An Amazing 2012...

Chloe's journey in 2012 sure has been quite the rollercoaster ride - lots of UPs and downs and fast curves but we have survived it all (a pure blessing from God that we do not take for granted) and looking forward to a great 2013 - but maybe with a little let drop kick to our knees, please... thought I would take time to review Chloe's Journey in 2012

 Received results from genetic testing that Chloe's hearing loss is due to a gene mutation... March 2012
First set of tubes and MRI that confirmed Chloe's hearing nerve was present... May 2012
Rushed appointment to Neurosurgeon - concerns of cyst found during MRI... June 2012
Chloe's first cochlear implant surgery... July 2012
Activation of Chloe's first cochlear implant... August 2012
Chloe's second cochlear implant surgery... August 2012
Activation of Chloe's second cochlear implant... August 2012
All the different sessions, meetings, etc with Chloe's Educational Team... Ongoing
Miles and Miles to Boys Town National Research Hospital (Love this place!)... Ongoing
Miles and Miles to Heartland Speech for speech services (Another Amazing place!)... Ongoing
Rushed trip to Children's Hospital due to thought pneumonia... October 2012
Second set of tubes... October 2012
Another round of chest x-rays, breathing treatments for mona/walking pneumonia... November 2012

Seeing Chloe turn to the sound of a bell for the first time, Watching Chloe explore the sounds during bathtime, Hearing Chloe say Mama & Dada for the first time (and all the time), All the jabber and chatter that fills our house, The first words (Up, Moo for Cow, Ut Uh, Out, All Done, Hot, Please, Hat, Help, Sydney, Donna), Having Chloe understand simple conversations, And seeing the girls play together and talk back and forth...

PRICELESS!!

We are thankful for the blessings God provides us each and everyday - we are reminded how precious our two girls are each and everyday - We thank from the bottom of our hearts our family that supports us through Chloe's Journey, Our employers who understand that our family comes first and allows us to take the time away from our work to do so, The AMAZING Team that works with Chloe each and everyday - And for all of you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

Our Blessings...

As Thanksgiving is right around the corner - I want to take this time to reflect and express our thankfulness.  Brian and I could not be more thankful for the Team that is working with Chloe and all the love, support and encouragement we receive from family and friends!  

Sydney Mae teaches me patience every day and reminds me that you learn all you do by asking so many questions.  She can turn any given moment into a game - and her smile is contagious.  She is learning so much in preschool - she counted to 149 the other day (prompted her a little past 100) and stopped only because she was tired of counting.  Her love for books comes from me but her "hoarding" every little piece of something comes from her dad.

Chloe Jean's progress through her hearing journey has taken off in leaps and bounds and there is no way we ever expected such amazing results.  My heart is filled with joy when I say bye bye to Chloe and she runs to me wanting a kiss - in a little over 3 months ago - that communication did not come as easy to our family.  But it shows that Chloe is working with a great team who is pushing her harder and harder each week as well as surrounding her with support and encouragement.  We also understand that there are going to be low moments where it seems as if she is not making any progress at all - and we can tackle that hurdle when we get there.  The fact that she smiles and gets excited to see her CIs in the morning - her face is priceless - shows me that she is enjoying her "hearing" journey just as much as we are!

Happy Thanksgiving from our hearts to yours!
(Chloe had a few things to say too - although she gets quiet when the camera is running)

Checking In - 3 months!

Can't believe October has came and went - been very busy in our house!  Chloe was healthy enough to get tubes a few weeks ago - hopefully this will prevent us from more ear infections.  Surgery didn't seem to bother her too much but she is done having her oxygen level checked and screams when she see it - and the only person that could make her smile that day was Dr. Lusk.  I would have to agree with Chloe - he is an amazing person (Mom smiles too).  Now if I can only keep both girls in a bubble and away from all the crud going around.

