A Family of 3...for one more night

A fun dinner with ice cream, a very splashy bath with lots of toys, and a cuddly little boy during storytime. While we can't wait to meet our sweet little girl tomorrow, we couldn't help but cherish the last night as a family of 3 with our little man. He definitely has no idea what is about to happen to our family, but I just KNOW that he is going to be an amazing big brother.

So, here we are. We're facing another winter storm (Christian was born in a blizzard as well). Our big-brother-to-be is cuddled up in his bed, our hospital bags are packed, and our hearts are already full of love for our sweet little girl who will be here in less than 12 hours.

Last Minute Preparations

In just 6 days, we're going to welcome our daughter into our family. I can't believe how fast this pregnancy has gone. I have hardly had time to breathe, let alone enjoy this one! It is so funny how the first time around you are completely immersed in every detail, and the second time around you sometimes have to be reminded that you are pregnant. It's starting to feel more and more real, especially since her nursery is almost finished and I've started washing pink sleepers in anticipation of her arrival.

In all seriousness, I have been paying extra careful attention to the fact these are the last days of us as a family of 3, and for Christian to be an only child. I've really been working hard to embrace the "joys" of toddlerhood (phones, remotes and other objects floating in toilets, temper tantrums, and of course, the lovely word, NO), and to let every moment with Christian and I be cherished. I'm done worrying about how I am going to devote time to his therapy with another child in the home. I just know it will work, and I will make it work. The logistical challenges like pick-up and drop off at school are a bit more at the forefront now.

We have had some fun days over the past month or so, going on Christian and Mommy dates for lunch, having lots of playdates, and cuddling after naps. It's been nice, and I am so excited for him to meet his baby sister.

What's In a Name?

Here we are, 22 days before I'm scheduled to go in and have our little girl, and we STILL haven't finalized a name. Our friends and family know that last time with Christian, we announced his name well before he was born. In fact, we knew his name pretty much from the moment that we knew he was a boy. This time, it's a totally different story.

In addition to worrying about the typical stuff a parent thinks of when trying to name your child (like "Will she get teased"), I'm also thinking of something else:

Will she be able to hear it?

We decided to not get the pre-natal testing done to determine if our daughter has a hearing loss. For us, it was too invasive of a test for something that we really couldn't do anything about until she was born. With our family's genetics, we have a 25% chance of any future children also being Deaf. And, in all honesty, having a child with hearing loss is all we know. It's not AS scary as it was in the beginning. I wish I could say that it's not scary at all, but I would be lying. Even with all of Christian's amazing progress, I still have moments everyday filled with fear and anxiety. The fear and anxiety is normal for us.

So, instead of just trying to figure out what sounds nice with our last name, I'm also trying to find something that a child with a potential profound hearing loss (with high frequency issues) could hear. I've pretty much ruled things out that start with a soft consonant.

I know some people reading this may think that I'm a bit nuts, or I'm over-thinking this. Maybe I am. This pregnancy, I haven't obsessed over the color of my baby's nursery, or even my "birth-plan". Any time that I have had to think about this pregnancy (which has been like 5 minutes every other day), I've used to come up with our game-plan. We have our doctors in place. We know what to do if we do have a failed hearing test at the hospital. Our genetic testing blood draw is finalized. We've even talked about how our life is going to change if she DOESN'T have a hearing loss (no more vacuuming outside of the nursery door at night and large gatherings at our house when the baby is sleeping). I feel ready. I feel able. Even if the hospital bag is yet to be packed and the new crib isn't put together. I know whatever name we chose, will be perfect for her

Time Flies When You're Having Fun

My parents were in town for almost a week over the holidays, and once again, Christian had another language explosion. I am convinced it always happens when they are around. Christian is now consistently stringing 2-5 words together (coherently I might ad!). He's using many "I want" statements, and is totally amazing us. After a crazy wind-storm blew through our area yesterday, Christian looked out the window at one of our neighbor's yards, noticing that their large inflatable snowman fell down, and said "Uh-Oh Mommy, No-Man Pall-Down, OWWW!".

Does it get any better than that?

Christian's first hearing Christmas was absolutely amazing. I know a lot of it was his age, but knowing that my little boy could actually hear the sounds of the day made it even more special. Christmas morning he ran to the Christmas tree with a big "WOW!", and loved opening all of his presents. Everything was "Oh BOY!", and each present was greeted with a "OPEN PRESENT!".

Knowing this was our last Christmas as a family of 3 was a bit bittersweet. We're anxiously getting ready for our daughter's arrival, and quietly cherishing these last 26 days before she makes her grand entrance. We're so excited to meet her, but I also have been trying to make some special time with Christian. Chuck and I also have been able to have some time together as a couple (thanks Mom and Dad!), and even went to a movie when they were in town. We also celebrated New Years at a party with friends.


I'm working on a little video montage from Christmas, but in the meantime, here are some pics:

Take a Look at Our Numbers...

Today is our 5 month anniversary since Christian's CI activation. It's hard to believe that it has only been 5 months since my little guy had his ears turned on and his world changed forever. So much has happened, and words can't even describe how incredibly blessed that Chuck and I feel to witness the miracle of the Cochlear Implant everyday. His vocabulary is ever-expanding, and he picks up new words EVERYDAY. I try to keep up with his consistent vocab usage list, but it's getting challenging since he has SO MANY WORDS.

I get the chills (and I still well up with tears) when I think back to that day in October of 2007 when our audiologist told me that Christian was deaf. I had a million thoughts and images flash through my head, and they all were silent. I never thought in a million years that my deaf son would wake up in the morning and say "Hi Mommy", or say "Thank You" after getting juice from his Daddy, or even protest and say "No!", when I ask him to stop climbing on our furniture. I never thought I would hear his sweet little voice. I never thought I would see him dance.

Yet, here we are. My deaf son is one of the most chatty little ones in the neighborhood. He loves to listen to music. He loves to dance. HE LOVES TO TALK. He's thriving in school. WE ARE SO BLESSED!

Today is also the day that we enter in the double digits of our countdown to meeting our Baby Girl. According to the ticker on the right side of the page, we have 99 more days to go until her due date. Which really means, that I have about 88-92 more days to go since I will be scheduling another C-Section. It's hard to believe that in just under 100 days, another life will join our family. We'll have another little laugh, another little cry, and another little blessing.

Today, on this cold and rainy day, I'm thanking God for the miracles that have been bestowed upon us.

Bittersweet.

I'm getting all sentimental. In addition to preparing for our sweet little baby girl (who will be born sometime during the week of January 26-31, we just need to schedule the surgery), I also have been preparing myself for losing my precious one on one time that I have with Christian.

I can't even begin to describe how blessed I feel that I had the opportunity to stay at home with Christian. While it has been extremely challenging at times, especially with juggling therapy and doctor appointments on top of a typical toddler attitude, I wouldn't have traded my time with my guy for anything else. We have had so much fun together, just the two of us. He's been my little buddy, always at my side, always making me laugh, and always, always, ALWAYS keeping me on my toes. I almost feel like this time right now is bittersweet, as if I know that my days of just the two of us are numbered as I anxiously await the arrival of our baby girl.

When our little girl arrives, I know that things will change. I won't be able to immediately respond to Christian's needs. Our quiet mornings together will be days of the past. Our routine will change, but I know it will be for the better. I am excited for Christian to have a sibling. I'm thrilled to have a daughter. I just know that I will miss my Mommy and Christian time that has become the center of my life.