Break on through to the other side

Motherhood. To borrow from a Tale of Two Cities "It was the best of times. It was the worst of times"

I think back to the days when I:

...was absolutely positive that I would not LIVE another single second if I didn't get more than two hours of uninterrupted sleep. But I did.

...couldn't wait for them to eat with a spoon, tie their own shoes, bathe themselves, go to school all day. And then they did.

And now I see:

An 8 and 10 year old, who do their homework with practically no assistance from me, make their beds, help with chores, set out their own clothes, remind ME of things they need for school.

Why so nostalgic today? Because today...my oldest brought home a 98 on a unit math test. All I did the week before, was ask his teacher to send home some extra skill sheets for him to use. He did the rest himself.

I can't tell you how HUGE this is for him...and for me and for the family. Last year, passing was all we could hope for him. A 98 was just this impossibly far star in a constellation that we could barely see for him. BamBam was diagnosed with ADD last spring, a diagnosis that we fought and fought and fought....for YEARS.

Until we couldn't fight anymore. And all my love and extra time couldn't help. And the disproportional time we were spending with him began to negatively impacting Thumper.

But now? Now he can stand on his own and do the work and claim the pride in that work. ALL on his own. His self esteem? The light has come back to his eyes.

Last spring we had the diagnosis and the meds, but we had the baggage of the first of the year and the years before.

This is a new year.

It is FINALLY his time to shine.

Shine on my star...shine on.

Side note: If you suspect your child or MORE importantly your child's teacher suspects they have ADD? Don't wait. Get them tested. And for those who don't think there is such a thing as ADD?Neither did my DH. He was the world's most vocal critic of the suggestion and then the testing and the whole stigma. And please don't get me started about the meds. You would have thought Concerta was the AntiChrist in his book. But 7 months later...let's just say time has a way of bringing things to light.