I made a quick trip to see my older son's family yesterday and to help out after my granddaughter had tubes put into her ears. She was fine, but parents were frazzled, and it so brought back memories. I was totally sympathetic and told my daughter in law to go take a nap. 4:30 mornings are not fun and just irritate the natural trepidations of any kind of surgery on a child. My son went on to work, but would have rather taken a long nap, too.
My younger son had surgeries until he was in the fifth grade, and I am hopeful that my grand will not need them again. Everything was going fine until I changed her diaper. She was scalded from the antibiotics and started screaming, so mommy woke up from a much too short nap.
After checking that her chick was OK, she did get a mental break while we played outside for the rest of the morning. I left her with a reminder to take another nap when her daughter did. I never would have survived the toddler years without regular naps.
As I drove home, I remembered my most traumatic times with my own kids. My older son was pretty healthy, but I remember the anguish of a sprained ankle. He insisted that he was OK and could ride his bike, but I still wonder if I should have taken him to the doctor just to be sure it was "just a sprained ankle." It was much more complicated with the younger son. He had years of tubes, paper implants, and finally at age 10, a tissue implant. He also had his tonsils and adenoids taken out and will always have to stay clear of small ponds and such.
I remember one really hard time when my husband was in Corpus with a hip replacement, and my son was in Victoria with a tubes surgery. I was flying low between Victoria and Rockport when a state trooper pulled me over. He asked if I even knew how fast I was driving, and that was when I broke down. I boohooed that my baby had just had tubes put in and my husband wanted me at his side at 6AM, and I was just concentrating on getting home. He made me promise to use my cruise control, and I dutifully drove home on 55. He didn't ticket me, but I never speed through that little town anymore. I mentally give thanks that God uses state troopers to keep us safe.
As my kids and their kids travel through the challenges of raising children, I am constantly reminded that children are best raised by young parents. The energy it takes to just keep up is a challenge. I was fine as a parent, but I must admit that after playing with grands, a much needed nap always follows. I always leave happy, and am thankful that my kids let me share in the adventures of parenthood. I continue to pray for all members of my family. I pray for their health, happiness, and wellfare. I pray that they get to see the God moments in their lives. God has abundantly blessed us, and I pray that he continues to do so.
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