Many people have said to me the hardest job you'll ever have is being a Mom. Boy, they weren't kidding! I love being a Mom and enjoy the time and fun I have with my kids but at times it can be thankless job. Kids don't realize all the little things you do to make life run smoothly for them. As a parent all you can do is hope they are receiving the positive values, morals and manners you teach them. Over and over people keep saying "Kids are resilient." Yes, I know they are but it doesn't mean the 5 to 6 months after the surgery will be easy. Yes Ava will adapt but I'm not expecting an easy road. Over the last few weeks my kids have showed strength beyond anything I could of ever imagined. My kids are amazing! Today I had a moment where I actually thought "We're doing something right!"
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying my kids are perfect. In fact they have days where I wish I could ship one of them off. They can be fresh, mouthy and can push me to the limits but they wouldn't be kids unless they did that. Last Wednesday I was driving my kids home from my Mom's house and Jack asked the dreaded question "Is Ava going to be in a cast after her surgery?" Ugghhh....I'm not ready or prepared for this question. Whenever possible David and I always try to tell our kids the truth, why lie when it is going to happen. I have no choice but to answer this questions truthfully "Yes she will be in a cast." There was many questions to follow, to the point of Ava ending up in tears. This happened to be the night before her Endoscopy so I quickly adverted this conversation so I could just prepare her for the next day. After Ava's shout out about not wanting a cast before being put under, David and I realized we need to prepare her for the cast. We may not be able to make her okay with it but we can prepare her for what to expect. So far being completely honest has worked in our favor, hopefully it will help this time to.To my amazement, we discovered this morning that Jack may being doing our job for us. Like many other countless mornings, David and I laid in bed ease dropping on Jack and Ava's conversation as they brushed their teeth. This is what we heard....Ava "How will I brush my teeth when I'm in a cast?" Jack "Mommy and Daddy will help you." Ava " I don't want to be in a cast." Jack "Don't worry Ava, Mommy, Daddy and me will help you with everything. You have to get your hips fixed so you can get taller like your friends." Ava "I'll be as big as Kate, Maddy and Emmy?" Jack "Yes Ava, we're going to get you better." This conversation rolled into other topics but as tears rolled down my face, I realized my kids are awesome. My Jack could not be a better big brother.
Later in the day Jack, Ava and I were driving to their cousins birthday party and they both we're asking me about Ava's surgery. Although David and I had planned to talk to them about the surgery and cast as family, I realized since they were open for conversation I needed to seize the opportunity. One of the many questions was why does Ava need a cast? I explained the best I could that after the hip surgery for the hip to heal properly it needed to be kept perfectly still to do that. They seemed alright with this answer. Jack then asked "How long will the cast be on?" Not wanting to ruin how well this conversation was going, I said "I don't know. The doctor will keep checking for it to be healed and let us know." Okay this is going way better then I could ever have hoped. I talked about how all her friends will come visit her, all the fun games we'll play and fun crafts we'll do and how Mommy will get to be home with her all summer. She's not crying, definitely a good sign. Jack even chimed in "And I'll be with you the whole time." Wow, this kid maybe a better parent then me! I then told Ava that once her hips are better we want to get her something extra special for her birthday, what does she want? Ava decided she wants a pink big girl bike with training wheels. Yes Ava, we'll get you the best bike ever.Tonight at bath time we filled Daddy in our conversation. Ava was so excited to to tell Daddy about her big girl bike. She even added in "When I get big, like 6 or 7, I"ll take the training wheels off!" She is one incredible kid. As we talked Jack asked "Will I be in school when ever has the surgery?" Me "Yes it's on a school day but it's up to you where you want to be." Jack "I want to be there." Me " Okay, but lets make that decision when the day comes. It might even be field day so you might want to go to school." Jack's response "I think Ava is more important then field day." Wow! Jack is such an wonderful, kind hearted little boy. I can not even express how proud of my kids I am. It's hard to believe they are only 7 and 4. My kids are truly amazing!
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying my kids are perfect. In fact they have days where I wish I could ship one of them off. They can be fresh, mouthy and can push me to the limits but they wouldn't be kids unless they did that. Last Wednesday I was driving my kids home from my Mom's house and Jack asked the dreaded question "Is Ava going to be in a cast after her surgery?" Ugghhh....I'm not ready or prepared for this question. Whenever possible David and I always try to tell our kids the truth, why lie when it is going to happen. I have no choice but to answer this questions truthfully "Yes she will be in a cast." There was many questions to follow, to the point of Ava ending up in tears. This happened to be the night before her Endoscopy so I quickly adverted this conversation so I could just prepare her for the next day. After Ava's shout out about not wanting a cast before being put under, David and I realized we need to prepare her for the cast. We may not be able to make her okay with it but we can prepare her for what to expect. So far being completely honest has worked in our favor, hopefully it will help this time to.To my amazement, we discovered this morning that Jack may being doing our job for us. Like many other countless mornings, David and I laid in bed ease dropping on Jack and Ava's conversation as they brushed their teeth. This is what we heard....Ava "How will I brush my teeth when I'm in a cast?" Jack "Mommy and Daddy will help you." Ava " I don't want to be in a cast." Jack "Don't worry Ava, Mommy, Daddy and me will help you with everything. You have to get your hips fixed so you can get taller like your friends." Ava "I'll be as big as Kate, Maddy and Emmy?" Jack "Yes Ava, we're going to get you better." This conversation rolled into other topics but as tears rolled down my face, I realized my kids are awesome. My Jack could not be a better big brother.
Later in the day Jack, Ava and I were driving to their cousins birthday party and they both we're asking me about Ava's surgery. Although David and I had planned to talk to them about the surgery and cast as family, I realized since they were open for conversation I needed to seize the opportunity. One of the many questions was why does Ava need a cast? I explained the best I could that after the hip surgery for the hip to heal properly it needed to be kept perfectly still to do that. They seemed alright with this answer. Jack then asked "How long will the cast be on?" Not wanting to ruin how well this conversation was going, I said "I don't know. The doctor will keep checking for it to be healed and let us know." Okay this is going way better then I could ever have hoped. I talked about how all her friends will come visit her, all the fun games we'll play and fun crafts we'll do and how Mommy will get to be home with her all summer. She's not crying, definitely a good sign. Jack even chimed in "And I'll be with you the whole time." Wow, this kid maybe a better parent then me! I then told Ava that once her hips are better we want to get her something extra special for her birthday, what does she want? Ava decided she wants a pink big girl bike with training wheels. Yes Ava, we'll get you the best bike ever.Tonight at bath time we filled Daddy in our conversation. Ava was so excited to to tell Daddy about her big girl bike. She even added in "When I get big, like 6 or 7, I"ll take the training wheels off!" She is one incredible kid. As we talked Jack asked "Will I be in school when ever has the surgery?" Me "Yes it's on a school day but it's up to you where you want to be." Jack "I want to be there." Me " Okay, but lets make that decision when the day comes. It might even be field day so you might want to go to school." Jack's response "I think Ava is more important then field day." Wow! Jack is such an wonderful, kind hearted little boy. I can not even express how proud of my kids I am. It's hard to believe they are only 7 and 4. My kids are truly amazing!
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