If you've heard me talking about my coupon clipping obsession....
If you've seen me planning our Stay-cation....
If you've wondered why I get my hair done at the Aveda Institute instead of by a licensed stylist...
THE REASON IS BECAUSE OF THE COST OF SPEECH THERAPY.
By no means am I complaining. Nope. I would pay a million dollars to heal Cooper's speech delay. Heck, you can't put a price on my baby's voice. So giving up a few luxuries, and learning to balance our budget more efficiently seems like a small price to pay for the BIG results we've seen out of Cooper over the past year.
Right now, Cooper get's about 100 minutes of speech therapy a week, and it aint' cheap (so I've said).
$213 per hour at Nationwide Children's Hospital.
$120 per hour at Columbus Speech and Hearing.
The grand total per month - about $1,400 smackers. And that's just for therapy. The evaluations and testing all costs extra...on average about $400 apiece.
So how do we - a regular middle class family - pay for something that costs way more than our mortgage? With help. Lots of pride swallowing help.
Part of getting Cooper the help he needs, and sometimes the care we struggle to afford is about seeing past the labels, the stereotypes, and the fear of what other people will think. The dreaded MRDD was the toughest label for me to overcome. And frankly, sometimes I still shutter when I see their return address on a letter in the mailbox. MRDD. Shutter.
BUT...It was REALLY easy to get past the whole MRDD thing when one of those letters had information inside about the 5 hours of speech therapy costs that they were willing to cover per month. No evaluations necessary. No crazy hoops to jump through. Just have the therapist bill them and they would write the check. Thanks to them, our speech therapy bill has dropped from $1,400 a month to about $500 per month. So if you ever see an MRDD levy on your voter ballot, be sure to think of Cooper and the help they have given him that we might not have been able to afford otherwise.
We've also had tremendous help from Cooper's beloved Nannie (my mom) - who took it upon herself to form "Cooper's Scholarship Fund." That Scholarship has helped pay for MANY hours of therapy. And I could actually see the look of "this-is-so-worth-it" on her face the last time we were in Ironton...Cooper walked upstairs, and was surprised to see Nannie standing in the bathroom with soaking wet hair. He looked right at her and said "I like your hair Nannie" in a crystal clear voice. Priceless for sure.
Bottom line, I would go to the ends of the earth to get Coop the help he needs. Sell the house. Find a second job. Whatever it takes. Thankfully it's never come to that because of the people that love us. They've been there every step of the way, helping Cooper recover from something that is totally fixable....if you have the money. Thank You :) from the very bottom of my heart.
"You can't put a price on my baby's voice." Best line ever. You guys have certainly been through a lot but it seems like it's paying off. And you're right - nothing compares to hearing your child speak. Nothing. The sweetest words come from those sweet voices and I'm glad to hear of Cooper's continued progress.
P.S. The video is too cute! The line about mommy being old ... priceless.
Posted by: Tammy | June 10, 2009 at 08:43 PM
I am so happy to hear about Coop's progress and that you may finally get a little break in the monthly cost aka 'stress.'
Posted by: Irene | June 11, 2009 at 07:48 AM
I agree with Tammy... "you can't put a price on my baby's voice" is a darned good line. Glad that you are going to get a bit of a break on the cost of treatment... and super thankful for Cooper's progress!
Posted by: aysu | June 11, 2009 at 07:46 PM
You are truly blessed!
I am so proud of Cooper for all his achievements.
And I love Nannie even more (is that possible?)
xoxo
Posted by: Nicolle | June 12, 2009 at 05:04 AM
Gretchen, as if you haven't always rocked my socks... now you do even more. I know you'd be the first to say, "it's what anyone would do for their child." but it's NOT. It takes courage, strength, and unshakable faith to do what you're doing. I love the Walsh Family!
Posted by: Jane | June 13, 2009 at 11:50 AM
You deserve a big hug for all you and Chris do for your boys. The pictures prove they are happy, healthy, and lucky to have parents like you. :) Miss you!
Posted by: Rach | June 14, 2009 at 11:13 AM
I agree with Jane - it's not what "anyone" would do! What handsom, wonderful, adorable, smart boys & what wonderful parents!
Posted by: Erica | June 21, 2009 at 08:49 PM