And the Words Are Coming

It is easy to get impatient waiting for Logan to start saying more words since he is already 19 months old and we spend so much of our day just talking and talking to him.  He has had his implants turned on for 6 months now and, so far, has said a handful of words over the last couple of months.  Jasmine was an early talker so we always try to be careful not to compare him to her, especially because, at nearly 3 years old, she can really talk your head off!

Cochlear implants actually don't restore a person's natural hearing.  Instead, they provide a different way for the brain to access sound. Electrical signals are transmitted into the internal device which stimulates the auditory nerve and sends those signals to the brain for interpretation.  My point in describing this is to explain that the cochlear implants provide a completely different way to access sound, and because of this, when they are first turned on after surgery the recipient's hearing age is 0, like a newborn.  And since Logan's hearing age is 6 months now, we can expect him to make babbling sounds like a 6 month old would (this is the average for children implanted at 1 year), which he does.   

Our goal is for him to 15-20 words by the time he is 2 and to catch up to his hearing peers by the time he is 3.  Based on his progress so far, I think this is a very realistic goal.  Just today he said 3 new words!!!!  He said "flush" (or "ush"), he said "trash" (or "ash") and "yuck" (or "uck").  Andrew said he thinks he also heard him say "sit" to Blackjack.  This coupled with him saying "Jasmine" (or "jah ihn") earlier this week, we are well on our way.  He has already managed to say at least 10 words these last 6 months!  I am just so proud of my little man!

Half a Year of Hearing

I can't believe it's already been 6 months since Logan's ears have been turned on!  He is such a different boy today than he was before he had his implants.  He has always been a happy boy, but he has really seemed to blossom over the last several months. He is such an explorer, always trying to take things apart and put them together again (like his daddy).  He is so independent and likes to feed himself.  He has gotten quite good using his fork and spoon.

Logan is on the go all day long. He is walking very well now, has gotten pretty good outside on uneven terrain and is trying to jump now.  Because he is doing so well, we were able to decrease his physical therapy services down to twice a month.  At this point, it is just practice for him, but his physical therapist will keep him on her service until he can jump, climb stairs, kick a ball and a few other gross motor skills.

If you recall, we also see a teacher from our school district, our advisor from Sunshine Cottage, and a deaf educator and speech therapist from Easter Seals on a weekly basis.  We added the speech therapy a few months ago to help Logan along a little more. We started with a different therapist than we have now but Logan really did not connect with her and most of his session consisted of him crying. So I asked for a different speech therapist about a month ago, but the week we were supposed to have our first session was the week that the flu struck our house.  We finally met her last week and we absolutely loved her.  She is on a whole other level than our first speech therapist and is perfect for Logan's team of teachers.  She came for her second session with Logan today and he immediately smiled and walked over to greet her!  That made me so happy because you can tell when he really connects with his teachers. He always gives hugs out to them and sometimes doesn't even want to come back to me!

As far as Logan's language progression, he is getting more and more words receptively every day!  Today Andrew said "Logan, hug mama" and he immediately looked toward me and came and hugged my leg.  Also, when I tell him "let's go upstairs" he will stop what he is doing and walk to the gate at the bottom of the stairs and wait for me there. He even goes to the door sometimes when I say "it's time to go!" 

Logan has also been babbling and imitating sounds more and more.  His latest attempts to say words have been "bath," "up," "uh-huh" and "on."  And much to Andrew's delight, he has finally mastered "dada!"

It's been a lot of hard work these past six months, and more of it is coming, but I can't wait to hear the payoff when he finally starts talking.