Today I am sharing 41 reasons why I am thankful. This is inspired by Liz's posts the last few days and because today I am 41. These are in no particular order because they are all important to me!
1. For my mom and dad, without whom there would be no me!
2. For Liz, Karen, Roger and Dianne. They have helped me become who I am today.
3. For Fred, my best friend!
4. Stephen
5. Timothy
6. Christopher
7. My Heavenly Father
8. Friends that I can have gut-laughs with
9. E-mail
10. Friends who made me a birthday cake today "because no one should have to make their own birthday cake!"
11. Hearing my boys sing Happy Birthday to me!
12. Autumn
13. Stick shift cars (I love that control!)
14. Music to listen to
15. Chocolate in any form
16. The ability to travel
17. The exhilarating feeling during a fast-paced walk in the fall
18. My grandparents' legacy
19. Good hair days
20. When the boys surprise me with their obedience and cooperation in public
21. Hand-me-downs
22. Memory verses that are recalled at just the right time
23. My garden
24. Watching a child's face when he is surprised
25. Hearing the news of a new baby's arrival
26. The Backspace key
27. Finding a great deal
28. Skype
29. Going to bed with the kitchen clean
30. Waking up to a clean kitchen
31. Coffee with just the right amount of cream and sugar
32. Coffee shared with a friend
33. Old photographs
34. Giving someone a hug when they really need it
35. Receiving a piece of REAL snail mail
36. Snuggling with my kids at bedtime
37. Taste of Home Magazine
38. Hearing compliments on my meals from my family
39. Surprise flowers
40. The blessing of making someone's day in some way
41. Quiet
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
I Found It!
If you haven't read my previous post from today, stop reading here and read "Unexplained Mystery" first. This won't make much sense until you read the other.
Well, I found the missing pan of broccoli! It was in the bathroom between the sink and the toilet. When I walked in and saw it there, I vaguely remembered Stephen saying that he had to go to the bathroom and that he was going to take the broccoli with him because he didn't want Timothy to eat it all. You are wondering how I could have missed this action, right? Well, Fred had come home late and we were already eating supper. When he walked in the door, I left the table to go heat up his food for him and it was when I was by the stove that Stephen took off with the pan in his hand. All I can say is that I'm thankful that I found it tonight. Yes, it may have been in the bathroom, but better there where we had a better chance of finding it than hidden in the basement or something! I'll keep a closer eye on my broccoli from now on!
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Well, I found the missing pan of broccoli! It was in the bathroom between the sink and the toilet. When I walked in and saw it there, I vaguely remembered Stephen saying that he had to go to the bathroom and that he was going to take the broccoli with him because he didn't want Timothy to eat it all. You are wondering how I could have missed this action, right? Well, Fred had come home late and we were already eating supper. When he walked in the door, I left the table to go heat up his food for him and it was when I was by the stove that Stephen took off with the pan in his hand. All I can say is that I'm thankful that I found it tonight. Yes, it may have been in the bathroom, but better there where we had a better chance of finding it than hidden in the basement or something! I'll keep a closer eye on my broccoli from now on!
Unexplained Mystery
Ok. So I know my kids do weird things at times, but I think we've hit another all-time high-ranking weird one. Someone seems to have stolen the pan of leftover broccoli from supper! Yes, you read that right. It's missing. Gone. I can't find it anywhere! WHY would a preschooler steal a pan of plain (not even salted) steamed broccoli?! I have looked everywhere for this pan tonight. It's not in the refrigerator (thought maybe someone was being helpful). It's not in the microwave, or the dishwasher or on the counter. I have even looked under the table, on all the chairs, in the playpen. I've checked the toy box, the pan cupboard and the stove. WHERE could that pan of broccoli be?!
I know what's going to happen. I'm going to start smelling it in a day or two and then I'll find it in some obscure place. But I still don't understand why someone would want to steal and hide a pan of plain, old broccoli!!!
I'll keep you posted on my searchings.
I know what's going to happen. I'm going to start smelling it in a day or two and then I'll find it in some obscure place. But I still don't understand why someone would want to steal and hide a pan of plain, old broccoli!!!
I'll keep you posted on my searchings.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Another Thanks to Doctors!
Once again, I thank God for doctors who are competent, wise and patient, especially emergency room doctors! And all you nurses, thank you for your answers to endless questions, your reassuring character and your patience. Last night was Christopher's turn to help us appreciate you more!
Christopher woke up from his nap yesterday afternoon and went about his business playing as usual. About 4:30 I heard him crying and crying and my first reaction was to holler, "STEPHEN!!" Stephen answered, "What?! I'm not even close to him!" I came to investigate and there was nothing to see. Christopher was just sitting on the floor crying all alone. I picked him up and noticed that he was breathing funny, but I thought it was just because he was upset about something. Within minutes I noticed his breathing was getting worse and now he was feeling hot. Once again, I thought he was just upset and didn't think much about it. By 5:30, I had called Fred and asked him to get home right away because something was wrong, but I didn't know what.
My friend, Connie, has children with breathing issues; asthma, currently dealing with croup, etc. I figured she could give me a bit of advice on what she thought was happening. She could hear Christopher over the phone and told me not to take chances, but to call the doctor or take him to emergency. I decided to call Telehealth Ontario (public nurse service that screens calls to evaluate the severity of issues, helping to determine which route of health care to pursue) and as I was talking with the public nurse, she also heard Christopher in the background. At this point, he was getting to be very hot and starting to get listless. I was answering all her questions, "Is he blue?" No. "Is he having siezures?" No. "Is he vomitting?" No. "Martha, I want you to stay on the line because I am calling 911 and you need to give them your information. Do you hear me, Martha? Martha, don't cry, just answer their questions, ok?" (How did she know I was crying?!)
Sure enough, the fire truck arrived first with three firemen. Then the police showed up. Nice guy. He gave the boys sticker badges so that they could be sherrifs with him! Then the ambulance showed up with the two paramedics that quickly became our friends. Poor Fred. He had run in the door two minutes before everyone showed up and was holding Christopher. Since he was the one holding him, he was getting all the questions even though he had no real clue what had happened. When the paramedics pulled out the oxygen to put on Christopher's face, that's when I started to lose it! We had just been through this with Timothy last year after his surgery and I didn't want to see it repeated on Christopher!
We decided that he needed to go to Emergency so we buckled his carseat onto the stretcher and I climbed in beside him. Fred was going to wait at home until Henry got here, put the boys to bed and then come join me. Meanwhile, when I saw the crowded waiting room at the hospital, I called him and told him not to rush. The other moms sitting in the children's waiting area had been there for three hours already and no one seemed to be moving too fast! We finally got in to see the triage nurse and she took one look at Christopher, left to secure a bed for him, and came back to finish his paperwork. He was taken in immediately. He was now just lying limp in my arms moaning and gasping for air. Talk about scary! I was saying prayers of thanks for getting us through the crowd quickly, but then I realized that the reason why we were getting through so quickly was because he was so bad off!
Thank the Lord, though, by the time we got in to the bed to wait for the doctor, the Tylenol the triage nurse had given him had kicked in and he wasn't gasping for air anymore. His heart rate started to drop, his breathing stablized and his fever was starting to go down. He was checked and rechecked and checked again, and no one was able to figure out what really happened here. It seems that there was some type of viral infection that was causing this, but where was it? What was it? Whatever it was, it was gone within the two and a half hours we were in the room. I honestly believe that a miracle took place because there was such a quick recovery and no evidence of any virus or other issue. By the time we left last night Christopher was back to his normal self and was acting as if nothing ever happened!
We thank the Lord for everyone who prayed for us last night and for the staff at the hospital that so quickly and efficiently and patiently cared for Christopher. I hope nothing like this happens again any time soon! It's too draining on parents' emotions!
