Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Balance, or Lack Thereof

Last week wasn't all bad. Yes, we had the poop situation, but some other good things happened to make the universe right.

First, I won one of these thanks to Kristen and Mayberry Mom at mothergoosemouse's baby shower. Yay for me! And I got this adorable shirt, too!

Then on Thursday I took Lucy to get her pictures taken at JC Penney's. Now I take her pictures at home almost every day, but the extended family thinks that getting studio portraits is very, very important. We go every month. See? Well I guess she does pretty well in front of the camera because the photographer asked if they could use her photos in the studio for displays and promotional material. We got some free stuff and some coupons for free stuff in the future. She's cute, what can I say?

But then today more bad news. I had to take Sam back to the doctor's for a weight check and to have his ear re-checked post-infection. All was good in the poundage department. The kid gained almost 2 pounds in 18 days. Unfortunately, the doctor has some concerns about his ear and has suggested that we have his hearing checked. Especially in light of his speech delay.

Crap.

He passed his newborn hearing test, but apparently a small percentage of kids can pass despite having a hearing problem. As his mother and the person who spends the most time with him, I don't feel like he has a hearing problem. But my friend Val didn't think her daughter had one either, and she was wrong. And since hearing problems run in my family (I'll be getting my own hearing checked at the same time) the doc believes we should get this done ASAP.

Why is it that every time we go to the doctor's office we end up with more problems than when we came?

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9 comments:

super des said...

well it's clear that you should be spending less time in doctors' offices and more time in portrait studios.

Seriously though good luck with Sammy's ear exam.

Lora said...

Good luck with the ear thing. I don't know if you know this, but by the time I was 5 I was almost 80% deaf. Now thanks to the miracle of modern (read:by 1980 standards) medicine and surgery, I can hear dog whistles. Seriously. I'm sure there is help out there for Sammy if he needs it and of course I am here if you need anything. Like a sitter for Lucy when Sammy has appts. I'll even take off work. I miss your kids almost as much as I miss you.

Also, the reason I DON'T get studio portraits done is because my in-laws want me to so very, very badly. You are a far better person than I.

Amy said...

Yeah, I always feel like we're more sick when we leave the office than when we showed up. Hopefully Sam is just employing that age-old toddler technique of selective hearing.

Anonymous said...

Sweetie,

Don't forget, your little (big now) bro, Danny, had a speech delay, too. And then he invented his own language which you, child genius, learned to "translate." As in, "Danny says he wants for me to have a cookie."

I really hope though, that everything comes out fine. And Miss Lucy is adorable.

susan said...

Your kids are so damn photogenic!

The upside to Sammy's potential hearing issues is that you may very well find that his speech delay is a bi-product of not hearing as well as he should / could. Way back when I was actually teaching, I had a student who had been labled with all sorts of learning disabilities... turned out she "just" needed tubes in her ears so she could hear what the heck was going on! By the end of the year she was at or beyond grade level in every area. Unless you count "sitting in your seat and not driving your teacher crazy". I guess once she was able to hear, a whole new world of exploration opened up for her. I'll keep my fingers crossed for the best possible news!

Mayberry said...

That rose picture is TOO cute.

Any chance it could just be fluid in his ears? I hope so--that's an easy fix.

Amy Jo said...

Honestly, I don't think he has a hearing problem. Obviously I'm waiting on an expert opinion, but I doubt they'll come up with anything.

I am slightly worried about fluid in the ears, since our ped in ATL mentioned a few times about fluid in there when he was sick, but tubes are easy.

We'll all know more on Friday. Thanks for the support ladies.

Unknown said...

Amy - Call me if you want. I know all the good people to see at CHOP and can help you through the testing.

Even if he does have a hearing issue it isn't a horrible thing. Thanks to this being caught early Cait is on target and a little ahead of the game with speech. Plus, she has a whole team of people looking out for her! Oh and when she is a teen she can say "Mom, I didn't hear you" when I tell her to clean her room.

Arizaphale said...

This is such a common problem and usually quite easily fixed with tubes (grommets). I had a kid at school who at 5 had been unintelligible to all but her sister from birth...got tubes....clear as a bell within days. Best they pick it up quickly.