Best Game Ever

Now, I am not one that usually posts on things that I buy, but this is too good to keep to myself. Lauren got a gift from a friend on her birthday that has got me so excited that I need to blog about it. Both from a mom's point of view as well as an educator's point of view.

Lauren got a game called Cariboo. It is the best game that Lauren has ever been given. Maybe because both Lauren and I love to play it. Or maybe it's because it's something I can use to help develop language. I don't know which I'm more excited about, I just know I love this game.

Lauren gets an opportunity to match colors, shapes, numbers and letters at any given time throughout this game. It helps her with developing vocabulary because each flap has a picture on it as well. There is even an opportunity to make the game more challenging when she has mastered the beginner's section. All I can say is get this game or borrow it from someone who has one. You won't be sorry.

Back from PA

Well, we just got back from another 10 days in PA. Tyler's younger brother got married and we were there to celebrate the joyous occasion. Since ten days is a lot to recap, I thought I would just give you a few of the events that happened:

1) Lauren got to celebrate her birthday with both sets of cousins and grandparents on both sides. That hasn't happened before since we are so far away, so it was pretty special for us all.

2) The bride got the flu and went to the emergency room a day before her wedding. She was better just in time for the rehearsal and everything went as planned.

3) Ty's mom got bronchitis the day before the wedding and felt a bit cruddy for the wedding day. She was a tough cookie and never let you know she wasn't feeling good.

4) I got the flu/cold the Thursday before the wedding and wasn't sure I was going to be able to sing the song the bride selected for the ceremony. I couldn't breathe very well and my nose was stuffed. Thankfully, my brother-in-law stepped up and sang with me. It went well, except when the 80 year old organist played an entirely different song halfway through our performance. We recovered well, however.

5) Lauren got "real" shoes. Cute, little, shoes that she can wear without her brace and that do not fall off the back of her foot. She looked adorable and they never slipped off. I am so glad we had that surgery. Putting those shoes on her this week made it all worth it.

6) Ty and I had two nights without Lauren. She stayed at my mom's house for the wedding weekend. Ty was a groomsman and I was singing, so taking care of a four year old during those times would have been difficult. She stayed at Grammy's two nights in a row. It was weird to be without her, but it was a nice break as well.

Thanks to my family for a wonderful visit. We had a blast and we will see you soon!

Happy Birthday Lauren!

Lauren is four years old today! I can hardly believe that it's been that long. It was four years ago today that I joked about going into labor just so I didn't have to go to the PTA meeting at school that night. God was listening and I went to the hospital instead of the meeting. I wonder what would have happened if I had joked about winning the lottery that day.

Happy Birthday, Lauren. I love you and I am so blessed to have you in my life.

A Little Bit Jealous

Ok, I can admit when I am jealous. Ty is in Atlanta getting ready for a visit from Tommy Hilfiger. Yes, he is going to meet him and all the celebrities that hang around events like the one he is going to on Saturday. If it wasn't cool enough that he gets to meet Tommy, Gavin DeGraw will be there, too (If you do not know who Gavin DeGraw is, look him up. You will recognize his song instantly). And since Ty works for Tommy, you know he is going to get to go behind the scenes and rub elbows with them both. He gets to do all the cool stuff. I need a few moments to work through this.

The Value of a Second Opinion

I can't stress enough the importance of getting a second opinion from doctors. Not just as a mom of a special needs child, but for all moms. We were given an innate ability to sense when things aren't quite right. Trust that feeling, it's never wrong.

Lauren got her first set of hearing aids last October. She has been wearing then now for about 11 months. We have seen some improvements, however, there were things that both Ty and I noticed weren't happening. She still wasn't getting quite a few consonants. She couldn't say her s, t, h, j, q, and a few other high frequency letters. At first, I thought it would be just a matter of time. Then the gut started rumbling and I knew something wasn't right. I have no degree in audiology, but I knew something was wrong with the hearing aids. So we trotted up to UNC-Chapel Hill, the leading facility in speech and hearing in all of North Carolina.

After a full day of testing and talking with the doctors, our gut feeling was confirmed. The hearing aids in Lauren's ears were useless. They were the wrong kind for her type of hearing loss and they were programmed incorrectly by the audiologist here in Charlotte. We were told by the audiologist in Chapel Hill that she would have been better off not having a hearing aid in her left ear at all. The right hearing aid was just making the stuff she could already hear a little louder.

