Those Precious Moments

Jeremy Update:

Today my mom talked with the the therapists, speech and physical, who work with Jeremy. They said he is around level 4 or level 5 of recovery. He shows characteristics of both levels. Honestly I am a bit surprised. I know he is doing things that are well beyond level 3 but I expected level 4 to be much worse. I thought Jeremy would be much more aggressive than he has been. That may have been a misconception on my part as he has been verbally aggressive but rarely physically aggressive. So I think I just was expecting more physical behavior which has not been the case. He worked on writing and reading today and has really been enjoying the books Carter and I have written. It's neat to see him look at them. I brought Carter's newest book up this evening and before I got the chance to read it to him he grabbed it from me and immediately started looking through the pictures Carter drew while tracking the words with his eyes so he may have been reading, just not aloud. The OT made a book for Jeremy that explains where he is, why he is here, and who is helping him. There were extra pages in the book so my mom added information about him at the end. It was really neat to read and I imagine it has been helpful as Jeremy has been frustrated about his lack of memory. I was helping the nurse give Jeremy his medicine and got the new nickname of Liz Lunatic and Lizunatic which I thought was both creative and funny! He remembers how to use a phone and now when I show him pictures he flips through on his own. Anytime he sees a picture or video of Carter he immediately starts blowing kisses at the screen. I showed him a video of Carter and his cat, Mr. Jones and he said, "Oh my God, look at them being so cute together! So sweet! I love my cat. I love Mr. Jones!" He has also been remembering his manners more and more, telling us please and thank you. His abilities have moved beyond what this facility is able to provide. They said he is ready to move on to rehab and have put through a request to the rehab facility we are hoping for! They estimate he will move on in 5-10 days!!! Now on to a post about my sweet babies...

Yesterday after Carter woke up from his nap he asked me for an apple and requested it be cut up, so I used our apple corer and handed him an apple on a plate. Then I headed off to finish vacuuming the house which I had started before naptime and had to postpone so as not to wake the children. After I finished vacuuming one room I went to check on the kids and this is what I found. Carter had pulled out his Cars mat to make a "picnic" on the living room floor. He was sitting on his mat and Elise was next to him, both eating apple slices. As I stood in the doorway unseen I heard Carter tell Elise, "I only eat one at a time, sissy. That's a good idea to only eat one at a time." When he said that I looked over and noticed she had an apple slice in each hand. I walked away to vacuum the next room chuckling. When I headed back in to check on them, Elise was still munching away and Carter was out of slices. He saw me that time and asked for another apple. Walking into the kitchen I heard him tell Elise, "Don't worry, sissy, mommy's getting us more." Watching Carter be such a sweet big brother, sharing his food and teaching Elise little life lessons made me so happy.

My sneaky picture of their secret picnic.

As I finished up my vacuuming I realized something important: sometimes I just need to leave the room and let the magic happen. It's almost never when I'm in the room that Carter steps up as a big brother and takes care of Elise or shares with Elise. It's almost always when I'm out of sight that he fathers her and is just so darn sweet to her! And honestly I just don't do it enough. I always want to be right there with them, playing, monitoring, watching their every move. Yesterday was my reminder that they sometimes learn even more when I'm not there to guide their actions and tell them what to do. I have to believe the lessons and modeling leading up to that point will be successful. I love that they find each other, that they love each other, that they will look to each other for help and guidance as they grow and learn together. Seeing that sibling relationship unfold is by far the most rewarding experience of my parenting life. I have never loved Carter more than in those moments when he is taking care of his sister and I have never loved Elise more than in those moments when I catch her watching her brother and smiling. Being a parent can be so darn amazing, sometimes I just need to step out of the room to see that!