Christopher woke up from his nap yesterday afternoon and went about his business playing as usual. About 4:30 I heard him crying and crying and my first reaction was to holler, "STEPHEN!!" Stephen answered, "What?! I'm not even close to him!" I came to investigate and there was nothing to see. Christopher was just sitting on the floor crying all alone. I picked him up and noticed that he was breathing funny, but I thought it was just because he was upset about something. Within minutes I noticed his breathing was getting worse and now he was feeling hot. Once again, I thought he was just upset and didn't think much about it. By 5:30, I had called Fred and asked him to get home right away because something was wrong, but I didn't know what.
My friend, Connie, has children with breathing issues; asthma, currently dealing with croup, etc. I figured she could give me a bit of advice on what she thought was happening. She could hear Christopher over the phone and told me not to take chances, but to call the doctor or take him to emergency. I decided to call Telehealth Ontario (public nurse service that screens calls to evaluate the severity of issues, helping to determine which route of health care to pursue) and as I was talking with the public nurse, she also heard Christopher in the background. At this point, he was getting to be very hot and starting to get listless. I was answering all her questions, "Is he blue?" No. "Is he having siezures?" No. "Is he vomitting?" No. "Martha, I want you to stay on the line because I am calling 911 and you need to give them your information. Do you hear me, Martha? Martha, don't cry, just answer their questions, ok?" (How did she know I was crying?!)
Sure enough, the fire truck arrived first with three firemen. Then the police showed up. Nice guy. He gave the boys sticker badges so that they could be sherrifs with him! Then the ambulance showed up with the two paramedics that quickly became our friends. Poor Fred. He had run in the door two minutes before everyone showed up and was holding Christopher. Since he was the one holding him, he was getting all the questions even though he had no real clue what had happened. When the paramedics pulled out the oxygen to put on Christopher's face, that's when I started to lose it! We had just been through this with Timothy last year after his surgery and I didn't want to see it repeated on Christopher!
We decided that he needed to go to Emergency so we buckled his carseat onto the stretcher and I climbed in beside him. Fred was going to wait at home until Henry got here, put the boys to bed and then come join me. Meanwhile, when I saw the crowded waiting room at the hospital, I called him and told him not to rush. The other moms sitting in the children's waiting area had been there for three hours already and no one seemed to be moving too fast! We finally got in to see the triage nurse and she took one look at Christopher, left to secure a bed for him, and came back to finish his paperwork. He was taken in immediately. He was now just lying limp in my arms moaning and gasping for air. Talk about scary! I was saying prayers of thanks for getting us through the crowd quickly, but then I realized that the reason why we were getting through so quickly was because he was so bad off!
Thank the Lord, though, by the time we got in to the bed to wait for the doctor, the Tylenol the triage nurse had given him had kicked in and he wasn't gasping for air anymore. His heart rate started to drop, his breathing stablized and his fever was starting to go down. He was checked and rechecked and checked again, and no one was able to figure out what really happened here. It seems that there was some type of viral infection that was causing this, but where was it? What was it? Whatever it was, it was gone within the two and a half hours we were in the room. I honestly believe that a miracle took place because there was such a quick recovery and no evidence of any virus or other issue. By the time we left last night Christopher was back to his normal self and was acting as if nothing ever happened!
We thank the Lord for everyone who prayed for us last night and for the staff at the hospital that so quickly and efficiently and patiently cared for Christopher. I hope nothing like this happens again any time soon! It's too draining on parents' emotions!
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Simplistic Play and the Older Mom
Today Christopher and I had a great bonding moment. We engaged in simplistic play. We were sitting on the kitchen floor and he was attempting to roll a ball to me. He managed to move it the three inches over to me probably 15% of the time, but that didn't matter. We weren't playing to win or to improve skills. We were simply having fun! I wish I could attach a video clip here to let you hear his contagious laughter at the hilarity of a ball rolling across the floor! We were having the time of our lives, let me tell you!
