Two Small Changes

Dee is back from camp.  She had a great time, and they had good things to say about her week when I picked her up.  She was super excited to come home and see how much the dogs had missed her.  She also wanted to watch TV!  I could tell she was not quite the moody girl who left, so that was very helpful.  Her counselor wrote that she would be praying for her for the things that they talked about.  This was the first time in the three camp trips that she took time to go through her stuff.  She showed off her crafts, and explained things that happened.  She is maturing.  She use to come home and think, "Camp is over." and never consider that she could share the experience. 

While she was gone, I was praying that I could find a better way to respond to that attitude of hers.  On Pinterest, I ran across an article called 100 Ways to be Kind to Your Child. (http://creativewithkids.com/100-ways-to-be-kind-to-your-child).  It's stuff we mostly know, but I'm not sure stuff I mostly do!

When you read through the list, you get a feel for the things you should do.  The first thing I decided to do was to smile every time she entered the room.  So when I'm in a room, if she walks in, I let my face light up with delight.  All of us would love to be greeted that way.

The second thing I decided to do, though not exactly on the list...it was influenced by the list is:  I will speak joyfully of her.  Although the attitude and other behaviors may return, I would not expect them.  I would speak about her with the same joy I had before she came home.

Because I think God is responding to my prayers, something unrelated happened that helped my resolve.  After reading that list, I got an e-mail at work that my e-mail box was too full.  When I started to clean out the box, I read all of the e-mails I had written in my adoption process.  That Gale knew the challenges she was in for, and she was up for the task.  She was excited and in love ... unconditionally.  It re-energized and re-focused me.

So, let's try this this again with two small changes.