Wednesday, October 19, 2005

The Joys of an Ordinary Day

Quite often when I post here I'm talking about some ground-breaking progress my daughter has made or the latest challenges and setbacks. And while I hope this might be informative to others who may care for the disabled, it's not entirely fair.

A normal day for my daughter, my wife and me is probably not that much different than for anyone else, regardless of disabilities or challenges. Some of my favorite time is spent getting my daughter ready for bed at night. With work during the day, that's just when I'm around most. I have a lot of fun giving my little one a bath. She loves to play with her bath toys and splash until we're both soaked. Often she cries when I get her out because she just has so much fun she doesn't want it to end.

After her bath I usually have the chance to read my daughter a book before bed. At her developmental levels "read" is a loose term. Usually we look at the pictures in Green Eggs and Ham or Go Dog, Go. I point to things and tell my daughter about them. She's becoming more interactive about it. Sometimes she'll coo or hum like she's telling me something too.

Then it's into the crib. Sometimes when I'm feeling like it I'll even sing her a bedtime song. I usually sing "Rainbow Connection" because I'm trying to foster a love for the Muppets in my daughter. She seems to like it. She'll smile and listen. You don't need a high IQ or a huge vocabulary to love Kermit the Frog.

Lastly, it's lights out. Often my daughter will cry for just a minute after I turn out the lights and leave the room. Almost as if she's had a fun time and she's sorry the day is over. Then she'll drift off to sleep. Sometimes an ordinary day is a pretty nice thing. No worries about developmental progress, doctor's visits and classes. Just having some quality time to be together can be so nice.

No comments: