I guess I should take advantage of nap time and post Mary's hearing story otherwise it might be days later.

So it seems that we've been plagued with hearing problems since the get go. Mary failed her hearing test at the hospital right after she was born. We were notified that we had to take her for another test by the state of Kansas. We did that when she was about 8 months old, only to find out she had a double ear infection at the time. We were told to come back when that was all cleared up, but then we moved to Okinawa. Luckily, we were able to get her tested soon after arriving here and she passed with flying colors. Yea! However, at her 17 month well baby appointment, the docotor wasn't happy with her limited vocab. He saw (and dug out a LOT of ear wax) and prescribed drops a couple times a week and wanted to see her in 2 months for a follow-up. Enter today: Still tons of wax (prescription of drops has been increased to TWICE a DAY) and still limited vocab. A 19 month old that doesn't say "mama or dada" is a bit worrisome. She says some things "uh-oh" a lot, "dis?" a lot, "dat" a lot. But most others seem to be hit or miss. Sometimes she'll say things, but not on a consistent basis. She does animal sounds great, follows directions, points, plays with other kids...just doesn't talk much. So today, we got a referral for a speech eval (they should call in the next few days) and an appointment to see the doc again in a month. I have to say I am pleased with Mary's pediatrician. He's so nice, never seems rushed and listens to all I have to say. He also wants to see her fequently to monitor her progress. I'm very thankful for free healthcare. So hopefully, Mary is just waiting to say the words that she wants and she'll bloom into a big talker soon.

The doc tested her for autism today and she didn't meet any of the criteria. She's pretty social, so that would have surprised me, but I know there are a lot of different levels of autism.