A Day With my Firstborn
Firstborn had the day off from school so we headed to the mall for some much overdue Sunday clothes. In the past six month, the kid has grown 5". He was beginning to look like Lurch with his too-short shirt sleeves.
We headed to the men's department. The suit salesman took one look at Firstborn, rubbed his white hair and announced that he didn't " have anything for a size 28 waist. You are a size 28 waist, aren't you Son?" I started laughing. Firstborn might have a size 28 waist if he sucked in as much air as he could to distend his belly. We were escorted to the boys department where I dubiously looked at the pants thinking that we would never find the length we needed. Welcome to the land of growing teens.
One pair of pants + a short-sleeved white shirt + a tie = a lot of money......unless you are shopping in a department store that is currently undergoing remodeling and has huge sales to draw in customers. Gotta love 50% off. More important than the savings was the conversation. It is rare lately for Firstborn and I to have regular conversations. The kind where there is no correction or teen 'tude involved. It was so nice to just listen to him and be witness to what a great kid he is turning out to be.
After the mall, we headed to the elementary school to pick up my daughter. She was so thrilled to see her big brother. She introduced him to her Special Ed teachers, her kindergarten teacher and her future first grade teacher. I was proud of how Firstborn carried himself. He look people in the eye, told everyone it was nice to meet them, and gave out high-fives to the other kids in the Resource room (there was one particular boy with Down syndrome who was drawn like a magnet to my son. He received multiple high-fives). I was proud to be his mom.
We headed to lunch at Firstborn's favorite place. Dear Daughter wanted to sit by him, talk to him, idolize him. She never gets him to herself so it was fun to watch their interaction. The love was given and received on both sides. They shared food together while Firstborn encouraged Dear Daughter to talk about her day.
It is days like these where God's plans become just a bit more clearer to me. Would Firstborn be a good kid if DD did not have Down syndrome? Quite possibly. Would he be so comfortable around kids with disabilities if he was not exposed to the community of families that Dear Daughter has introduced to us through her schooling and activities? Probably not. Right now, I see a 15 year old boy who has patience, wisdom, and understanding beyond the average teen. I want to enjoy this moment but I can't help thinking about what a great missionary he will be and, further down the road, what a great husband and father he will be.
God's plan is better than my plan.
4 comments:
Uh oh, does that mean the clothes I gave him no longer fit?
It is quite the great thing, this Mom gig, eh? :)
I miss my firstborn son sooo much! I think they should Missionaries come home on the weekends!
I'm running into something similar in the fit department with Miss V right now. She wears a girls' size 20, which is only carried by a tiny handful of stores. I don't want her to squeeze into smaller stuff, and she still has a girl's shape so most of the small women's sizes don't fit her properly (not to mention that many of the styles are vastly inappropriate for a fifth grader). I can't help thinking that this inexplicable gap between girls' and women's sizes, and the understandable frustration that results, may well contribute to the hatred so many preteen girls seem to harbor against their own bodies.
Yeah, I know, rant rant rant. :)
I can just picture DD eating lunch with her big brother with a huge smile on her face! I can't believe how much he's grown! He always used to be so nice to Claire way back when we were neighbors.
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