By Alyce CollinsShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberThe adorable moment a deaf toddler did American Sign Language (ASL) in front of his mom has melted hearts online.
Mom of four Elle Miller, 26, captured a precious video of the moment her son, Timmy, surprised her by doing an ASL sign. The 13-month-old learned his first sign on November 5 when he produced the movement for "yay," and now he has added another word to his repertoire.
On November 17, Timmy amazed his family when he signed "all done" after finishing his food. Miller, of North Alabama, told Newsweek that she felt "extremely emotional" and couldn’t hold back the tears at his latest accomplishment.
"Since he didn’t start showing any interest in signing until this month, I was beginning to worry that he may have some learning delays, but then he surprised us all," Miller said. "Timmy has learned two signs so far. The kids have learned a good handful, and my husband and I have definitely learned a lot."
...Miller shared the heartwarming video on TikTok (@millerfamilyx6) showing Timmy’s second ASL sign, and the clip went viral with over 140,000 views and 8,900 likes at the time of writing.
It was suspected that Timmy was deaf at birth, but he wasn’t officially declared so until he was 2 months old. The family started learning sign language as soon as Timmy was born, and while it has been an adjustment, Miller is so grateful for how far they’ve come.
"The beginning was definitely hard," Miller said. "My husband and I both had never met anybody that was deaf or ever been involved in the deaf community, so we felt lost. It has now turned into such a beautiful and amazing journey.
"Timmy is literally the happiest child you can meet. He never really cried as an infant and is always smiling. He is so curious about the world and lights up every room."
There is still the potential for Timmy to hear one day with the use of a bone anchored hearing aid. Miller tells Newsweek that the couple have been trying to get a BAHA fitted since Timmy was born, and they are hoping he can finally have one within the next six months.
The online reaction to the video of Timmy’s second sign is beyond anything Miller anticipated. She has been blown away by all the support so far, and loves documenting the everyday experiences as a parent of a deaf child.
"I didn’t know that there were so many people who didn’t know babies could learn how to sign. Everybody has been so sweet and amazing to Timmy and our family," Miller said.
In the days since the video went viral, internet users have taken to the comments to praise the precious moment.
One comment on the post reads: "omg [oh my God] he’s so adorable."
Another TikTok user wrote: "This is as much as a victory for you as it is for him, congrats mom and dad."
A third person replied: "This made me cry tears of joy genuinely, this is so sweet and beautiful. I can’t wait to see more."
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