Back to School Reflections (from a mom of children with special needs)

"My grace is sufficient for you..." (2 Corinthians 12:9)

When the Scale is Tipped

It's been just over one week since the yellow bus stopped in front of our house and picked up our children for another school year.

Back to school.  
Moms experience a lot of different emotions in regards to those three words.  Moms of children with special needs experience even a wider range of emotions.  Some words that came to my mind as our five children started school were:  respite, refresh, rest, but also guilt, trepidation, and WORRY.

I worry about our son feeling that he belongs.  I worry about his (sometimes) challenging behaviour.  I worry if he will have another accident at  school (he still wears pull ups).  I think about his IEP that we need to make.  I pray for extra patience for his teachers.

But then I see God's grace.  His presence sends a spirt of calmness over me.

I read encouraging notes from his EA.  I see beauty and compassion spilling out of his EA.  I see teachers and a school that make modifications and welcome him into their community.  He gets invited to birthday parties.  His siblings help him with his back pack and other school things.  His teacher sends pictures of him reading with his reading buddy.

And that's when the scale is tipped.
God's grace and peace far outweighs any worry or fear.

One Thousand Gifts (continued)

 "Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD you God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9).

We are all on a journey. 

On this journey, there are so many unknowns.

This journey that we have been on has been filled with wonder, excitement, many learning opportunities, blessings, challenges, joys, but also doubts. 

It is in those times of doubts, I need to remind myself to keep trusting in the One who is leading me. 

I am very thankful for the many learning opportunities that I have experienced throughout this journey that I am on.  I am constantly learning and trying to educate myself.  These learning opportunities come from so many different sources.  It could be from a conversation with another Mom, an encouraging article online, reading some one's blog, reading a book, meeting others, first hand experience, etc.  One of my most recent learning opportunities was at the "Life to the Full" conference in Niagara Falls with my daughter, Nicole.  

At the conference about Special Needs, we learned about ability and identity.  We were reminded that everybody belongs and that we need to move from "exclusion to tolerance to inclusion to BELONGING".  The Biblical view of identity was discussed and we were reminded how ability does not equal identity.  Dr. Erik Carter explained 10 dimensions of belonging, which included: being present, being invited, welcomed, known, accepted, supported, cared for, befriended, needed, and loved.  We were reminded that we are one in Christ and we were challenged to treat others in the same way that Christ did.  

I am so thankful for the journey that we are on.  I am thankful that I have a God that I am able to trust in and who will lead me through this journey.  I am also thankful for the many learning opportunities that I have.

Continuing to give thanks...

-our exciting journey

-a God whom I am able to trust in

-countless learning opportunities

-amazing speakers and a blessed conference

-weekend away with Nicole

-spending the weekend with my precious daughter

-her precious heart and desire to learn more about special needs

-being in awe of God's amazing creation, and His awesome power

 -the beauty and majestic falls

-our view from our room

-a beautiful lit up sky

 -a visual reminder of God's love for us and our identity in Him

 -new experiences (going down the rail car)

No Holding Back (Why our family doesn't like to use the term "disability")

No Holding Back

(Why our family doesn't like to use the term "disability")

"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago" (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)"

Every day he amazes us with his abilities.
He never ceases to amaze us (and make us laugh)!
Although he has only been home for 6.5 months, he has learned SO many new things and has adapted so well.

There is no holding back for this guy!!!

He is God's masterpiece, created in His image, and we can't wait to see what God has planned for his life!

We don't like to focus on what he is unable to do, but rather what he is able to do.

Yes, he has special needs, but we wouldn't call it a disability!  He has so many abilities and is constantly proving that to us on a daily basis!  When I think of the word, "disabled", I think of something that doesn't work.  It reminds me of when our daughter disables her older brother's Ipod, (which she thinks is funny, but he doesn't), and then it doesn't work.  Our son, who has Down syndrome, does not have a disability; he just has special needs.

We hope and pray that others will recognize and embrace our son's many abilities!! 

In the short months that our son has been home, he has learned countless things (and continues to learn countless things) such as...

-writing letters (learning to write his name)

-learning tons of sign words (here he is signing the word for "friends")

-doing whatever his siblings are doing (both good and not so good sometimes!!)

-most sporting activities (including hockey, gymnastics, football, soccer, baseball, golf, skate boarding, etc.)

-learning to ride his bike with training wheels

-learning to love (or sometimes just tolerate) his pets (as he was quite terrified of animals when he first came home)!

 -being Mr. Flexible

 -loving the water; he was scared of the water, such as bath time, when he first came home, now he LOVES the water!

Seber is God's masterpiece, His handiwork.

We've all been given different gifts and talents.  It is our hope and prayer that we will be able to encourage all of our children to use these gifts and abilities to honour and give praise to the LORD.