You go through a wide range of emotions when you learn something like that happened to your child. Mostly I cried. I cried for Lauren and for another set back that she never asked for and didn't deserve. I worried. I worried what kind of long term affect missing another year of hearing might bring in the future. I got angry. I wanted to drive to the Charlotte audiologist and kick her in the shins until she felt as bad as I did. I got determined. This made me even more set on insuring Lauren gets where she needs to be despite another person's neglect. It's a tiring thing dealing with all the emotions, but it's important to acknowledge them so you can deal with them appropriately.

Here's what we are dealing with now that all the emotions have fallen into place. Chapel Hill ordered us a new set of hearing aids that will amplify perfectly for Lauren's level of hearing loss. Until they come in, they gave us a set of 'loaner' aids. We are responsible for the cost of the new hearing aids if the insurance doesn't cover them. We will not know the outcome of that for a while. Please pray that they will. We have no course of action against the audiologist despite her gross incompetence. The best we can do is write a strongly worded letter to the Charlotte audiologist, hope she has a moment of clarity, and pays for the new hearing aids. That's the very least she could do since the first set we got from her was a waste. We would not have needed to order new ones if the she had ordered the correct aids in the first place.

If you have a gut reaction to something a doctor says or does, go get a second opinion. It will probably save you time, headaches, and money in the long run. Or it might just save you more than you could ever imagine.

Improvements

A lot of people have asked me if I have seen any improvements to Lauren's leg after her surgery. For any new readers, Lauren had her Achillies tendon lengthened as a result of her Cerebral Palsy. She got her cast off the 18th of August and is now walking in her regular brace. I had to bribe her with ice cream and it took almost a month to walk on it again, but she is doing great.

The biggest and most emotional improvement happened today and I never even saw it coming. Lauren asked to ride her bike outside after she got home from school. Usually, that means she gets on the bike and uses her left foot to push herself around and holds her right foot up so it doesn't drag. Because of the tightness in her foot she has never been able to pedal her tricycle.

Today she got on her bike, put her feet on the pedals, and rode it like it was her job. She rode up and down the driveway, around the cars, and down the sidewalk. I just watched in amazement, beaming with pride, and trying to choke back the tears. There were times in the past where she was getting really close to doing it. She would put her foot on the pedals and try to pedal around only to make it a few inches before her right foot would slide right off. Today she went all over the driveway without missing a beat. I really am so amazed by her determination. I could learn a lot from this little girl.

So to answer your question, yes. I am seeing an improvement in her foot.

Pot Problem

I think I might have a pot problem with one of my neighbors. Yes, I said pot. As in Mary Jane, Wacky Weed, joint, or grass. I opened the door two nights ago to let Rugby out when I caught a whiff of the most pungent smell. It was distinct and it took me a minute to realize what it was. There was no doubt in my mind it was pot and somebody close by was about to get the munchies.

****DISCLAIMER*****

I have not now or at anytime tried pot. I went to college with people who did and went to concerts were it was obviously in the air. That is the only reason I know the smell. Mom, don't panic.

*********************

I quickly looked around the room to find Tyler at the computer, Lauren in bed, and Rugby outside so I know it wasn't one of us. I even looked on the back porch to see if someone got confused in their drug induced stupor and parked themselves at our house for a short rest. Nothing. Someone close by was having a little too much fun and we were up wind.

I thought it was done, but I smelled it again today. I was heading out for a softball game this evening and the familiar scent wafted my direction once more. I guess I am going to have to go all Magnum P.I. and figure out if we have a random pot smoking stranger or if there is trouble in our neighborhood. Or, I might just ignore it and go to bed.

Pronunciation

When your child is hearing impaired and you are trying to catch her up on language, a funny thing happens to you. Almost every word you say to her gets repeated and enunciated perfectly and you don't even have to think about it. It becomes second nature. You find yourself slowing each word down and breaking it up into parts. That's normal and that's what you do when you are talking to your child. I apparently do it all the time, and don't even realize it.

I went to get a shower before work the other day and walked into the bathroom to start running the water. I looked over at the hook and realized that the towel hanging there was wet from a previous shower taken by Tyler. In my head I said, "Oh, I need to get a fresh towel. This towel is wet." What it really sounded like was this:

"Oh, I need to get a fresh 'ta-well'. This 'ta-well' is wet." There was no one but me in the bathroom. I was sounding out towel as if Lauren was right next to me and I was making her say the word. This was the first time that I noticed myself doing it. I hope I've never said something like that out loud to anyone besides Lauren. If I accidentally did, I am going to just apologize now. Apparently, I have no control.