Love...

Today is a day that most people set aside to show others how much they love them.

I would like to share some things that I love about my boys, and I ope you will share with me what you love about your children!

Caleb,
He is so sweet
He is innocent, and is easily hurt
He loves to hug
He isn't afraid to let me know how much he loves me
He is in love with life
He struggles with big school assignments, just like me, so we work together
He isn't afraid to let the world see him sing and play music, and dance
He is a helper
He cares about others
He tries hard to be fair
He is smarter than he knows
He was my first, and is still teaching me how to be a mom

Logan,
He is zany
He is silly
He is a mush
He loves hugs
He loves to read
He loves to learn
He is kind
He is understanding of the little ones around him, and helps them
He is a worrier, and always worried about someone else
He wants to learn how to knit, which is a skill I do not have, but he has patience with me
He can be easy going
He loves God, truly, and it shows in his concern and passion

Aaron,
He thinks everything is amazing
He is growing into a polite young boy
He cares about others
He loves to help
He sees life through his own colored glasses
He is energetic
He is loving
His kisses are sloppy, which is something I never liked in a kiss before
He has taught me to appreciate every day
He adores his brothers
He loves school
He is a leader

These are my boys, and I love them so, even when they make me want to pull my hair out, the fact that I can sit and write out all the things I love about them, makes for a wonderful appreciation of them!


So, what are some wonderful things you love about your children?

A unique creation

Snow, perfect individual flakes landing on the faces, tongues and coats of little children. This was my joy today. I did not experience this sight with my own children today. Only one of them. I was substituting at the preschool today, and seeing the joy in childrens eyes as they watch the snow land was beautiful.

It reminded me, that every being is created unique. And working with these students has helped me to appreciate the uniqueness of those around me.

Caleb, he is so smart, I mean the kind of smart that makes my head spin. Lately, he is struggling in school, and I don't think it is because of his lack of smarts, I think it is that he knows he knows, so he doesn't need to try. Wrong. He said today, I know I can do better than the B I received, and that not doing my best is not acceptable in our house, I will do better. Sigh, I hope he doesn't think that we do not live him because of a silly B, we love him o matter what grade he gets, we expect him to always try his hardest. That is a hard distinction for anyone to make.

Logan...sweet emotional Logan....he is such a good natured child, and he can be so brash. He did really well on his report card, and he is improving in his completion of his school work. We went to the book store on Sunday, and he wanted a book about angry birds. I hate buying books that have to do with games or toys they collect. I really wanted him to get a book that he could read. I was having a day, (and to be honest, I still am) and I walked away. Well, it was a good thing I walked away, because I looked over a few books, and found him some chapter books that he was interested in. I find it so hard to remember what I want him to want and what he wants will always be different. I need to learn to let go...

Aaron, he has had a great weekend. Despite a cold, and a four year olds attitude, he had a great weekend. He enjoyed school yesterday, and today he was a helper. He was able to be a leader, and an example. I was told he said, "yes, ma'am" and showed how things should be. He has grown so much that it is hard for me to believe there was ever a time when we worried about his health.

Life, is busy as always. I enjoy every flake life gives me, because when all those precious flakes fall, and they are all collected on the ground, they sure do make a pretty landscape.

The Beginning...

My name is Melendy, and I am married to Stephen. We have three beautiful sons. Caleb is the oldest, and he was born in September of 2003. He is our smarty pants! He could do puzzles early, and had an interest in rocks and sorting things very early. Caleb grew a very strong obsession with elephants at an early age as well, and has held to this obsession for a while! Caleb can be strong willed, but he prefers to be a lover...he cuddles, and wants to sooth everyone's ouches. Then came Logan who was born in April of 2006. He is our Mr. Independent! he wanted to do things his own way very young. He is just as interested in puzzles and animals, but he prefers monkeys! Logan is extremely strong willed, and loves to be the one caring for others. Then came Aaron. Aaron was the most difficult pregnancy by far. I spent 16 weeks on bed rest due to premature labor with Aaron. He was born four weeks early in November of 2008, and was for all intensive purposes healthy. the first night in the hospital with him, i realized he wasn't responding to me talking to him. I figured he was tired, but my mommy senses immediately kicked in. At 10 weeks actual age (6 weeks adjusted) he got RSV and had to be hospitalized for a few nights. I realized at the hospital how little he responded to sounds (I was already worried about his vision and hearing). so I called the hospital who delivered him, and did his newborn hearing test. He had "passed" his newborn screen. It turns out that there are two parts to a hearing test. the first puts oressure into your ear to see if your ear drum works, the second actually transmits sound into the ear and tests to see if there is a brainstem response. the second half of this test was never done at the hospital. so I demanded an appointment for a retest. I was given one that day, and under not the best circumstances (i went alone with 3 children!) it was decided that his ears were not responding to sound, and that he could be deaf, or he could just have a lot of wax in his ears! (seriously what the doctor said) so I went looking for a second opinion. This second opinion was found in Boston, at the Children's Hospital. the doctors their were eager to meet Aaron, to test Aaron, and to help us down the right path for him! at 23 weeks of age, just shy of 6 months old, Aaron met with his new audiologist and ENT. they said the structure of his ear looked good from the outside, and that he was really too young for any test in office to be conclusive. he was originally scheduled for an ABR (Auditory Brain stem Response Test) in June, but he became ill just a few days before, and the procedure had to be postponed until August 6, 2009. He was found to have severe to profound hearing loss, and the next steps are still up in the air! I plan to use this blog as a journal as well as an informative tool for all of the people lucky enough to be in Aaron's life! we know that God will get us through this, but we also know he gives us the people in our lives that he does so that we can persevere!