October brings us Halloween - and Chloe wasn't so sure about the whole costume idea - but thankfully we were able to capture a few pictures.  Little Bo Peep and her Sheep (thanks to their very talented Grandma)

Chloe's walk through her hearing journey is amazing - she is responding so well to speech and sounds and making leaps and bounds with her progress (its only been 3 months since she heard that first sound of the bell ringing).  Chloe is responding to her name majority of the time (some of the time I believe she hears me, but is choosing to ignore my request) - makes several sounds of her own Moo for cow, Maa for milk, Dadda, Mama, Uhh for up, Mo for more, Sss for a snake...just to name a few.  Lately she likes to play with her John Deere camera and holds it up to her face and says "EEEE" for cheese.  Her receptive language is very strong as well - She is starting to look for toys (objects) with no visual cues, example "Where's your ball, Chloe?" - and she will go look for a ball.  Chloe is also pointing to her ear when she hears a new sound or a sound she recognizes implying "I heard that!"  And of course, her dad taught her "touchdown" to help cheer on the Huskers!  Chloe is a very busy little girl and likes to be playing right next to her sister - it's cute to see the two of them play together.

Haven't talked a lot lately about Chloe's cochlear implants (CI) in terms of the device, thought I would share ... There are lots of pieces and parts to Chloe's CIs - and in order for this Mom to stay organized, I purchased and tweaked a mini storage unit to help with it all.  The two units on the side are dryers; the CIs are taken apart (7 total pieces) each night to dry and have the batteries recharged.  We also have several different color options because this Mom likes to coordinate her CIs with her outfit for the day!!

We are truly blessed to be where we are at today - Chloe has an amazing "team" of individuals that help her succeed in her journey - 

CrAzY wEeK

Crazy isn't even the right word to explain this past week - getting the call the Chloe needs to be admitted to Children's Hospital of pneumonia, plus stop by the office first to get her "stats" to be approved to skip the ambulance ride was more than I was expecting.  But good news is that Chloe did not have pneumonia but a viral broncolitis.  Spent the night to be monitored (as Monday night she was wheezing and having troubles breathing) but released Wednesday and has been running laps since.  She is a tough kid that is for sure - she does have an ear infection (left) and fluid (right) and is currently taking antibiotics - as soon as she gets a clean bill of health from our amazing Doctor, she will again have surgery for tubes. :( Disappointed, yea a little - we are ready to be done with this chapter and move on to the fun learning things!

Speaking of fun things, her are a few things we have caught Chloe doing this week:
Eee (and signs with one finger to her lips) for Eat
Elo or something like that when she holds a phone to her ear
After she hears a door close, she will sometimes look at it and wave bye bye (at hospital, didn't see them leave)
My phone made a sound for new text message, and she looked for my phone and held hand up to her cheek
She liked to watch out of the hospital window and made lots of vrrr vrrr sounds as the cars went by

We are working with some higher frequency sounds, like Sss, to see if we can get her to respond.  And although we haven't gotten her to turn her head, there have been a few examples here within the last few days that she has repeated or spontaneously made the Sss sound.  Maybe, just maybe she is hearing it but not giving you the true reaction... something to keep working on.

Thought you might like to see how active (and noisy) she can be ... I know you are suppose to be quiet while waiting in the doctor's office - but this Mom can't quite tell her to stop chattering, I just enjoy it too much!

The little things...

Sometimes you take the little things in life for granted - might even go by without noticing all the sounds you are exposed to during the day.  Chloe does a good job of reminding me - that if you stop and listen - there is always something you can find to listen to.  Here are just a few examples from Home...

During meal time, Chloe was in her high chair but finished eating.  Brian had her focused as he was playing a tickle game with her, however, Chloe stopped looked out the window and waved to a grain truck that drove by (our windows were open).

During family pictures outside near a highway, Chloe looked at 80% of the vehicles that drove by and waved - most of the time her back was to the highway and she was engaged in something else.

