Sonshine of my life (corny, eh?)
I was working as a manager in a convenience store in 1997. Putting in 100 hour weeks, and loving it. Anytime I got sick, I worked right through it - the flu, bronchitis, food poisoning... You name it. It the convenience store business, especially in management, you learn to do that.
One September, I came down with what I thought was the flu, only even after a couple of weeks, it wouldn't go away. It was messing with my work, so I went to the doctor. One thing about me, if it's not life threatening, I never go to the doctor.
I went in and told him what the problem was, and after some blood work, he called me back into the exam room.
"Well, Anita, you don't have the flu" He said, not quite looking me in the eye. He had been my only doctor since 7th grade, and I knew something was up.
"Congratulations, you're pregnant."
I was shocked. My husband (at the time) R and I had been trying for 10 years to have a second child, and had given up completely. But now, at 30, here I was - pregnant!
It wasn't exactly an easy pregnancy, I had to give up my manager position because of the hours, and worked as assistant. Even that, after a while, I had to quit because of my blood pressure.
At 6 months, I went in for emergency gall bladder surgery. The "sandman" (honestly, that's what his personalized tag says on his truck!) assured me that nothing in the medicines they were using would hurt my baby. I don't think you really understand pain until you have a very active baby kicking you from under your staples, and not being able to take any pain meds.
The last 6 weeks were pretty much bed rest, also because of my blood pressure.
When I finally gave birth to him, a tiny 6 lbs. 13 oz., there was a bit of trouble with his heartbeat, and then he was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, and they had a bit of trouble getting his breathing started.
We took him home healthy and on time, however, and I was so in love... I still am.
When he was about 8 months old, he was growing and learning, and progressing at an above average rate. I was working driving a van for the railroad at the time, and his father was home with him when I was working, and I was home when his father was working. One day the job kept me out for over 24 hours. Before I left, my son came down with a fever, and we had no medicine to give him, so we decided to just wait it out. He kept that fever for a couple of days, and afterwards we always thought we could see a difference in his reactions to things, in the brightness in his eyes.... But there was no way to tell if the fever had done any damage.
He has developed what has been diagnosed as ADHD, but with all the little things that happened since he was conceived, I wonder....
Anyway, the medicine they have him on is helping immensely.
Complete strangers tell me how sweet he is.. And how unlike other children his age he is... He is not always wanting things, he hasn't a material bone in his body, and he doesn't much like candy, never asks for soda... He loves to help people, and is extremely compassionate, his concern for his classmates will have him in tears if they get hurt, or are upset. He loves to help me, and often will say "Yes Ma'am!" as he is running off to do something that I have asked him to do.
Of course, as with any child, he has his moments, and his occasional temper tantrums, but he is the most amazing child I have ever met, and I would think that even if he wasn't mine.
Nothing in the world will ever come before him in my life, not until he is grown into the person I can see him becoming. I am a mother, first and foremost, and my son's whole future depends on the care he gets now - and his parents are the ones he needs that care from. I realize that a lot of children and parents can't have the relationship that I share with my son, but if I have the ability, don't I owe it to him to give him everything I have?To be a daily part of his life? I think so.
One September, I came down with what I thought was the flu, only even after a couple of weeks, it wouldn't go away. It was messing with my work, so I went to the doctor. One thing about me, if it's not life threatening, I never go to the doctor.
I went in and told him what the problem was, and after some blood work, he called me back into the exam room.
"Well, Anita, you don't have the flu" He said, not quite looking me in the eye. He had been my only doctor since 7th grade, and I knew something was up.
"Congratulations, you're pregnant."
I was shocked. My husband (at the time) R and I had been trying for 10 years to have a second child, and had given up completely. But now, at 30, here I was - pregnant!
It wasn't exactly an easy pregnancy, I had to give up my manager position because of the hours, and worked as assistant. Even that, after a while, I had to quit because of my blood pressure.
At 6 months, I went in for emergency gall bladder surgery. The "sandman" (honestly, that's what his personalized tag says on his truck!) assured me that nothing in the medicines they were using would hurt my baby. I don't think you really understand pain until you have a very active baby kicking you from under your staples, and not being able to take any pain meds.
The last 6 weeks were pretty much bed rest, also because of my blood pressure.
When I finally gave birth to him, a tiny 6 lbs. 13 oz., there was a bit of trouble with his heartbeat, and then he was born with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, and they had a bit of trouble getting his breathing started.
We took him home healthy and on time, however, and I was so in love... I still am.
When he was about 8 months old, he was growing and learning, and progressing at an above average rate. I was working driving a van for the railroad at the time, and his father was home with him when I was working, and I was home when his father was working. One day the job kept me out for over 24 hours. Before I left, my son came down with a fever, and we had no medicine to give him, so we decided to just wait it out. He kept that fever for a couple of days, and afterwards we always thought we could see a difference in his reactions to things, in the brightness in his eyes.... But there was no way to tell if the fever had done any damage.
He has developed what has been diagnosed as ADHD, but with all the little things that happened since he was conceived, I wonder....
Anyway, the medicine they have him on is helping immensely.
Complete strangers tell me how sweet he is.. And how unlike other children his age he is... He is not always wanting things, he hasn't a material bone in his body, and he doesn't much like candy, never asks for soda... He loves to help people, and is extremely compassionate, his concern for his classmates will have him in tears if they get hurt, or are upset. He loves to help me, and often will say "Yes Ma'am!" as he is running off to do something that I have asked him to do.
Of course, as with any child, he has his moments, and his occasional temper tantrums, but he is the most amazing child I have ever met, and I would think that even if he wasn't mine.
Nothing in the world will ever come before him in my life, not until he is grown into the person I can see him becoming. I am a mother, first and foremost, and my son's whole future depends on the care he gets now - and his parents are the ones he needs that care from. I realize that a lot of children and parents can't have the relationship that I share with my son, but if I have the ability, don't I owe it to him to give him everything I have?To be a daily part of his life? I think so.
posted by Amethyst Rising at 9:56 AM
2 Comments:
Good for you!
He sounds like a precious little boy. The relationship between parents and children (particularly Moms and their children) is something that just cannot be described.
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