He Said What?!

Aaron’s Talking Points #7

Here are more of Aaron’s comments that I have collected over the years. Enjoy!

Aaron told me that the other night he had one of Andrea’s hairs on his toothbrush. “Mom, some of Andrea’s hair leaked onto the counter and got on my toothbrush!”

It’s a good thing he doesn’t keep his toothbrush in my bathroom because my head leaks lots of hairs!

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Aaron: Mom! Did you know there’s an OLD Robocop movie that was around when Dad was around?!

I didn’t tell Aaron, but I think Gary is still around. I’m running down now to check, though, just in case he knows something I don’t know.

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Aaron got a little choked during supper. His observation:

“I swallowed it down the wrong throat!”

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Aaron saw the news and pictures of the nuclear reactor fires in Japan. So he asked, “Mom, what are those ball buildings?”

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Aaron also saw a nuclear physicist being interviewed. This man had some wild gray hair, much like Einstein, so Aaron got excited and asked, “Mom!! Isn’t that the guy that invented…….oh, what was it?………H2O?”

Ummm….No, Aaron. Different formula. Same hair, though.

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Aaron and I were just watching the news. A special segment came on about Michael Jackson. Aaron said, “Hey, I know some of Michael’s dance moves. Want me to show you?”

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Aaron is almost as concerned with the weather as he is with keeping correct times. When time and weather collide…well, hold on!!

Aaron asked me on Thursday night when it was going to rain, as he does nearly every night. I told him that we might get some storms over the weekend. Silly me.

Aaron: When will it storm?

Me: Maybe Sunday evening.

Aaron: When is evening?

And before I could form a reasonable answer:

Aaron: What time is evening?

And again before I could answer:

Aaron: Is evening lunch time?

Me: No, not lunch time. It’s…

Aaron: Is it supper time?

Me: YES!!!! It’s around supper time.

Aaron: So it will storm at 5:00?

AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!

My plan is to keep a close eye on The Weather Channel, Weather Bug, MyRadar app, AccuWeather, KAKE Weather, KWCH Weather, and 101.3 storm chasers. At the first inkling of a storm here, we are eating supper. I don’t care what time it is, we will eat supper, people!!!!!! 🤣😬💦💨🌩️⛈️⚡

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Last night Aaron wasn’t sure that he wanted to wear green today. “I don’t want to look like a vegetable!” he said. Well, he had four seizures last night so he didn’t get to go to his day group today. I have been counting my blessings today, and one is for Aaron…..that he didn’t have to go out today looking like a vegetable!

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Aaron told me that today he was walking downtown with his group and saw a German restaurant. He looked in the window (poor patrons!) and said that he saw bottles of wine. “So Mom, is that what Germans like for food? Wine?!! Is that all they eat?”

Maybe we should go and check it out!!

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Every time Aaron and I go to Dillon’s he must, if possible, stop by the fresh fish and seafood display. He loves seeing the shrimp, the lobster, the crab legs, and anything else that’s there. Today there was a surprise! Two whole fish!! Aaron was so thrilled that he pushed himself in front of a little family as he exclaimed loudly:

“MOM!! LOOK!! He’s all fish!!!” 😂😂🐟

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Aaron: Mom! If I had a clone, it would be the same of me.

Me: That’s a great way to put it, Aaron!

Aaron: Would you want a clone of me?

Me: NO!! I mean, no.

Aaron: Why not?

Me: Because ONE OF YOU IS ENOUGH!!!

Aaron: OK.

He just walked off with no reaction. Oh, the tragedy of so much wasted sarcasm in this house!! 😆😆💙💙

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And we’ll have more of the same of these Aaron Talking Points!

Trust me! 😊 😊

Biscuits and Blessings

Aaron was very happy last Thursday when I asked him if he wanted to come with me to Aldi. I needed a few things, which with Aaron involved would turn into more than just a few things. Shopping, even for groceries, is Aaron’s second favorite thing to do. First on the list, most definitely, is eating out.

But shopping ranks a close second. Aaron sees a store as a huge area of nearly limitless possibilities. When we enter, he is instantly on the prowl for his catch. Will it be gum? A canister of peanuts? Pringles? Croissants? Thick grated cheese…not that thin stuff!! Or will he find an unusual item that he holds up for me…and all within earshot…to see? Like an artichoke or an eggplant or a star fruit!

Stores are just awesome!!

When we exited Aldi, Aaron had captured a large container of mixed nuts and THREE cans of biscuits!!

The biscuit discussion ensued. When would we eat them? For which meal? How many would we fix? Would I eat any? Would Dad eat any? And even when the questions were answered, they must be asked again…and again…and again.

Expected with Aaron, but exhausting.

