Guest Post: She's So Lucky!
July 11, 2012
As you have probably guessed life still feels a bit overwhelming here at Team Printy. I will say there is progress...small victories that inspire just enough hope to get me through to the next day.
but it's still...hard.
And because of that I am beyond grateful for the incredible guest blog submissions I have received.
What a sweet blessing to be able to simply read (and be inspired) by another mom's post--so much easier than trying to form complete thoughts on 6 hours of interrupted-on-the-hour sleep!
Today's guest post is by Amy Adair-Bode who writes her own blog over at 1001 Tears. Amy is also the author of an adoption book also titled One Thousand and One Tears.
Here's a bit more about Amy in her own words...
"I am the proud, and oh so tired, mom to three. I have two boys (9
and 6) and a China princess who is 5. My daughter, Evie, has a
complicated heart defect and cleft lip and palate. Before she came home
(aka my previous life), I was a children's book editor and writer and a
contributing writer for Christianity Today. Since, Evie came home I have
become an expert in congenital heart disease, speech therapy, OT, PT,
and IEP's."
She's So Lucky!
I hate it when people say that to me, by the way. What I hear is: Good for you to take in a child that has that -- fill in whatever special need the child happens to have--because no on else would.
I often wonder, does anyone ever say that to a birth-mom? A mom who chose to give birth to and parent a child? Especially a special needs child?
As much as I hate to hear it, I almost said it to a mom today.
And here's why.
We were sitting at the hospital waiting for Evie to be called for speech therapy. Since it's summer, both boys were with me. A mom walked in with not one, but two severely autistic boys. One was upset about a backpack zipper, the other was upset about wearing his shoes. Somehow they ended up on the floor, punching, hitting, scratching, spitting.
It was ugly.
The poor mother jumped on top of her boys and pryed them apart. She didn't hurt them, but she was pretty physical. Four therapists came out and wrestled them down the hall into their therapy rooms.
I'm sure this was not the first time this mother had to separate her boys. And probably wouldn't be the last. When they were finally taken into their room for therapy, she relaxed her shoulders and smiled at my boys who happened, for once, to be sitting relatively still.
I saw the same mom on the way out. She was busy telling her boys how much she loved them and and guiding them safely through the parking lot.
She was a mom deep in the trenches. I can't imagine her life. But in the little that I saw her, I had developed a deep respect for her as a mother.
And those boys were lucky to have her. They were lucky she was patient, loving, and kind.
Maybe the next time when someone says it to me, I'll try to take it as a compliment. Maybe, just maybe, someone will say it when I'm having one of those great mom moments. And instead of being annoyed by the comment, I'll smile and just say thanks and say how lucky I am to have Evie, too.
Because, honestly, she's pretty special.
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