We were finally able to meet up with some friends from Summit Speech School.  The adorable little girl between Cormac and Colin is the same age as Cormac and also has bilateral implants.  It was so nice to see her again and great to catch up with her Mom.  It's nice to talk to someone who really understands and gets it.  No need for explanations. 

The kids has a blast playing together.  They were making a pile out of driftwood.  They were great at teamwork.  Colin thought it was great to see someone else who has implants.  He ran up to my friend and said "she has cochlear implants. My brother has them too".  We got caught in the rain and had to wait it out at Dunkin Donuts.  Their were two kids missing in the above picture.  A total of seven kids and all their names started with the letter "C" except for one whose name started with a "K". (Sounds the same though! LOL)

We now only live very close and will be able to meet lots more.  When Cormac was little I brought him to Summit Speech School on Wednesdays to a group class for infants.  We started with a group of kids and to see how far they have come in 4 years is amazing!  I have said it before but our experience with Summit Speech School from the start was the foundation for Cormac's success.  While Cormac was in group class the parents were able to sit together and learn from each other and professionals who came to speak to us. 

We are looking forward to The Walk 4 Hearing in NYC on Sunday morning.  Again, if you want to join us or make a donation please click here.

Walk 4 Hearing

My family will be walking in the Walk for Hearing in NYC on Sunday.  If possible please make a donation to our team.  Any little bit can help. If you are not busy join our team and come out and walk with us.  It will be a great day. Visit our team page by clicking here. Thank you in advance for all your donations!

Fun at Forty!

My 40th birthday started at 5:45am when Cormac woke up.  He climbed into bed with me and very excitedly yelled "Happy Birthday, Mommy.  Today is your birthday and the first day of fall.  You are forty today!"  I would have preferred it was about an hour later but it made my morning start off nicely.

It followed up by Ciaran and Colin climbing into bed to wish me the same.  Last night before bed Colin said he couldn't sleep because he was so excited for my birthday.  Honestly, they are so cute about it.  They couldn't wait to go to school and tell their teacher.  They are waiting patiently to give me my presents when Frank gets home. 

We went for a bike ride on the boardwalk for a while after school but got caught in the rain.  It was a mad dash back to the house.  Basically, I was trying to push Calleigh in the stroller while attempting to pull two of the boys faster on their bikes.  Luckily, Kristen (our new friend on the block who is in sixth grade) happened to see us an she gave me an assist back to the house.  She is the sweetest llittle thing and the boys might have their first crush....

Ciaran (who LOVES to go a restaurant )is beyond thrilled he is going out to dinner.  We really don't go out very often so it's nice.  I will get the boys "fancy" as they like to say. 

I am really not caring about turning 40.  I am exactly where I want to be.  I am happily married to an awesome husband and father and have four amazing children. I am healthy and still relatively sane....(LOL)  What more could I want?  Forty is the new 30, right?? 

I am looking forward to celebrating this weekend with lot of family and friends.  Hopefully, the party will be a success.  I think with food, beer, family and friends it has to be a success.

We had a nice dinner and now it's 8pm and all the kiddos are asleep.  Time to relax and enjoy the evening.

Phone Conversations

I am rarely away from my children long enough to have to speak to them on the telephone. I  can't even remember the last time I had to talk to them.  This weekend my mother in law was kind enough to keep the kids over night while Frank and I stayed up at the old house and got some packing done.  It's hard to pack with the kids around. 

Sunday morning I called to see how everyone was doing.  First I talked to Ciaran who woke up in the night and was crying for me.  My kids NEVER wake up in the night.  The next thing I know I was talking to Cormac.  When I tell you his speech on the phone was crystal clear.  I could understand every word he said.  He didn't even sound like a child on the other end.  I was surprised at how surprised I was at listening to him.  At one point he said "Ciaran, can you quiet down I am trying to talk on the phone and I can't hear with all your talking"  LOL  It sounded so familiar.....But good for him for speaking up for himself!

Still after all this while I am amazed by certain little things that most people take for granted.

This makes me sad.

I was waiting for the boys to come out of school today and a lady came up to me and asked me if I was the mom of the triplets. I said yes and she said "oh, I saw one has the implants". I said yes. She tells me she has a nephew who is nine years old who is deaf and the family just moved to another state so he could be at one of the best schools for the deaf. I asked "does he have an implant?" She says no. His Mom (her sister in law) won't do it. She doesn't think he needs it. She says "did it change his whole personality when you got him implants? That is what my sister in law is afraid of".

