Have you tried a Q-Tip?

Kevin is convinced that Patrick needs to have his hearing checked and he is right. You know the difference between hearing and listening? Hearing is just about sound. Listening requires concentration to process meaning. Patrick seems to have listening down but he is struggling with hearing. As parents it is life changing to have your kids listen to your side conversations.

One of the classic Keith Clan stories is a tale of my sister and me listening to our mother and her sisters talk about our youngest aunt's pregnancy (needing to buy a pregnancy test etc.). We were probably 10 and 8 at the time. The story is funny because we understood what they were saying and we were listening down the laundry chute. Adults had a lot of adult conversations in our presence because they assumed we didn't understand.

Patrick was listening to our conversation about parents who give their toddlers soda. I was recounting a conversation I had with our friends who have a niece who is younger than Patrick with a grill. Not only does this little girl drink soda she still uses a bottle. I said something about throwing bottles away and that I had actually thrown all of our bottles out in the recycling. Patrick chimes in with, "Mom you can't throw the bottles away we need them for my baby sister!" Good listening, now for the hearing....

Yesterday we were watching Michael Chiarello on Fine Living. He was making some type of Bellini. The conversation went something like this:
"Mom, is that Juan?"
"No his name is Michael."
"No Juan, is that Juan?"
"No, Patrick, it is Michael, Michael Chiarello."
"No you know juan, the drink with alcohol?"
"You mean wine?"

Off we go to get his hearing checked. Until then we will have lots of stories about his faulty hearing. I have a feeling that this will be like the time I was convinced that he was color-blind.