Blizzard and Battling Boredom

This morning off my deck.

Being cooped up in at the tail end of a Midwestern blizzard with temperatures of -2, I am not sure what exactly I have to say. I am thankful we live in town, so we can easily navigate driving. I am certain some of my metropolitan readers will find our reference, to living inside of a small community of less than 7,000, as “in town” versus living in the country amusing. It never occurred to me this was actually funny until Tom and I lived in Chicago. When we go to our large neighboring community about 20 minutes away, we refer to this as “going into town.”

Exploring

Spending even a few minutes outside is dangerous. Especially today. If Eli gets cabin fever he spends 5 minutes bundling up, so he can spend 5 minutes outside. Sidney has an utter fascination with the snow. She was too little to enjoy playing outside last winter. As soon as the snow began falling Saturday, she climbed on a chair, reaching a high hook, telling us, “I go outside.” Temperatures were considerably warmer, so we could go outside and let the kids get rid of some energy. Mom shoveled, and Sidney discovered a new world. Watching her exist as a child is one of the greatest joys of being an adoptive parent.   

After being cooped up together, it felt great to attend church. Sidney received a bracelet during the children’s sermon with small beads, representing the Christmas story. Afterward, she made a game of taking the beads on and off the pipe cleaner. This might not sound newsworthy for a blog, but this is huge news in our family. She has incredible fine motor skills for someone her age, and she is missing two digits on each hand. If only I had known everything would be like this the first few days I pined away about her condition.

Confirming there were undiagnosed needs, meaning her leg with a limb discrepancy and syndactyly (webbing) on her right hand, I was in utter shock. I was prepared for this, I read the books, I talked with parents in the China adoption community; however I fell apart for a few hours after getting back to the hotel. This was no different than what any adoptive parent goes through. It only took a day to figure out Sidney was fine. None of what was going on from an orthopedic standpoint hindered her spirit. My resolve shifted from sadness about what she had endured, as a result of her condition; to understanding Tom and I were going to become her greatest advocates. What a blessing to be the person given this awesome responsibility.

I will end my blog with sharing a couple of photos of our pecans. My friend Lisa from our travel group sent me a box. We completed a majority over Thanksgiving weekend, stashing them in the freezer until I use them baking for Christmas. Eli has enjoyed assisting with the cracking. Sidney assisted for a small portion. Thank you again Lisa!