The New Year

When I think about all that we have been through over the last year, it amazes me that I am able to sit here and feel like we have made progress. It has been many years that I have felt like we are moving forward. There has always seem to have been some sort of setback. This year was hard, probably the hardest we have ever had, but from where I sit now, we HAVE made progress. We are in a better place and as a family we have grown closer and stronger. I am thankful for where we are. The road ahead is always long, but I feel like we are on the right path.

Madison is growing before our eyes. She has made such big strides this year and is growing into a beautiful young girl. She has many friends and does well in school. She still is the most amazing big sister I have ever seen. She loves her brother fiercely and would do anything to protect him, emotionally and physically. She is a loving daughter who wants attention from her Dad and me. We try to do things just for her so that she always knows what an important and special person she is. She is going to do big things in this world and I have seen first hand how she is already changing lives. She has had her share of difficulties, but I would like to think that she has grown from all the experiences she has had. She has had to grow up fast. Having a special needs brother is like no other. She has had to give up things that other kids don’t and has made more sacrifices than the average 10 year-old, but she has taken it in stride and keeps moving forward.

Last year at this time, we didn’t know what we were doing with Nathan. I would like to think that when you know better, you do better and I think we know better. We learned a lot when he was in the hospital. They provided us with many tools and resources that proved very helpful. I feel like we are able to help him a little better. We still struggle every day, but we are making progress. We are able to reach him in ways that we weren’t able to before. Nathan lives in two worlds. His and our’s. Sometimes it is easy to get him into our world and sometimes we have to go into his world. Everyday is something new. We have learned how to navigate between the two to effectively parent him. When he is having a hard time it is up to us to figure out how to pull him out of his world and into our’s and sometimes we have no choice but to go into his world to reach him. We are in a really good place right now with Nathan and that is what we focus on. I can’t think of a month or a year down the road, I focus on today. We live day-to-day and that is what works. I am thankful for the place we are and look forward to every day with him.

One person I haven’t talked about is my amazing husband Jay. He is my best friend and the only one I would ever want to go through this life with. We have become so close with all the things we have had to deal with over the last few years. I am so thankful that it drew us closer, because this could really tear people apart. He is the most amazing Daddy to Madison and Nathan and the best husband a woman could ask for. He loves his family more than anything. He is the most loyal person I know. He had a wonderful example from his Dad of what it means to be a father and I am so grateful to my father-in-law for his example. Jay is the real deal and I am in awe everyday and at what he offers our family. He loves us with every fiber of his being and I know that as long as he is by my side we are all going to be ok.

I look forward to 2013 with optimism. I know that everyday won’t be easy, but there seem to be more easy days than hard ones lately. This year I am going to do my best to be the best wife and mother I can possibly be. I want to do fun things with my kids. I want to take them somewhere special and make as many memories as possible. So from our family to yours, we wish you the happiest of New Years. May it be filled with love because at the end of the day that is what really matters.
Stacey