So...Patrick and I want to see his doctor this week for his annual physical. This time he was due for two immunizations, so we talked briefly about the usual--how many nurses would it take? I reminded her that his flu shot experience this year was fairly uneventful, so maybe we should just go with one. Told Patrick he needed two shots and that that nurse was going to put one in each arm. He nodded and told her to go ahead. Yup. This is the same boy who needed 4 nurses to hold him down & immunize him--when he was 3!!! How nice it was not to have to apologize after his appointment...something that had become the routine for our exit from the doctor's office!!
Watching him, the doctor and I had a moment of shared mistiness as we talked about how far has come....and how easy it is to see that we have only begun to scratch the surface of his potential. She's been with us from the start, has shared our frustrations, our concerns and has helped us interpret the news as it has come--good, bad or indifferent. She has been a blessing to our family, treating & caring for all of my kids. Often, I have wondered what she thought of how we are doing and where he has been going. You know, we muddle along the best that we can, doing the best we can with what we have and what we know at the time. There have been times when we don't think we know much or are doing much...I think this is true for all parents, not just those of us who have bonus-feature kids. It was a rare treat to get a glimpse of her thoughts and pleasure at his remarkable achievements...and to share a moment of overwhelming "WOW! Who thought we'd see this?" with her.
Heck, as I type this, he is peering over my shoulder, reminding me to write about our cats--Indy & Dakota--as well as his school, MSD. He has made such wonderful progress over the last year that they have invited him to stay in the school dormitory part-time next year! Many of his friends were offered the opportunity beginning this year, and he has been asking when it was his turn...but the school wasn't sure he was ready. NEXT year, he'll give dorm living a try. Whoo hoo! Yesterday, the quarterly MSD Bulletin magazine arrived in the mail...he hasn't set it down and has worked his way through all the articles. LOL. He's soooooooooo very proud of the MSD graduate who signed with Towson University to play football!! As for me, I'm delighted to see him identifying soooooo strongly with successful deaf people, with his peers, with his community.
This is a loooooooooonnnnnnngggg rambly post, mostly for the sake of saying THANK YOU GOD for this boy who is teaching me so much about the possibilities that exist if we don't allow ourselves to fall victim to limits imposed on us by others.
Watching him, the doctor and I had a moment of shared mistiness as we talked about how far has come....and how easy it is to see that we have only begun to scratch the surface of his potential. She's been with us from the start, has shared our frustrations, our concerns and has helped us interpret the news as it has come--good, bad or indifferent. She has been a blessing to our family, treating & caring for all of my kids. Often, I have wondered what she thought of how we are doing and where he has been going. You know, we muddle along the best that we can, doing the best we can with what we have and what we know at the time. There have been times when we don't think we know much or are doing much...I think this is true for all parents, not just those of us who have bonus-feature kids. It was a rare treat to get a glimpse of her thoughts and pleasure at his remarkable achievements...and to share a moment of overwhelming "WOW! Who thought we'd see this?" with her.
Heck, as I type this, he is peering over my shoulder, reminding me to write about our cats--Indy & Dakota--as well as his school, MSD. He has made such wonderful progress over the last year that they have invited him to stay in the school dormitory part-time next year! Many of his friends were offered the opportunity beginning this year, and he has been asking when it was his turn...but the school wasn't sure he was ready. NEXT year, he'll give dorm living a try. Whoo hoo! Yesterday, the quarterly MSD Bulletin magazine arrived in the mail...he hasn't set it down and has worked his way through all the articles. LOL. He's soooooooooo very proud of the MSD graduate who signed with Towson University to play football!! As for me, I'm delighted to see him identifying soooooo strongly with successful deaf people, with his peers, with his community.
This is a loooooooooonnnnnnngggg rambly post, mostly for the sake of saying THANK YOU GOD for this boy who is teaching me so much about the possibilities that exist if we don't allow ourselves to fall victim to limits imposed on us by others.
