So Alice has a new ‘Little Ear’. Sadly this is nothing more exciting than a new, high-powered hearing aid she will have to wear as part of her assessment for her ‘Proper Ear’ number 2.

Remarkably, she seemed to be hearing something through it when it was first fitted last week, but since then nothing. Inevitable really. It still seems that Alice’s ANSD means her hearing deteriorates the more her ears are stimulated. Her implanted ear clearly now bypasses this problem, but it does add credence to Tony Sirimanna’s suggestion that she might have a problem with depletion of the neurotransmitter at the synaptic junction to the auditory nerve (I think I know what that all means).

Anyhow, for the first week she wore it with some pride and showed it off to everyone at school. Now, as she is getting no benefit, she has developed an annoying habit of hiding it around the house so we can’t find it and put it back on. We knew this would happen, but we are still trying our best.

Surgery could be as soon as early June if all goes well, which I think is a good thing. It would give her the School summer holidays to begin her adjustment and to get used to having two ears at last. I still don’t like to think about it. Surgery is never pleasant, least of all on one so young and I don’t think Alice is yet old enough to understand what is in store for her.

On the positive side, her speech continues to improve every day. She has become something of a singer, although I do think we need to teach her some new songs as all she seems to do is repeatedly recite the ones she learnt for her Christmas Nativity at School. We now have a CD of them in the car and it does feel a little odd driving along listening to songs about how “Jesus was born in a stable….” in March.

Mind you, given her less-than-perfect hearing, Alice seems convinced that “Jesus was born on a table”. It makes me smile anyway.