So, apparently in first grade they start creative writing. My daughter is about as creative as they come - I'm not sure if the paper she wrote is indicitave of bad parenting or bad installation of values, but here is the text of her first paper, on American symbols.
"Bella Hutchinson
Money is my favorite American symbol. Money is something that you pay. I like money because you get food. If you don't get money, you don't get food. Money is a symbol."
It made me laugh, and kinda question my parenting and the culture in general that she thinks MONEY is an American symbol!!! :-) My girl - I love her so much.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
I'm so overwhelmed!!! There's so much information and so many different channels to go through when your school-aged child is HH!! I am just starting on the journey and there are a million things to do. I have started speaking with the myriad of people who are involved with "special education" in the school system (there are a bunch of them) and so many people have to be put on the same page, and no one seems to really know how to deal with a child with hearing impairment. Her teacher is not at all informed, so I went to this site - Hands & Voices - and it had so much information for educating teachers and professionals about hearing impairment. I learned alot by downloading their "Mainstreaming Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children" handout - its quite lengthy, but really really helpful. (http://www.handsandvoices.org/pdf/mainst_cal.pdf).
So, I started a binder, per Misty's suggestion (thanks Misty!! :-) ), and it has a bunch of dividers
1. phone logs/contact list - for everyone I talk to about anything related to Bella's HH, with the date I talked to them and notes about our convo
2. School correspondence - I have learned from past experience that just because you talk to someone at the school (or email them) doesn't mean anything at all - they lose it, it doesn't get in the right hands, etc. I'm keeping a paper trail!!
3. School information - for her IEPs and anything the school gives us to sign, etc.
4. Medical information - for her audiograms (is that the right word?) and any information the dr. gives us
5. Notes/misc - for helpful things I pick up along the way
6. State of Tx - for the programs TX offers, application forms, etc.
7. Resources - for handouts like the one above (I made a copy for her teachers and school)
8. Emails, misc - for my papertrail. I have emails from and to the school, plus I have helpful emails like the ones I recieved from you guys in my introduction.
Looks like its going to be a thick binder!!! :-)
I started teaching her sign this weekend - she picks it up quicker than I did!!! :-) She isn't that good at making the signs, but she's excellent at remembering what they are and the quizzes I give her!
Anyway, I thought maybe this would be helpful information for another parent who is starting down the confusing road of getting your DHH kid going on a successful path in school!!
So, I started a binder, per Misty's suggestion (thanks Misty!! :-) ), and it has a bunch of dividers
1. phone logs/contact list - for everyone I talk to about anything related to Bella's HH, with the date I talked to them and notes about our convo
2. School correspondence - I have learned from past experience that just because you talk to someone at the school (or email them) doesn't mean anything at all - they lose it, it doesn't get in the right hands, etc. I'm keeping a paper trail!!
3. School information - for her IEPs and anything the school gives us to sign, etc.
4. Medical information - for her audiograms (is that the right word?) and any information the dr. gives us
5. Notes/misc - for helpful things I pick up along the way
6. State of Tx - for the programs TX offers, application forms, etc.
7. Resources - for handouts like the one above (I made a copy for her teachers and school)
8. Emails, misc - for my papertrail. I have emails from and to the school, plus I have helpful emails like the ones I recieved from you guys in my introduction.
Looks like its going to be a thick binder!!! :-)
I started teaching her sign this weekend - she picks it up quicker than I did!!! :-) She isn't that good at making the signs, but she's excellent at remembering what they are and the quizzes I give her!
Anyway, I thought maybe this would be helpful information for another parent who is starting down the confusing road of getting your DHH kid going on a successful path in school!!
Friday, November 21, 2008
And so it continues...
Last month Bella failed her first hearing test. Well, it wasn't her first hearing test, but it was the first one she failed. 3 doctors and multiple tests later, she has bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. We have a long way to go getting all this figured out - how much loss? how much is correctible? should we try to get cochlear implants? how will this affect her life?
MRIs, CAT Scans, ABR tests, and a myriad of other tests will provide us with definitive answers and a solution, of sorts... and in the meantime, I'm.....
Sad
Angry
Confused
Disappointed
Upset
Helpless
Afraid
Relieved...
and a roller coaster of other emotions. I'm so scared for her - how will this change her life? My first reaction was acceptance and immediately springing into action. The more I find out about hearing loss, the more I fear it for her. I think of what this means - she might not hear the cries of her first child when it's born. She won't hear Mozart's Requiem or my voice on the other end of her telephone as she gets older... and that makes me so sad.
I'm a torrent of emotions at this moment, the biggest being grief. She doesn't know, she's only 6, and she can't grieve for herself, but I hurt for her. I'm so afraid of how this is going to change her life and everything brings me to tears. I want to tell everyone and no one. I want the people I tell to react differently somehow, but I'm not sure how. I want to know exactly what this means for her, exactly how this is going to change her life, and none of those questions can be answered. I want to go ballistic on her school for not realizing this sooner, and I'm angry with myself for missing the obviousness of it all.
We are just starting down this road of discovery together, and I'm optimistic for her. I want this to be something that doesn't make her life harder, but that enhances the quilt of her life and makes it something a little bit different.
I have been through alot of things in my life - and I don't see them as bad or good, really... just things that have made me who I am and equpped me for who I would/have become. I believe everything happens for a reason - and I hold onto that belief. That there is a reason, whatever it is, and that everything is as it should be.
MRIs, CAT Scans, ABR tests, and a myriad of other tests will provide us with definitive answers and a solution, of sorts... and in the meantime, I'm.....
Sad
Angry
Confused
Disappointed
Upset
Helpless
Afraid
Relieved...
and a roller coaster of other emotions. I'm so scared for her - how will this change her life? My first reaction was acceptance and immediately springing into action. The more I find out about hearing loss, the more I fear it for her. I think of what this means - she might not hear the cries of her first child when it's born. She won't hear Mozart's Requiem or my voice on the other end of her telephone as she gets older... and that makes me so sad.
I'm a torrent of emotions at this moment, the biggest being grief. She doesn't know, she's only 6, and she can't grieve for herself, but I hurt for her. I'm so afraid of how this is going to change her life and everything brings me to tears. I want to tell everyone and no one. I want the people I tell to react differently somehow, but I'm not sure how. I want to know exactly what this means for her, exactly how this is going to change her life, and none of those questions can be answered. I want to go ballistic on her school for not realizing this sooner, and I'm angry with myself for missing the obviousness of it all.
We are just starting down this road of discovery together, and I'm optimistic for her. I want this to be something that doesn't make her life harder, but that enhances the quilt of her life and makes it something a little bit different.
I have been through alot of things in my life - and I don't see them as bad or good, really... just things that have made me who I am and equpped me for who I would/have become. I believe everything happens for a reason - and I hold onto that belief. That there is a reason, whatever it is, and that everything is as it should be.
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