Samuel is starting to realize that there are foods that he cannot eat.
And he does not like it. Not one bit.
In fact, it makes him quite irritated. Mad. Annoyed. Sad.
And I don’t like that. He’s too little for me to reason with — even though I try. I’ll tell him how gluten hurts his tummy and makes him sick — but sometimes he just gets frustrated. And I get frustrated for him. How do you really explain Celiac Disease to a 21 month old?
So we try to eat gluten free as a family. But, that is expensive. Very, very expensive. And now, Samuel finds the gluten food and decides he should have some. So I tell him no. And he cries.
And that really hurts.
Then I remind myself that it could be worse. That there are still lots of foods that he can eat. That he’s alive and healthy {as long as he doesn’t eat gluten}. That I need to be grateful. Really, really, really grateful.
So I look at those eyes and in learning to be grateful for the things Samuel can have and can do it reminds me to be grateful for so many other facets of things in my life. Maybe I don’t have the family room furniture that I desire — but I have a family room. Maybe we don’t get to go on all the fancy vacations — but the yearly trip to the lake is our favorite. Maybe my house isn’t always clean and spotless — but it is full of adventure and love and laughter.
Sometimes it just takes switching perspective.
And looking at the good things in the midst of the hard things.
And letting the good win.
Off to find those gluten free cookies for Samuel….
11 comments
sweet Samuel. I am so sorry. I have two boys and I couldn’t imagine having to go through that with my 2 yr old. It’s hard enough age as it is, let alone trying to explain something that they just can’t possibly understand. You are a good Momma. Keep it up. He loves you, even if you do have to tell him ‘no’. 🙂
So true-there are many days I must stop myself and remember that I have so much to be thankful for, so much that God has given me-it really is a matter of perspective, do I chose to focus on all that He has given me and blessed me and my family with, or do I chose to wallow in what I think I need or should have and don’t or trials we are facing and wished we weren’t. He has given me so many blessings I don’t deserve-our Sunday School lesson last week was on “If God never gave us anything more than His gift of salvation would we be grateful?” That is the greatest gift He can give us and He already has done that-everything else is just icing on the cake-blessings a lot of the time we don’t deserve but He blesses us anyways-it really made me stop and think-“What if He had never given me more than the gift of eternal life-would I still want to sing His praises-would I be grateful daily for that precious gift?” I pray that I would.
I am praying that the “no’s” will become easier as he learns that those things will make him ill, and that you are able to remember what a great job you are doing in keeping him healthy and whole. It has got to be incredibly hard. Praying for you.
He looks wonderful! Love those blue eyes.
Samuel is one precious little boy!
I am sorry this is a difficult time…a time of training, learning, having to set limits…which are difficult for all of us, but especially for one so young.
Can we/I pray for you, for Samuel? Last Friday we had a tremendous fasting and prayer time. Come by my blog….
if you don’t mind, I will add Samuel to next Friday’s prayer request.
Blessings,
Cheryl
What a sweet post…I love your perspective. Life is so much better when we can think of the positive. Prayers to you and Samuel 🙂
I know people who have family rooms who have no family. You and I are blessed.
As the mom of a few gluten free kids, I have a suggestion. Find something that Samuel likes (ie- a Trader Joe’s fruit treat or a GF cookie or whatever) and keep that in a cupboard.Tell him that what the other family member has will make him sick. Then make a big deal
of going to the cupboard and getting him his special treat. If any family members ask for one of his treats, make a big deal over the fact that it’s Samuel’s special treat. That worked well in our family until I started finding others who had to go to GF foods. I finally just put the whole family on a GF diet. Hubby and oldest daughter will bring wheat things home for themselves and one of my daughters will react even if she smells it!
Thought of you when I saw this recipe at Jane’s…
http://sweetbasilkitchen.com/2011/06/12/surprise-cake/
This reminds me of something I like to say over and over to myself.
“my response makes or breaks a situation”.
So true. It’s all about perspective.
Great thoughts here.
And with those sweet eyes I can only imagine it’s hard to say no. I love you all sticking together to support sweet Samuel.
I can imagine how hard it is to try and explain things to him. He will understand in time, not that that makes it any easier now. Still praying for him….
I am glad he is happy and healthy now. It must be crazy hard trying to keep him away from foods that aren’t good for his tummy. Prayers for your mommy heart.
I have a son with a dairy allergy, so we deal with substitute foods for him all the time. So I know what it’s like to tell your son that he can’t eat something everyone else is having.
But I have to say that Andrew is three now, and he can say, “I can’t eat that because it has cow’s milk.” Or “Cow’s milk makes me sick.” And he’s remarkably OK with it.
I comforted myself with the fact that their long-term memory doesn’t start until sometime after they turn 2. By that point, Andrew’s dairy-free diet was all he knew.
Thanks for your honest sharing!
Amy