Raising a 4 year old and a 1 year old isnt easy. Especially when the 1 year old has so many special needs that take up most of my time and the 4 year old begs for attention by constantly doing things that require me to stop what Im doing to "pay attention". And moving in the midst of Liam turning into a 1 year old and trying to squeeze in time for tea parties and lalloopsy hasn't been easy by far. Tempers have flaired, full fledged 4 year old fits have been thrown, and plenty of crying has occured. Ive had my 4 year old yell at me, stomp her feet, break down crying over being told "no" and tell me I was mean. She's lost her TV many occasions, had too many time outs than I can keep track off, and at least 1 cuddle time a day. I know its been hard on her with the year we've had then throwing in moving and getting rid of alot of her stuff, Im shocked she hasnt acted out more. We've done the best to make moving fun for her. We let her choose her own room and promised to paint it purple for her. Made sure her toys were easy to access at all times as well as her cartoons. Throughout all of this, Liam's handled it the best. He's been toted around, stuck in a carseat, bouncer, crib, jumper, or playpen at all times. His environment completly changed on him. Most babies would feel the stress, Lanie did when we moved when she was 1. Liam has been perfect. I think its due to all the hospital stays and environmental changes. Working on a house, packing, moving and unpacking is alot of work and very stressfull. Its taking more time to unpack and put away than it would if Liam didnt have so many medical needs. Basically our life is crazy. Its so easy to be angry about Liam's condition. Its finding that white light, or good in the situation thats hard. Ive been working very hard on looking at the bright side. Because of Liams condition we have met so many wonderful people. People that have changed our lives, our hearts. Because of Liam's CDH we are telling everyone Liams story and doing what we can to spread awareness. If it wasnt for Liam being born with CDH we would have never known anything about it, would have never known how hard it strikes and how much it hurts. Im not saying Im ok with it or that I would have chossen it if I had the choice because God knows I wouldnt. But I want to take my families experience and do what I can to make a difference. Imagine having a 4 year old and a normal 1 year old then taking on such a big task, then add in special medical needs for the 1 year old. Some call me crazy but Im determined. Besides listening to a 4 year old say "Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia" is pretty darn cute. Liam has become more of a 1 year old now than the sweet baby he was. He's more interested in playing now than ever. He more interested in sitting up and playing with toys then rolling around. He uses his voice to try and tell us what he wants and he copies just about everything we say. He's come a long way from the NICU and we couldnt expect more from him.
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