I've been married for nearly 13 years. I met my husband, Charles, when I was in my last month of university. Meeting him was like opening a doorway in my life that I never knew existed. He opened my eyes to so many things, and made me see that I am a worthwhile person, worthy of love. Marriage is never perfect, but I can honestly say that we don't fight. We have similar interests, and the differences we do have keep things fresh.
Our first child was born nearly one year after we married. Nickolas is 11, and at this age I see so much of myself in him. He is the oldest of three boys, and he has always been a big help with his brothers. He doesn't take criticism very easily. He's very compassionate. He adores music; he plays trumpet in band and sings tenor/alto in choir, and he is a genius at Rock Hero. He loves animals, and we would have our own zoo if I would let him. He loves his brothers, and babies in general, and would love for us to have more kids (not happening!). Sometimes I have to remind myself that he is a child, and not my confidante.
Our second son, Christopher, followed 19 months later. He was so different from Nick when he was born, but I just kept telling myself that all children are different. When he was 19 months old, it was like someone flipped a switch in my child; he quit talking, waving "bye bye", and making eye contact with us. We started testing on him, and right around the time I conceived our youngest child, Chris was diagnosed with Autism. This is not going to turn into a who's right or wrong post; these are just my opinions. Immunizations DID NOT cause my son to have Autism. He was different from birth. We were very blessed to get Chris into some wonderful therapies, and he learned to talk again. At this time, he is in fourth grade and thriving! He still has problems with social interactions, but we work with him on that. He is a straight A student, so very smart. I would have never dreamed that he could come this far when he was first diagnosed.
Our third son, Tristan, was born in the fall of 2002. Nick was so excited about another baby. I, however, was not so excited. Now, don't think for a moment that I don't love this child with all my heart, because I do. We had decided that we weren't going to have any more kids, and my husband and I were both using protection, but sometimes things happen for a reason. While I was pregnant, I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to love Tristan the way I loved my other boys. From the first second I saw him, I was in love. He is a boy's boy, but he is also my boy. He is extremely outgoing, very rough-and-tumble, and so funny that he makes me laugh out loud. He has known since he was three years old that he wants to be a professional wrestler, excuse me, sports entertainer. He trains for this daily, and is very serious about going to wrestling school, but only after college because "wrestlers can't be stupid, Mom".
This brings me to the newest addition to our home, my nephew, Tony. He is my husband's brother's son, and he came to us last summer. He and his parents were having a lot of problems, and Tony had left home. When I found out about this, he had been gone nearly three weeks, and his mother, with whom I work, had no idea where he was. We called Tony and told him he had a place live with us. I was certainly not ready for the trials and tribulations of a teenager! Tony is 17, and he has never had a good relationship with his parents, no boundaries, no respect, anger management issues, etc. That has carried over to living with us. I feel like I'm beating my head against a concrete wall with him. There are truly days when I think about packing up my three boys and leaving; I don't do it because I can't, won't leave my husband. I know teenagers are a trial, but this child makes it so hard to love him. I simply don't know what to do with him.
Well, that is the immediate family covered. The extended family... that's another story for another night.
