A little boy from Kentucky had an amazing day hearing for the very first time.
The Elizabethtown toddler has been on a bit of a journey at such a young age and on Monday an emotional step forward.
Connor Higgins loves to laugh and loves to have fun. He's the center of his parents' world.
But early on, both Hope and Jacob knew something wasn't right.
"When we tried to talk to him, he wouldn't have any eye contact," Hope said.
In 2016, Connor was diagnosed with auditory neuropathy.
"Basically, where his brain waves and sound waves do not link up," Hope said.
"He's typically developed, except he can't hear," Dr. Shelley Moats said.
"He's been living in a world of silence, not knowing his name, not being able to hear us, say I love you, it's been really hard," Hope said.
Connor has been communicating by gestures and making noises. But hearing aids weren't working. So, in August, he had bilateral cochlear implant surgery.
Now, he's at Open Arms Children's Health - a service of Home of the Innocents - to get his implants turned on for the first time.
"Knowing that he might be able to hear today is awesome," Hope said.
Dr. Moats, an audiologist, walked them through how the cochlear implants work. Then came a few tests and a fitting. And then, they were turned on.
Connor doesn't know words and what they mean but he is noticing loud noises. Meanwhile, his mom and dad didn't want him to feel different. So they got something to match his cochlear implant - tattoos.
"When she made the loud sound, I seen his eyes and seen him look to see where it was coming from," Hope said. "That made me hopeful. I'm really excited."
Connor still has a long road ahead of him. He's going to have many follow-up appointments and speech therapy. The homework his parents have is to make a lot of noise.
Hope said they were going home and watching Connor's favorite movie, "Secret Life of Pets," turned up loud.
