CHDs take so much from families. One casualty is the attention we give to our other children. It has suffered under the weight of surgeries, recoveries, appointments, and what the next step is. We lose sight of other obligations and I know it has affected the other two girls. Elizabeth is mature enough to know it is for a good reason, but Adeline isn’t. She pushes our buttons every way she can to make sure we are paying attention. I know why she does it. Doesn’t lessen the frustration level at all but I do understand that it must be hard to go from being a center of attention to part of the chorus. Which is why we wanted to make this day so special.
Of course, it started out like a regular saturday with both of us threatening, frustrated and at our wits end by 10am. Then the bouncy house showed up. The balloons came. Decorations went up and she couldn’t wait to play with the Uniqua piñata we bought on clearance from iParty. Addie did her best to behave but the temptation to do what she wanted was too much, and so I heard the crinkle of the bag of Jax opening after I specifically said that she could not have them for breakfast.
Then came the moment when Isabelle decided to reach for something that was on the floor in front of the couch while she was on the couch, causing her to tumble off onto the floor. It took a while for her to stop crying. Thoughts like “Did her sternum break? Did she hit her head? Did that jostle her repair at all? Is she crying because she is frightened or is she in pain?”
Crisis averted. Back to prepping for tacos! She finally calmed down but didn’t want anyone else to hold her so I had to grow another set of arms to cut fruit, vegetables and prepare the taco shells. Awesome.
As people started to arrive Addie became more and more excited. People were there to see her and celebrate her. She loves being with both her nanas and papas. The novelty of having both sets at her house makes her happy. She points them out to everyone, and runs back and forth from the jumpy house to the house. The party lasted for hours. No one seemed to mind at all. Everyone was having a good time, enjoying themselves and celebrating.
I’m happy the party went well for Adeline. It has been a hard year for her. She has had to make many adjustments without understanding why. She just wants love. A bedtime story, some hugs and someone to play with. She deserved a fun day and we enjoyed making her happy. Today was a day all about her and she loved every minute.
hopeinaheartshape 