She has now learned about the clothes dryer - when she "helps" me do laundry, she pushes the clothes in and closes the door, and just this week she made a "rrrr" noise before I started it - and smiled and shook her head yes once I did start it

Chloe is chattering quite a bit more these days - and I like to use that word over babbling as there are more variances - but she is still being "nice & quite" during all her weekly "sessions" - Little Stinker!  Chloe also has started to turn to her name...it may take the second time we say it, but she is starting to put all the pieces together.

Took some time out of our busy schedule to just be a family - have some fun - and enjoy being outside during a beautiful (almost) fall evening.  Chloe is learning how to walk outdoors and with her shoes - even was able to kick the ball once or twice.  But it was an unfair advantage to me trying to play soccer and carry her around when she didn't want to be on the grass.  

Sydney started dance a few weeks ago and just LOVES it - she likes to show off all her new "tricks" she has learned - can't wait to watch her recital later down the road.  

There are days where I think we are doing great and then there are days where I have a hard time keeping up with the basics of a family of four.  Trying to find the balance of mother, laundry maid, wife, cleaning fairy, employee, chef... just to name a few, is tough.  But then having a night like tonight - there is nothing that I wouldn't give up - the laundry can wait (for a few days) and why not write your grocery list in the dust that can be found everywhere and my girls are only little once - it doesn't always hit me right away, but just getting down on the floor with my girls or seeing the small reactions from Chloe makes it worth everything!!

Week 5 of Chloe's Hearing Journey

Eating Cheetos!

Each day we are slowly noticing more and more... Her babbling is progressing as far as new sounds she is making.  Just a few of the sounds we hear her make are Ahh (airplane), Moo (her version) for cow, Mmm and Rawr (her version) for dinosaur.

Waiting to jump in!

Getting Chloe ready for bath time is quite the interesting task.  Although every time it reminds me how thankful I am to have chosen the water proof device as it gives us excellent language and learning time while all of us are stuck in the bathroom.  We have now moved her into our bathtub with her big sister and she thinks that is just great!  But I do think Sydney feels a little more restricted and she has to sit the whole time and stay on her side of the tub as Chloe is still learning on moving around within the tub.

Now that the weather has cool down a little bit - Chloe has discovered she loves the outdoors.  She loves to swing and unfortunately her slide.  I say unfortunately because the slide has static.  Static is something we have to stay clear from as it can either provide her with feedback or it can even wipe out one of her programs.  We are finding alternative ways to keep her entertained outside and that includes feeding the cows and four-wheeler rides with Dad!  Both of our girls love the outdoors just as much as we do -

Vroom Vroom

Just a few days ago we made a return trip to Boys Town (NO cameras this time) for additional mapping.  And Chloe is already showing them her own personality and rules to the "game."  Chloe doesn't always give them the reaction they are looking for my turning her head - typically she likes to play away with the toy and then once the sound stops she looks up, smiles and then waves or she imitates the sound (if she can).  Little stinker.  But after a few attempts and finally just letting her play on the floor - they were able to get some feedback from her which allowed them to tweak her programs just a little bit more.

Driving Miss Chloe

Chloe is "walking" - by no means not ready for laps around the house - but she is getting braver and braver with her steps.  Like tonight, she would stand up in the middle of the room, walk to a toy, play and little and then turn and walk to another destination.  Her balance is improving and she thinks she is ready to be walking while carrying her blanket.  Needless to say, she is not as happy when she falls....

Even enjoys playing the piano, which she  ignored before her CIs.

Chloe's Story.... video from Boys Town

We are thankful for Boys Town Hospital for choosing Chloe to follow and create an amazing video of her journey.  We invite you to take a look at this video, if you are softhearted, you may want to grab a tissue:

WOW!! Second Activation

There is so much media stuff going on right now thought I would share!

