Monday, April 13, 2009

All Things Come To An End

When we first became aware of John's diagnosis, it was very difficult to make the transition from the world of no Ds to a world with Ds. The isolation that one feels, not to mention thinking about how this will effect your life as a parent was on our minds constantly. Isolation became a reality for us as we began to feel that no one understood what we were going through as parents of a child with special needs. The activities we once enjoyed with other adults had to be put on hold for what seemed to be indefinitely or until we figured out this new world of ours.

Blogging filled a void for me that I enjoyed very much. It has taught me so much by giving me the opportunity to meet other parents of children with Down syndrome and to learn from their experiences and to listen to their stories. Blogging also gave me an avenue in which to write my thoughts and vent my frustrations. I can honestly say that I have matured a great deal in this new journey in the last 8 1/2 months and blogging played a role in that.

But now that we are 8 1/2 months into our journey and we have grown so much, we are feeling more of a peace that things will be okay and a confidence that we will be able to handle the bumps along the way. That is why I have chosen to take a hiatus from blogging.

As John gets older and more mobile, he is asking for more and more of my time. There are so many things that I want to teach and show him as it seems like the more time, I spend with him, the more he learns. John is now at the beginning stages of crawling which he wants to do so bad and I am determined to help him get there.

I am thankful for this opportunity to write down my thoughts and have them read by so many people across the globe. I hope my thoughts and words have encouraged you in your journey. Though the streams of life seem to flow against children with special needs and their parents, don't give up on them. I have seen with John as I know you have with your children, these children are a blessing and have more potential than they are often times given credit; they just move at a slower pace and require more patience.

15 comments:

Brandie said...

We'll miss you :)

Beverly said...

I will look forward to hearing all about John when you write again! He sure is a sweet heart and lucky to have you!

My name is Sarah said...

Oh please give us a glimpse of John every now and then.

datri said...

Please keep us updated when you have the time. Or you could just blog at 1AM like the rest of us, LOL!

Linda said...

I hope you will still take time to blog when you can. We will miss your positive attitude and your wisdom. God bless you and your family.

Monica said...

I agree with everyone, we will miss you, and hope that you from time to time update!!! I know with the nice weather that is slowly coming here I will not be on as much also. Totally understand if this is the end, but hope it isn't!!!!! God bless you and your family.

Lisa said...

I've enjoyed getting to know you, Jay, and I hope you'll post updates of John once in a while.

Tausha said...

Thanks for the info you have given us. I understand about the time constraint. Sometimes I feel so guilty when I am blogging thinking I need to be spending more time with Sam. Please keep us updated once and a while. Since Sam and John are the same age I would love to hear updates and see how he is doing. Best of luck in everything.

Angela said...

Oh, sad! I'll miss reading about John and your family. Be sure to let us know how he is from time to time. :)

Becca said...

Wow, so bittersweet! I'm so glad John's doing so well, but sad that you'll be taking a break from blogging--you've been very inspirational to so many people, and I've really enjoyed reading your blog. I agree with everyone--please post at least every once in a while!! Best wishes to you, John and the rest of your family!!!

Monica Crumley said...

I'll miss reading about your little guy. So glad he's doing well and moving right along. My posts have gotten much shorter, too, as a result of John MIchael getting into everything and now pulling up to stand and having more access to things. Hopefully you'll post a photo now and then. Have fun w/ your little guy.

Becky Arnold said...

I will sure miss your updates, Bro! I love ya! You are a great dad!

Cheryl said...

I'll miss you! I always enjoyed your posts and hearing things from a Dad's point of view. Please post a pic of John every once in awhile:)

Jeanette said...

We will miss you. It was nice to see a male perspective. I hope that you will pop in now and then to give an update and post some pics of sweet John! Take care!

CJ Field said...

Just when I find your blog, you are leaving! Even so, would you please consider signing up for the T21 Traveling Afghan Project? You do NOT need to be a blogger to participate and we would LOVE to have a family in Arkansas in our quest to cover all fifty states (only ten to go!)

http://thet21travelingafghanproject.blogspot.com