Claire's Mickey Mouse SKINIT

This is not the best picture, but Claire's Mickey Mouse SKINITs came in last night. She was very excited!

Nashville Predators SKINIT !!!!

Well this is really cool. I learned about SKINIT at the Advanced Bionics seminar. This company is known for making "skins" for cell phones, PDA's, laptops, etc. However, they also make "skins" for the Advanced Bionics Harmony. You can chose from just about any pro or college sports team, kids' theme or you can even design your own. I obviously suggest the Nashville Predators "skin". Your kids will love them (Max does) and their friends will envy them! I'm starting to sound like an infomercial. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know about something fun for your kids. Claire's should arrive shortly! Oh yeah. http://www.skinit.com/

The Parable Of The Lost Ear....

Oh the ups and downs of a cochlear implant family (especially ours). Upon the completion of a fairly cruddy week and a weekend that did not go as I had planned, I decided that I needed a break. So instead of going to our weekly "small group" at church, I decided to lay out and watch football instead. Stephanie decided to give me some alone time and took the kids to group by herself. While they were gone, I fell asleep in my red sleeping chair and woke up about an hour later in some sort of nappy, sleep induced stupor. No more than five minutes after I woke up, I received a phone call from Stephanie. I figured she was calling to ask me what I wanted for dinner. I wish. Stephanie informed me that Claire had lost her new "ear" at church! She said that everyone had searched high and low with no luck. "Crap." I scoured the house, the garage and the yard and struck out as well. "Double Crap!!" As those of you with implants know, these things are worth several thousand dollars. Advanced Bionics does offer a one time replacement service, but I didn't want to use that up this early in the game. Anyway, needless to say, Stephanie and I were in a very foul mood. Until about ten minutes ago that is. We received a knock at the door, which is rare for 9pm on a Sunday night. When I opened the door, who did I see? Martina McBride!!!! Just kidding. I saw Jake, our teenage next door neighbor. Jake likes to take walks late in the evening. Well, Jake found Claire's ear!! It was laying on the side of the road just a few feet from our yard. Way to go Jake! We owe you one. I guess there's really no moral to my parable. I'm just glad Claire's ear was found and that we managed to avoid a crappy ending to a crappy week :)

Mentor Training 2009; Advanced Bionics; Valencia, CA

What a wonderful experience. From the incredible Advanced Bionics Staff to the other BEA Mentors, our trip was truly a blessing. I knew that I was pleased with our decision to go with Advanced Bionics implants for both of our children before this trip, but now I have no doubt that we made the best choice. When making our initial decisions, we obviously did some research, most of it involving the number of meningitis cases, implant failure rate, etc. What we did not realize during our research however, was the fact that AB outpaces its competitors in the area of technology by a long shot. All of the cochlear implant companies seem to produce a very reliable product, but the advances in AB's product are amazing to say the least. I don't have the time or the expertise to explain all of the advancements in a short post, but if you are thinking about an implant for your child, please check out the Advanced Bionics web site. There is a link toward the bottom of my blog.

While technology should steer your decision in choosing a cochlear implant, the people that make up the implant company should also serve as a rudder. I've been to many conferences throughout my professional career, during most of which I couldn't wait for the ending. However the Advanced Bionics seminar was totally different. I have never before seen such an excellent, well prepared, knowledgeable, eloquent group of presenters. From the CEO on down the line, I have never met a more gracious, sincere group of representatives.The most interesting part of our trip, was the tour of the manufacturing facility. We were allowed to see the Advanced Bionics implant assembly process. It was pretty cool to say the least. We had some fun as well. Our hosts took us to a great Italian restaurant on Friday night. I don't remember the name, but I do remember that it was GOOD.

Anyway, Advanced Bionics is not paying me to say all of this. It is the truth based upon my experience. If any parents out there have any questions please feel free to send me an e-mail.

See ya.

October 2009 : Hawkins Family Update

Max brought home his first, 1st grade report card last week. He received "E's" (excellent) in Math, Reading, Social Studies, and Spelling! Way to go Max! Stephanie and I are so proud. It still amazes me that Max could hear nothing when he was born and now he excels in school and reads at almost a second grade level.

