Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Wednesday March 24 – Thinking Like a Parent

When you have a good day – so do I. I slept well last night and awoke this morning full of energy. Our great phone call last night still has me floating above the clouds. I can see a 180 degree turn from this time two weeks ago. I think the last week in Halifax together as a family and the weekend home and visiting Donald, Marsha,Chris G and the church was instrumental to your mood shift.

Spring is coming and I can feel it in every way.

This morning, I spend a long time on the phone, Bringing people up to date on your progress. I have started a list of people who might be able to commit a few hours here and there to spend with you to help with your homecare when you get home. With my somewhat erratic schedule and being oncall at times the 24 hour adult attendance is going to be hard to achieve.

We will have to be creative in how we do this. Eventually, we may not need an adult with you at all times, but until we can find a routine and establish some safety rules and provide a safety net for you, the 24-hour supervision is a must.

You had another good day today. You have a strong voice and you have hope.

“I think I know what I want for a tattoo on my left arm.” You say. “A unicorn, with the date of the Boston marathon when I first ran it and a space for the date of when I run it next.” The unicorn is a special symbol because it is part of the Boston marathon logo.

I ask you what you think about signing the children up for soccer this year. They did love to play soccer but transporting them could be difficult with me working. We decide that we should all take the summer off and just spend time together as a family. “We need to find our roles again and just hang out together.” You say. I have to agree. This summer would be a good one to take off from the usual running around between soccer and day camps and baseball and swimming. We need time just to be a family again.

You are thinking like an insightful parent.

I tell you the plan for the weekend. You are going to come home with Juanita and Wayne on Friday and stay until Monday morning. This way, you will get to see Quinn at his gymnastics meet on Sunday morning.

I tell you that Quinn was sad again at bedtime. It seems to happen a lot. I think that when he puts his head on the pillow, he starts to take stock of his day and think about the future and counts days. Thinking about all the days that you haven’t been here makes him sad.

I really think the time you spent at home last weekend has helped you start to see a future that isn’t so bad. “When I get home, I will need lots of rest. I want to let Quinn sleep with us occasionally. I think it will be good for both of us.

There you go again … thinking like a parent.

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