Mama’s All-American Girl

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Carrie Underwood’s song has been in my heart since Mother’s Day 2008.  I was on my way back from visiting my best friends, Janine and Jeffrey, in Massachusetts.  They burned Underwood’s album, Carnival Ride, saying I would love it.  That was an understatement.

I popped in the disc and headed back to NJ, with Little Sheldon in the back, sleeping from a long weekend with his best friend, Miranda.

Neither my hubby or I wanted to find out if the Bean-To-Be was a boy or girl.  And I hadn’t really been clear with which one the baby could be.  Until this song came on…

I heard the song, my heart was filled with butterflies, tears filled my eyes and I knew…I didn’t know, but my heart knew.

Fast forward 3 years later (almost to the day actually)…

I was driving up to MEDEK in New Milford and was in the mood for Little Miss Carrie.  Popped in the disc and relaxed into the 30 minute drive.

All-American Girl came on.  But now things were very different from 3 years before.

Duplications of 8p, brain disorder, low muscle tone, developmental delays, behavioral issues, hair pulling…Josephine.

My mind started racing about Josephine’s future.  Would she marry the high school football star?  Would she have a daughter of her own?

Tears welled up in my eyes, as they did in May 2008.  But these were not tears of joy.  These were tears of fears, tears of the unknown.  Tears of tomorrow’s possibilities.

Then I caught myself.

STOP!

Stop with the predictions.  Stop with the unknowns.

I looked at the little girl in my back seat of the 2008 Saturn Vue and relaxed knowing my girl is who she is…An All-American Girl.  Perfect in her own way.  Perfect as God made her.

Enjoy the song and think of Josephine while you listen.  It’s an amazing experience.

Couldn’t Have Said It Better Myself…

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Truer words were never spoken. I’ve seen this on several web sites for kids with special needs and it’s perfect!

“God doesn’t give children with disabilities to strong people;
He gives them to ordinary, everyday people,
then He helps the parents to grow stronger through the journey.

Raising a child with special needs doesn’t TAKE  a special family;
it MAKES a special family.”

I thank God every day that I am the mom of Josephine Betty Joy.  The mom of one amazing little gal!

Happy Mother’s Day…Here’s the Stomach Flu for Ya!

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Just in case anyone was wondering, the stomach flu is not fun.  Not fun for a kid, not fun for an adult and certainly not fun for a toddler with special needs.

**(Not to be read on a full tummy)**

Josephine was hit mid-day on Saturday with a nasty fever of 102.7, followed up by 5 hours of vomiting.  5x changing of Josephine’s clothes, 2x changing of Mama’s clothes, 1x changing of Daddy’s clothes, 1x cleaning of the front door, 1x cleaning of the bathroom (various surfaces)…OK…you get the point.  There was no fun happening at the Senek house that day!

The main reason for this post is to share the importance of getting the special needs child to the ER when something like this occurs.  We didn’t think Josephine was so bad at first, but after the 7th explosive episode in 4 hours, we knew we had to call in reinforcements.

Dr. Silverman (Pediatrician) strongly suggested heading to the ER, especially since she has the “failure to thrive”/weight issue and slightly compromised immune system (comes with the chromosome disorder territory).  After the major loss of fluids (I’d say AT LEAST 8 oz or more), Josephine was very dehydrated and needed an IV to improve her levels.

St. Barnabas Medical Center’s Pediatric ER is wonderful.  We were in very quickly (fortunately, this is only our 2nd visit in almost 3 years) and the doctor started her on fluids and anti-nausea medication immediately.  The nurse also gave her a Tylenol suppository, which brought her fever down almost immediately.  Blood work and a urinalysis ruled out any serious illness or infection and the doctor settled on a stomach bug.

Before the supplemental fluids, Josephine was super tired and almost limp like a rag doll.  After the fluids, she was her perky and happy self…AND SUCH A JABBER BOX (check out the video at :35 – the punchline in her head must have been hilarious…)

Always listen to your heart…a parent ALWAYS KNOWS!

THE HAIRCUT!

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Yes, the word any parent, whose child suffers from Trichotillomania, loves to hear…HAIRCUT. Not because Josephine’s hair needs to be trimmed up after pulling episode. Because Josephine hasn’t pulled any hair OUT in some time. Granted, we are keeping her hair short, so she can’t pull any out (she is still grabbing her hair when frustrated, but can’t get ahold of any). However, the idea that I CHOSE to take her to get a haircut makes all the difference in my heart.