We're a musically inclined family. My husband works in radio. I have loved music and singing for as long as I remember. Every room has a different station on, English, Spanish, Christian, NPR, doesn't matter. We live and breathe music and radio. I remember being pregnant and the girls jumping around when my husband was listening to "Pardoname" and considering adding it. To this day, their little tushs wiggle when that song comes on. Hey, some moms play Mozart, I played Spanish Top 40 and Elvis Duran's show. I've yet to see the kids calmer than when they listen to Elvis Duran and the Morning Zoo. They laugh when I do and seem so content, so the Zoo is on every day. The kids realized early on that Daddy was on the radio and I noticed if things were getting overwhelming, they would run to the radio and put their head to the speaker, waiting to hear Daddy's voice. They did it any time of the day and I laughingly tried to explain the difference between middays and afternoon drive to 18 month olds.
Our Speech Therapist recommended that we turn the radios off so that the children could speak to me and not focus on the background noise. I have to admit, of all the things I was asked to do, this was one of the hardest. Our house was silent with only my voice filling the space. Every night my throat hurt from speaking non-stop to fill the void of music. There were no spontaneous sounds coming from their little mouths and I was sick of singing Old McDonald Had a Farm. The only farm they were going to see was the funny farm when they came to visit Mommy. I was so done. This wasn't working, my throat hurt.
I said screw this and started to devise a plan as to why I the kids NEEDED the radio and music on all day. This was very early on in their therapy and I thought that I couldn't disagree with a PROFESSIONAL so I was being devious. Give me my Morning Zoo! It was my only chance to laugh and dammit, I couldn't willingly give it up. My reality was too stark and a well executed phone tap or Stupid News would bring a smile to my face.
"Child will learn to point." "Child will begin to play with sounds." "Child will decrease rocking behavior."
Three different goals for three very different little girls. I racked my brain for ways to engage them. One day, I was cooking and the kids were lined up in their highchairs. A song came on that I loved and I started dancing. My Bugabuga looked at me like I had grown horns. So I took my two pointer fingers and held them to my head and wiggled. Inspiration!
I began rocking back and forth while pointing and singing. The CEO could rock while dancing and no one would know that she was stimming! If she had a set time every day to dance, then her rocking would decrease. Bugabuga could sing with me, "I'm Blue, Ah-Ba-Di-Ah Ba-Die! And the Baby could point her little fingers in an old school type dance!
Music was back in my life! I felt light hearted and hopeful once again. And for all my radio friends out there, yes, my TSL increased dramatically from that point on.
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