Conversation

This is a conversation I recently had with my youngest daughter.

Daughter: Mom, I am sick.
Me: Oh, whats wrong? Does your tummy hurt, nose hurt, finger hurt, ear hurt?
Daughter: uhhh, my ear hurts right there.  (She points to the top of her ear).
Me: Do you need some medicine?
Daughter: No, I don't want medicine.
Me: Do you need to go to a doctor?
Daughter: No, no doctor. I think I need an ice cream sandwich or a brownie.
Me: An ice cream sandwich or brownie?
Daughter: Yes, that will make me feel all better.

Cute conversation but what makes this conversation even better is that this is the first real back and forth conversation I have ever had with my youngest daughter. See she was born 3lbs 5 ounces at 32 weeks.  She has always been delayed in her devolopment. All the doctors told me that she was fine that she was just delayed because of her prematurity. They said she is gaining skills, not losing any, no need to worry. At her 2 year well doctor visit, I had concerns, she wasn't talking still. I got a referral to take her to have her evaluated by a Speech & Language Pathologist. They approved her for intense speech therapy. By the time all the insurance and availablity was worked out she was nearing her 3rd B-day and still not talking.  She started speech and with in 6mths she was talking but only one or two word phrases. Over the past 20 months, she has made signafigant strides with her communication abilities. I remember the day she actually asked me for a cup of juice instead of laying on the floor crying until I figured out she wanted a cup. But there still was no actually conversation with her. It was all ask her a question and she says yes, no or some other phrase, not even whole sentences.
But for the first time ever, she came to me, initiate a conversation and we conversed back and forth!! I was besides myself. I giggled at her conversation with me, but crying too cause wow, an actually conversation with sentences!! That might not seem like much to you but when your child is just a few months shy of 5 years old and you have never been able to have those funny little kid conversations like this with them, then you can only understand my ecstatic joy of this simple conversation!