Just Try Sweet Boy

I have this memory burned in my brain. And if you follow me I speak of it often.

I was a first time mom. My son was 2 years old and Early Intervention was sitting in my living room.

Red flags had been identified as they say.

The nice woman had a booklet…it had to be a 100 pages long.

Her job was to figure out what my son couldn’t do. Question after question.

Always, often, sometimes, never, unknown. Bubbles filled in as we went along. It was awkward and uncomfortable.

My son refused to participate. A fake smile plastered on my face. Sweat dripping down my back as I silently willed him to just try thinking…’I hate this. I really hate this.’

She would look to me to try and get him to participate. Try. Interact. Anything. But I didn’t know what to do either.

She asked him to stack two blocks. He needed to come to her, sit or stand, and use his hands to stack one block on top of another.

That was it. Two blocks. So simple.

He refused. And I mean adamantly refused.

He kicked the blocks. He threw the blocks. He screamed. He ran away. And there I sat. On my living room floor wondering why. Why was this hard for my son. I couldn’t figure it out.

I told myself he was spirited. That he didn’t like blocks. That he didn’t know that woman. That he was a little bit delayed. And that we just needed to practice.

That was almost 7 years ago. 7 long years of practicing everything.

This morning, we sat and did a 100 piece puzzle for over an hour. He never ran away. He didn’t throw or kick. He didn’t scream.

We sat and did it together. With every piece we placed he cheered, clapped and smiled.

I talked the whole time. He pointed and grunted and giggled. No words from him. Not yet anyways.

My husband would walk by say, ‘Coops! You are doing so well!’

And I, well I just wanted to pinch myself. I kept waiting for him to get mad. To meltdown. To throw. To run. But it never happened.

Anyone outside of our world, I want you to know that while the puzzle was fun, what mattered was he tried. He sat. And we did it together.

I’ve never sat with my son for longer than 10 minutes. This is the stuff parents hope for.

It’s a good day.

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Finding Cooper’s Voice is a safe, humorous, caring and honest place where you can celebrate the unique challenges of parenting a special needs child. Because you’re never alone in the struggles you face. And once you find your people, your allies, your village….all the challenges and struggles will seem just a little bit easier. Welcome to our journey. You can also follow us on Facebook, subscribe for exclusive videos, and subscribe to our newsletter.