It was a day like any other. Often this is the way in life. Days come and days go and right in among what becomes everyday and ordinary, something quite amazing happens.
It was a Wednesday. That much I know.
I had dressed my son, made him breakfast and checked his school bag had everything in it he needed. Unlike other seven year olds he had no pencils, no homework or reading book and no snack in sight. His bag is full instead with wipes, change of clothes, spare nappies and his home/school diary (my lifeline of communication with his school life).
Communication is so vital for families like mine. We can not ask our child about their day, or listen to them read to us, and due to the physical distance from home there is so little contact with school staff. There is no regular coffee mornings, or weekly assemblies parents can attend and I never get to pick up my son at the school gate and chat to other parents.
This is the reality of children who, for whatever reason, can not attend their local mainstream school. It can be tough. It is the harsh reality of having a child who can not talk or who has communication difficulties.
While my brown eyed boy was never far from my thoughts, in real life he was actually half an hours drive away. And that day he was reaching a milestone that I had no idea about.
On Wednesday 20th January my son learned his first sign. For families like mine this is every bit as massive as the average child saying their first word. The beauty, the joy and the celebration is just as special. The moment deserves sharing and recording. Yet none of the baby books have a page to record the day your child first signed. What a precious moment they are missing out on.
I had no idea he had had such an amazing breakthrough in his development. Like so many parents who hear about their baby taking their first steps, or riding their bike for the first time and feel so devastated that someone else got to witness it before them, I too felt just as heartbroken.
The obstacles my son overcame to achieve this moment, the perseverance and dedication of staff in his school, the concentration required of my son, and the co-ordination skills required all worthy of celebrating on their own merit.
A whole new world of communication may just be beginning to open to us. He may finally have a voice.
It was a day like any other. That was until I read his school diary and I cried.
To me the first day he signed is every bit as wonderful and significant as the first time any child speaks.
It is precious. It is beautiful. And it is worthy of recording.
You see days come, and days go, and sometimes right in the middle of the ordinary something quite amazing happens.
On Wednesday 20th January Isaac signed for the first time.
**this post originally appeared on firefly** http://www.fireflyfriends.com/special-needs-blog/specific/raising-kids-with-special-needs-the-first-sign-is-as-good-as-the-first-word#.VreyK3LXVfo.facebook
faithmummy 
Great news 😊
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