Birthdays are bittersweet with a severely developmentally delayed child because although he IS growing and developing in miraculous ways, with the help of the supplements, diet, and therapies he is getting, it still smacks you in the face when you think about your child being fourteen and still needing so much care.
But I must set that aside because this birthday was full of miracles! I have always sent some sort of decorated fresh fruit treat to school on past birthdays and done a minimal celebration at home, not having any idea whether he understood or cared. This year I decided to have a Ninja Turtle theme and sent bags of oranges with Ninja Turtle tags on them to school, and had a Ninja Turtle cupcake tower at home with green fruits and vegetables on it that we ate with mini swords.
So the big news is, THIS YEAR HE CARED! He was into his birthday! The school told me he laughed and smiled when they sang Happy Birthday to him! And he did the same thing at home when the guests at his home party sang to him! It is usually so hard to get him to smile for photos but this time he was smiling easily because he knew what was happening and LOVED IT!
Praise the Lord!