Boys Town Hospital did a press release in celebration of their 500th cochlear implant and with that we had a TON (it seemed that way for this mom) of media there today during activation.  Here are just a few of the links:
KMTV - Omaha
MSNBC - NBC 
WOWT - Omaha
Omaha World Herald
KETV - Omaha

Activation was a success - I would say that there wasn't as much of a "Aha" moment - but we know and saw that she was responding to the sounds. Her time in the booth was probably when we saw it the most - as she would turn (sometimes still to the right as that is where she has been hearing from this past month) her head and wave to whatever light and character seemed to be "talking" to her.  

AND then you have to check out the first of two videos they have created... On YouTube search for BoysTown Hospital and cochlear implant and there is a video called "what is a cochlear implant"
Or click here: What is a Cochlear Implant

The second video will be more of just Chloe's story and I will post once it has been uploaded.


We truly feel blessed to be working with Boys Town Hospital and the CI Team as well as all of our "team" members - we would not be where we are today without all of the support we have that surrounds us.  We understand and realize that there is a lot of hard work ahead of us - but in a way fun and energizing as well to see her grow in her hearing journey.  

The sound of hearing her babble again and make all these little steps 

is purely amazing for this mom...just warms my heart!!

It's surgery day #2

We arrived and were all checked in by 7am! Chloe did very well of being distracted and wasn't fussy about not getting her milk. She played in the toy room and gave lots of big cheesy smiles and waves to the wonderful staff we have today.

Chloe got her own special wagon ride to the OR and we were told she was all smiles!!

She should be back in recovery within the hour. Can't wait to talk to Dr Lusk to hear how well it all went!

Noon...She is back from recovery!! Went well with no complications... Might sit a little higher than the other one but that's how her skull accepted it... Soundly sleeping in my arms!

We are home and resting although she's doing so much better than last time!!

Here we go again...Surgery #2

I remember thinking "way back when" they scheduled the first surgery that I really wish the two were closer together - just antsy I guess for Chloe to have both of her CIs...but boy, where did that time go??  Here we are again, the night before her second surgery.  Tomorrow she will receive her left cochlear implant... yeah, I know, I should be in bed, but who really needs sleep these days?

Over this past weekend, we celebrated Chloe's First Birthday (yes, a little early)... Where has that time gone?  Honestly, the first few months are a blur but what seemed like forever to get to where we are today is here...Chloe was surrounded by family and close friends who helped sing her Happy Birthday - and with lots of hard work and a lil patience (maybe a lot of it), we are here - awaiting her second surgery.


God truely reminds me how much he has control - as much as I want to organize, plan and re-organize all of my life steps - he pops in and reminds me to have Faith, Patience, and Trust he has a master plan for me and my family.  Not a day goes by that we aren't thankful for the circle of faith, prayers, thoughts, and encouragement that surrounds us and our family, we wouldn't be here without all of you, helping our little blessing through what is an amazing journey ... We ask that you say a little prayer for Chloe to be comfortable during surgery and recovering quickly back into our arms, we ask for strong and steady hands of the surgeon and surgery staff tomorrow...

Week 1 of Chloe's Hearing Journey

When they told us we would come home with a suitcase full of accessories, they were not lying.  Thank goodness the upper level is assigned to the girls - it has saved us from not building an addition!  Chloe is primarily wearing her AB Neptune processor, and yes, it is PINK!



Chloe is doing amazing if you ask her mom!!  For the most part she is leaving her CI (cochlear implant) alone and when she does pull at it she tries to give it to you.  Sort of cute if you would ask me again.  Brian and I are learning to go against the natural of saying "NO" when she pulls it off - and just naturally put the CI back on with out making such a big deal of it.  Otherwise we have been told that it may become more of a game.  I think for less than a week with the CI, she tolerates it well...

We have noticed limited reactions to noise/sound from Chloe but too understand it is very early in her hearing journey.  ((But she might have proved me wrong here within the last few nights, as we have seen more reactions))  It may be months before we can get her to turn her head to the sound of her Daddy coming home or her sister running across the room, the amazing part is we know that she is HEARING.  Chloe was a great the second day of activation and gave them all sorts of feedback to judge where she is at.  However, we have noticed that her babbling has picked up tremendously which is good as it really died off about a month before surgery.  We have been give such great feedback on how extremely well Chloe is doing from her audiologist and speech language pathologist.  So encouraging to hear!!  There have been a few times (for parents and daycare) that once Chloe hears a certain noisy toy or two she promptly shakes her head no and removes her CI.  Hmm, I am thinking she doesn't like the sound of it, what do you think?

