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 -