A trip to the mall

This time of the year a trip to the mall is a busy and sometimes overwhelming experience. People searching for the perfect gift; just the right things for friends and family. The mall decked out in lights and greenery. The sounds of familiar carols mixing with the ringing of the Salvation Army bell ringer outside. We did not head to the mall for any of these things. We headed there for space!

I am sure that I've mentioned that our home is rather "space challenged".
I am not exaggerating when I say that there is no need for Aiden to use his gait trainer in the house. Firstly, the space is so small that he can knee walk with less effort than it would take to stand up. Secondly, there is not enough room to maneuver the thing!! Therefore, we decided to go to the mall.

I am so fortunate that Aiden likes to walk. Tara and I barely got the gait trainer set up before he was ready to take off!! Aiden's loves to walk and be independent. It's good to be in a place where he is able to go and do. ( So often I feel like he is hindered by our lack of space.)

Aiden did really well. He spent 45 minutes walking the mall. We also spent some time on the little playground climbing up the stairs and sliding down the slide. Aiden maneuvered around tables and chairs in the food court and was able to steer the gait trainer with much less intervention than I've had to use in the past. ( Actually, I used to use a golf club to direct the trainer. It kept me from having to bend over so much. This time I didn't even take it.) Right before we left Aiden rode on a little carousel. He laughed and held on tight! I think that he enjoyed himself. I had a great time watching him, and trying to get some pictures of him on the ride. I knew that it was time to go home when Aiden started dragging his feet. After 45 minutes he was pretty tired so we headed home. It was a really good session. I was so proud of my little guy.

I have tried to be very transparent with all who read this blog. What you see is what you get with me. I really have no hidden agendas; I don't have time to play games with people. (That's not to say that I don't have fun!) As you know, one of my big projects has been to complete a room make over; changing a storage room to a therapy room. The pictures here are of some of the contents of the room and the room itself after Dave and I worked on it for six hours.

I wish that I could give great news.....The room is done! but I can't. As you can see, we have a significant amount of work to do. There are baby clothes to sort, golf clubs to pack up, educational supplies to go through, and tons of other things that need new homes. I am not opposed to throwing things out so that is not the issue. The issue it the sheer volume of stuff. Where did it
come from?? I blame the grandparents:)!No matter the source of the clutter, it all has to be dealt with in order to gain some kind of balance in my home.

For many of you this time of year is a struggle with balance; how to spend your time; where to spend the holidays; how to spend your money and on whom; how to keep the focus on the reason we celebrate as opposed to the busyness. I have struggled this year with the overwhelming feeling that we need nothing; that to give would be out of obligation, and to receive would be the same. My gifts to others would not be like those given by the Wise men. Those men brought gifts that were precious, timeless and useful.

That is the kind of gift that I would like to give all of my family this year. There is only one gift that truly meets all three of the criteria: Jesus. He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8); He never leaves us (Deuteronomy 31:6), and His gift, eternal life, is just that - eternal. I am blessed to be an adopted child of the heavenly Father (Galations 4:4-5). As you seek to celebrate this season, I pray that you do so as a child of the one born to save us all.

Blessings to all who are reading. I hope that you find some encouragement and I hope that you know what a blessing you are to me. Continue to pray for our progress. I am struggling with maintain a schedule with Aiden's PT. Also, our project-the room--seems to ebb and flow. I would like to have it done this week. Shannon let me know that Makayla had a good week. She seems to be recuperating well, and is sleeping better. Your prayers are certainly helpful.

Thank you all.
Christa