This final blog hop for the summer was difficult. I have several favorites. Some of my favorites match up with readers favorites and some don't. Most of my favorites were not easy to write because the emotion was raw....many times, the tears flowed as I typed. In the end, I always feel better, getting the emotions out. Letting other moms know, it is okay to have those feelings....it never makes you less of a mom, nor do you love your child any less. Trust me....with each passing day, I love my children more than the day before. I never knew that was possible.
My favorite post would have to be about living a "normal life". Something....after Hailey was diagnosed....I never thought was possible. Something that was unattainable....something that I cherish every day.
Here that post is.....
"Normal" Life
"Normal" life
I have been absolutely horrible keeping up with my blog in the past few weeks and I have absolutely no excuse...none!
Once a month, I meet up with local moms from our DS association. Our
association is so large that we have to break up into smaller groups for
some activities. I love Moms Night Out. I was so incredibly nervous
the first time I joined them for dinner. I felt like I was a new
student at a new school. Of course, I enjoyed myself. I think Hailey
is one of the younger babies in the group. Some of the children are in
preschool or in the early years of elementary school. These moms have
been there, done that. They've been on this journey longer than me and I
trust their advice. More than one of them over the past 6 or 7 months
have told me that the first year is challenging and it will get better.
I listened to them but I'm not sure I truly believed them until
recently.
Webster's defines "normal" as "
a form or state
regarded as the norm (standard)". It is a perception....it is left up
to interpretation. What one person's normal is not the norm for another
person. I don't even like using the word "normal" but it seems
to be a word that most people can relate to and it is quite over-used.
"Normal" to me is living life day-to-day with my family and friends.
It is watching my boys go to school, play soccer, spend time with their
friends, and pushing the limits as they gain independence and turn into
young men (one day...I don't want it happening too soon!). It is
watching my little girl overcome the obstacles that are put in front of
her. It is breathing easier because her heart is fixed...it is dealing
with her diagnosis of Down syndrome but not letting it define her. It
had caused some of her obstacles and will continue to do so. It doesn't
consume every thought, but yes, it will always be a part of our lives.
We accept her diagnosis, but we don't use the word "can't". There is
nothing we are telling her she can't do. In fact, we plan on pushing
her to overcome her obstacles and to become the best person she can be.
"Normal" is having dinners outside on the patio with the kids, it is
playing kickball in the backyard with the boys, it is watching Hailey
observe the world around her and watching her try to figure out how to
get into stuff (especially if it is not for toddler consumption or
suitable for toddler play). Our normal is watching our children enjoy
living and become individuals.
Today, I was talking about "normal" and my lack of blogging recently.
She looked at me and said, "What a relief for everyone. Normal is what
we all prayed for after Hailey was born." Some people (more than
likely, those outside of the world of DS, heart defects, or special
needs) wouldn't understand why "normal" is such a big deal. A year ago,
I was still reeling from Hailey's Down syndrome diagnosis and that of
her heart defect. We were struggling with each bottle. Praying that
she would actually finish the entire bottle and do it in under an hour.
Praying with each doctor's appointment that she would gain weight.
Praying each minute of the day that her heart would keep working hard
enough to keep her alive. Praying each night that we would all see
tomorrow. We lived in constant fear of the unknown and of the future.
We hadn't learned much about DS and we were terrified of her impeding
open heart surgery and we didn't want all of that to dominate the boys'
life. We walked through life going through the motions.
Sometime after her open heart surgery, I woke up so to speak. I'm not
going through the motions anymore. We are living life. I will admit
though...my normal is a little different than it once was. We do have a
few more doctor appointments...therapy appointments that we hadn't had
before...but more than that has changed. We have changed. We don't
take life for granted anymore. We see the world differently. Things
that we thought mattered before really have little significance. We see
people different...I see people as individuals..with thoughts,
feelings, opinions...value. Every life has value. I don't judge as
quickly or harshly...as I've said before, everyone has a story.
I don't know how long this "normal" will last but I know that I'm loving
every minute of it and we will take the new "normal" in stride whenever
it comes.
**
I hope no one looks at my normal as sad or has pity for us. You see...our "normal" includes a beautiful, dimpled, determined, strong, chatty one-year old that didn't exist in our old normal. I wouldn't want to ever go back!
I wrote the original post in April those pics are a little old....here are pics of our "normal".
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My little athletes |
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Hailey sneaking up the stairs |
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Our little hurricane...she leaves a path wherever she goes! |
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Such a beautiful face |
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Lots of swimming and playing in the water |
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Practicing our standing... |
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Hailey begging for food...and succeeding. |
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Lots of giggles and dimples. |
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Pouty faces |
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The "oooohhhhh" face |
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Lots of pigtails |
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She loves babies...real and not. |
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Isn't this picture of normal fantastic? |
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Please check out the other posts in the blog hop....read which are their favorite posts! They are fabulous writers!
I'd love those giggles and smiles to be part of my "normal" too. Well, I guess they are, since I normally visit your blog often. Seriously, I love this post the second time around. I even found myself wiping away a tear reading about praying for her to finish a bottle in under an hour. It seems funny now, but I cried many tears in those days when a bottle was not finished. How easy to forget. Great great post.
ReplyDeleteLife is so normal. Loved rereading this one!
ReplyDelete