"Up, Up, Up"

Can't believe her first birthday is going to be here before we know it!!

Activation

Just a quick update... Activation was a SUCCESS!! Miss Chloe Jean had no tears and even had a few smirks!! There were a few moments when she stopped playing and by looking at her eyes she knew there was something different.
Will post more later (in a few days) but until then we are thankful God has answered our prayers and enjoying playing with Chloe and introducing her to all the new sounds!! Here is a quick video- hope the quality is good, I'm still learning how to get it on here- you will see how she stopped and focused on the new sound once they started ringing the bell...

Surgery #1 - Right Ear

"What Mom"

Just a few pre-surgery photos...

"Cheese"

The first day after Chloe's surgery has gone pretty good if you consider the surgery she just had.  She slept like a rock last night - and played a little and slept a little the rest of the day (hoping she repeats it tonight).
Her balance was off for most of the day - which they told us about since they worked on the inner ear - poor thing could barely hold her head up first thing this morning.


By the end of the day, she was laughing and playing with her Big Sister!  She loves her so much - it was priceless last night when Chloe finally got to see Sydney.  It was the only smile we saw since surgery.

Chloe has to wear the red head bandage (we like the choice of color they picked, getting her ready for football season) - and she doesn't seem to tolerate it well and can get it off in a snap.  So needless to say her few awake hours today its been quite the battle keeping her distracted to leave it on.

From our interpretation - they were able to get successful feedback from the hearing nerve when they tested the internal processor.  Dr. Lusk seemed pleased with how the surgery went and it felt good to give him a hug after his report.

Brian's highlight from yesterday (besides having a successful surgery, of course) is the fact that we got to pick an extra color for the caps/magnet/buttons... Mom already had picked out a light pink, darker pink and purple...any guess what color Dad picked out??  Yup, RED!!  And he already has plans to get a Husker sticker to put on them as well.

Matthew 21:22 And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”

Surgery day...

6:30 am...
Here we go! All checked in and waiting for them to take her down to surgery... Praying she will soon be back in my arms.

10:45 am...
Update... The cochlear implant is in, currently testing device, Dr Lusk will be closing up incision soon then take tube out and should be in recovery within the next hour...



Noon...
Out of recovery and into the room, my arms!! She is sleeping now and doesn't seem to tolerate the IV or the bandage

Think we are ready...

Pre-operation Exam...Check!  Passed!

Pre-operation Physical...Check!  Passed!

We have taken all of the "pre" steps needed in order to stay on schedule with surgery on 

TUESDAY, July 24th...just a few more days.  

A little details about Chloe's surgery:

We are scheduled to be at the hospital at 6:15am with surgery scheduled for 7:45am.  The surgery will be approx. three hours long and she will be kept in recovery up to an hour before returning to her room. Chloe will get monitored for two to three hours following surgery before being sent home. Chloe will wear a bandage for three days to cover the incision, which will be very minimal if you think of the surgery involved. If you fold your ear flat and trace the edge, that's approx what her incision will be.

Activation (turning on external device) is scheduled for 10:00 on August 1st. However she will need an X-ray first thing that morning and approval from Dr Lusk before proceeding. 

Plans are to do the right ear first - second surgery scheduled for August 21 - due to the risks involved with the length of surgery, both ears are not done at the same time.

I will try to give updates day of surgery...let the prayer circle begin!!

3 weeks and counting...

