The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Mommy had a bad day, while S had a pretty good day. It was our second day of 'school'. S separated from me many times to go play, even going to the outside area alone. She loves free play and playground time the most. I looked for smiles from the other kids today and there were lots of smiles, but S is by far the most excited about things. Today, she was handed out her painting from yesterday and she said, "Paper." It's not a word she hears very often, and the teacher did not say the word when she was handing the paintings out. It is such a thrill to be getting a glimpse of what she has stored up in that brain of hers. Now for my day at school...
I need to learn from my daughter to let things go like she does. She was scratched, shoved, slimed with snot, and poked in the eye today. Her eye hurt, and she took notice, but got over it quickly. She didn't even know she'd been slimed with snot or spit until she touched it with her hand. School is not a good place for a germophobe of a mother. I want to be decontaminated when I leave. Poor S isn't raised in a sterile environment like her older siblings, but it's still pretty sterile compared to most kids. Today I was shown a method of compensation for S because she doesn't do certain things the way a 'typical' kid would. That gesture of help was like stabbing me in the heart. I hate the whole politically correct world, it's just simply idiotic. I am much more offended with the word typical than normal. It says the same thing, it's just a different word. My daughter has no diagnosis of a disease or disability, how do they know what she needs? Was she placed in the closest category and we go from there? Aren't all kids different even if they have the same label? Our system is so broken, no wonder there are so many people homeschooling. I see that in our future. I hate how they rush kids to make a decision. They rush them to do everything. S's sister is in the gifted program at her elementary school. They give you a checklist for certain characteristics when you are looking into having your child tested for giftedness. Some of those are: thinking outside the box, stubborn, tenacious, etc. So I get a semester report for her that says she isn't working well in groups and doesn't complete some tasks. I read that and say, "Way to be an independent thinker!" Then I see that they've written that as a negative. If you have the best idea and you know you are right, do you go along with the group? How do you finish when your group isn't going along with your plan? The school boasts how the high IQ kids are leaders. Okay, my kid stepped up to the plate to be the leader and is told that was wrong. Well, which is it? Okay, back to my horrible morning. I've got this parent who made a comment that I have no idea how to take it. It seemed friendly enough, but also seemed like a dig. I don't want to be specific in case they end up reading this someday. As I hear the moms talk, I'm thinking to myself how they need to be told about NR. Maybe I can get Bette to come here to give a presentation. I think 100% of the kids would benefit from NR. Anyway, I have to keep this generic in case I get Bette to come and I'd like to be able to pass this website along to encourage people. My last vent is the comments about adoption and the misconceptions about China. I didn't know the details about adoption and China until before I adopted, but I don't think I said really insensitive things to adoptive parents either. I had read on different yahoo groups how parents deflected ignorant comments when they were said in front of thier child. Maybe they think S is too young, but from what I've heard from her, she's taking it all in and processing it. So when someone talks about China hating baby girls or killing baby girls, they aren't thinking about how it sounds. I didn't know how hurtful it could be until I had this precious little girl to protect. I'm not criticising them for not knowing, I just wish I could handle it better than I do. I try to educate them in as polite a manner as I can, that's the best I can do. Now I know why I have avoided people. Just like my daughter, the more exposure to certain situations, the better she is able to handle them. I need to get out and practice my lines so that I'm well equipped with the right words. Her feelings about adoption and people in general will be influenced by how I handle it. My sweet daughter is expanding my capacity as a human being. She has already taught me that my heart could grow way beyond what I ever thought possible. I never knew that I could fall deeper in love every single day. God has big plans for this little girl, I can't wait to see whose life she touches tomorrow. People are naturally drawn to her, and I have to make the best of that.