Thursday, August 21, 2008

Ahhhh!


Yes, there are many things in life that I have waited anxiously for...The day we got married, Morgan to be born, the day we left for China to meet Rylee, Mike and Morgan's arrival home from China, and for this little, white box to show up in our mailbox. What is it, you ask? The replacement BAHA - Who knew exactly how delicate this little contraption is! While Ryan took his shirt off last weekend, the BAHA fell to the floor from his level (as it had done before). After doing so, I put it back on him and it began making horrible, amplified, crackling sounds. I tried troubleshooting the problem (changing batteries, tapping the processor/black box, etc) and could not get it back into running order. Let me just tell you.... It was the longest week waiting for the problem to be resolved! Ryan had temper tantrums because he could see his soft band and wanted his "BAHA" right then and there! He was constantly screaming, yelling "What?, What?", and was just generally out of sorts. Add on to all of this, his first week of school and not being able to understand everything going on around him. It was very trying and stressful for us all. Seeing that little, white box in the mailbox today brought a sense of peace. After opening it up and reattaching the processor to the band, I took it down to Ryan and announced "BAHA fixed!" - Oh, how I wish I had my camera handy. His face lit up and we all did the "Happy Dance!" All I can say is "Aaaaaahhh!"

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Ryan's First Day












Our baby is off to preschool. He is attending Morgan's school for preschool this year. Here, he will receive the services (speech therapy and deaf education support) necessary to increase his language skills. He is going Monday through Thursday for 3 hours each day. Today was his very first day. It is amazing how we continue to learn important lessons about parenting even with child #3. We spent some time debating whether or not we should drop him off in the drop-off circle or walk him into the school for the first couple of days. After much debate, we decided that for him he needs to start off with whatever will be the routine (much like Morgan). So, Mike dropped Ryan and Morgan off in the circle. Although it is imaginable to think that we just dropped him off and did not go in to check on him, I have learned that it is our responsibility as parents to do what is the right thing for our children and not what we have to do for ourselves. I am 100% confident that he was well cared for during the walk to his class as a teacher walked him directly there and that all of his needs were met during his day. So, we have to place our trust in God's hands. When I picked him up from school, he was happy to see the van in the pick-up circle. The teacher reassured him that I was there and even moved him so that he could keep his eye on our van. A sweet little "Hello! Mommy!" could be heard. It is hard to believe that he has only been with us 8 months tomorrow. He is still learning many things one being that Mommy and Daddy will not leave him and that we will be there for him! As I expected, I did not get much out of him as to what happened at school. It doesn't help that his BAHA is not working properly (making horrible, loud crackling noises) and he has not been able to wear it for 3 days. Hopefully, the drop-off process will go smoothly tomorrow!

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Look At Me...I'm THREE!!!

Ryan's first birthday with us! He was not quite sure what to think of everything. He watched Daddy make his fire truck cake (a whole other story) two nights in a row and could not understand why he could not have any. Since he kept being told "not today" he has obsessed about the cake every day. During our early morning run to buy a cake at the grocery store this morning, he got upset because we looked at all these cakes but did not leave with one. After store number 2, he insisted on "brown cake"! No use arguing, if that is what he wanted, that was what we were getting - I am thinking he figured he better be adamant about it or he would not be getting one. So, tonight he had "brown cake" and enjoyed every moment of it! He did not question the whole ritual of opening presents and looked so surprised when he found things he recognized (GeoTrax sets). But, he looked at us like we were crazy the entire time we sang "Happy Birthday". About 3/4 of the way through our rendition of "Happy Birthday" he belts out "Whaaa you doin' ?" (see cake picture above). We kept on singing and then proceeded to explain that he needed to blow out the candles. He got one blown out on the first try and eventually he needed some help with the other two. What a joy he is and we can't wait to celebrate many more birthdays with him!!

Oh...the cake saga. Mike was making Ryan a fire truck cake. The first night, he baked it, figured out the logistics/design, and also cut out the shapes needed to make it 3 dimensional. Last night, he began decorating it. He decorated both sides, stuck it in the freezer, and then called me to help put it together. Well, we don't know what happened, but it literally began falling apart as I was holding it in place for him...He was not happy to say the least. Of the 10 or 11 birthday cakes he has made for the kids, this is the first that did not make it to the table. He worked hard and gave it his best...There is always next year...

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Aaah...

Ryan had appointments at Cincinnati Children's Hospital today. He saw both the audiologist and Dr. Choo. The audiology screening went incredibly well and they were able to teach Ryan in no time to place a ring on the toy and to drop a toy in the bucket when he heard the tones and sounds. He did great and we got even more information than the last test as they were able to use the headphones to isolate each ear. With the bone conductor on, his results were consistent with the test back in late March. He has a slight loss (with the bone conductor on) in the 2000 level. Other than that, it is within the normal range with his BAHA. Without his BAHA, he has a moderate conductive loss in his right ear and a moderate to severe loss in his left ear. Dr. Choo was great and really we do not have any decisions to make until he is between 5-6 years old. At that time, we will have decide whether or not to move forward with a canalplasty (reconstruction - construction in Ryan's case of the ear canals, ear drums, and bones). We believe the BAHA saga is taken care of with our insurance company which was a huge headache so, we believe we are finally on the way to Ryan having his very own BAHA and are now sure that the BAHA is serving him well! We are now on the 6 month cycle and will not need to take the trek up to Cincinnati as often as we have since Ryan arrived home.