Sometimes I can really feel the age factor (still 40 here for a few more days!) when I'm physically involved with the kids, and it can be draining at times. But in a way, I sometimes think that I've been blessed to be an older mom. Here's why I say that: I was able to earn a university degree, have a career, travel around the world, move out on my own (all the way from Ohio to Arizona), change careers, and do so many little things as a single person while most of my friends were marrying and starting their families. Now sure, if God would have allowed me to follow that typical pattern, I would have teenagers now myself and still would have been happy, but instead He allowed me to experience things in my life that I may not have otherwise. Now that I'm a wife and a mother, I have no real desire to pursue all those things because I've already experienced them. I am not feeling as if life is passing me by and I'm not getting to really "live" because I AM really living! I am totally devoted to caring for my family and nothing out there is calling me to come away from that devotion because I've already done them and this is where I have always wanted to be.
I feel that I am able to really enjoy my boys' childhoods because nothing else matters that much. I can drop everything and sit on the kitchen floor on a Sunday afternoon and roll a ball to a one-year-old for fifteen minutes and not bat an eye. I can walk away from the baskets of clothes that need to be folded and play a game of Chutes and Ladders (Snakes and Ladders here in Canada) with my four-year-old. I can go out on the deck on a sunny day and pretend that I'm the librarian checking out library books for my three-year-old at his library. I can sacrifice the desire to have perfect cutout cookies if it means that my boys are standing on their little stools next to me at the kitchen counter having the time of their lives "helping" me cut out cookies. I can put them all in the bathtub together and then sit on the stool in the bathroom and just watch them play for a half an hour and not feel the pressing need to hurry them through this activity so that I can move on to the mound of dishes downstairs in the kitchen. (Who wants to rush to wash dishes anyway?!)
Now, granted, I do have those moments like any other mother when I feel that I have more important things to do, but I've waited so long to experience these moments with my kids that I don't want to excuse them away! I want to savor these moments! Lately Stephen and Timothy have been asking me to stay and snuggle with them in bed at night before I go back downstairs. At first I did rush that activity because that was the time that I used to catch up from all my other dropped activities during the day. Then I realized that these moments were becoming very precious to all of us. I can find out a lot about what is going on in their minds as we lay there in the dark and tell stories and ask and answer questions. Sometimes I even find it hard to tear myself away so that they can get to sleep! My 40-year-old body sometimes starts to manifest itself as I find myself drifting off while the two of them are still jabbering away. It's not always good to lie down on the bed with them while we chat!
I love being an older mom, but I do wonder sometimes what it would physically feel like if I were fifteen or twenty years younger like some of my other mom-friends. It sure would be easier to get up off of the kitchen floor after playing ball without feeling like my hips have fallen out of their sockets. It would be easier to lean over a bathtub to wash three little boys' heads while they are resisting the hair-washing. It would be easier to contort myself while I'm trying to help buckle or unbuckle three kids in carseats. It would be easier on the knees when crawling through blanket tunnels or looking under the couch for a lost game piece. It would be easier to carry dead weight four-year-old boys who are fast asleep all the way up to their beds. Physically, I would love to be twenty years younger doing all these things, but I sure am thankful for the way God worked things out in my life. I absolutely love the fact that I am an older mom who can completely and without guilt enjoy simplistic play with my boys!
Sometimes I can really feel the age factor (still 40 here for a few more days!) when I'm physically involved with the kids, and it can be draining at times. But in a way, I sometimes think that I've been blessed to be an older mom. Here's why I say that: I was able to earn a university degree, have a career, travel around the world, move out on my own (all the way from Ohio to Arizona), change careers, and do so many little things as a single person while most of my friends were marrying and starting their families. Now sure, if God would have allowed me to follow that typical pattern, I would have teenagers now myself and still would have been happy, but instead He allowed me to experience things in my life that I may not have otherwise. Now that I'm a wife and a mother, I have no real desire to pursue all those things because I've already experienced them. I am not feeling as if life is passing me by and I'm not getting to really "live" because I AM really living! I am totally devoted to caring for my family and nothing out there is calling me to come away from that devotion because I've already done them and this is where I have always wanted to be.
