day with Kevin and his progress is going well, I still find myself questioning if I am doing enough. I think that is something that all parents of CI kids feel. Can I be doing more? I don't ever want to regret that because I was lazy or tired, he didn't progress as quickly as he could have. I know that parents are only human and have to take a breath once in a while too, but until he has truly mastered the language, I think I will feel this way.

Oh well, for now I will enjoy this bit of encouragement that the boys seems to have quite a normal relationship!