But I Like You

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9AAJvQnUTQ (Please humor me and click link before reading) :)

Ok, I realize it's a little strange to play Sesame Street songs on my blog but tonight I think it really has a purpose.......let me explain.......

It has recently come to my attention that many "grown people" need to go back and watch Sesame Street. Now, I don't mean the new fangled one with Elmo, and the Fairy.....(forgot her name) but the old Sesame Street that I grew up with.

Cookie Monster, Grover, Prairie Dawn, Oscar, Big Bird, and Bert and Ernie taught me some pretty valuable lessons that many adults (including myself on occasion) have forgotten.

I mean.....the characters were fallible.......they goofed up! Other characters got angry with them but then a "wise" adult usually showed up, and everyone discussed the conflict.......and Voila! Everyone agreed to disagree and still be friends.

Bert and Ernie are definitely an conundrum....... Bert is.....well.....OCD. Let's face it.....he wanted his world in perfect order. Everything to him should be well kept, cleaned and yes, "lined up"!

Then you have Ernie......He was so carefree you often wondered how he managed to survive. He was never in a hurry, messy, and forgetful....... and yes, adorable!

These two really were the "Odd Couple" for preschoolers. Somehow, no matter how much Ernie annoyed and Bert yelled, they were friends in the end. Nobody had to completely change there personality, nobody talked about the other's faults to everyone.......they co-existed, they cared about each other.......they agreed to disagree!

I don't think God ever meant every person to be a carbon copy of each other. It's in the difference his glory can be seen....... If we are all truly created in his image, then our God must have no limits to His facets! It's a revelation that in our differences we can see and appreciate the infinite power of God.

It is my hopes that by reviewing a little preschool we can learn to accept the differences in each other.......for it is by coexisting in love that we can find true peace in our lives!

You've Been Too Gone for Too Long

This song was brought to my mind today as for some reason, I have been hitting the old country music mode again. For those of you who do not know, it was performed by Randy Travis.

The lyrics for the chorus are: "You've been too gone, for too long. It's too late to come back now." It is my sincere hopes that you don't feel this way.....but it's been a really, really long time.

Time has marched on......

Kelsie has turned 18 and will be graduating this year, and DJ will be eight this July. He will be in second grade next year and is doing extremely well in school. We still hit lots of bumps, but so is living with Autism. It's always a bumpy road!

Over the course of the last year, we have celebrated victories, and dealt with setbacks. So is the course of life. Everyday he continues to progress.........and I learn by watching him grow.

Kelsie and I continue to raise rabbits. This endeavor has brought us much closer together, and I have enjoyed the time as I am beginning to realize that soon she will be leaving me. College looms in the distance and the our relationship will change as she leaves. This is the natural order of things......sometimes it's the letting go that is difficult!

Time marches on.......

I look forward to blogging again. I have missed writing.........and missed sharing with you all these long many months.

Finally Fair!!

Today is nuts. I am scrambling to help Kelsie get all her animals ready for Yuma County Fair, get the little man off to mom's for a sleepover, get to church and prayer partners by four, try to figure out why the email on computer wont work, and get to Del Mar tomorrow! It's official......I am overbooked and boy am I feeling it today.

Monday starts the insanity of our fair. I love it and hate it all at the same time! We have thirty some animals to get there and then I have to help work the barn the whole week. Kelsie shows cavies on Tuesday, Poultry on Wednesday and Rabbits on Thursday and Friday, with the auction on Saturday, and finally check out Sunday night. Whew, just writing it is exhausting me!!

Then, like the sucker I am, I have to be in Del Mar tomorrow........I think I need my head examined!!

Somehow, it will all work out. It always does. I just find that in the middle of the fray, it's hard to come up for air.

I am realizing this week how incredibly fast my daughter is growing up. Only two more fairs for her! It is my hopes this week to just enjoy being a 4-H mom and leader. Take time to enjoy the kids because that's what the fair is all about!

It has been amazing to see her transformation and growth through rabbits. She was so shy in the begining she was scared to death to even show. So many wonderful friends and mentors have changed her into the unique and special young lady she has become. Only two more fairs........where does the time go?

Wonder if my mother felt that way? Experiencing 4-H as an adult has been so rewarding and my hopes are that every child has a terrific experience. For ribbons are nice, but learning to keep it all together under pressure is the ultimate experience!!

Aspiring for More!

I must admit that I am an Olympics junkie. There is something astounding about these athletes that have trained and sacrificed so much for one goal.......to be the best! I can't even imagine giving up friends, school , and even family to train as an elite athlete. Then you have their families........what have they given up to fuel the dreams of their children? Some have done without for so long......while others have worked two and three jobs to finance their young hopefuls.........It really is almost overwhelming.

However, I got to thinking tonight that we parents of Special Needs children really aren't much different. I have traveled great distances, spent weeks away from home, quit my job, spent endless hours researching treatment, hours of therapy, hours giving therapy, and heartbreaking times fighting for my son. Why, because I believe in him.....I believe.

We parents will probably never be featured on national television, and our children won't be gracing the pages of Sports Illustrated. Still, we press on....some of us trying to teach our children to walk, talk, eat, or learn to be human. Daily.....all around us these struggles continue. Our medals are not Gold or Silver, they are smiles, tears, and triumphs for things most parents take for granted.

I never realized that I am an Olympian. Not a sports figure.....but in spirit because I believe that with tremendous hard work and effort AND faith.......my son will have a future! I carry my torch daily with so many of my special friends with special children.

If you know one of us......give us a congratulatory hug......our journey is long and for some of us it will never end....but we believe and we have faith! All we ask for is a little encouragement......our finish line is often far away and we need to hear the cowbells and cheers to push us along the way!

Invisible

Today, I have been feeling used up.......You know, the tired, overwhelmed, can't go one more step, kind of exhaustion. I think we all get there........sometimes.

Kelsie had FFA career activities at our community college all day. That meant the burden of the barn and cavies fell on mom's shoulders. On top of this, I was up all night watching one of her does who was doing her darnedest to have her litter of bunnies on the wire. (This means out of the nest box and on the floor of the cage) Kelsie has had a tough time getting Tan babies this year so, it was important that they didn't become bunnysicles!

I let her go to bed at midnight after we finished her breeder profile that she was asked to do. It was a real honor that she be asked to do this profile as the District Two Director, Joey Shultz will be submitting it to the Domestic Rabbit for his column. So, after much editing on my part.....we came up with a final draft for her to submit...........she went to bed........I babysat a dumb rabbit!

Then, this morning hit with all it's glory. After two hours of sleep, my husband woke me up to inform me that my son had missed the Sped Bus. Great! Now, Kel had to be at school by eight and DJ had to be dressed, take his supplements, eat breakfast and at school by 7:45. So much for a calm morning with coffee and the Today show.

I could go on.....but why??? Many parents face complicated lives.......it's just lately......I've started to feel invisible. I have become the cog that makes the clock work. I live on the inside and no person really sees what I do. It stinks, and it hurts.......sometimes.

Many of us have felt the sting of being invisible. Although accolades are nice, are they the ultimate prize in our lives? God calls us to reach beyond ourselves and serve.........so serving here at home is still the most important job I have. So, for today, I need to rest and rejuvenate.....then, I can face the challenges that arise tomorrow.......with God's help!