Crawler

Last night, on November 1, L became a mobile child. She is crawling all over the place. For several weeks she has been rocking on all 4's and scooting. She started crawling while we had company over. I realized that our company was very excited for her. I was smiling but I wasn't joyful, I was relieved. Before reading more, you need to realize that I am a Special Ed. teacher by training. My specialty is working with kids from birth to 5 who have disabilities, and I especially LOVE working with kids who have Autism. Now that I have my own child, I am very aware of what kids should be doing and comparing L to what she should or should not be doing. So far in L's life, I have not felt joyful each time she hits a milestone. I feel relieved. I have seen first hand the struggles and joys of parents with kids who have disabilities. Every step is a hard-fought milestone with the whole team working with the child to get him/her where we wanted them to be. So when L develops a new skill, I am so relieved that she reached it on her own, developing the way you would expect typical kids to develop. I am so grateful that she is on target for her skills, but I think I might continue to feel relieved until about 18 months when we know we are free and clear of Autism. The children who have Autism are my FAVORITE kids to work with. But every skill is worked on over and over and over. It once took me 4 and 1/2 months to teach a child to point! TO POINT! 4 1/2 months to POINT! Every skill was a battle in patience and repetition for that little one. That was the first time I was frustrated in what I was accomplishing with that little child. I was not frustrated with the child, but with my inability to get him to catch on more quickly. I am glad that L is crawling and I am so grateful that she has a spark in her eyes. She is curious and busy. She is ready for visitors and wants to go places. I am so thankful that she is doing well. I know how hard it can be to be the mom of a child with learning differences....these moms are saints. They have been chosen by God to take care of and provide for a child that no one else would be able care for-- the way that child needs to be cared for. I truly believe that God picks each mom for the child who have severe differences. I am not sure I am up for the job 24/7 as these moms are dedicated to doing. I am thankful for my little girl and need to enjoy that she is developing on track rather than just being relieved. She needs me to celebrate with her. So my goal to celebrate and just enjoy the new development! Smile and cheer and relish in the fact that she has got a new skill to add to the list.