Max is playing Flag Football this fall. He likes defense the best. This past Saturday, he "sacked" the other teams quarterback in the end zone and scored his team a safety. You can tell that Max is very proud when he pulls a flag. He always looks over to make sure that I am watching.

Claire is also doing well. She continues to make strides in her program at Vanderbilt. Her new "ear" seems to be working well and if she concentrates, she can make complete sentences. Claire knows her A,B,C,'s and she can count to 20. I'm a little more concerned with her social skills than her academic skills, but hopefully she is on the path to a "mainstreamed" childhood. I know she can do it. Claire just has her own agenda at times.

Stephanie and I are heading to Valencia, California in a couple of weeks to attend Mentor Training at Advanced Bionic's corporate headquarters. We are really looking forward to the experience. It will be fun to meet other families that share our life experiences. Learning to help others cope and make important decisions regarding hearing excites us as well. I'll give everyone a report and hopefully post some pictures when we return.

See ya!

Claire Is Officially Bi-lateral!

Well, Claire is officially "bi-lateral"! Her new ear was turned on today. As you can see from the video, it was a little loud when Kathy first turned it on. She almost started crying. However, Claire is my tough little warrior and finished today's process with flying colors. I'll keep you posted as the adjustment period continues. Everything is wonderful for now and we are expecting great things!

Claire Is Bi-Lateral !!!!

I didn't even cry this time! I'm not saying that it was easy and that I didn't have mixed feelings and fears, but I made it through this surgery more easily than the others.

My day started out fine. Stephanie stayed at home with Claire on Tuesday morning. This meant that she got to deal with a three year old until 1pm that had not eaten since 9pm the previous evening. Poor Stephanie. I was lucky enough to focus on work for a while, so the stress of Claire's upcoming surgery was kept at bay (for a while). At around 12pm on my way home to help take Claire to the hospital, I started to feel it. I felt the fear, the angst, the doubt and the sadness. I teared up pulling in to our neighborhood. The feelings subsided some during the process of getting Claire to Vanderbilt. I was distracted with the stress of getting her stuff, Claire and Max out the door. This reprieve lasted until we were led to the pre-surgery waiting room and Claire started putting on her little scrubs. The scrubs made it all real for me again. The stress built with the visit from the Child Services specialist, the nurses, the anesthesiologist and the Head Resident. I was about at my boiling point when Dr. Haynes came by to see us. Let me tell you, this guy has some seriously good bedside manner. He immediately put me at ease with his confidence. I could just see it in his eyes. Nothing bad was going to happen to my little girl.

Claire got her "happy" medicine, they wheeled her back to surgery and I was at peace (or maybe I was just really hungry). I decided after breakfast that I would fast with Claire until her surgery in solidarity. I'm not telling you this to brag, I'm telling you because it was not a very good idea. When they wheeled Claire back to surgery, I had a hard time focusing on her. I was starving. All I wanted to do was make it down to the food court! Anyway, Dr. Haynes let us know before leaving, that Claire should be out of surgery around 5:45pm. Well, what do you know? Dr. Haynes showed up in our waiting room at 5:45pm on the dot! Incredible! With prayers, family and friends, Claire and I both made it through the surgery with flying colors! The only time that the fear crept in, was during Claire's recovery time. We were mistaken about how long it would take Claire to wake up from her anesthetic and I started getting pretty worried when we were well passed my assumed "wake-up time" for Claire. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the nurses let us know that Claire was doing great and they led us back to recovery.
What a beautiful sight my baby girl was. Claire was very groggy, but she still managed a smile at her Mommy and Daddy when we walked in the room. What a strong, brave girl Claire is. She is my little warrior!

Thank you to all of our friends and family for your prayers. Thank you to God for giving Claire angels to watch over her. Thank you to Vanderbilt Children's' Hospital, Dr. Haynes and his amazing staff for doing such a wonderful job!

Claire's new implant will be activated on August 26th. Pray that all goes well so Claire will be truly bi-lateral and hearing in stereo. I'll post a video. See ya!