We got life....

Catchy title, huh? :-) So, today was the big ARD to discuss Miss Lydia and her progress and placement. This was our best ARD yet....They finally "got it". I felt like everything that we've been trying to relay to the school since May has finally clicked and we are now getting all of the services Lydia needs. In May, we received many responses such as, "Oh, she might surprise you. Once she gets in school, she may catch right up." Hmmm....interesting. The diagnosis that we have for Lydia is Intellectual Disability. She has received two IQ tests that score her IQ between 63 and 65. Somehow, they weren't willing to accept that. Now they have. They understand Lydia and as we told them, have become attached to Lydia. Today, we made the following decisions...Lydia will be placed in a self-contained Life Skills class (this is not offered at our current campus, so on January 3, Lydia will begin at a new school.), begin receiving OT services once a week at school, and continue to receive Speech twice a week at school. Her kindergarten teacher had tears in her eyes as she said, "I feel like I didn't do enough for her." While I know that is not true, I felt like saying, "Now you know how I feel." So, while all of this is exactly what we feel is best for Lydia, there's reality. In a month, we will be transitioning her to a new school with people she doesn't know. That's going to be big. She has one friend who takes "care of her" in class and we even went to her birthday party. That was big....I am praying that she quickly adapts to her new school and finds another compassionate 5 year old. Last night, she told me that another boy told her that she needed to take her "boy lunch box home." She has a CARS lunchbox...she has loved CARS since she was little...I asked her if it made her sad and she said yes. I gave her the "mom talk" and told her he wasn't in charge of what she does (We did send her with a pink lunchbox today - we're not a glutton for punishment :-)). She then said he told her it was weird. Later, she told me that she didn't want me to read her a book before bed because, "Someone made me weird." Okay... so mama bear jumped in and I'm thinking, "I need his name and address and I will take care of this boy." Instead, I told her God made her special and she only needed to listen to her mommy. I relayed all of this to her teacher this morning and she again had tears in her eyes and told me she would take care of it. Having been a classroom teacher, I know you cannot control everything and unfortunately, this is part of growing up. I hate it, but it does mold us...good and bad.
On another note, I again went through the Santa issue with Lydia. She cannot comprehend the whole thing and I decided I would not lie to her. Since she is terrified of the Santa in the stores, it would not be helpful to tell her Santa was coming to her house while she is sleeping. So, while we were decorating the tree the other day, I told her, "Santa is pretend and Jesus is real." To me, that is what she needs to know. So, later that night, we went to the Fort Worth Parade of Lights and Lydia announced on the sidewalk, "Momma, Santa is pretend, right?" Nicely played :-) I feel like not doing Santa is not festive or something and then I think, "I so strongly believe in Christmas and the celebration of our Savior's birth and love Christmas traditions, but Lydia's sense of reality is in my hands and I will not mess with that." All of that to say, I dragged Lily for a picture with Santa :-) Sorry, babe...
Miss Lily is growing by leaps and bounds. She is talking and jabbering so much and it is so fun to see. Lydia tries to get her to say certain things like "dump truck" the other day. I just rolled my eyes and then heard Lily say, "dup truck". Okay, so Lydia might be Lily's greatest teacher. She says, "momma, dada, Leeah (Lydia), dah (dog), milk, mo (more), and many more one time things (like "toothbrush"). She is fast, running and climbing all over. She loves school and is such a blessing. However, because it runs in the family, Lily is also very strong-willed. I don't know where they get it from ;-)
So, since I missed the 30 days of thankfulness in November, here's my list:
I am thankful for:
1. God - I could not imagine going through the trials of life without my Savior by my side.
2. Matt - he is 1 Corinthian 13...loving, kind, patient, ...He is my perfect match...
3. Lydia - I love this sweet girl more than words can say. Her challenges teach me something new every day.
4. Lily - she is our rainbow after the storm....after we lost Levi, our hearts were broken....Lily's sweet spirit and cuddly hugs have healed us...
5. Being able to stay home - I do not ever take this for granted and feel so blessed to be able to do so during this season of life...I know someday I will need to return to work but am thankful it is not now...
5. Chick-fil-A - I have an addiction and no, I don't want help for it!
6. My preschool job - I love teaching the 4 and 5 year olds in my class.
7. Our home - I love our home and the space in it.
8. Extended family - while our families are far away, we are blessed with daily phone calls and emotional support.
9. Face Time and Skype - it allows us to stay in touch with our families.
10. Facebook - I love Facebook, especially since we've moved several times over the years. It's allowed me to stay in touch with so many people and not lose precious friendships.

While I didn't make it to 30 things, those are the basics. I am thankful for so many things, most especially God's grace.

So, there's a glimpse....I have so many other thoughts, especially as I process our future with Miss Lydia....I hope to share those soon.