When You Least Expect It!
- Latifahia B.
- Jan 11, 2019
- 4 min read
You may ask, "Why does Latifahia have a picture of a magnetic letter?" Well this letter means so much to me!
"Why, you may ask?!"
Because (I really don't like to grammatically start with the word 'because', but hey, WHATEVER!) God reminded me that despite Olivia having a disability that she is more than capable of learning like typical toddlers her age (sometimes I just need that reminder)!
How was I reminded? Well Ms. Olivia came up to me with this letter (in the picture above) and it was the letter 'b', so she made the letter 'b' sound. Then she continues to flip the letter 'b' to the letter 'd' and she made the sound for letter 'd'. Then she continues to flip the letter 'd' to the letter 'q' and she made the letter 'q' sound!
WHAT THE WHAT?! BABY GIRL HAS AN ABSTRACT WAY OF THINKING!!! This just made my heart so happy! So, I picked her up and gave her all of the kisses in the world!
What I'm reminded of is that God is greater than any of my expectations! That He does more than I could ever ask for. I always wonder if she is retaining the information that I'm teaching her and SHE IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are you allowing your fears to get in you or your child's way? Well, mine has to some degree. When your child has special needs you don't know what to expect at times besides what you are told from specialists or doctors.
There were times where I would say, "Olivia", "Alex", or even "Liam" (my 3 babies) weren't ready to accomplish certain tasks, but they tend to always surprise me. Especially Olivia!
A couple of examples are:
1. When her daycare was decorating cookies and there were M & M's that she was decorating her cookie with. I freaked out! But "thank the Lord" that Olivia's wonderful therapist was there to calm my nerves. She reassured me that everything would be fine, since Olivia has learned eating strategies during speech therapy. And guess what? Olivia proved me wrong! She absolutely loved the M & M's and she ate it well!
2. I was so scared to transition her into a crib in another room because I was concerned about her congestion at night and the fact that doctors put in my head that kids with Down Syndrome tend to have Sleep Apnea. But guess what? She proved me wrong! She adjusted just well (but I'm definitely always on the lookout)!
3. When my dad called me and told me that he would buy Olivia a "BIG GIRL BED"! My heart was pounding because I was thinking of all of the worse case scenarios like what if she falls out of her bed or gets into something she is not supposed to. What if she wakes my son up with her whining that she does in the middle of the night. Well Olivia proved me wrong again! Home girl got into the bed the 1st night and fell asleep all night, NO PROBLEMS! She fell out of the bed about once or twice, but she has not returned to her crib! She did a lot better than my oldest son, Alex, 6 yrs. old when he we were transitioning him into a big boy bed. We lost so much sleep with transitioning him and it was very frustrating! So that thought was in my head when I was thinking about Olivia transitioning. I was also thinking about what one of her therapist was saying that she may sleep on the floor and so on.
THESE ARE JUST A FEW EXAMPLES, OUT OF MANY EXAMPLES!
Lessons I have learned:
1. Just because Specialists or Doctors say it, it doesn't mean that it's true for your child, typical or not. I know they mean well, but they aren't always right! So try not to allow your fears to dictate your child's development! Take it one day at a time and present many opportunities to your child, you never know what the results will be.
2. That Olivia is not the issue, but that I may be the issue! I tend to get some anxiety when it is time for any of my children to transition to any part of their lives (choosing a school, potty training, etc.) because I don't what the outcome will look like.
I can't allow fear/anxiety to interfere with the development of my children. It is great to be concerned, but I need to use discernment, rather than fear/anxiety! I want to give my children the opportunity to try before I determine what they can or can not do. I have to trust that God knows whats best and that each child will develop at their own rate. All of my/your work is not in vain, you just don't know what your child is learning from you. And clearly Olivia is learning from me! That is why I'm reminded that milestones tend to happen when you LEAST EXPECT IT!
**If you know any families that have children with special needs, please share my blog with them. You never know how it could encourage them.**
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMMY!!!
(THIS POST WAS PUBLISHED ON MY MOM'S BIRTHDAY!)
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