I feel that I am able to really enjoy my boys' childhoods because nothing else matters that much. I can drop everything and sit on the kitchen floor on a Sunday afternoon and roll a ball to a one-year-old for fifteen minutes and not bat an eye. I can walk away from the baskets of clothes that need to be folded and play a game of Chutes and Ladders (Snakes and Ladders here in Canada) with my four-year-old. I can go out on the deck on a sunny day and pretend that I'm the librarian checking out library books for my three-year-old at his library. I can sacrifice the desire to have perfect cutout cookies if it means that my boys are standing on their little stools next to me at the kitchen counter having the time of their lives "helping" me cut out cookies. I can put them all in the bathtub together and then sit on the stool in the bathroom and just watch them play for a half an hour and not feel the pressing need to hurry them through this activity so that I can move on to the mound of dishes downstairs in the kitchen. (Who wants to rush to wash dishes anyway?!)
Now, granted, I do have those moments like any other mother when I feel that I have more important things to do, but I've waited so long to experience these moments with my kids that I don't want to excuse them away! I want to savor these moments! Lately Stephen and Timothy have been asking me to stay and snuggle with them in bed at night before I go back downstairs. At first I did rush that activity because that was the time that I used to catch up from all my other dropped activities during the day. Then I realized that these moments were becoming very precious to all of us. I can find out a lot about what is going on in their minds as we lay there in the dark and tell stories and ask and answer questions. Sometimes I even find it hard to tear myself away so that they can get to sleep! My 40-year-old body sometimes starts to manifest itself as I find myself drifting off while the two of them are still jabbering away. It's not always good to lie down on the bed with them while we chat!
I love being an older mom, but I do wonder sometimes what it would physically feel like if I were fifteen or twenty years younger like some of my other mom-friends. It sure would be easier to get up off of the kitchen floor after playing ball without feeling like my hips have fallen out of their sockets. It would be easier to lean over a bathtub to wash three little boys' heads while they are resisting the hair-washing. It would be easier to contort myself while I'm trying to help buckle or unbuckle three kids in carseats. It would be easier on the knees when crawling through blanket tunnels or looking under the couch for a lost game piece. It would be easier to carry dead weight four-year-old boys who are fast asleep all the way up to their beds. Physically, I would love to be twenty years younger doing all these things, but I sure am thankful for the way God worked things out in my life. I absolutely love the fact that I am an older mom who can completely and without guilt enjoy simplistic play with my boys!
Friday, October 12, 2007
The Field Trip
It was quite obvious the past few days that I am a first time mother of a school aged child. I could hardly sleep last night I was so excited and this morning I was up bright and early with a spirit of anticipation about me. You see, today the kindergartners were going on their first field trip to Hergott's Cider Mill! The funny thing is that I wasn't even going with them! That didn't stop me from talking about it for weeks. If someone asked me about our schedule this week I found myself saying, "We're free every day but Friday! Oh wait. I guess Timothy and Christopher and I are available on Friday. It's Stephen that's busy." October 12 was going to be an exciting day for us this year, no matter what!
The last few nights our bedtime stories have been ones of Aunt Liz and me working at Rittman Orchard while we were in high school. I told the boys about us riding our bikes up that awful hill every morning to work. I described lugging those heavy ladders around and climbing up in the trees to pick the apples. I told them about the cleaning barn where the bins of apples were dumped into the washer and then sorted for us to bag and box. I told them about making cider in the big vats in the back of the store's building (Don't worry, Liz. I didn't give away all our secrets from that particular job!). I told them all kinds of fun things about an apple orchard because I thought I'd help get him excited about his first field trip at school!
This morning we prayed that Stephen would have fun today and that he would be obedient and be safe. He nodded emphatically at that one and after the prayer I asked him if he was excited to go and he told me NO! I was shocked! Here I thought I had been getting him all prepped for this exciting day and he didn't want to go! After questioning him, I finally found out why. He was afraid to climb the ladders to pick apples! Oops. I guess I got overly excited for him and forgot to tell him that children on field trips didn't climb the ladders to pick their apples! I assured him that he wouldn't have to climb any ladders or trees, but that he would see them and learn how they picked them and made cider. Whew! By the time the bus came, he was ready to go again.
