So I am on the journey to opening up a home daycare. WOW the stuff they make you do is ridiculous. I have to take 24 hours of classes and I am confused???? I am a mother of 3 what have I not experienced?? Anyways, I started my classes last night and my first class was in special needs. I went into this class thinking ok special needs......Autism, Cerebal Palsey, Severly Handicapped, etc. Well when I first entered and sat down I began to realize that I was WRONG!
The instructor put us in groups and asked us to write down what we think when we hear special needs, my brain went into overdrive and I put my head in the game and realized ok special needs is any child who requires alittle more attention than a average child (I hate saying "normal") Then it hit me (or maybe I was in denial) I had a child with special needs.
Shailyn (now 6) athe age of 2 was hardly talking and if she did it was really hard to understand her. I kept saying to friends with children that I didn't understand why she didnt talk like her older sister did at her age. Everyone said "You cant compare children because they all develop differently." I knew that but my mommy intuition said otherwise. Well long story short I contacted Child Find (A organization for children with disabilities) and they diagnosed her with Speech Aproxia- The inability for the signals in her brain to reach her tongue. She was in Speech Therapy for 3 years and I can say...she tested out of speech this year because she is a "Straight A" student and her speech has no educational impact. She still doesnt speak very well but its way better than she was.
I started thinking about my own children and trials I am going through, Or should I say my misfortune.
Brianna...Perfect!! Straight A student, Extremely intellegent, reads way beyond her grade level, Average size, Average weight, all around exactly what every parent wishes for
Shailyn.....Tiny little thing with a heart of gold. She would cut off her left leg even if she needed it and give it to you because you would need it. Has a speech disability, Asthma, and a common cold for her will turn into puemonia in like 5 minutes.
Nicholas...Poor Nicholas......Cute as a Button and he doesnt grow! Mothers never say I wish they would stay little forever because it could happen! He is 4 yrs old and I can still carry him on my hip. He is the size of a 2 year old. We have been monitoring his growth for the last year and sadly nothing has happened. We are meeting with the Chief of Pediatric Endocrinology at Georgetown in 2 weeks. I will be posting this journey alot!
How is it that I did Everything the same with all 3 but only one is "Average". It pisses me off that I did what I was told, I read every book, I ate healthy, I took my vitamins, I went to the doctors like I was suppose to (Maybe more) and then we have these women that I see not doing what they are suppose to and end up with "Average Children".
I am a great mother. I live for my children and their needs, I put them before myself all the time.
I am thankful for this Special Needs class that put things into perspective. I often like having these pondering thoughts. ......
After reading this post I started thinking about my own children. My son is 25 and is maybe 5'10''. His son is 6 and I can still carry him! He just recently (within the last year), started growing taller. My husband was 6'4' and I am the shortest in my family at 5'51/2". So maybe if you look at the past generations of your families, you will find some men of smaller stature.
ReplyDeleteBoth of my kids were healthy, smart and all that good stuff. My daughter is a daydreamer and would always get into trouble for not paying attention.
My grandson was born premature, took forever to start growing, and will get the sniffles at the drop of a hat.
I am glad that your youngest daughter is speaking better. I know that can be a very worrisome thing for a mother to endure with their child.
zi think children progress at their own pace and your children will be just fine. You have 3 very beautiful kids and I am sure you are very proud.