Parents, if you want wonderful pictures of your children, never teach them to say "cheese"! Please learn from my mistake or you will have thousands of photos just like mine - squinted eyes, scrunched up noses, clenched teeth, and an image that just screams "say cheez!!!". Join me while I search for that one perfect shot that doesn't conjure up images of dairy products. Oh, and unless you like that *messy* look, you'll probably want to clean their faces before you snap away. I never seem to remember myself.

An imporant sidenote is to make sure you document your life! Recording the little details of the who, what, where, when, & why makes for wonderful stories and captures your life for years to come. Because if you are like me, you'll forget it all 5 minutes later!

Monday, May 19, 2008

POTD - Week 21: Happiness

Happiness is...a warm sunny day, the sound of the ocean cascading into the shoreline, a child's deep belly laugh, an unexpected sweet surprise, a content child, birds twirping on a Sunday morning, a gorgeous peony in full bloom, enjoying the day with the people you love, helping out someone, a gooey chocolate fudge brownie, a lobster roll on the rocky beach, knowing life is good - sometimes a little difficult - but all in all, good. But mostly happiness is the incredible feeling a parent has when they see their child overcome challenges and accomplish things.

My oldest son has faced his share of challenges in his 7 short years (well, almost 8). He has struggled with his gross motor development and this has had a big impact on our family life. It is easy to assume that the act of running is instinctual, but for him it wasn't. And as he got into grade school the fact that playtime and sports didn't come easily to him was very difficult on his self esteem. Deep inside he still wanted to join in the fun and play the games, but he was sad and embarrassed that he couldn't keep up with the other children. He felt defeated before the game even began. To hear my 5 year old cry "I'm not good. I'll never be good. I'm embarrassed around the kids" is just absolutely devastating. As a parent, to hear the things children say to other kids and see your child in emotional pain just breaks your heart.

He had weekly physical therapy sessions for almost 2 years to strengthen his muscles, improve his flexibility and essentially create a "spring" in his step so he could develop some sort of a running stride. Late last fall was the end of the physical therapy even though he still wasn't able to run. He just seemed to reach the limit of what the PT was going to offer at that point in time. So we let it be.

This past weekend, I got my first chance to see my son play baseball. Oh! My! Goodness! He was RUNNING! Not stiff, not shuffling along, but actually running! He had a bounce in his step, a spring in his gait! He actually had air below his feet! I don't know what changed, what happened with his development, but it doesn't matter. He was running and he was having fun. To see my son achieve something that has been so physically and emotionally challenging is the ultimate in happiness.

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15 comments:

Anonymous said...

these shots are great and I am loving the color!
cari

Tricia said...

These look great, love the bright blue.

Margaret said...

Your journaling was very touching! What an amazing little guy! I love your shots. So colorful. Great capture of a wonderful moment.

Becky said...

Way to make me cry, girl! :-) So touching and great photos to go with your journaling.

pat said...

Oh, look at the determination on his face!! I love these, and the journaling underscoring the triumph this was for him.

Michelle said...

such a sweet post. your son has certainly overcome a lot and won a great victory! how marvelous to get to see your son succeed. and your photos are the perfect documentation of it.

Anonymous said...

love the conversion in that first shot! and the color is so awesome!!

Gypsy Girl(Brenda) said...

Your journaling brougt tears to my eyes. Nice shots.

Debbi said...

Wow - what a great story! How exciting for him! I'm constantly amazed and inspired by stories of kids overcoming challenges like this!

Reds said...

Love the feel of that first pic!! And what sweet journaling! Celine

Jen said...

What awesome shots! So happy for him!!! Way to go big guy!

Sandra Collins said...

what a wonderful story thanks so much for sharing - love the shots

Jess said...

That is SO AWESOME! WAY TO GO! :)

Bobbi said...

I am so proud of your son for you! That really made me excited to see after reading your story! Good for him and you :)

Sharon said...

Very nice! I love the feel of the first photo but really like his look of determination in the second one.