[blparent] How to tell when your child is smiling orlookingat something

Thu Jun 9 02:20:54 UTC 2011

Hi.  I don't think there's too much to worry about.  I find myself wishing 
that I could see my daughter, too, but as your baby gets older, he'll 
definitely start interacting more with sounds and wiggles, and you'll know 
what's going on.  And once he starts to talk, believe me, there will be 
times you'll wish for quieter reactions!  The days of little to no verbal 
activity are short, and before long your baby will be moving and grabbing 
for what he likes and pushing or throwing away what he doesn't want.

I would suggest concentrating on how your baby moves when you hold him. 
You'll be able to tell a lot just from the movements--a happy wiggle versus 
an exasperated one, and the happy wiggles are awesome.  Also, it's never too 
early to start talking to your baby.  Name objects, tell him what you're 
doing, even if he doesn't understand.  He'll get used to he words, and soon, 
at least soon in the grand scheme of things, he'll start to know what they 
mean.

Jo Elizabeth

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself--nameless, unreasoning, 
unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into 
advance."--Franklin D. Roosevelt

--------------------------------------------------
From: "jill" <jillbilly4 at comcast.net>
Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 3:59 PM
To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [blparent] How to tell when your child is smiling orlookingatsomething> I very much agree with your statements.  I went through a hard time right
> after my little Olivia was born last July 21.  I wanted to see her face so
> bad.  I was able to see the faces of my boys, but my rp is such now that I
> can't see anything but light and shadows.  I think a lot of it was baby
> blues, but I learned to be happy that my little girl was happy and 
> healthy.
> I too get visual descriptions from my husband and boys and that is really
> nice.  I sort of picture the expressions in my mind and enjoy them that 
> way.
> I suppose there are always things that we as blind people would like to 
> see,
> but we learn to enjoy things from a different perspective.
> ----Original Message-----
> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Chad Allen
> Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 2:14 PM
> To: rovadia82 at gmail.com; 'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'
> Subject: Re: [blparent] How to tell when your child is smiling or 
> lookingat
> something
>
> Hi,
>
> Not at all silly.
>
> I ask all the same questions too. I get a lot of feedback from sighted 
> folks
> which I like but there are other signals I get from my son, Harrison.
>
> First, of course, cries. He's very good at telling me when he does not 
> like
> something. That could be a myriad of things like hunger, tired, diaper
> change, etc.
>
> but what about the more subtle things like smiling? I find that I can get
> Harrison to make a sound pretty easily when he is happy. I get a coo or a
> giggle or just a high pitched yea at times that tells me he is enjoying
> something. Then, I investigate. Sometimes it's a toy or something I'm 
> doing.
> other times we play by making silly sounds or faces and sometimes we 
> wrestle
> baby style where I just let him crawl all over me.
>
> We bounce and I get happy and not so happy sounds out of him at times
> depending on his mood. Sometimes if I hear nothing for awhile, it means he
> fell asleep. One time he fell asleep in his jumper sitting up which was
> great fun. But even his breathing can give me a clue to his mood or 
> interest
> too.
>
> Since I can't see him, I need to get creative in experiencing other things
> with him. It bums me out that I can't see his peaceful sleep like others 
> or
> some of his silly faces but there are so many other wonderful elements to
> our interactions that few understand so I consider that to be the trade 
> off.
>
>
> I think the most important part is to enjoy every bit and not to dwell too
> much on the struggles. We do so much together and if I can't see something
> he does, it's OK because we are buds. I know he won't care when he's older
> because we will be friends and I'll play games and be a part of his life 
> in
> a unique way. Love is what matters most.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Ronit Ovadia Mazzoni
> Sent: Wednesday, June 08, 2011 10:40 AM
> To: 'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'
> Subject: [blparent] How to tell when your child is smiling or looking at
> something
>
> Hi everyone,
> I have kind of a silly question but I hope someone can help. My two month
> old is definitely interested in being interactive some of the time during
> the day and when I am alone with him, I find it hard to know when he is
> smiling or looking at something. I have rattles and toys and I make faces 
> at
> him but he's not really making a whole lot of sounds to let me know he is
> happy or interested. When my sighted husband is around or my mom is 
> around,
> they tell me when he is smiling or when he is looking at me or a toy, but 
> I
> find it frustrating that when I am alone, I don't feel like I know how to
> effectively interact with him. Any tips on this, or is this something 
> silly
> to be worried about?
> Thanks.
> Ronit
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