I told Aaron that we would eat some biscuits on the next day, Friday. Then he plotted and planned at which meal we would eat them, and how many cans would we fix.

“Can we have TWO ?” he asked.

But I assured him that the three of us did not need more than 8 biscuits, so he resigned himself to that reality as Thursday ended and the promise of Biscuit Friday lay ahead.

Before he finally decided to stay IN bed and go to sleep, he had to verify it one more time.

“Mom? Did you say that tomorrow you’re only fixing ONE barrel of biscuits?”

How I love his phrasing of common names! Only Aaron can make a can of biscuits take on a whole new meaning.

“Yes, Aaron,” I answered with a smile. “We only need one barrel of biscuits.”

During that night, Aaron had two seizures while he slept. But he really perked up when he got out of the bed later that morning. In fact, he talked and talked and talked as he followed me around the house. I was so saturated with his chatter and endless questions that I was in need of some relief.

I agreed when he asked if we could have some biscuits for lunch instead of waiting for supper. He put three biscuits on his plate when they were ready.

He was SO happy! Look at his face as we settled in to watch a Little House on The Prairie episode, and he had his plate full of biscuits. Pure delight!

Later, I was very thankful for that moment. Aaron had another seizure that evening around the time we would have been eating supper. After awhile, when he was alert, he didn’t feel like eating any more biscuits. His appetite is usually ruined right after seizures. It always makes me sad when his seizures mess up his happy moments. But it was like God gave me that sweet gift of watching the joy of Aaron and his barrel of biscuits earlier in the day, knowing that if we had waited until supper then he would have been sad about missing his biscuits…and so would I.

God’s gifts may seem small sometimes but they’re really not at all. They sure do fill my heart and make me happy. ❤️❤️

And God’s gifts are all around us, every day, if we take the time to look.

Who would have thought that our barrels of biscuits would turn into barrels of blessings?

AARON’S Mother’s Day

The above title is not a mistake. You see, every special day for Aaron has one bottom line. That bottom line, simply put, is food. Aaron knows that special days usually call for special food. To Aaron, special food is what makes the world go round. Forget all that love stuff. It’s FOOD, baby!!

This memory from 10 years ago popped up on my Facebook news feed recently:

Aaron: “So are you getting something special since it’s your Mother’s Day?” I walked over to him, put my arm around him and said, “Well, a hug is special.” Aaron: “I was talking about food!!” Ah, if Mom gets special food then Aaron might get special food. Smart boy!

This past Saturday, while I was planting my porch flowers in various pots, Gary took Aaron out to buy me a Mother’s Day card and flowers. Aaron walked up on the front porch when they got home and awkwardly thrust the flowers out for me to take. He immediately turned to walk away, hoping to avoid the hug that he knew was coming. But before he got very far, he turned and said these priceless words: “Mom, now that I got you flowers, can we get something special to eat?!”

HaHaHaHaHa!!!!

He enjoyed watching me put the flowers in a vase.

He was happy when I finished the porch flowers.

He was VERY happy when he hopped in the truck with me and Gary as we went to Lowe’s. A shopping trip might…just might…mean a stop for special food.

So he was beyond happy when he heard the words “Burger King” come out of our mouths. Yay!! Later, as we sat around our table and ate our simple but special food, Aaron was enjoying every bite.

Mission accomplished!!

The next day, Aaron ran into the bathroom as I finished drying my hair. He told me to hurry because he had something for me. I didn’t hurry fast enough, however, and Aaron couldn’t contain his excitement.

“Mom!! I got you a card!! Hurry!!”

No matter how many times I tell him not to divulge the secret, Aaron cannot keep secrets very well when it comes to the gifts he gives.

With unfixed hair, we ran downstairs to where Gary sat. Aaron grabbed the card from Gary’s hand and happily handed it to me.

I opened it, and my laughter delighted Aaron no end!

Later that evening, we feasted on great food – grilled ribs and yummy sides.

And I was once again reminded that, despite the issues we sometimes face with Aaron, he provides us with many special moments.

Happy Mother’s Day to me, from Aaron!

Every day, if I take the time to look.

Who Are These Special Moms?

As the mother of a son with special needs, I have often had people tell me that they think God gives special children to special moms. While I realize that this sentiment is meant to be encouraging and kind, I also must say that I think it’s misguided. A big reason I think this is because I know me. I know me better than anyone else knows me, except God. I know that I’m no more special than any other mom out there. This isn’t fake humility, either. It’s just the truth.

All moms need God’s grace for each day. We who are His children need His grace for our own children in so many different ways. How amazing is God’s grace, too! He promises this undeserved favor to us over and over, greater grace for greater needs, along with His mercies that are new every morning. He has all that I need. He has all that any mom needs. I asked God many times to give me grace for the challenges that I faced as a mom of all three of our children.

