Would you like to know what the world’s best teething toy is? A hearing aid mold. “C, No!” I hear myself say that over and over again as she yanks them out when she is bored and pops those suckers in her mouth. Who knew a baby was so strong to yank out the tubing? I sure as heck didn’t. Oh, and the audiologist saying that it’s good and she is advanced because she is already doing this REALLY does not make me feel better. I know I can spend some money, but $2500 on a teether is a bit excessive, even for this fashonista baby, high end makeup, gotta have that latte momma.

There is a line.

In the middle of being completely frustrated, I occasionally decide that “Deaf Time” will be happening a bit earlier than our goal of 10-12 hours of daily wear. I give myself a pep talk about how this experience has caused me to grow. Then, I count the reasons why having a HoH (Hard of Hearing) baby is awesome. So, tonight, after the tubing has been pulled out yet again and the molds are slimy with drool, I have created this list for you.

Why my HoH baby is AWESOME!

1. The BOWS!!! Oh my goodness. Last year, a dear friend of mine had a baby girl and that little cutie wore bows everywhere. I’ve always been a hats on babies kind of a gal, but these bows were soft and awesome! I had to have a few for my baby C. Hubs thought it was ridiculous that she was constantly in bows. Until… The day she was diagnosed, the audiologist pointed out that bows can often help kids keep their hearing aids on and in! TRIUMPH! We love our Joli Arc Boutique or #JAB bows so much because even though C can now pull the aids out, they don’t flop around and the molds stay in better. So, as long as I keep those little hands occupied, the hearing aids stay in! The bows are fun and colorful and brighten up my day just a bit. (Don’t ask me how many I have, though.) If you want to save some money and try out our favorite bows – use code LOVEJAB at checkout!

2. We are learning ASL (American Sign Language). Not only are we learning, but many of our loved ones have embraced this as well. I love that because I have a Hard of Hearing baby, my family has embraced learning a new language. Also, I can now communicate with my children in Mass without speaking. High five for non-verbal, non-physical correction! When is being bi-lingual a bad thing? Never.

3. Having C brought so much of my baggage to the surface. I like to bury my baggage, then build a monument above it so that it can never resurface. However, the earthquake that shook me with her diagnosis has caused me to really look at my life, what I have, what I do, and why I do it. I’ve been making healthy changes that are beginning to really be seen in my family. I love this. Sure, at some point it may have happened, but this is when it did and I’ll happily give credit where it is due.

4. Sleep. My baby generally sleeps through the night. She might wake up once to nurse (typically around 4am), but she sleeps well. She’s not even 6 months old and this has been the case for while. Deaf time is a real thing, and it means this mommy really doesn’t get bags under her eyes.

What is Deaf time? It is that time when we take out the hearing aids and C can just relax. There is a lot of noise in this world and C is able to drown it out. (I’m hoping this will be a super power when it comes to taking the SATs later in life.) C lived in this time for the first few months, so the dog barking, kids yelling, door bell ringing, phone calls… None of them were a problem.

5. The smiles she gave when she first heard our voices. When C was first fitted with her hearing aids and they went on, she smiled the biggest smiles of her life. She has always been a happy baby, but she was aware. I’m pretty good with my words, but in that moment, seeing her smile at Hubs as he spoke to her, my heart melted and I had to hold back the tears. I’ll never be able to verbalize those emotions that flooded in, but there was a realization that she really hadn’t been able to hear all of our I Love You’s. Now she could.

So, if my baby decides to pop those aids in her mouth all day tomorrow, I’ll still think she’s awesome. I’ll still know that her being Hard of Hearing has enriched my life in ways that I could never have explained before it happened.