Addison Update (3 months in the making)

I really just wanted to document/update about Addison for my own records.  I know these type of posts aren't that exciting, but sometimes it's good for me to be able to look back and see how much things have changed so I can get a good perspective.

Back in March I wrote this post about Addison and how I was concerned about her being behind with her speech thanks to a LONG winter full of ear infections and how we had gone ahead with getting her tubes, hoping for improvement.

So now that we're a little over 3 months out from her tubes, her speech is taking off, and it makes me so happy!

Before her tubes she was saying about 8 or 9 words.

Her current list is closer to 40 (I lost count, missed some and she adds a new one every day it seems): hi, mama, daddy, thank you, uh-oh, wow, what's that (wu zat), Cuh (for sisters) Lizzy, see ya, night, binky (ginky), blanky (ganky), done/all done, gone, doggie (goggie), outside (owside), go, shoes, ow (like owie), stinky, ew (like gross), eyes, nose, whoa, belly, good job (goo jah), yah, yay, no, drink, okay, Elmo (la la, because of the song), oh, hello, what.

It's amazing how FAST a little child picks up on things.  I would say even more notable to us above her increasing vocabulary is that her comprehension has EXPLODED.  Before the tubes she didn't seem to pay a whole lot of attention to us and didn't follow any directions.  While she still doesn't follow a whole lot of directions thanks to a stubborn streak, she understands us and will go get things we ask her to find, she will put things back that she gets out, answers questions like "where is your head?" etc.

So...I know this is starting to come across as a "Look how smart my baby is!" type post.  But this is just simply because looking back at where we were three to four months ago with her versus now is basically a completely different child, and it's amazing!  I am so happy I pushed for the tubes and listened to my mother's intuition when other people were telling me to avoid it and to use more "natural" remedies for her ear infections.  The thing that natural remedies couldn't do was remove all the built up gunk and scar tissue that was lodged down in her ear canal making her hearing bad.  

I will never regret getting her tubes.  It's opened up a whole new world to her, and she is SO much happier now than she has ever been.  Which is so wonderful to see as a mother.  Sure she's till crazy and a dare devil and has put a good chunk of gray hair on my head (seriously...I'm too young for gray hair!), but she is cheerful, social, outgoing, talkative and wonderful.

Some pictures of Addison now:

She insists on wearing this helmet basically every day.  She was also wearing a backpack and a black headband as a necklace in this particular picture.

I have had ONE person tell me she looks exactly like me, but I'm pretty sure it's just because of her curly hair.  (For some reason people tell me I look like people who also have curly hair...even when our faces look NOTHING alike.)

A little cleaning before bed.  I took half the handle off the Swiffer so she doesn't keep trying to use my broom, which was sure to end in stuff being broken.

Addison was being quiet in the play room, so I thought for sure she was up to no good.  When I went to check on her, she had climbed in this doll stroller, picked up a baby doll and was sucking on it's fake plastic binky.  She is such a ham.

I just adore our little Addison and am so grateful she's in our family!