Now Hear This

I'm sure most of you reading this blog know that Sean has continuously failed hearing tests for his right ear since birth. While in Hawaii the Drs told us that he would never need a hearing aid due to his hearing being 100% in his left ear. As time has gone by, and speech has developed, it became very clear that his speech was and is being effected. He has a muted tone and although he is able to communicate, those who aren't used to being around him cannot understand him.

We had his hearing checked here in NY by the Rochester Hearing and Speech center which is partnered with the Rochester School for the Deaf. Kevin was unable to come to the appointment with me because he has just begun working.

The news I received was devastating to a mother.  Sean has now been classified as legally deaf. His hearing in his right ear is measured as severe to profound and his left ear is not 100% as we were told in HI. His left ear measures moderate to severe. Sean will need hearing aids for the rest of his life.

The rest of his life. The. Rest. Of. His. Life.

I can still hear those words echoing in my head. I can sit here and recall everything going dark as the specialist told me this. Not my kid. Not my Seany. No. This isn't happening. It can't be. They have to be wrong. She's lying. Why is she lying. Hawaii said he was fine. Why is she lying. Sandi, you knew something wasn't right, that's why we are here, why are you fighting this???? BECAUSE HE'S MY LITTLE SEANY BUG!!!!!!

I remember going over the different aid options, scooping up my baby and leaving the office. We walked down the hall as several pre-k kids filed into the cafeteria for The Rochester School For The Deaf Pre-K graduation. Sean said hi to each kid. It broke my heart. If he can talk, if he can hear, why are they suggesting  that he not go to school with the other two and attend this school? He can hear! He can talk!

My greatest fear has ALWAYS been that one of them would be held back in school or something. They can't! They are triplets. I don't ever want any of them to feel different. They can't!

I called my husband in a panic as I sat in the parking lot (Sean was watching Nemo, his favorite DVD) and I cried my eyes out. My voice caught in my throat as I tried to choke out the words, "legally deaf, hearing aids for life." Kevin broke. He had all of the same questions I did. I couldn't talk to him anymore.

I called my mom. She's always been able to try to calm my fears and rationalize. (*Thanks mom!) What she said made sense. Yes, I do want him to get the best care out there. Yes, I want that care so he can function in society and thrive. BUT HE'S MY BABY! HE CAN'T BE DEAF! My mom cried with me.

I called my mother in law. She cried with me.

I cried alone. I cried until my husband came home. Not our baby.

I still cry when one of the specialist call to set up an appointment for him.
I still cry when his school calls to talk about new therapy.
I still cry when I'm all alone and start thinking about it.

I don't want him to be different. I don't want him to be picked on. Kids are cruel.

Yes, I know the aids are the best thing for him and yes, I've listened to the experts and made every appointment possible. But I am still mourning this....the loss of my child's hearing. I feel guilty. The Drs here said if he was born here there is no way they would have let him go this long without aids. They said he would have been wearing them since birth. I am angry at Hawaii. I am angry that he has to go through this. Is this my fault? He was a preemie. I took meds to stop contractions so many times, but I had to or they would have been born so much earlier.

I pray. I ask God to watch over my baby. I ask him to continue to bless him. I ask God to help me find peace...it could be so much worse. And I am thankful that it's just hearing.....

We wait. We wait to get fitted for the aids in the next 2 weeks.....


*thanks for letting me rant*

July 4th Weekend

What a weekend! Kevin's new friends at his job told him about a warehouse you can purchase fireworks at down in Pennsylvania. So off I was sent in search of a spectacular array of fireworks. The kids and I loaded up and made the trip to Northeastern Fireworks. I was expecting a small store, but it really was a warehouse packed with a great variety of things to blow up! We bought a bunch of different things and headed back to New York! After picking Kevin up at work it was obvious that we were going to have a noisy night. Sure enough, we used so many fireworks that we had to plan a trip to go back to the warehouse the next day! HAHA After our 2 day haul we ended up with enough fireworks to last all weekend as well as put on a great show on the 4th!

On July 3rd we started the day by picking up some Dunkin Donuts and heading out to Letchworth State Park. The kids had a blast playing on one of their favorite playgrounds and then we took them to see some of the waterfalls.

We found this funny sign on the way out of the park. So......there isn't a speed limit once you pass this sign?            

As we were leaving Letchworth we found in a brochure an add for a safari park. After plugging it into our GPS we realized we were only 20 minutes away....so off we went. We were so glad we did! It was similar to the one we found in Ohio when we were heading to my parent's house. In fact, we learned the owner of this one created it after visiting the one in Ohio. Instead of driving around in your car to feed the animals though, you side in a covered wagon pulled by a tractor. Since the kids are obsessed with tractors now, this was PERFECT! We had a lot of fun and so did the kids. We fed all kinds of different animals on the ride as well as in the petting zoo. During lunch Kevin even had an Elk burger!

                   

So EXCITED                                  

He tried it and liked it

These things are HUGE! Can you see me standing under it?        



The 4th Of July

We started the day hanging out with Sam and Alex at the house while waiting for Tom and Leigh to get back from Long Island. Sam and Alex ended up taking the kids to visit a friend of theirs and go swimming which left Kevin and I  a chance to catch up on some sleep, take a walk by the water and grab some ice cream! How RELAXING! Once the kiddos got back, we fired up the grill and started cooking. When it got dark we had a great fireworks show put on by Kevin! We hugged and kissed Sam, Alex, Leigh-Leigh and Gpop goodbye and made it to our town just in time to see their fireworks show. What a great end to a great day!

Kevin was VERY careful when letting Sean play with a Sparkler

 

June Shenanigans

From strawberry picking, to Father's Day, to Leigh-Leigh and Sam's 5K to our new kittens....June was a busy, yet fun month!

           Waiting on Aunt Sam and Leigh-Leigh to finish their race!

One day we stopped for some gas and Kevin noticed a sign at a Vet's office for free kittens. A week later we picked up our new kitten KitKat. A week after that we went back for vaccinations and found out that the last kitten had never been adopted....so we went home as owners of 2 kittens.
Welcome KitKat and Twix.

We found a Pick Your Own Strawberry Field and had a blast with the kids!

We've been going to different parks on the weekends and some nights when Kevin gets home from work. The kids LOVE playgrounds. It's amazing to us how much they have grown. They now are able to play on the "big kid" playgrounds and they just have so much fun....especially when the ice cream truck comes by!

Father's Day was a lot of fun! I made a Father's Day cake for Kevin and his dad as well as Kevin's favorite Pink Lemonade cupcakes!

While everyone was outside Teagan went missing. When I looked inside from the porch I saw this: Teagan, with a fork, digging into the Father's Day Cake hahaha

Also, in June we took the kids to their first movie, Cars 2, and it happened to be at the Drive-In!!!

Warm May Days

So my father-in-law was right, this place is beautiful when it's warm here! I just wish it would be a little more consistent. On warm days though, we like to blow up the baby pool and BBQ!