eSpecially Ben

In 2006, three families started a neighborhood club. At that time, our main reason for forming was to setup a babysitting cooperative. I would watch their child one afternoon and then they would repay me the next day or week. The group has since grown to 25 families, a website, guidelines and all types of activities and annual traditions. Today, school was out so I put out an invitation for parents to come over with their kids to make turkeys using felt, feathers and glue. In the end, the house was full of seven boys and one girl – running around, creating turkeys and watching movies. Ben was in the mix of all this, although he absolutely refused to make a turkey or watch Peter Pan. He followed the crowd or spent time in his room watching “Bob”, depending on his mood. On three separate occasions, Ben pulled the little girl’s hair. In his defense, she has lovely hair and the first two times, it was within inches of his hands. The last time, she had learned her lesson and sat a dist

Let me start this off by saying that I am the kind of person who will make a “to do” list that will include “Plan something spontaneous.” And I see nothing wrong with that. I received a call two weeks ago from my son’s case manager. Her supervisor, as part of her graduate school work, started a non-profit organization, called HOPE (Helping Outcomes for Parents with Exceptional children.)   The mission of HOPE is to promote healthy relationships for parents of children with disabilities by providing opportunities to engage in activities within their community. Providing parents with the opportunity to embrace and renew their partnerships to be strong for their children and maintaining the family unit. (Taken from their brochure.)   So the call I was getting was to ask if my husband and I would be willing to go on short notice the next week - Thursday and Friday to Myrtle Beach. I didn’t say, “Hell, YES!” – I am way too polite for that, but you bet your ______, I was thinking it.

A few things happened yesterday that amazed me. At our neighborhood Halloween Festival, Ben was taking his usual rest from his walker by plopping down on the ground. His 1½ year old brother came up to him and offered his hands to help Ben get up. Then Raggs  arrived. He is a 7 foot tall dog who has his own show on PBS. Ben watches this show often. When it came to Ben’s turn to give Raggs a hug, he would not let go. I mean he really would not let go. Ben was giving Raggs probably the best hug he has ever received. After peeling Ben away, Raggs kept coming back to Ben for more hugs. Their final farewell was sad to watch, Ben did not want to leave. I was amazed by the kindness that both Sean and Raggs showed Ben. It started me thinking about how many people helped us get through Ben’s surgery and week of recovery. We had friends who picked up Logan from school, brought us dinner and told us to call if we needed anything. Grandparents offered to help. My sister sent a gift card to Ben’