A little glimpse of what’s to come…
Warmer weather?
Check.
Dirt?
Check.
Even MORE dirt?
Check.
Because she simply cannot help herself. She just has to play in the dirt.
No, not lovely clean beach sand. Real DIRT!
We’re talking nasty, brown, powdery, cling-to-everything, leave the bath water muddy….DIRT!
The dirtier the better as far as this wee one is concerned.
How times change. Ten years ago I would have got her out of that mess as fast as humanly possible. She would have been bathed and sweet smelling again in a nanosecond.
These days? I grab my camera and let her enjoy every moment of feeling the sand between her fingers and making imaginary sand castles. I stand back and watch as she intently observes the trickle of sand as it falls to the ground. She takes it all in.
Learning and growing…even in the dirt.
These days I allow them to get all dirty and muddy and savor the gift that childhood truly is.
These days I’m learning that creating sweet and beautiful memories is way more important than having clean, lovely smelling children, clean floors in my home, and no gross brown rim around bath tub.
These days I’m still learning to linger just a little bit longer.
How much my children with special needs have taught me. This week I’ve been pondering all the lessons I have learned on the journey parenting these blessings who do things a little slower, hardly ever get things right the first time, are unable to communicate their needs with words, struggle in so many ways, and know how to love like I long to love.
I am changed. I am learning alongside my children. I am a better mom.
Simply because God chose plain, ordinary me and gave me a few of His greatest blessings in this life!
Children who have special needs.
