Welcome To the Peanut Gallery!

Day two... raising a child with special needs is not always an easy endevour by any means. The key to sanity is always finding a way to laugh about what is going on. My adopted six year old son with Down syndrome certainly knows how to push my buttons. Nothing like a full cup of chocolate milk hitting the carpet of a rented home to keep you on your toes. Thing is I was sitting right there, just wasn't quick enough to grab the cup. It was that look of "watch this" as he tipped the cup and looked at me and then covered his ears knowing he is going to get a reaction from me. So when a single mom says patience is a must, I MEAN PATIENCE is definitely a prerequisite with no ifs ands or buts. Thank you Jesus for patience today! I sure needed it.

I did well today working with my son until I took two seconds tonight to check my email and a pop tart came flying at me. My words are usually "That's it... time out." The funny thing has been that my son will sometimes say what I'm going to say before he does something. He just KNOWS his mommy well! So, of course, when I took him to the school to meet with his occupational therapist he just happened to say "That's it... time out... go to your room." She just asked if she heard what she thought she heard, and we both laughed as I told her "yes, that's what he said." She said it was okay because she has a time out room in her house too. You just never know what will come out of your child's mouth, but you can bet it will be when you least expect it.

I can remember teasing my other kids as they were growing up. They'd ask what's to drink and I'd always give them quite the answer... "We have water, hot water, cold water, flavored water, well water, toilet water, and oh yes puddle water since it rained today." The water came back to haunt me many years later. My kids became very good at playing jokes on me... geez wonder where they got that from! Talking about water, I remember one April fools day my two teenaged sons decided to tape the water hose to the on position so when I turned on the sink I would get drenched. It worked too! Guess I wasn't on my toes that day either. I certainly miss those days. I have five kids. Three are now grown and on their own, and here I am now with a seventeen year old and my six year old adopted son with Down syndrome. Life is not what I pictured it would be, but boy the journey has been fun along the way. My kids have certainly made ALL the difference in my life! It's not easy by any means, but I believe I'll get my rewards in heaven.

So many people don't have a clue what it's like to raise a child with Down syndrome. My son has sensory issues so that means crowded places are just too overwhelming for him. He can't stand loud noises either. He will cry or cover his ears. It can be heart breaking at times. Yet you just want to tell him that Mommy wishes she thought of that a LONG time ago. I'd like to tell a few people to just talk to the hand because I am NOT listening to another word. Perhaps next time his father goes to tell me a lie, I should try the cover your ear method and see how it goes. Sometimes you just have to FIND the humor in it all! Life certainly is what we make it. I know one thing... I'm going to keep on putting love into everything I do because I do believe it will come back to me one day. Just got to keep walking forth in faith.