My role as a mom is like peanut butter and jelly. Zoie is my peanut butter, Ivie is my sweet jelly. With Zoie, things can get sticky real fast, her diagnosis can complicate things in the blink of an eye. Ivie isn't quite as complicated or sticky, but we all know these healthy kids can be complicated too, just in different ways. In this circumstance, different colors.
I'm lucky enough to have a peanut butter and a jelly kid, as im sure most of you are. Your peanut butter may be your little toddler who throws himself down in the middle of the aisle at Target, or your teenager who argues you about everything. Your jelly may be your sweet newborn baby who just lays there and sleeps all day, or your precious 5 year old who has started taking care of himself and given you a bit more freedom finally! If I make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, it may look similar to yours, but never exactly the same. As moms, I believe we need to think of our bunches of kids the same way. My peanut butter and jelly (Zoie and Ivie) may be similar to your peanut butter and jelly, but at the same time they are going to be so different.
My peanut butter happens to have life threatening diagnosis. As a mom, I do my absolute best to deal with this sticky mess that life threw at us. My peanut butter may need more medicines than yours, but she may smile more. Or, she may not be able to talk, but we still know she "communicates" with is through body language and sounds. No two peanut butters are the same.
My jelly (Ivie Mae) may be similar to your jellies, but at the same time very different. She may say more sassy words than yours, but isn't walking like yours. She may have a horrible gag reflux like her mom, and yours may be eating huge cheeseburgers. She may adore her daddy for putting her to bed every night, while you read yours bedtime stories.
My point is, is that as moms, we all have different kids and different situations. Where im blessed enough to know what life is like with a special needs peanut butter and a very healthy jelly, yours may be a stubborn peanut butter, and a precious 2 week old jelly. Instead of always trying to "understand" what my peanut butter and jelly situation may be like and vise versa, let's embrace that ALL of our kids are uniquely different and support those differences.
Being a mom is the hardest thing I have ever done; emotionally, physically, and mentally. Adding that peanut butter and jelly in there makes it much more tough. I would never change my peanut butter and jelly kids or momhood, because I am getting to experience two completely different sides to things between the two.
Most of you are two, just remember, no peanut butter or jelly sandwich is ever quite the same, and that that's okay.
I remember when you were born, 4 very short years ago. School wasn't even in your dad and I's minds. It's almost as if we forgot that when you have a child, part of them growing up is sending them off to school. You would think this would have crossed my mind being an Elementary Ed Grad, but we were so caught up in the now, and making sure we took our lives day by day, that no, school never came up. We decided to keep you home for your first year of preschool, due to your Cystic Fibrosis and learning delays. We wanted to strengthen your immune system an extra year, keep working on home therapies to help your brain development, speech, and muscle movement. You also had a very special friend at home to learn and grow with you; your baby sister Ivie. The last year you two have taught each other so much, she has pushed you, and you have pushed her. I'm so thankful we kept you home for that extra year! We have found a great preschool for you! It's called the Monroe Ear...
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