When Ez was first fitted with his hearing aids, we let him choose his path. He never wore hats or bands that forced his “ears” to stay in place. If he wanted them, he left them on, if he didn’t, he pulled them off. He pulled them off pretty much every minute for months. He… [Read More]
My Deaf Child is Not a Tragedy
My Deaf child is not a tragedy. As Ez has gotten older and more communicative, my decision not to tell strangers that my child is Deaf doesn’t really work. When he was little, I always let the little old church lady, the waitress or that nice neighbor down the street go all goo goo and gah gah… [Read More]
Baby Signs: Expanding the Use of MILK
A couple of weeks ago I shared a video showing Ez’s first intentional sign – MILK. For several weeks he was only using this sign when nursing or just prior to nursing. In the past week, he has started to use the sign to also mean Mom, anything in a cup and when offered other types… [Read More]
Imperfectly Perfect {Part 1}
As I laid on the table, numb from the waist down, staring at the blue sheet blocking the view of the surgery. My doctor was giving me a play by play count of what was happening and then like magic he appeard. Covered in baby butter and as pink as can be. A quiet cry filled the… [Read More]
Ridiculous Request to Parents of a Deaf Preschooler
Earlier this week a news story went viral on my “Deaf” news feed. Friends and interpreter co-workers were all a buzz over a story regarding a Nebraska school district that requested a preschool boy change his sign name because it looked like a gun. Sign names, like given names, have a very personal and cultural… [Read More]
Saturday’s Signs: You’ve Got to Move It!
[Saturday Signs has been on hiatus due to some technical problems – Oh and tiny uncooperative (yet extremely adorable) gremlins. I am happy to be back this week with another installment.] If this is your first edition of Saturday’s Signs or you would like to review previous posts, here are the links to the last 3… [Read More]
Her Eyes Are Broken
Last week when we were on our bicycle adventure we had stopped to play in the park. Lu ran off to play and I followed her. There was a little girl playing on the slide with her grandmother. She was probably about 4 years old and very very verbal, almost describing her play as it occurred. I didn’t… [Read More]
Saturday’s Signs: Location, Location, Location
Albeit not exciting, we are going to continue our brief explanation of sign language grammar today with a post on location. As I mentioned last week each sign is made up of a handshape, location and movement. Just like the handshapes we saw last week, most children will automatically use a location that is easy and… [Read More]
The Deaf Squawk
It happened today – Lu used the Deaf squawk to get Daddy’s attention. It was only a matter of time before she copied big bro but with her speech problems I wasn’t sure she would be able to master the exact intonation that she would need to get Chris’s attention. Then today, sitting at the… [Read More]