Friday, November 8, 2013

Thankful

I know a lot of people are posting something they're thankful for every day this month. I don't need to list a new thing every day, because every day I'm reminded of how lucky we are, and how thankful we should be, by two smiling faces (yes, even when they're sick, we can usually get a few smiles).

I'm thankful that my children are alive. Many go through less and are not so lucky. Many do not get to see their children grow up.

I'm thankful my children can walk. Many never do, or lose the ability to.

I'm thankful my children can eat. Even when I'm annoyed by the what and how....there are children who never develop the necessary skills to do so, and children for whom most or all foods are unsafe.

I'm thankful my children can make sounds. I'm not always thankful for the volume or pitch of those sounds, but we went so long without hearing either one's voice that I will never wish they should just shut up. Many parents I know tell me that some day I'll wish they stop talking, but I can't imagine that ever being possible. There are parents who will never hear their children's voices, and parents whose children have passed who will never hear their voices again.

I'm thankful that my children communicate at all. It has been a struggle, and we're all often frustrated, but there are others for whom communication is not so easy.

I'm thankful my children can breathe. Sometimes that's a little sketchy, but for something we all do continually, I've seen what happens when they don't breathe, and it makes me all the more aware of how lucky we are.

I'm thankful for diapers - though I'll be more thankful for potty training - their bodies work they way they should on this front, and that makes life much less complicated. Not everyone has that benefit.

I'm thankful for my children's health. I know they're not as healthy as some, and there will likely always be issues on that front, but things could be so much worse.

I'm thankful for a job that provides insurance that provides for their needs, even when I don't really feel like it meets my needs.

I'm thankful for a spouse who is involved in my children's care. I'm thankful for friends and family who accept my children as they are.

I'm thankful for loving and competent care givers - nurses, teachers, aides, and more - who make working and sleeping a little more possible.

But mostly, I'm thankful for smiles and hugs and tickle fights and bicycle rides. I'm thankful for morning snuggles and bedtime snuggles and singing and laughing.

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