Kaleb: His story of Microtia

I was 19 when I had my son Kaleb. There were many ultrasounds done during my pregnancy with him. But nothing could have prepared me to what was to come. I had him via c-section and I had to be put to sleep so I didn't get to see him right after he was born. I remember waking up and my mother crying right next to me, trying to find the words to tell me that something was not 100% with Kaleb. Finally she told me something about his ears, I of course was more out then in. The next day when the Dr came in and explained everything the only thing I could do was cry. As a young mother and with no heads up there wasn't much I could say or do. Kaleb was born with  Bilateral Microtia and Atresia. Which means no outer ear and no ear canal.  I remember bringing him home a week later because he had to be in the NICU for testing & crying every night with him in my arms becuase I was just thinking it was my fault & maybe he would hate me when he got older. I was so clueless to why this had happened and what were the options for him. My son is now 5 years old, He hears, I can't say like a normal 5 year old, his hearing is more muffled but for sure he listens like a normal 5 year old boy. Since more than a year ago I have seen him advance on his speech, it's the simplest of words he puts together or the answers that I get after a question that amaze me the most. I see how much he has learned dispite having hearing disability. I'm not quite sure he notices he's different, there's no one who treats him any different. He will start school in August and that scares me. We all know kids can be cruel. But despite all my fears, I'm excited to see him experience something differnt, to see what the school can offer him. He's a smart little boy without a fear of anything. We finally got to meet the Dr. Bonilla who is located in San Antonio, Texas, he  will perform the 4 surgeries that it will take to reconstruct his ears. He will then have about 5 months of no surgeries until we go to a specialist in Virginia who will perform the surgery for his ear canal. The entire process starts March 2016. I  have decided to already put together this whole gofund me account to be prepared for all the expenses. Below are links that will explain more into detail of microtia & atresia, also the link to Dr. Bonilla.

Thank You so much for all the support everyone has given us. I would like my family to know they are my strength and I could not do this without them.

Dr.  Arturo Bonilla http://microtia.net/

Microtia & atresia http://earcommunity.com/microtiaatresia/