Another One of Those Days

...where I just want to pinch myself. She was such a happy little thing today even though she tossed and turned and got little sleep last night. We went to the ENT today and it went pretty well. She was so good and far more patient than she should be for a 3 year old! We were there for 2 hours and had a full audiology test as well as ear check. I was so glad they could get us in to see audiology today instead of coming back for another appt. Found out she still has mild hearing loss. Not bad and not permanent, thankfully, but there is still fluid in her ears. She has had a runny nose the last few days so it could be fluid from allergies or a cold. The bottle at night is probably not helping. Guess we'll just have to wait and see how it clears up in the coming weeks. In the meantime, the Dr. did not seem concerned. She hears at a normal range and hears high frequencies well, but not some low ones. I had the Dr. tell her no more bottles because it could hurt her ears and we tried it tonight with only minimal fuss. We'll see how the rest of the week goes. Yes, I know what I said about letting her be a baby, but the bottle can actually drain into her ears and that is not a good thing. Not to mention her teeth. So I've changed my tune and the bottle is on it's way out. The Doc didn't think she needed tubes as of now, but we need to go back in 2 months to double check. If it gets worse then we'll have to consider it.

I got all teared up during the hearing test when she happily played the "game" and requested it to be "ON" when she was waiting for the beep at one point. (This was before I found out it's not permanent hearing loss and wasn't that bad.)  She thought it wasn't on but she just didn't hear it. But when I think about how clogged and confused she must have felt at times with both a new language and muffled sounds...how my heart feels for her! And yet, she is the happiest, most determined kid with such a love of learning. Her EI teachers and organizers are amazed at how much she has picked up in such a short time and that is before knowing she still has some hearing loss. We start up speech therapy in a couple weeks. I am so proud of her easy going nature and strong spirit. How far she has come and what a miracle how well she does hear compared to our reports last year. Think she will do real well with speech therapy and even better when we clear up those ears!

After her appt. we hit the fabulous King Of Prussia mall for food and shopping. First the Cheesecake Factory for lunch (which did not disappoint) and then shoes for Mommy and a Princess Tiana doll (from Princess & The Frog) for Ruby. Yea! And a bunch of other stops in between. She loved that movie and was so sweet all day that I couldn't resist getting it for her when she hugged it lovingly in the store.
Much to Mommy's delight, Ruby loves to shop and the both of us had a ball walking around and trying stuff on. Oh, how I dreamed of fun/silly/girlie days like these. She was just so cute.

Came home and she played outside a bit with our neighbors granddaughter. So sweet to watch them play nicely together. Jeff and I actually got a chance to sit and just chat as the girls splashed away at the water table. Had dinner outside and ended the night snuggling with the cuddle bunny. A great day.