Back to the Grindstone

We have been back in Arizona for a week now. We had a fantastic time visiting our family and friends in Georgia and the time went by entirely too quickly. Who knew a month could fly by so fast?!
Of course the boys have had a bit of difficulty adjusting to normal life again - that is, no grandparents around to cater to their every whim. :-)  But we are finally getting back into our normal routine.
Aaron started all of his therapies again this week. He wasn't exactly cooperative, so it may take a little longer for him to get adjusted to the demands that therapy involves. Luckily, he made a lot of progress while we were gone too.
He got his third set of tubes put in his ears the week before we went to Georgia and they have made a tremendous difference. He had been having problems with his balance for a few weeks but that improved immediately after the tubes were put in. It turned out he had a LOT of gunk in his ears that was certainly impairing his hearing. Since that has cleared up he has started speaking more, putting more sounds together and imitating us all the time. It is so exciting to watch.
Although he will be three in just a couple of weeks, developmentally he is only at about the 15 month stage with his speech. He can sign a lot and is able to communicate with us that way, but to hear him trying to say real words is like a dream come true. It is so exciting for both him and us when he says a real word and uses it properly. Of course it is exciting for any parent when their child first learns to speak, but when you have waited three years for it, it's just that much sweeter.  Hopefully his vocabulary will continue to expand quickly now that he can hear!
Today is also Open House day at the elementary school. We'll find out who Jacob's first grade teacher will be, which of his friends are going to be in his class and see his new classroom. I am definitely more excited about this than he is, but I'm hoping once we get there and he sees his friends again, he will be excited too. School starts on Monday, so he'll be back to his routine soon whether he likes it or not!