1 Corinthians 12:4-6
“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.” (ESV)

If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves. Thomas A. Edison

First Day of School Prayer

It was a tough good-bye this morning.
We held up traffic as he carefully walked up the big steps of the bus.
He waved out of the window, and I watched the bus drive down the road.

As our son with Down syndrome starts his first day of school today, this is our prayer:

Dear LORD,
You are such an awesome God!  You are so good and faithful to all of Your promises.  I know that You have watched over our son in the past few years, and that You will continue to do so, especially today as he has his first day of school.

Forgive me, LORD for my times of doubt and unbelief.  Forgive me for the times that I forget to trust in you and Your unfailing promises and Your perfect plan.

Thank-you, LORD for so many blessings.  Thank-you for an amazing, supportive, school community.  Thank-you for our principal, our advocate. Thank-you for compassionate and loving teachers.  Thank-you for our friendly, lovely bus driver.  Thank-you for older siblings.

LORD, please protect our son.  Please give the teachers an extra dose of patience when he doesn't listen and just wants to play outside on the slide!  Fill them with lots of patience, peace, understanding, and lots of energy (which they will need).  Help Seber to feel loved and included.  Help others to include him and also to be patient with him.  Give us wisdom to know how to best advocate for him and help him as he begins the part-time kindergarten program at our school.  This is so new to our school community, and so LORD, I pray for support, love, and acceptance.

In Your precious Son's name,
Amen

In Good Hands

"In His hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to Him" (Psalm 95:4).

In Good Hands

They thanked us for coming, while we were the ones using up their valuable time.

They had printed off pages of common sign words.

She had her pen and paper ready.

They were eager to learn as much about our son as they could in the short time that we visited.  

This week, we spent 45 minutes visiting with Seber's SK teacher and EA.  He enjoyed exploring his new classroom, and meeting his wonderful teachers.  We were very thankful for that opportunity.

  

We are SO blessed to be part of such an amazing community.  We are so blessed with a caring staff, a principal who advocates on our behalf, and SK teachers who are so keen to help our son learn as much as possible and to reach his potential.  They have such a desire for him to have a positive, enriching learning experience.  They are receptive to suggestions and seek ways to improve the learning environment which would be beneficial to Seber and all of the students.  They are loving, caring, and compassionate image bearers of our Lord, and view all their students as God's precious children.  We are so thankful for our amazing school community.

In just a few days, our son will be hopping on the bus with his older siblings.  His face lights up and he points to himself when we talk about school and the bus.  As crazy nervous as I am, I know that he'll be in good hands.  His older siblings will be fierce protectors and assist him when needed.  His teachers will embrace him with open arms, and allow his little, silly, loving personality to shine!  I know that he'll be in good hands with the staff and with his siblings, but I also know that He is being held in the hands of the One who holds the whole universe!!

What is Down syndrome?

"For we are [all] God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do" (Ephesians 2:10).

What is Down syndrome?

A medical definition would be:  Down syndrome is a condition when a person is born with a full or partial copy of the 21st chromosome, resulting in 47 chromosomes in each cell, rather than the typical number of 46 chromosomes.  There are 3 types of Down syndrome- translocation, mosaicism, and trisomy 21.  Trisomy 21 is the most common type of Down syndrome.  With trisomy 21, every cell in the  body has an extra 21st chromosome.

There are certain common characteristics that SOME people with Down syndrome may have (such as almond shaped eyes, flat profile/face, single crease on the palm, shorter fingers, etc).  There are also some common challenges that SOME people with Down syndrome may have (such as expressive language).

Recently, I spoke at our school about Down syndrome.  I took an ECE course about special needs.  I have researched A LOT about Down syndrome, yet as we are navigating these waters, I still ask myself, "What is Down syndrome"?

To me, I  see our son as simply our precious son.  

A little boy who loves to play games.

A little boy who loves to play sports.

A little boy who loves to try new things and amazes us EVERY day with his accomplishments!

A little boy who likes to act silly (sometimes too silly)

A little boy who loves to laugh and is often very content.  But, also a little boy who gets easily angered (and flicks his shoe off of his feet over the balcony at church).  A little boy who gets sad, scared, hurt, and who experiences every other emotion.

A little boy who loves to do crafts and colour or draw

A little boy who loves his siblings

A little boy who loves his parents

 A little boy who loves to play, have fun, and explore.

A little boy who is extremely tactile (especially in church with long hair from women sitting infant of us in church!!)

A little boy who is bright and loves to learn new things (such as the tons of sign words that he has learned).
A little boy who is so loving and forgiving.
A little boy who is so gifted in so many areas.
A little boy who is created in God's image.
A little boy who has taught us so much and has blessed us in so many ways.
A little boy who is so full of love.

He may have special needs, various delays, and some common characteristics of someone with Down syndrome, but that is not what defines who he is; that is just part of who he is- our precious son!