Waxy Wednesday

Gabriel got angry with Alexander and bit his head. Yes, his head. Gabriel had a biting problem when he was younger. When I learned that biting is very satifying for sensory seeking children, it all made sense. We were able to transfer his biting problem to gum or a vibrating toy elephant last year. This year, the school wouldn't use his elephant and now the biting is back. Swell. At least the bite isn't visible and only removes hair. A large chunk of hair was removed from Alex's head and got worse. It didn't seem quite right to me. The hair didn't grow back and it was about the size of three quarters. However, Alex has my thick straight hair and you can't see the bald patch very well. I called for an appointment and took him in to the doctor. The kids insisted on getting measured and the nurse was kind enough to do so. Gabriel is 50 in, Alex is 46 in, and Lane is barely 37 in. He was diagnosed with a fungal infection. That sounds so weird and gross to me. He will take medication for 4-8 weeks. I asked the doctor to check Alex's ears because he is loud and doesn't always hear me correctly. I don't know if it's a behavior issue, inattentiveness, or a hearing problem. The doctor found a huge piece of wax in his ear. I actually saw it there too but he wouldn't allow me to get it out. The doctor attempted to get it out but Alex wouldn't stay still for that little procedure. Instead, the nurse had to wash the wax out. He thought the ear wash was hilarious and couldn't stop laughing. What a goofball. He also earned a one way ticket to the ENT next week. I guess we'll find out if he is hearing or not. It will be good to get all of this done before school starts so there aren't any questions about these simple things that can be checked now.

Pass/Fail?

Lane failed several hearing tests which resulted in tubes being put in her ears over a month ago. I took her back to the ENT and audiologist last week. It was a brutal, long wait with all three children but it's tough to complain with the flooding and destruction going on around us. The receptionist gave us some post it notes and we made the most of our game players while in the waiting room.
The kids also played with two other children in the waiting room. Their mother is due with her fourth child any day and she looked miserable. She proceeded to tell me about her third child passing away recently and shared photos. I felt awful for her and it was an awkward moment between two strangers who only shared motherhood in common. That and a long wait in a waiting room.
The ENT said that her tubes looked great and we moved on to the audiologist. I was prepared to hear the worst. We had been warned when her tubes were put in that she didn't have fluid and would probably need many tests to determine her hearing loss.
The audiologist showed me the results after we sat in the soundproof room (I hate sitting in those rooms because I can hear myself breathing. I never know what I'm allowed to say either). My heart raced and I felt lightheaded when I looked at the computer screen. The wavy lines meant nothing to me which is tough to admit after working with them for years in math courses.
He explained that her lines are far away from each other and that point in time she is hearing fine. She PASSED!! Oh sweet relief washed over me. I cried happy tears and told him how grateful I was for good news. I honestly wanted to hug him but realized he appreciated his personal space.
I have noticed that her speech is improving as well. She is putting some two word sentences together now - "my baby" "hi dada" etc...

Audiologist

This is a photo of Laney waiting patiently for the pediatrician for over 45 minutes.

Lane is taking her time with her vocabulary. Her AEA OT and home teacher suggested taking her to the audiologist. I've been through this before with Gabriel and while I don't look forward to it, I don't mind going either. Unfortunately, Lane failed all three tests indicating a minor hearing loss. The audiologist thought her ear looked red so I was instructed to take her to the pediatrician for a follow-up and then go back after she was cleared medically. One big positive about living in a small city is that I can get into the pediatrician's office quickly on most days. Later in the afternoon, I took her to the Dr who determined that she did not have an ear infection or fluid in her ear. Her ear drums aren't responding appropriately. We have to take her to the ENT to see if more is going on with her hearing than an ear infection.