The hardest thing about hearing loss so far

Shortly after our first son, Sam, was born, I purchased some hearing aids.  I've always had poor hearing, but through an interesting chain of events found myself at an audiologist (read "Hearing Aid Salesman").  That was almost 3 years ago, and whilst I've adjusted to the fact that I need hearing aids for many conversations, I still try to not wear them all the time so I don't become completely reliant on them.  However something happened the other night that made me stand up and take notice of the impact my hearing was having.

I was putting Sam to bed, which unfortunately requires sitting by his bed while he falls asleep.  There are generally a number of conversations that take place while this is happening, and this night was no exception.  One such conversation went along the lines of:

Sam: What's that noise Daddy?
Me: I'm sorry Sam, I can't hear it.
Sam: What's that noise Daddy?
Me: [Cuddling Sam] I'm sorry Sam, I can't hear it.

I now put my hearing aids on first thing in the morning, something I never used to do.  The reason being that the early hours of the day are are big chunk of my time with Sam and Ruby.  Not understanding what Sam is saying often leads to a lot of frustration on his part, and sadness on mine.