Having said all this, let me also say that I have a great respect for the moms that I know who are walking this life alongside their child or children with special needs. My heart goes out to them, ones I know and ones I don’t know, as they face demands that they never dreamed they would encounter as a mother.

Aaron-mothers day 12May1985

So as Mother’s Day approaches, and we see the beautiful cards…….heart tugging commercials…….perfect mother and children photos…….and all the lovely images of motherhood through the years – let me give a “special” shout-out to all the “special” moms of special children.

Those dear Moms:

Who spend hours researching your child’s diagnosis rather than hours researching what sport for him to play.
Who pray for your child’s teacher to be understanding of meltdowns, bluntness, and a zillion other things that have nothing to do with her grasping of educational facts, and yet have everything to do with her ability to learn.
Who dread with a passion those IEP meetings.
Who dread having to once again explain your child in every new setting.
Who dread high school graduation because……then what?
Who try to ignore the stares from others in public places instead of basking in admiring glances.
Who are learning how to use your child’s feeding tube rather than planning his fun pizza party.
Who are searching for the best wheelchair rather than the best bicycle.
Who watch their child being marked for radiation rather than getting a cool tattoo.
Who are shopping with their daughter for a wig to cover her bald head due to chemo instead of shopping for the perfect new hair products.
Who are driving their older child everywhere because he can’t have a driver’s license due to seizures or other medical issues.
Who hurt because their child doesn’t have many, or any, friends.
Who are signing guardianship papers instead of college admittance papers.
Who are scouring the internet for the latest medical treatments instead of scouring for the best college scholarships.
Who know more drug names and side effects than they ever wanted to know.
Who spend far more time finding caregivers than finding cool vacation spots.
Who are adept at rearranging schedules due to unexpected medical issues.
Who lay in bed at night with the sound of your husband sleeping on one side, and your adult child breathing heavily in the baby monitor on the other side as you listen for seizures.
Who read your adult child the same book every single night of his life.
Who keep waterproof mattress pads on your child’s bed – your adult child.
Who have a hard time finishing a conversation with your husband without being interrupted over and over.
And who, for some, will find themselves looking at a gravestone on Mother’s Day instead of looking into the eyes of their child.

So to all of you amazing mothers of special needs children, I give you a huge high five!! I hope you know that you are loved and that God does have special grace for you every day.

And may you, as my friend Atha would say, be established in your purpose……this God-given purpose……of raising one of His very special children.

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Keeps Me Singing

My mother passed into heaven five years ago today. I wanted to re-post this blog I wrote at that time about the sweet gift that God gave us shortly before she died.

It was probably over 55 years ago that a soloist with a beautiful voice went to sing in a revival service in the little town of Oakvale, West Virginia. She sang the hymn “I’d Rather Have Jesus,” and then she sat down to listen to the sermon preached by Jimmie Jones. Her heart was disturbed as she listened to the gospel being preached that night. She thought of the song she had just sung, and of the words that came out of her mouth in such a perfect performance…..words that she knew she didn’t really mean. For it was just that – a performance. She sang beautifully, but she sang a lie. She knew that she didn’t really know Jesus, and that she didn’t really mean it when she sang about wanting Jesus more than anything this world affords.

This woman was my mother, and that night changed her life and the life of our family. She went home and urged my dad to go with her to listen to Jimmie Jones preach. Mom didn’t know that my dad had already trusted Christ as his Savior. It wasn’t long before my mother made the same decision. She bowed her head and confessed her sin, and asked Jesus to be Lord of her life. God changed my parents tremendously. They raised their five children to know and serve the Lord, and they left us a spiritual heritage that has more value than anything this world affords. And “I’d Rather Have Jesus” became my mother’s signature song…..one we heard her sing many, many times over the years. One she sang with honesty for the rest of her life because of the work that God had done in her heart.

Last week we said goodbye to my mother for the final time on this earth. We had really lost her a long time ago to the horrible ravages of Alzheimer’s. She no longer had her memories, her personality, or any of her other faculties. But even Alzheimer’s cannot take the Lord away. He has promised to always be with us, and He always keeps His promises. We saw evidences of His presence with Mom as she struggled in various ways. What sweet comfort it brought to know that deep in her heart and her mind, God was ministering to her in ways that we could not.

Two weeks ago, on the day before the call went out to family that mother was dying, we saw a profound picture of God’s grace in her little body and in her heart. Jan and her daughter, Bethany, had gone to spend some time with Mom in the care home where she lived. Mom was sitting in the commons area, her head down and her eyes closed, unresponsive to the voices and the noises around her. Suddenly, on the television that was playing, a man started singing “Amazing Grace.” Bethany looked down at her grandmother and saw that her lips were moving. Surprised at this, she and Jan leaned down and put their ears to Mom’s moving lips. Here is what they heard coming from my unresponsive mother:

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,

Sweetest Name I know.

