poodleduck

To all the moms in the world that feel two steps behind their children - this one is for you!!

We have a small boy that is constantly moving and exploring - He is resilient to the point of almost being "damageproof" - in our house we call him Poodleduck.
Poodleduck began life about four and a half years ago - at four months of age he became very ill - throwing up, passing out, constant difficulty breathing and chronic diarrhea - What fun!!

He took his time becoming mobile due to the sickness he was suffering from - but oh how he has more than made up for our concern!! At 16 months he got into his diaper bag and AMAZINGLY figured out the complicated process of the implement needed to save his life - the EPIPEN!
Not only did Poodleduck figure the thing out - he also proceeded to inject himself with it as I was coming back down the stairs. OH MY STARS!! into his stomach he stuck the needle - right under his heart. Needless to say we took a fun ride in the ambulance to children's hospital to see that Poodleduck would be just fine - minus the unreal shaking and vomiting that occurred :)

Poodleduck is on special formula for his disorder and a thickener to help him not to aspirate. Poodleduck LOVES his "cuppy". So much so that Poodleduck's next foray was at about 28mths old (I truly believe that God does NOT give you any more than you can handle at any one time when you depend on him) - getting the chair, pushing it over to the counter and climbing up into the cabinet to get the cans - the first time he did this he ate his formula. A couple of weeks later I found him in his thickener - YUCK!! - he was loving it!!

Poodleduck kept us all hopping - his sisters (Boo and Moosa) were constantly calling - "mom, he's..." "MOM!! Now He's..." Whew I didn't know what to do - Thank God for blessing him with such ability to bounce back despite his limitations - or ask God to please SLOW HIM DOWN. Such a quandary!

There have been the amazing tricks of getting out of any buckle - falling headfirst onto the concete floor of Target - he was fine, not even a bruise - just minor heart failure for mom and the man walking by on the cell phone:) - and numerous others.

Life moved along - poodleduck kept exploring - the next event was also solely for mom (did I mention dad was working a second job and poodleduck NEVER tried anything unusual when he was home - oh the added guilt to my already tender 'mommy failed' heart) - poodleduck climbed on the bathroom counter and proceeded to paint the mirror, himself, the sink and the counter with liquid hand soap. Does anyone know how many suds can come out of one SoftSoap pump? I do. That day poodleduck learned that soap did not taste good at all!! That one left us all laughing hysterically as Poodleduck sat covered and trying to figure out why he could not get away from the taste.

These are our highlights of Poodleduck in action - never feel bad when your children get hurt or make messes or put a hole in your leather seat or get inside the closet to color (only there was conveniently no paper - only walls to beautify) - kids need the exploration and experimentation as well as the natural consequences of their actions. Just love them, guide them, treasure them, and know we only have them for a short time so give them all you can - but teach them materials are not what matters - THEY are. Jobs are important, but not more important than their made up dance just for you, and know that exhaustion is just part of knowing you are doing good!!

God Bless and keep going
Romans 8:28