Jonny taught himself how to ride a two wheel bike today! He is so proud of himself!
Sure a teeney-tiny part of me feels like I missed out on that initial moment when he learned, but I made sure to let him feel extra special because he was our first child to learn how to ride a bike all by himself!
Sveta is an amazing knitter---- just look at her latest creation! She has the ability to focus on a knitting project and finish it with zero mistakes. At first, I thought she would never be able to keep track of her stitches, let alone make no mistakes, but my daughter has proved me wrong. And I am so proud of her! What makes her knitting so special (compared to my other girls) is that it represents focus, perseverance, creativity, determination, passion...... all things you do not usually associate with fetal alcohol syndrome. And I am beginning to think that she is capable of so much more than what I led myself to believe at first. Over the years, she has surprised me over and over with what she has learned to accomplish. Someone once told me that FAS is not a death sentence, and from my own experience with my daughter Sveta, I can't emphasize that enough!
I think that I need to start expecting more out of her........ stop making excuses for her....... and encourage her to dream big! I admit that after almost 14 years, I still don't have this parenting thing down, but I am so glad that God is faithful, showing me where I need to grow...... change...... and encourage my kids.
31 comments:
Your kids are so amazing--each and every one of them! And not a small part of that is because they have such a wonderful, encouraging mother. :-)
Wow!! Two really amazing accomplishments :) Congrats (and big hugs!) to both Jonny and Sveta. Awesome!!
I've been doing some knitting and crotchet for the grandchildren for Easter. To complete a project with no mistakes. . . I wish I could say that. Congratulations Sveta and Jonny the amazing biker!
That's wonderful! Two big accomplishments for two great kids! Sveta looks so proud of her work! That's great. :o)
Way to go Johnny!
..
wow...that is a beautiful scraf Sveta.
Wow, how cool! Well done Jonny and Sveta!
Cxx
PS I would love to send Sveta some yarn for her next project...may I?
Hey, that's great!
I bet they were both grinning from ear to ear.
I remember teaching myself to ride a bike. What a clever boy you have! my boy wont even get ON a two wheeled bike without trainers. He was a bit hesitant to leave his tricycle behind. he has the balance just not the confidence. So way to go Jonny. and Sveta! wow! She is definitely one smart little girl.
That is so great about Sveta and her knitting!! Sasha always amazes me as well and always goes above and beyond what I thought possible....she has just memorized the New Testament Books of the Bible!! That is something I really didn't think she would be able to do :)
Way to go Sveta!!!! It is amazing what our kids can do!!!! Especially the ones who have "challenges"!!!! Praise God!!!!
Its amazing how much our children can teach us about ourselves. Congratulations to Sveta...and to YOU for being willing to take a second look at your children and your hopes and dreams for their lives. God is going to use that girl in a BIG way...I'm sure of it! :)
♥ I need to teach my kids to right their bikes with out training wheels. i've tried to teach Emma and she still can't get it.
she did a GREAT job ont he scarf. It looks fantastic! :)
Yay Sveta and Johnny! Way to go :)
Congrats to Jonny!
I must admit that the look of accomplishment on Sveta's face speaks to the Mama behind the camera. You must have really been praising her and it shows in her face. It brought a tear to my eye. She is really doing an amazing job and you have every right to be proud!
Keri
Way to go Jonny and Sveta! (That scarf looks better quality than any I have ever knitted.)
Way to go Sveta! Your scarf is very pretty and original.
Congrats to Jonny on mastering his bike w/o training wheels.
Those are two excellent achievements. I like knitting because there is a pattern and you can be creative without massive amounts of artistic talent.
:)
Way to go Jonny! I love Sveta's scarf too.....amazing kids, amazing parents! :)
Nick still prefers his larger than normal tricylce. He has a bike but says it is too high! ;)
Beautiful job Sveta!! Way to go Jonny! You've got a bunch of awesome kids!
That is great. I love you outlook on things. I know from working in a daycare sometimes kids labled and people don't expect as much. I love that you're not putting her in a box. You are a wonderful Mom.
I think you are doing a wonderful job of parenting! Wish I'd had half the smarts that you exhibit!
Tell Sveta that I am totally impressed. To finish the project without any mistakes is such the accomplishment. I am 36 years old and still find stitches I "missed" when I crotchet or knit. I also LOVED the design of her scarf!! Very original and impossible to duplicate, just like Sveta. Get her to dream big, she will just take a different route to get there, but she will get there!!
Kellie Bassett
Bixby, Oklahoma
Beautiful job Sveta! And WTGo Johnny!
Congratulations to both!
Sveta, Beautiful scarf! Congratulations on your knitting!
Carolyn
Beautiful job, Sveta!!
Hi Christine!
I see you have found me...I have been lurking your blog since you brought little Dennis home. You and your family have been a great inspiration to me as I (and my husband) have begun this journey to adoption...thank you!
Tami
Umh....what happend to John's amazing post?
Did i have a rather vivid dream?
K
The scarf is fantastic - way to knit Sveta! How wonderful.
Christine, as always, I love your honesty in parenting. Always encouraging and thought provoking. Thank you.
The knitting is beautiful. This reminds me of a book (I think it was called Green Dolphin Street, by Elizabeth Goudge). Goudge is one of my all-time favorite Christian writers....her novels have great depth. If it was not that novel, it was another where there was a child who was a complete miss-out at school...had all kinds of learning disabilities...but who had a skill at something (I think it may have been needlework).
I guess I'd say, encourage Sveta where she shows talent and the ability to persevere, and forgive her (make excuses, if you will) when there really IS an excuse.
A friend and I were just realizing the other day that we DON'T use math! Apart from very basic addition and subtraction, and an occasional 26 cookies divided by five kids....(I get one!)...all of that math struggle was completely useless for us.
Some people obviously show a gift for math and fly off in that direction; others are adequate and may or may not have jobs or other reason to use it.... But I wish I could go back in time and redeem all the miserable hours I spent on math that might have been spent learning something valuable for ME. (And all the miserable hours MY daughter spent on math were completely useless, because for her it was not a matter of forgetting it from disuse, it is a matter of being absolutely incapable....but I trust her brilliant mastery of the language and social skills to get her through.)
I hear you. I always worry about my dd in the future. good to know there is hope on the horizon
Post a Comment