Fills my every longing,

Keeps me singing as I go.

My mother was singing! Jan and Bethany wouldn’t have believed it had they not heard it for themselves. She was clearly singing this beautiful old hymn. She was singing about Jesus, whom she was soon to meet. God’s prompting, God’s presence, was there with Mom in that room. Jan and Bethany joined her in singing, and then Bethany said, “I love you.” Mom clearly said, “I love you” to Bethany, her eyes still closed. Then Jan said, “I love you, Mom.” And Mom said, “I love you” to Jan as well.

Those were the last words that my mother spoke. The next day the family got the call that she was dying, and on Monday, May 4, my mother met Jesus. Jesus, the sweetest name she knew. Jesus, who filled her every longing. Jesus, who kept her “singing as I go.” Singing as she got ready to go to heaven.

Like my brother, John, said at her funeral…..how appropriate that Mom’s walk with the Lord began with a song many years ago. And her life with the Lord ended with a song…..a song that surprised us all, but was such a gift of grace and hope from God.

A gift and an example that we will always, always cherish.

See…And Be…The Blessing

While my husband was mowing our yard on Saturday evening, I decided to run down to the store for some good old fried chicken. Working behind the counter was a familiar face…a sweet woman who often waits on me. I always ask her how she’s doing and ask about her elderly mother who lives with her. She missed seeing Aaron with me and was asking about him. Everyone knows Aaron…trust me on that! 😊

I ordered my chicken, and then asked for a few more pieces to be added a la carte. As she filled the container for me, she told me that she would just put in those extra legs and thighs at no charge. I said no, that I would pay for them, but she insisted on her plan. The reason?

“You are always so kind to me,” she said. “I want to do this for you.”

I was so touched…a little embarrassed…and walked away very blessed.

The next morning our pastor shared a meaning of that very familiar word…the word, “blessed.”

He said that to bless means, “To kneel in order to serve.”

He talked about how Jesus knelt down and washed the disciples’ feet. Jesus was kneeling in order to serve.

We often talk about how we want to be a blessing, to God and to others. We also talk about God blessing us.

But how can I possibly bless God?

I bless God by kneeling and serving. I kneel before God, certainly. But I am also to be like Jesus and kneel in service before the people in my life.

As Gary and I listened to the sermon, it hit me. God had given me a sweet object lesson of this “blessing” principle just the evening before.

I had blessed this deli worker by showing her that I cared about her and her life. She turned around and blessed me by giving me some free chicken. I wasn’t showing her kindness for the purpose of getting something free, but my kindness gave her the desire to bless me in return.

As I serve God, I am blessing Him…and He, in return, will bless me.

I don’t mean that God will give me free stuff. I mean that God will kneel down in His kindness and will bless me with joy…peace…love…grace…and other such sweet blessings that are promised to me all through scripture.

Sometimes, though, we think of serving God in big, obvious, public ways. Our human nature and our culture tend to value the well-known over the little-known.

Over the years, more and more, God has taken away most of the public ways I had of serving Him. Instead, God has brought home to me that, well, my home is to be my primary place of blessing God and blessing others. This is my personal experience and doesn’t mean that it will be yours as well. But wherever God has put you is where you ARE, by His plan, and that is the place where you can still bless Him and others.

Home can be a hard place to feel like I am a blessing. The sameness and the drudgery of home life, honestly, can squelch the feeling that I often associate with being a blessing.

Cleaning around the toilet can be a blessing? Really?!

But I’m brought back to Jesus, humbling himself by doing the disgusting work of a servant.

Washing the disciples feet can be a blessing? Really?!

Really.

I kneel. And I serve. In the place where God has put me.

I don’t choose the place. I don’t choose the service.

Validation isn’t the important thing.

Serving is the important thing.

For me, I serve God as I serve Aaron. He was given to us by God.

On a seizure day:

While we walk:

Or he TALKS:

When he wins and grins:

Or asks for that homemade milkshake:

The times are precious:

And so are the children and the homes that we are given!

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget none of His benefits.” (Psalm 103:1-2)

A Rare Sight

I simply want to share with you the beautiful sight outside my window from a couple mornings ago. These are rare clouds called Roll Clouds. They were stunning and a little scary to see. We didn’t get a drop of rain but we did get some wind as they rolled over us. They were the precursor to severe storms east of us.

Truly, God does command the clouds above…and what a sight they are!

“…clouds are the dust beneath His feet.” (Nahum 1:3)

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