It's funny...as a special needs parent you have your child's every move planned. You rarely get a break where they can keep themselves amused long enough for you to run to the bathroom by yourself. You know what activities you are going to do at home, you have their after school therapies and activities down to a science and if a snow day hits...well...you are screwed... because your schedule is completely out of whack and you need to come up with a Plan B fast.
I spend my weekends running my daughter around from activity to activity. This weekend we will start the day off at Air Trampoline Sports for their special needs hour, run directly to cheer practice (LI Cheer Sparkles...a special needs all star cheer team) and then run to Kyle's Sports for Special Needs. I will leave my house at 8:15 am and not get back until about 3. That is my day. At that point, I pray that my daughter is so exhausted that sitting in front of a tv long enough for me to start dinner (god bless the video babysitter...that's all I have to say).
From the minute my daughter wakes up (which is usually anywhere between 5:00 - 6:30 am) the first words out of her mouth are "what are we doing today or where are we going today"? If I don't have an answer (on the rare occasion that I actually try to wing it or just simply have a pajama day) then I hear "I want to go some place else". My husband...god bless that genius man....has even gone as far to pick up his cell phone, pretend to dial and say "someplace else...are you open today? You are not? Ok thanks, I will tell Katie...Katie someplace else is closed today". That worked for a little while... So he did what anyone else would do....make up another genius lie (I am telling you the man is a saint)....he would then pick up his phone and go to the internet and pretend to type something in, bring up some random website and show it to her and say "you see, someplace else is closed". She can't read so it worked like a charm...again...for a while.
It is exhausting being a parent of a child who doesn't sit still for a minute. I have friends that have it even rougher then I do, their kids are runners and literally don't sit still for a second let alone a minute. I have actually become good friends with other parents who run there kids around (coincidentally) to the same activities that I do because they have to keep their child busy all of the time.
So...here is the question....which came first....can my child not sit and amuse herself because I have everything planned and keep her on the go OR do I have everything planned and keep her on the go because she can't amuse herself? I often ask myself this question? And the answer I have come up with is this...I have no freaking clue... but this is my life. It doesn't matter how I got here, the fact is, I am here!
I get made fun of by family members and some friends (of typical kids). My nieces have even gone as far as saying "what does Katie have today...knitting class?" It is funny but at the same time, not. I would love to not have to be running all the time. I work full time on top of everything else I do. I take zero time for myself but my daughter is happy (most of the time) and to me, that is all that matters.
For those of you who run your kids all over god's creation like I do...kuddos to you for getting your kids involved in different activities and giving them life experiences. For those of you who don't....man are you lucky you don't have to!
Until Next Time...
Jenn
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