can you handle it?

i'm talking about two posts in one day, my friends. i fell a bit behind last week, but wanted to share this video (since i got a resounding "we like when you post videos" the last time i begged your indulgence to watch m pretend to be an audiologist.)

last week m's oral school (primarily for deaf and children with hearing loss, but also typical hearing kids attend) had their annual open house which concludes with a program where all of the classes perform. i get emotional every time- because i've come to take for granted that my daughter is deaf but can use spoken language to communicate and then wham! i'm reminded at what a miracle that is. it is AMAZING to watch class after class of deaf children sing up in front of over a hundred people. when the itty bitties get up there- i'm talking about kids who haven't even turned two and they are saying some of their first words, i look at their parents faces and i instantly remember those early days.

this night was kind of bittersweet: it is m's last year at jwposd. i am thrilled that for the most part, she is ready to be in a regular preschool! but inside i die a little to say goodbye to this incredible school which has given my daughter so much in just four years. don't even get me started on the community of being surrounded by families who have walked the same journey of hearing loss, and the gift to my daughter's identity to be with kids who are just like her. as usual, i teared up when my daughter got up to sing "yankee doodle" and "this is the way the girls/boys/farmers ride."

keep in mind that every single kiddo singing their heart out and hamming it up in this class is profoundly deaf. (by the way as i re-watch this video, i am laughing that since matt was sitting near the teacher you can hear her voice more than any of the kids. but for reals, y'all, those kids were singing.)
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(if you missed my earlier post this morning, it's right here)