Has Heather ever had Developmental Delays? No
Has Heather ever had Early Intervention Services? No
Had Heather ever had any serious health conditions? No (knock on wood)
As I am answering these questions I realize that the same answers for Dylan were yes, not just yes, but YES with a capital Y.
I feel that I have mastered being Dylan's Mom. I can list all of his sugeries, hosptializations, therapies, equipment, nursing schedule, and drs appointments by memory. I know our insurance policy like it is a recipe for macaroni and cheese. I know how to operate, maintain and fix all of his medical equipment. I can field the, What's wrong with him? What disease does he have? Will he ever walk? questions with ease. I can now even handle the stares and dumbfounded looks I get from people when I take him out...ok, maybe this one still gets to me sometimes. I relate easy to other SMA parents and parents of kids from Henry Viscardi where Dylan attends school.
Being Heather's Mom in a lot of ways is different from being Dylan's Mom. Being Heather's Mom means, ballet class, soccer, school playdates...things that most Mom's of healthy children do. I enjoy it, but sometimes I feel a little out of my element. I have been trying to get better by being more open about my situation with Dylan to some of the mom's I have met and have also taken some help from these mom's when it was offered to me (something that I really am not good at). I also have to make sure that Heather is able to experience things that Dylan might not have been able to experience. I can't hold her back in ways that I held Dylan back......not that she'll let me. I have said this before that I love how Heather is able to see our life as totally normal. It is what she has known from day 1. Now I just have to work on that, thinking my life is normal and that I am just a normal Mom like everyone else.
Here's to the balancing act that has now begun...hopefully I can land somewhere in the middle.
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