My excitement didn't stop when he got on that bus. Remember, I'm a typical first time mom here. I thought about him all morning long! I imagined him getting to school and getting involved in the pre-field trip buzz that takes place in classrooms prior to leaving. I wondered if he had a blast on the bus with all the kids from his class and all the parent volunteers that were along. I pictured him at the orchard standing quietly while the cider pressing process was explained to him, but then I jerked back to reality and realized that he was probably supposed to be standing quietly. Instead, I'm sure he was kicking the mud and stomping on leaves and poking whatever happened to be close to him. He would be listening, no question about that, but he would be actively listening!
When he got home, I tried not to pelt him with questions right away. I let him tell us what he wanted to tell and then I dove right in and continued my first time mom antics. We got to hear about how he was allowed to try a spring apple and saw how they dumped the apples into the cider press. He told us that he was allowed to turn the handle to peel an apple and then pop the core out. "We weren't allowed to eat the core, though. That was garbage." He described the bus ride and who he sat with and how he got hot and sweaty in his warm coat. I'm telling you, I LOVE having a jabberbox as a first child!!
As I've been typing this, making fun a bit at the fact that I'm a typical first time mom, I've also come to the realization that I must need to get out more. I'm living my life through my junior kindergartner's adventures! Sigh. I am enjoying it, but yep. I think I need to get out more and experience some things for myself again. :) Tomorrow the Waterloo Waste Management Centre has free tours for the public. That sounds interesting. I think I'll go to that. And I'll take the kids with me, of course. I still love seeing the world through their eyes.
The last few nights our bedtime stories have been ones of Aunt Liz and me working at Rittman Orchard while we were in high school. I told the boys about us riding our bikes up that awful hill every morning to work. I described lugging those heavy ladders around and climbing up in the trees to pick the apples. I told them about the cleaning barn where the bins of apples were dumped into the washer and then sorted for us to bag and box. I told them about making cider in the big vats in the back of the store's building (Don't worry, Liz. I didn't give away all our secrets from that particular job!). I told them all kinds of fun things about an apple orchard because I thought I'd help get him excited about his first field trip at school!
This morning we prayed that Stephen would have fun today and that he would be obedient and be safe. He nodded emphatically at that one and after the prayer I asked him if he was excited to go and he told me NO! I was shocked! Here I thought I had been getting him all prepped for this exciting day and he didn't want to go! After questioning him, I finally found out why. He was afraid to climb the ladders to pick apples! Oops. I guess I got overly excited for him and forgot to tell him that children on field trips didn't climb the ladders to pick their apples! I assured him that he wouldn't have to climb any ladders or trees, but that he would see them and learn how they picked them and made cider. Whew! By the time the bus came, he was ready to go again.
My excitement didn't stop when he got on that bus. Remember, I'm a typical first time mom here. I thought about him all morning long! I imagined him getting to school and getting involved in the pre-field trip buzz that takes place in classrooms prior to leaving. I wondered if he had a blast on the bus with all the kids from his class and all the parent volunteers that were along. I pictured him at the orchard standing quietly while the cider pressing process was explained to him, but then I jerked back to reality and realized that he was probably supposed to be standing quietly. Instead, I'm sure he was kicking the mud and stomping on leaves and poking whatever happened to be close to him. He would be listening, no question about that, but he would be actively listening!
When he got home, I tried not to pelt him with questions right away. I let him tell us what he wanted to tell and then I dove right in and continued my first time mom antics. We got to hear about how he was allowed to try a spring apple and saw how they dumped the apples into the cider press. He told us that he was allowed to turn the handle to peel an apple and then pop the core out. "We weren't allowed to eat the core, though. That was garbage." He described the bus ride and who he sat with and how he got hot and sweaty in his warm coat. I'm telling you, I LOVE having a jabberbox as a first child!!
