Supermom

Some of you all might be hungry for some more pictures, especially since the cherry blossoms have decided us to grace us with their presence. How nice it has been! I assure you, as soon as Mike gets all 500+ photos organized, our blog will be the 1st to display them. (just the best out of that 500+ group not all of them!)

Back to the title though. Today was beautiful. The wind has really kicked up this afternoon but this morning I could actually go out in short sleeves. Since Josh has been under the weather, we were hermits for most of the weekend. I ran some errands today. Since the CDC (Child development Center AKA Daycare) couldn't take Josh this week, I will miss out on my workouts but I do have more "time" to just hang with him. We don't really have a tight schedule to follow. I did my big commissary run today. Most of the time, we go on Sundays. It's a good time to go because Mike can help me carry the laundry into the laundry mat and we can work as a team when we navigate our way through the commissary. The down side is that Sundays are a busy day. As soon as everyone gets out of Church, they all go to the commissary to get their big shopping run done for the week.

Even though today (Monday) I didn't have the help from Mike, it went really well. Josh usually HATES going shopping. Mainly, I think, because it's boring. The commissary for the most part is the same, except that I can make it more exciting for him at the commissary when I have time. (Which I can't do on other errands, say, maybe looking for new underwear?!) I try to discuss EVERYTHING with him while I'm shopping. I talk to him about what's on the list, I ask him to tell me what kind of fruit he wants for the week, I ask him to point out certain types of fruits and veggies, I ask him what number aisle we are in, etc. It keeps him patient and talkative the whole time. The talking part is important because, really, he's the only person I talk to during the day for the most part & it's much better than hearing him whine and cry. People usually give me some confused look when I'm talking until they see Josh toddling behind me. Today was different. As I was cruising down the produce aisle with Josh, a tough looking man (gold chains, rings, and sunglasses on) came up to me and said, "Ma'am, I just wanted to say that it's been a long time since I've seen a mother doing what your doing with your son."

Boy that made my day. It really made me feel for the moment that I was supermom. I almost hugged that gentlemen but I regained my composure. Almost tearing up, I explained myself. "Josh, we thought, had a speech problem when he was very little. We went to a speech therapist who encouraged me to talk to him more and encourage him to talk more by giving him choices and asking him questions." Then I said, "thank you".

The idea that the therapist gave us stuck even after we found out Josh was perfectly normal. Once he started getting older and more perceptive, I've expanded on the idea and started asking him about colors, numbers, letters, etc. I rarely brag, but he knows most of his colors (unless you ask him about fuschia or periwinkle!), most of his numbers up to ten (he can count up to 10 in English and 5 in Japanese), and all of his letters. He's an absolute genius if I ever met one! :) OK, I've taken it to far. I was so flattered my the gentleman's complement that I actually went all out and made a super healthy lunch for Josh when I got home. After all, why stop at talking to my son when I can cook for him too! (can you sense the sarcasm?)

If you think a stranger or anyone is doing something great....let them know, especially if it's a mom! Compliments really do work wonders.