At that moment, Cormac comes barreling out of the building yelling "hi, mommy, I missed you today. I had so much fun at school. Guess what we did today? We got to go outside for recess and play with the other class and I saw my friend Kristen" (she is in sixth grade LOL). The look on her face made me so sad. She had obviously never met a child with implants and had no expectations of it actually working because of what she had been told by her sister in law. I asked her if they sign and she said she really doesn't know much and feels like most of the family can't communicate with him and feel very detached. Her sister in law and brother both fully sign at this point.

She explained her sister in law's parents are both deaf but the sister in law is not deaf.

I realized it's a personal choice for everyone. But to see this woman look so sad when I guess she realized her nephew could be hearing her voice broke my heart.

And this makes me happy...I will leave you with the cute quote of the week. This week it comes from Colin. Here is the back story to why he said it.

While the boys were at school I made it my mission to get there room organized. Since we aren't fully moved out of our house yet and not fully moved in the new house it has been very chaotic. Their room was very unorganized and was starting to make me crazy. Keep in mind, the boys have had this room since they were babies but only used it in the summer. I got all the clothes put away. I hung their pirate hooks, I put their rug in. I made the beds with their stuff. When they came home it was all done. They went upstairs to get changed out of their uniforms and Colin says "Hey, Mom, our room looks so good. Thank you for making it so beautiful and now it feels like our home with all our stuff" I love that kid. He is so sensitive and notices everything.

A day to remember

I went to talk to the boys class today about Cochlear Implants and Hearing Aids. After posting on Facebook for suggestions on what information to share I decided to follow Melanie's advice and let Cormac and Ciaran speak for themselves. This morning now goes down in the books as one of those moments you always want to remember.

Ciaran went first and said he wears hearing aids "to help him hear better". He wanted to show his class how the battery door opened and what the battery looked like. He walked around the carpet and made sure everyone saw it. He told them "when it beeps once it's working and lots of beeps means it's time for a new battery". He could not have said it better and was so very excited.

Cormac went next and stood up next to me and said "I have Cochler Implants because I am deaf. See, these are them. (pointing to his ears). When I was born I couldn't hear but now I can hear. When my magnets are on I can hear when they are off I can't." (He was demonstrating) He also showed how the processors blink green when they are working and he said "if you see red I can't hear you". Then pointed to my necklace (It a spiral that looks like a cochlea)
and said "this is what the inside of your ear looks like and that is what doesn't work in my ears"

Cormac also explained that lots of noise makes it harder for him to hear so being quiet when the teacher talks is helpful and that is why he wears the FM system.

Colin said "my ears work just fine but it's cool my brothers have cool stuff on their ears"

The kids asked a few questions and checked out all the "cool" equipment.

To have such well adjusted, proud and happy kids was always my goal. Today, I think I realized they are just that. They were PROUD to show everyone why they were "different" and don't think of it as something to be upset by but choose to share it. I could not have explained things better myself. I love those kids more than anything. It's overwhelming how much emotion I feel when they are making me so proud.

I, of course, left the class and called Frank and was crying like a baby. But they were tears of joy so it's all good. Frank was so happy to know it went so well and he said "they weren't born that way. They learned that from you". Frank scored some brownie points...

Could it really be?

KINDERGARTEN!!!! Yep. The time arrived. My babies are now full time students. It's like I know it's real but can't believe this day has come. It seems the last five years have flown by but have taken forever. Does that make sense? I guess the days are long but the years are short.

The unexpected move sort of threw a monkey wrench into our long thought out plan of Kindergarten. It sent me into a frenzy. We are not just a family that shows up in your school. We are first triplets. Can they fit all three in one class? Will they try and force me to break them up? I had this all worked out at their original school. Oh, and let's not forget...two IEP's. So we don't just blend in when we arrive. THere are going to be some delays in getting services started but luckily I have possession of an FM system so Cormac was able to use it today with no issues. His teacher was totally awesome and had no problem using it even though it's not required since his IEP is not finalized. Ciaran will have to wait because we don't have the shoes for his hearing aids yet. They should be paid for by the county who is responsible for his IEP. He is just starting the evaluation process since he is newly diagnosed with hearing loss.

Nothing is simple. Our day to day lives aren't really different than anyone else but trust me, nothing is simple when it comes to school. Being in private school complicates matters more than being in public school. We made the choice to do private school and feel strongly we want our children to attend private school. So the added pressure is self inflicted :)

It all about your resources. Having Summit Speech School as a constant and consistent support system is priceless. Their knowledge and experience cannot be matched by anyone else. I feel truly blessed to have so much love and support from them. Our new principal is an amazing man. He not only welcomed our family into his school but he rearranged other students so my three could be together. He has already made the calls necessary and has promised to rearrange his schedule to be available to attend any and all meetings with the county. That is not required of him.

Hours of phone calls, countless time organizing folders and reports has seemed to pay off. It looks like we will be able to get the services required. It is not set in stone yet but things are looking good. My best advice to any parent is to be prepared and educated. A well educated parent is a districs worse nightmare. Know your rights, understand your rights, know what you want and WHY you want it and have the reports from people WHO KNOW YOUR CHILD ready and waiting.

Ok, enough of all the boring details. Let's get to the cuteness of Kindergarten. Their class was adorable. Their teacher was sweet as can be. They went in to school with no problem. Hung up their backpacks and joined the class on the rug. They signed "I love you" to me and that was it. I was better than I thought. Seeing them so happy made it much easier. I only cried for a second after we left.

They came out of school just as happy. They were very excited to see me and Calleigh. They came out telling me all kinds of stories. Colin said he made a new friend named Ryan. Ciaran said he made friends with a girl but he forgot her name and Cormac said his girlfriend is Mary. They attended music class and thought it was awesome. They were teaching me what they learned. I just love how they love to learn. Their brains just absorb everything. It was a great day for them. Such a milestone for our family. Seems like yesterday they were born. I will cherish the years I stayed home with them. It's kind of scary to hand your children off to someone else for so much time.

We finished the day with soccer practice. The boys were asleep before their heads hit the pillows. All day at school and soccer sure must be tiring!

Why I love waking up in the morning....

For moments like this! Sure the whole day isn't filled with all moments like this but there are plenty of them. They make it all worth it!


 

 

 

 

3 days and counting....

Three more days. That's it. The start of a new chapter in our lives. They will head to Kindergarten on Wednesday. Tuesday is the meet and greet but I get to go the that :) We enjoyed a long day at the beach today. We head back up North to our house tomorrow to pack up some more stuff and prepare for the final move.

In the meantime, enjoy some pics...

I didn't ask them to pose for this. They asked me to take a picture...

The "unofficial" last Friday of Summer

The Friday of Labor Day weekend usually signifies the last weekend of Summer since everyone goes to school the following week. We do start Kindergarten next week. BUT since we now live at the beach.....well, I guess it doesn't end! We can still go to the beach after school, we can still go on the weekends. This is just hitting me and I am so thrilled. Even if we have soccer on Saturdays we have the beach after.

September is the most beautiful month of the year at The Jersey Shore. Not many visitors. Very quiet. Warm temps in the day with the cool ocean breeze at night. I am so looking forward to sitting on the front porch, reading to the kids and enjoying my favorite smell of the ocean. The first day you need to put on a long sleeve shirt in the evening is my favorite feeling.

Starting on Wednesday I will have six hours a day with just Calleigh while the boys are at school. It is so bizarre I can't even comprehend it. Calleigh and I are going to start enjoying some real girl time. What's my goal? I like to jog. Always have. This summer I was actually able to maintain a little bit of a routine and got in about 3-4 days a week. (Thanks to my mother in law who doesn't go to work until 1pm and I got to sneak out early in morning. I usually do about 3 to 3/12 miles. There is one straight path along the water. When I get up to the beach if I go left it winds up in the 3 mile range to the end and back. If I go to the right it will be 5 miles there and back. That is my goal. I want to do the five miles. Of course I will be doing it while pushing Calleigh but that is ok. I don't think it will be so hard. I don't have much trouble with 3 1/2 miles but I will work on my time and try and reduce it.

So, I hope you all have a fun and safe Labor Day Weekend. We will be relaxing on the beach....