As I've been typing this, making fun a bit at the fact that I'm a typical first time mom, I've also come to the realization that I must need to get out more. I'm living my life through my junior kindergartner's adventures! Sigh. I am enjoying it, but yep. I think I need to get out more and experience some things for myself again. :) Tomorrow the Waterloo Waste Management Centre has free tours for the public. That sounds interesting. I think I'll go to that. And I'll take the kids with me, of course. I still love seeing the world through their eyes.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Doctors
To all of you doctors and other health care professionals that work with children, my many thanks and appreciation to all of you! You do not have an easy job, yet at times I'm sure you really enjoy the innocence of childhood when you work with children!
Let me explain where all of this is coming from today. Stephen had an appointment with our pediatrician whom we have come to know and love. Dr. Rosner has been there for all three of the boys immediately after birth, when they went back in a week later for jaundice and several times since then for miscellaneous reasons. Today was one of those reasons and I'm convinced again that Dr. Rosner is wonderful! Not only did she solve the mystery of Stephen's problem, but she did such a thorough exam on him that she also identified another issue that is totally unrelated, but she feels should be dealt with now (specifically his toe-walking tendencies! :).
The thing that impressed me the most today was a comment that she made to Stephen that I wasn't expecting, maybe because I live such a sheltered life. One of the parts of her exam today included her checking Stephen's private parts. While she was examining him, she was telling him over and over very emphatically that under no circumstances was it ok for anyone besides his mom and dad and his doctor to touch him there. She made him repeat what she was telling him and then told him that if anyone besides his doctors touched him there, he needed to tell me immediately no matter what. I was very impressed how she got his attention and looked him right in the eye to make sure he understood her. I guess it caught me off guard because I would never even THINK that anyone would touch my little boy inappropriately. Up until now he has been pretty much in our care, or the care of other brothers and sisters in Christ that would never consider doing something so disgusting to a child. How sad that our world has become so ugly that we have to warn our innocent little children about something that they shouldn't even have to know about!
Once again, this incident at the doctor's today reminded me to pray so fervently for our boys, that they would retain their innocence and stay pure despite the world's wickedness. How I wish I could shelter them from all evil out there and keep them so pure and unspotted! I know that we cannot keep them from ALL evil, but I pray for wisdom every day to keep them as far away from it as possible.
Thank you, doctors and health care professionals, for your work and for your desire to protect our children! May God bless you for your persistence and patience in taking care of our children!
Let me explain where all of this is coming from today. Stephen had an appointment with our pediatrician whom we have come to know and love. Dr. Rosner has been there for all three of the boys immediately after birth, when they went back in a week later for jaundice and several times since then for miscellaneous reasons. Today was one of those reasons and I'm convinced again that Dr. Rosner is wonderful! Not only did she solve the mystery of Stephen's problem, but she did such a thorough exam on him that she also identified another issue that is totally unrelated, but she feels should be dealt with now (specifically his toe-walking tendencies! :).
The thing that impressed me the most today was a comment that she made to Stephen that I wasn't expecting, maybe because I live such a sheltered life. One of the parts of her exam today included her checking Stephen's private parts. While she was examining him, she was telling him over and over very emphatically that under no circumstances was it ok for anyone besides his mom and dad and his doctor to touch him there. She made him repeat what she was telling him and then told him that if anyone besides his doctors touched him there, he needed to tell me immediately no matter what. I was very impressed how she got his attention and looked him right in the eye to make sure he understood her. I guess it caught me off guard because I would never even THINK that anyone would touch my little boy inappropriately. Up until now he has been pretty much in our care, or the care of other brothers and sisters in Christ that would never consider doing something so disgusting to a child. How sad that our world has become so ugly that we have to warn our innocent little children about something that they shouldn't even have to know about!
Once again, this incident at the doctor's today reminded me to pray so fervently for our boys, that they would retain their innocence and stay pure despite the world's wickedness. How I wish I could shelter them from all evil out there and keep them so pure and unspotted! I know that we cannot keep them from ALL evil, but I pray for wisdom every day to keep them as far away from it as possible.
Thank you, doctors and health care professionals, for your work and for your desire to protect our children! May God bless you for your persistence and patience in taking care of our children!
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