THAT'S my boy!

Tonight, while we were towelling Ben off after his bath (so he didn't have any hearing equipment on), he pointed to a John Lennon poster hanging in the hall and said, "John Lennon in Beatles."

Okay, so what he really said was more like the following:
"Dahn ... Wenn!"
"DahnwenndahnwenndahnwenndahnWENNNNN!"
"Beebuhl Beebuhl Beebuhl Beebuhl."
"INNNN."
"In Beebuhl."
"Dahn ... Wenn ... INNNNN ... Beebuhl!"

But you get the drift. You see, he's been on a major Beatles kick lately. His favorite Beatle is John (obviously). His favorite song is "Yellow Submarine." (Average number of renditions per car ride: 50,000.) His favorite album is Abbey Road. The boy has taste.

Haute cuisine

Here's some video of Ben discussing spinach (in French) and politics. He seems to be very passionate about both subjects.

So I'm a math geek -- nothing wrong with that!

Here's a picture of us at our college's Pi Day celebration, that appeared on the website of our local paper. This year's event was called "SurPiVor", a spoof on the "Survivor" reality show -- hence the island theme, as epitomized by our cheap plastic leis. We professor types were under orders to wear Hawaiian shirts, obtainable at the Salvation Army for a couple of bucks (so I'm told), but gosh darnit, didn't get a chance to get out there, so I had to go with my customary Cow Pi sweatshirt. Ben is obviously enjoying the spectacle.

Jodi, Evelyn, and Pi Day

Jodi (American Mom in Tuscany) has been promoting an international survey of parents of children with hearing loss. The results will be used to assess how much support parents receive from professionals, and what can be done to improve that support. It's easy and pretty quick (it took me less than ten minutes), so check it out: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=5eHe_2bpFgBxwGqaf_2fisWQog_3d_3d

Ben was on an Evelyn Glennie (a.k.a. "Ebe Gemmy" among the toddler set) kick this afternoon, and we came across an interview on oversteam. I also recommend the documentary "Touch the Sound," available on DVD. http://www.overstream.net/view.php?oid=iwrmudsti6lz

Finally, I join my Cousin Madeline (see her comment to last night's post) in wishing everyone a Happy Pi Day! Our Math Department celebrated Thursday night (http://www.observertoday.com/page/content.detail/id/520484.html?nav=5047) since we have Spring Break next week and nobody was sticking around for the weekend. We took Ben to the festivities and he had a marvelous time playing with the dry-erase markers and beach balls.

Wow.

Ben just said "I love you" tonight.

Okay, yeah, he was imitating me, and he probably doesn't attach much meaning to it.

Still, I'm floored. Unlike Ben, I'm speechless. And I'm crying.

Hug

Warning: This post is pure brag, without even a hint of modesty. (So what's new?)

Last night I was sitting with Ben on the family room floor. I said to him, "Can you go to your nursery and get the book called Hug from the basket by your crib?" He gets up and heads down the hall. He's taking awhile, so I chat with Neil about other things. I've almost forgotten about Ben's mission. After a minute or so, he strides purposefully back into the family room, carrying the desired book.

It just seemed like a very complex set of instructions for him to understand and carry out. (Keep in mind, there are a couple of places where books are stored in his nursery, so the bit about the basket was important.) I wouldn't have been surprised if he'd had trouble with it. On the other hand, I wasn't all that surprised that he aced it. He's been doing a number of remarkable things lately.

He has the /h/ sound down pat. He has also mastered "no," thus signifying his ascendancy into toddlerhood. He loves daycare, and talks about Miss Pamela, her house, her dog, and the other children there. He also knows a good portion of the alphabet.

The other night he was choosing a CD to listen to, and he was saying "Aaaa paa" over and over again. It took me awhile, but then I realized that he was requesting the CD "Action Packed". Yes, our deaf 16 month old is asking for Jonathan Richman CDs by name.

In other news, after a couple of months of blissfully quiet nights, last night Ben woke up right around 1:00 am. We each took a turn at going in and comforting him a little, but no go. Nothing to do but let him cry for awhile. Now, this is hard enough when all your child does is cry. But the guilt and stress are greatly magnified when he's calling out "Mommy! Daddy!" I'm lying there thinking, "Why exactly did we teach him to talk?"

(Actually, when it comes to that, I remember last summer during a period when Ben was having Sleep Issues, checking him out on the video monitor during the night and seeing him frantically signing "more" over and over. He can pull the guilt strings just as well with sign as with speech.)

"Don't Divorce Us" video

Okay, this post has nothing to do with hearing loss, and on the surface it doesn't have much to do with Ben. But I hope you'll watch this video and sign the petition.

http://vimeo.com/3089746

It's a tough world out there. Loving, committed relationships are a good thing; they make the world a little better. What exactly is the problem with that?