Breakthrough

I was so reluctant to take Ralph to his hearing aid follow-up appointment in Kansas City this week. I didn't really have the money. I didn't have anyone to be home when Leroy got home from school. I didn't have the car, only the big van. I just kept coming up with all kinds of reasons not to go.

Really, I think it all boiled down to the fact that Ralph has not been wearing his hearing aids. I haven't been making him wear them. I get frustrated because I'm busy nursing the baby or whatever else and I can't catch him before he rips them out. 

Those cute little electronic wonders cost a pretty penny! How can I accept the financial assistance that we have received for them if I'm not going to make sure that he wears them ALL the time? What a blessing! 

I took Ralph to Kansas City anyway. The gas money fell out of the sky. I took Leroy out of school to go with me. I drove the big van, no big deal. I'm so glad that I did.

When we first got his hearing aids, the part that goes into his ear canal was made using the wrong material. It was a hard plastic instead of the squishy material that it was supposed to be. The audiologist re-ordered them and swapped them out on Monday.

The new material reminds me of stale, green gummy bears! They grip the surface of his ear canals. It is more difficult to get them into Ralph's ears, BUT it is also harder to get them out. ha-HA! 

After three days, I can say that we have had a breakthrough. Ralph kept his hearing aids in the whole way home from Kansas City. He kept them in all day yesterday. He kept them in all day today! It must be the new material. I'm so pleased.

Now...I'm feeling like we need to hit speech therapy hard. Ralph has a different EI teacher coming to the house tomorrow. I think I'll discuss it with her. (His regular teacher just had a baby and his regular speech therapist is pregnant and on bedrest!)