As of today, my son, Luke (5 1/2 years old), has finished all of his Kindergarden curriculum, first grade Math, and he has finished his Sparks book as well as reviewed it already. (Sparks is a part of the AWANA program which teaches the kids Bible memory verses....for those of you unfamiliar with it. It usually takes kids the whole school year to get through their book, and review it.) Luke has been a real mystery and challenge to me, and I pray daily for wisdom to be a good mom to him. He is not your typical little boy that loves being wrestled, and loves dirt, mud, insects, etc. He is impulsive, extremely creative and artistic, compulsive about germs and dirt, feels emotions very deeply, loves to memorize and do schoolwork, very charismatic with his personality, clever, quick witted, funny, and darling. I've never really met a boy like him, so I'm proud to say that I have the one and only! I don't know if I'm the only parent that ever thinks this about their children, but I have thought since he was about 3 years old, that surely there is something not quite normal with him. I've looked into every disorder there is, and none of them describe him. So, I've come to the conclusion that he is just unique and quirky...aren't we all? I've made it my goal this school year to try to figure out how best to work with him, and help him flourish. I've discovered that he does not do well in unstructured situations. He gets completely overwhelmed with chaos and loses all self-control. We have taken him out of those situations, and he has done wonderfully. He needs lots of reassurance, otherwise he gets very negative about himself, and he needs lots of creative projects to keep him busy. I'm still in the process of figuring him out, but we have come a long way! Here are some of my favorite Luke quotes from this past week:
1. We were visiting my parents for a couple of days last week, and I overheard this conversation between Luke and his sister, Molly. They were pretending that they were all grown up and leaving for college, and Luke says, "Mom won't be around to be our maid anymore, we'll have to get a new one."
2. My kids spent a day with my sister so I could get some shopping, chores, and errands done. As she was bringing them home in the car, she told them that they had been very good, and that she was proud of them. Luke says to Molly, "Molly, why is it that we are always good everywhere but at home?" At least he will admit it!
3. Luke saw some grey hair on my head, and instantly started crying. I asked him what was wrong, and he said, "Mommy, please don't die. I'm just a kid, I still need you to wipe me, tuck me in at night, and help me pick out my clothes." I asked him why he thought I was going to die and he said, "because you have old person hair all over your head!"
Oh my, he sure makes me tired! I love that kid so much though! He is a blessing, and I pray that I don't mess him up with my parenting!
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Adorable. I'm so impressed with how much awareness you have about your kids and how you continue to seek to portray and encourage their positive attributes. You are so right...we all have our quirks.
I love Luke too! He cracks me up and he is so smart! I know he is going to do great things! He will stick to what he believes and not compromise what he knows is right. He's one of my favorite kids at church. Those little Umbreit twins are pretty adorable too though! :)