There's nothing sweeter than hearing a child's first words. For some, it’s “momma" or "dada.” For others, it might even be “Go Bucks.”
For Aiden Thatcher, it was a far different story.
“For about 2 1/2 years, it was just babble,” says Aiden’s mom, Corissa Thatcher. “Pointing to what he wants. He always knew what he wanted, but he couldn't express it."
Ten months after Aiden was born in 2016, his mom says she noticed he wasn’t responding to his name or making eye contact. A hearing test came back negative. During Aiden’s 12-month checkup, Thatcher says the pediatrician gave her a list to check for autism.
“There were some red flags,” she recalled. “He was walking on his tippy toes and when he gets really excited, he gets excited with his hand motions.”
The diagnosis of autism came a month later.
“Since then, we had him in speech therapy, which was a blessing,” Thatcher says of Aiden who is now 4 years old. “Ever since he started that he’s really started to come out of his little shell.”
Aiden’s grandmother, Terri Thatcher, said she is grateful to the people who helped Aiden learn to speak.
“No words can express how grateful I am to all the doctors, speech therapists, occupational therapists, G.I. specialists, teachers, school aides and a very special, loving, devoted mother,” Terri said. “My grandson has all of these caring individuals in his corner helping him along his journey.”
Every word Aiden speaks is a win. As a grandmother, Terri said to hear her grandson speak brings joy to her heart and she never knew she could be this happy.
“The words are just pouring out of his mouth,” Terri said.
Terri said Aiden is now talking with friends in pre-school and making eye contact when he hears his name. He is now working to improve his fine motor skills.
“He still has a hard time with a full grasp,” she says. “But we’re working hard on that and he’s just doing awesome.”