Saturday began with a baseball game where the Cubs pulled out the win. It was a lot of work to get everyone there on time with everything we needed, but the girls were actually great and played mostly in one area with the other siblings which allowed me to actually sit and enjoy the game.
As soon as the game was done we raced to the car and drove to the annual AGBell (Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing) Spring Picnic. The kids were super excited as they remembered how fun it was last year. We had a great time catching up with people we've gotten to know over the last few years, meeting new families, playing games, eating BBQ and Ice Cream, splashing in the water, and even winning some prizes. We missed having Lance with us this year and I was happy to have survived it by myself without any sunburn or lost children, but it really was fun time.
I spent quite awhile talking to a a family with a 4 month old that was just diagnosed with hearing loss after failing the infant screenings at birth. They were LDS so we knew a few people in common which helped with the connection. They also had a 2 1/2 year old that Zuri was having fun playing with which meant it was easy to chat on the playground. Many times in my life I've watched my own Mom talk to a Mom of a recently diagnosed or young Angelman child. I've watched her carefully balance giving the family the information and encouragement that they so desperately thirst for without totally overwhelming them. I am grateful for her example and I hope that I was able to use some of what I've seen and provide this family with some support. As wonderful as it is to see how amazing many of these children are doing and find a support system full of guidance, it still had to be horribly overwhelming for this young family. They asked great questions though and I told them what a great advantage their son would have being diagnosed so young.
Lance got back Saturday night just in time to get ready for Church the next day. We anticipated it being a bit of a rough day with it being the first Mother's Day since Lance's Mom passed away. It was sad but Lance did a great job sharing at Church some thoughts that he had been asked to prepare. We have always been aware that as wonderful as Mother's Day can be for some, it can be very sad and painful for others for a variety of reasons. I had several people tell me after how grateful they were that Lance so eloquently addressed that. Although it was a bit of a sad day we did a good job focusing on happy memories and our many blessing. Lance got a few pre Church pictures of the kids and I. My heart is so full with love and gratitude for these 3 beautiful kiddos, wonderful examples in my mother, grandmothers, and mother in law, and for the opportunity I have to be a mother.
1 comment:
This is such a beautiful post. I love your Mother's Day pictures and your entire family. You're an angel.
Post a Comment