Parenting A Special Needs Child

"Everyone needs to experience what its like to parent a special needs child!",  said a friend of mine more than 10 years ago.  Long before I had Hope.  I watched Andrew play soccer on Caleb's team week after week.  Andrew was born with an extra chromosome and was precious.  Our whole team loved him. 

When Andrea made the comment, I remember thinking to myself:  "It can't be that difficult to parent a child who has Down syndrome....just look at Andrew, he is sooo sweet!"  And then came Hope...followed by Charlie.  And when I have days like today, I repeat Andrea's words almost like a mantra:

Everyone should experience this:

This morning, Hopey found mud in our backyard.  A whole lot of mud.  So much mud we had to give her a bath in the plastic pool in the back yard:

Then as soon as we got her cleaned up....and I do mean just as soon as we got her cleaned up....Charlie comes waltzing into the great room completely nude and covered in poop from head to toe.  While Hopey was outside bathing in mud, he was inside bathing himself and my foyer in poop.

While it was a mess....a TOTAL mess....oddly enough, this experience was actually great sensory stimulation for both of them!  And the fact that Charlie was able to disrobe from his pants, shirt, and pull up....wow!  That took motor planning!

ONLY the parent of a special needs child (or two) could find the silver lining in a morning like this.

"I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint."  (Jeremiah 31:25)