Happy New Year!

Another Christmas has come and gone and we are about to move in to a new decade. Time really seems to be moving at a breakneck pace these days. I hope it doesn’t seem that way for Max and Claire. I pray that they are able to enjoy this innocent and joyful time in their lives, before the stresses of the world catch up with them. Sometimes I wonder how much stress hearing loss has added to their lives. Do they face frustration with learning skills? Are they shunned from peer groups because their social skills are a little behind? Do I question their obedience, when they may have just not heard what I said? I don’t know. I don’t suppose I’ll ever know, because this is life as they know it.

On the other hand, I do feel that hearing loss is keeping them innocent just a little longer than most kids. Even though Max is doing great in school and sports and has many friends, I feel like he still has the heart of a younger child. I think that he misses out on the environment around him, just enough to shelter him from some of the unwholesome things other kids are exposed to. My experience with Claire is the same. Even though she challenges my patience on a daily basis, I feel like I can still play with my almost four year old as though she were only two. She still seems to be my baby.

As I said, time seems to be slipping by so quickly at the moment. I am afraid that I am not stopping to smell the roses and that I am letting my own stress affect my relationship with Max and Claire. That being said, maybe I should make a couple of New Year resolutions for 2010. My first resolution is to make 4:30pm until 9pm during the week, Max and Claire time. This means no napping on the couch when I get home, no Facebook when I get home and certainly much less TV time for all of us when I get home. We will play games, play Nerf dart wars and wrestle! My next resolution is to spend more time with Max on his school work and more time with Claire doing therapy type activities. I watched a video of Max the other day. It was filmed when he was 2 ½. I feel like he was so much further along with his speaking skills that Claire is now. I really want to catch her up and not cheat her out of a mainstreamed life.

My last resolution doesn’t really have to do with the kids. But I am determined to run the Music City ½ Marathon this year. I start training on January 9th. Please pray for me. I will need it! Running is not my thing.

A few things the kids got for Christmas…… Red Rider BB Gun, Tom the Hamster (real), Ice Skates and a Bicycle!!!!!

Here’s to hoping 2010 is the best year of our lives! Happy New Year!!!!!!

Greg

Daddy! Airplane!

I already posted this on Facebook, so if this is redundant, I apologize. Claire was playing in our living room this morning when a helicopter flew over our house. I was upstairs when I heard her yell, “Daddy! Airplane!”. Obviously, the fact that she could hear the helicopter at all will always be a blessing. However, the fact that she could distinguish what the sound was is a true sign of progress and testament to the miracle of cochlear implants. With a cochlear implant, noise is not just “noise”; noise is a validation of the environment surrounding the user. A cochlear implant is the tool that allows the user to truly interact with that environment. What an awesome lifestyle experience these implants provide! Can you imagine the difference between a life of silence or extremely distorted noise vs. a life where sounds are rich and clear? If not, I suggest that you walk around with ear plugs in your ears for a couple of days, and then you might begin to truly appreciate this wonderful medical device. Life is full of struggles for our family, but our lives are also full of countless blessings!