Just three weeks until Chloe's first surgery and the Mommy nerves have already started. Nervous for the surgery itself and the risks that are always there. Nervous for the new journey once her first cochlear implant has been activated. But I'm anxious too to see where this journey takes us and to watch Chloe's reactions as she discovers sounds for the first time. But overall we are ready!! 
(Chloe's ear infection has cleared, we go to the surgeon next week for final clearance and ear check)


The device we have chosen (yes this was a choice we had to make and it is probably one of the hardest choices I had to make) is Advanced Bionics Neptune. Neptune is a fully waterproof device meaning that Chloe will be able to enjoy water activities such as bath time, swimming, rain...while still being able to hear. This was a major factor for us as we considered devices - for me I went against my heart feeling and listened to my mind thinking about how much language learning time there is during bath time. Think of it they are stuck in a tub and can't run from you and you are stuck next to the tub at the same time...so what else is there to do but work on colors, animals, shapes, etc, etc, etc 

Again we are asking for prayers from all of you to keep Miss Chloe Jean healthy so she can have surgery, prayers that God will guide the surgeon carefully during, and prayers that she will recovery quickly and be back safe into our arms.

Save The Date!!!

We made two steps forward today...and this mom is more excited (and a little nervous to be honest) than words can say right now!

Peek A Boo

Let's rewind a little - I woke up today thinking, Day 14.  Today is Day 14 of the 7 to 21 days we were informed it could take to get insurance to approve the cochlear implant surgery.  And little did I know that Day 14 was our lucky day.  We got a phone call today from Boys Town NRH to let us know that they had approved the cochlear implant surgery for Chloe!  Happy Dance (with tears of course)!  It is still a little fuzzy if both sides will be covered as actual paperwork didn't indicate times two, but we are going to take it one "ear" at a time.

Still hadn't had much time to process all of the excitement, items on my to-do list and the second phone call came.  Boys Town NRH called to schedule the surgery.  We have a date!!  As things are scheduled now, Chloe will have surgery on JULY 24 to implant the processor on her right ear.  Happy Dance (with more tears of course)!  Now, things can change from now until then but we are praying that Chloe remains healthy and we are given green light go for surgery.

On a side note, Chloe currently has an ear infection on her right ear - just started antibiotics and ear drops tonight.  The tubes are doing their job and allowing for the infection to drain and not build up and since we have time, I think we will be able to clear things up by then.  

Thankfully the family is busy with all sort of activities - July 24 will be here before we know.

Chloe Jean - 9 months

Just in the mood to post and thought "why not" share an update about Chloe's growth and development.  She  had her 9 month checkup last week (in one way I can't believe she is that old already, but in another, it seem like we have been traveling for quite some time) and Chloe is:
Beautiful
Bright
Healthy
Happy

Oh wait, those are the things I tell her everyday, now the doctor gave us:

Weight 19 lbs 11 oz (60%)
Length 28.75 inches (90%)

Chloe has had a big week here lately and is starting show off all her new "tricks"
Waves (when she wants); Blows Kisses (when she wants); Crawls up on all fours, but army crawls when she wants to get there quicker; Starting to pull herself up on toys, and thinks she can stand without holding on (thinking maybe we need to invest in bubble wrap to protect her head); has two bottom teeth

Can't forget Big Sister Sydney...she is amazing with Chloe and can get her to laugh so easily.  Chloe's eyes still sparkle when Sydney comes into the room and sure enough she has to play right next besides her, too big for "baby" toys now.  Sydney is learning how to be "4" and is also teaching her mother patience and trying to see just how far she can push some buttons...but overall, her questions, her responses, her non-stop talking (and/or singing) make me smile and laugh.

Tired girl after weekend of camping

God is truly amazing and has blessed us with two thriving young girls...I don't know what I would do without them.

(( Yes, we are still wating for a surgery date to be scheduled, it should be with insurance now))

We go up, And we go down...

Chloe Jean - 8 1/2 Months

May 22, 2012 - The big day was finally here!!  Since Chloe had that other ear infection and fluid in her ear the week before - she also received tubes in both ears the same day.  Chloe was scheduled for surgery first thing in the morning - and was one of the best patients, if you ask me.  She didn't fuss about not getting to eat right when she woke up - she was too busy studying everything around her - all the new faces that came into the room and all the new toys they had in a nice playroom there.

