Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!

No, he didn't say mommy (yet), but he signed it! I've seen it a few times before today, but not for sure. Today, we were certain! Lucas is a mama's boy, and his daddy definitely confirmed that he was asking for mommy. He was also turning consistently to his name today for the first time. He would turn and smile, and I would reinforce it with his name sign. What an eventful Lucas day!

So, I decided after I posted those videos last night, that I should try Overstream to subtitle them. I was checking out Deaf Village, and I noticed that my post hadn't been picked up. And I thought maybe it was because I hadn't subtitled my videos to provide equal access to all readers, so I thought I would give it a try! My timing wasn't perfect, but not too bad for my first attempt! I will do that from now on...

I am really enjoying my time off with Lucas (I'm sure you're not surprised...). I feel very blessed to be able to take this time off during a time of so many Lucas language firsts. My stress level has decreased SIGNIFICANTLY, and I'm actually enjoying life. I really like to read, and during crazy 2008, I didn't read a single fictional book. I spent all of my time reading and learning about hearing loss, cochlear implants, communication methods, Deaf culture... and I never took the time out to read for pleasure. Well... since Christmas I've read 4 books! It's been liberating. I'm addicted to the Twilight series. I'm in the middle of Breaking Dawn, and I don't want to put it down! I've also had more time to blog.

There's been a lot of blog talk lately about deaf communication methods. It's been making my head spin, because I sooooo badly want to be making the right decision for Lucas. We want Lucas to be 100% oral and mainstreamed... that's our goal, period. But we want him to learn sign language too, to give him options. So, we're using auditory-verbal strategies and are continuing to use sign language for baby communication, and for times when he's not wearing his CI. AND, we're staying flexible. I think that's most important - we will continually assess and make sure that Lucas's needs are being met. I once received great advice from Christian's Mommy (thanks!!!) to keep an open mind about communication methods and just to follow Lucas's lead. That's exactly what we're doing: the Lucas method.

And, happy belated Valentine's Day. Here's a picture of Lucas last year on Valentine's Day (2 days after we found out he was deaf) and a picture from this year. Don't you just love this year's picture?