This one's for Dave

I'm not sure that this is what my BIL Ray had in mind when they added the new deck and patio to their backyard.....but it works for Dave!

Also Dave, here are some pics for you to identify....this is the remains of a bird that Terry found in our backyard this morning. We think it is the work of the hawks that we often see. Dad was over tonight for dinner to see Peg, (that's a separate post) and as he noted, there was no head left, so it's hard to identify. The only bone left was licked clean. We know it happened overnight, we were outside playing till about 7pm last night, and it wasn't there at that time. Gotta be careful one of the kids doesn't get carried off!!

Can you hear me now?

We have had quite the week....or maybe I should say Sophie has had quite the week. On Tuesday I took her to get her new hearing aids programmed. These are the first new pair of hearing aids she has had since being fitted with her original pair at 6 months of age. Our insurance announced that they are covering them at 85% this year, so it really worked out well. They can be pricey, these run $1600.00 each. When I found out about the coverage, I called her audiologist who said, yes, it is probably time, as technology has come far in 6 years. She gave me some options, and we selected what would be best for the classroom setting, a mid range model, as far as price and options goes.

As soon as Lisa put them on her and turned them on, she asked, "What is that?" and looked all around. Radora, one of her audiologists who wears hearing aids herself, was there to help her out. "It's the fan overhead, can you hear it now?"

Sophie: "Well, yeah kind of....but......everything is down, I don't like these at all, they are awful!"
Lisa and Radora then remind her very gently how yes, new hearing aids do sound so much different from what she is used to, she really needs to give them a good try for at least a couple of weeks, just wait till she is in school and can see how much better they are, etc. I stayed out of it, because I have learned that the information goes much further when it doesn't come from Mom.

By the time we left she was ok with them, but once we were in the car she freaked out again. She can't hear a thing, everything sounds "down". It's hard for her, with a 6 year olds vocabulary to describe it in terms that I can understand. So it goes, back and forth for the rest of the day, but by bedtime she seems to have accepted them.

The next morning, total anarchy. She hates them, they do NOT work, she must have her old pair back, she is not wearing these to school. I knew that arguing and insisting wasn't going to make things better, so I told her I would check them out fully, maybe they weren't working properly. I took both batteries out, we put them in the tester, of course they had full power as they were brand new. Put the batteries back in, I listened to them myself through the listening tube, they were fine. But, to help her out, I had her talk to me from several distances, all the while letting her know that wow, I can hear great through these. And to be fair, they even sound different to me than her old ones, so I can imagine what a jolt it is to her. I knew I had to give her some leeway, as Radora told me, "Mrs. Gould, I am a grown woman, and I HATE getting new hearing aids!" Radora has worn them since she was 2, so she has been through this experience many times.

I ended up walking her to her classroom; I had already informed Mrs Miller what was going on, so she was prepared. Another example of what a great teacher she is. She read the book Sophie had been given from the audiologists about hearing aids, then had Sophie come up and share all about it. Nothing like sympathy from your peers. All day I was wondering how she was doing, would she switch out to her school pair and use the FM, or give them a real try?

She came bounding off the bus that afternoon, I was braced for the worst. Instead I got this: "Mom, these hearing aids are the BEST, I didn't even have to use the FM system at all, I can hear everything with them!" Mrs. Miller had sent a note home saying she did great at school, nothing to worry about. I then emailed Lisa to cancel the appt I had made for Friday because Sophie had insisted there must be something wrong with them, and that "Miss Lisa was lying, they aren't better!"

We've had some rough patches since then, she still wants the car radio and the TV louder than where I think it should be, but that's ok for now. In a few weeks we will go back to see Lisa and Radora so Sophie can go into the booth. Then they will be able to fine tune her settings, and we will really have a true understanding of what she can and cannot hear with them.

And, as I reminded Terry, we get to go through this again in another 5-6 years, when she will be 12 going on 20...I can only imagine the drama then!

Personal Chef and Gardener or Scary Aunt Mary

My sister Mary came to visit us this past weekend. As you may recall from here, she was foiled last time. April proved a much wiser choice; the weather was perfect. We were able to fit in our favorite things: weeding, cooking, eating, a long walk pushing the double jogger, more cooking, more eating. Add a child free trip to Target, a pedicure and seeing a really funny show with Dotty, and the trip was complete.

The only person who was not thrilled with her visit was Michael. Maybe he didn't get the social gene, or maybe it's his age, but he took awhile (24-48 hrs!) to really warm up to her. Of course, Emily took about 2 minutes, and Sophie about 1/2 second. After Michael claimed she was "skawee" her nickname became Scary Aunt Mary. He called her that, when he didn't refer to her as "Who dat lady, me no like huh". By Monday he was all smiles when he saw her, probably because he knew she was on her way to the airport. Ironically, when he woke up from his nap that afternoon he asked me, "Where Ant Madgee go, I miss huh". He's the sensitive one of the three, of that there is little doubt. Here are some pictures from the weekend.

Sophie talking on the banana phone before it gets added to the smoothie recipe.
Trying to keep up with the weeds, it's never ending, but very satisfying to get rid of them.
Sophie took this one of Emily and Michael wearing buckets. No expensive toys needed.
Rolling out the homemade cinnamon roll dough on Sunday morning.
One of the two pans the recipe made, they were quite delicious.

In other news, I visited my optometrist today, and as I expected I need reading glasses. Yes, I am officially OLD!! Go ahead and gloat Joan, remember a few years ago when we went out for dinner and I almost fell out of my chair laughing when you pulled out yours? Yes, what goes around comes around.

Gould cousins

We had a great time with our Gould cousins yesterday. As they live in CT, we don't get to see them very often. They were down here for Spring Break, and since Terry's brother Jay (their father) is taking a new job in Atlanta, we hope to see more of them.

Sophie was a bit surprised when they met her at the bus stop, we didn't think they would be here in time. She was tongue tied at first; a rarity, I know, but warmed up quickly. They left today for a visit to Seaside, FL. We hope they enjoy the beach and some warmer weather.

Here's the girls on the slide, from the top: Kylie-almost 16, Blair-11 and Sophie. I can see so much of Blair in my Emily.

We played in the basement for a bit, and Michael decided he wanted to be a baby again. Once he was in the carrier, he pretended to cry, and Emily rushed over to him so she could pretend feed him.

Blair making it look easy:

Jake proving that you're never too old, or too big, to swing!

Spring has sprung!

I was going to post some pictures of our backyard to show how beautiful it is right now in Atlanta. Then I got word that Miss Sharon, our absolute favorite teacher at preschool, has a blog of her own. Sharon and her husband Michael have turned their entire backyard (which is probably about 2 acres) into a gorgeous garden with paths, benches, a hammock, the works. She even had a little house built that overlooks the garden, and they often eat dinner there.

Sophie had Miss Sharon when she was in the older 2's class, and next Fall it will be Michael and Emily's turn. She and her co-teacher Marlene are so great with kids, I am really looking forward to M and Em experiencing all they have to offer. But for now, check out her blog. It gives me something to shoot for once my kids are grown!