The surgery for the tubes went very well - we got a report from the Doctor what seemed like only minutes after she left.  However, we waited for what seemed like forever, to hear from anyone regarding how the MRI went.  After an hour, I was one nervous Mommy (and I am sure Daddy was too) and was ready to have Chloe back with me, in my arms again.
Shortly after, the Doctor walked in and told us she was in recovery and...wait for it...

Chloe Jean - recovering

God answered our prayers (and yours too) and we got the positive results we prayed for:  everything looked good - hearing nerve is present, the cochlear (middle ear) and vestibular (balance) system are normal!  

There were many tears of joy from both of us - we are so thankful for everyone's thoughts, prayers and concerns.  I couldn't stop smiling, I couldn't stop crying - We both are ready to begin the next journey with Chloe with the Cochlear Implants...

AND THEN we got a phone call we weren't expecting...Doctor called to report that they found a cyst near Chloe's brain stem.  The unexpected news hit us pretty hard - we weren't expecting this hurdle and thought we were in the home stretch for scheduling surgery.  We had an appointment with the Neurosurgeon on Tuesday (yes, today).

It was one long weekend filled with lots of rides on the emotional roller coaster of our journey.  We didn't quite know what to expect today: worried that this would put us on hold for the CI surgery.

With lots of prayers over the weekend - We met with the Neurosurgeon from Children's Hospital this morning.  Chloe has an arachnoid cyst - and we were told this is nothing for us to worry about.  This type of cyst normally only grows during infancy and if needed, can be taken care of if it causes any harm.  The cyst will be monitored, thankfully by CT Scan and not through MRI (once Chloe has the CIs, she will not be able to have a MRI, even of her big toe, due to the magnets), for the next year.

And now I remind myself to have patience...and let the Cochlear Implant Team work their magic...so our next phone call will carry the news of a surgery date!!

Sisterly Love Always

Just another bump in the Journey

Chloe has yet another ear infection - which the Doctor isn't really thrilled about, neither are her parents.  There can not be any fluid in her ear(s) at time of surgery (if we get there, fingers crossed, prayers said).  So another round of antibiotics and wait until the middle of May to see if she will need tubes or not.

Chloe Jean - 8 months

On another note, the MRI has been scheduled for May 22, 2012 - and if needed, this will be the same time she will have surgery for tubes.  I am excited and yet very nervous for the MRI - she is just so little to be put under, but it is the final piece of the puzzle we have been praying for.  The MRI will confirm whether or not the hearing nerve is present. 

Until then...say a little prayer for a positive MRI report

Where we are today (April 2012)

We are beginning to get connected with other families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing. We have attended an amazing workshop that brought tears to my eyes seeing the preschooler with the cochlear implants - pure joy

The family is learning sign language to help with communicating with Chloe.  The truth is Sydney is far better at it then the parents.  She absorbs the signs like a spounge.  The family makes a game to see who can "out sign" each other. 

We decided to have genetic testing done - just to see if our "Why" question could be answred and also to assist with the cochlear implant process. God answered our prayers again and provided us with an answer. The day we got the results was big, a huge weight was lifted off our shoulders. Chloe's hearing loss is due to a gene mutation (GJB2) and the most common of GJB2- which means both parents are carriers. As parents, we have a one in four chance of having a child with hearing loss. 

We are awaiting to hear the "green light go" (as I like to call it) to see if Chloe is a candidate for Cochlear Implants.  We have been through all the necessary appointments as part of the process... a MRI will be needed prior to surgery to verify nerve is present and will be used as a map (if implanted). In the meantime, we have to make a decision on which "brand" of device we want her implanted with. 

Chloe has begun to "move" around everywhere, and I mean everywhere.  She loves exploring all around her - especially where her Big Sister is playing.