A Dallas toddler is hearing for the first time, after a lifetime lived in silence.
Two-year-old Izzy Baker had inherited a gene from her parents that caused her to grow up with severe hearing loss.
She recently received cochlear implants, and last week, the devices were turned on at the Callier Center for Communication Disorders at the University of Texas at Dallas.
With a look of shock, awe and sometimes confusion, Izzy pointed to her ears as the hearing aids sent out beeps for the first time.
Her family said it's been a difficult road to get to this point.
"For her and for us, it's been a rough road," said Izzy's mom, Brittany Baker.
When Izzy takes off the clips and devices that sit over her ears, she will not be able to hear anything again. So, the Baker family said they will continue to make adaptations, like a phone that blinks instead of rings.
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"She actually sees a speech [therapist] three times a week. I'm picking up sign language. We go to sign language classes," Brittany Baker said.
Despite the extra challenges the 2-year-old faces, her mother said Izzy has always been a happy, active little girl.
"And knowing it's from a gene that we carry, it's more of a gift from my perspective. It's like God made her this way for a reason. God put us through this for some reason," Brittany Baker said.
