Thursday, April 24, 2008

The Joys of Boys!

I call myself "grannypro7" because I am a grandmother (please don't REALLY call me "granny") and a nanny (and homeschool teacher) professionally now and I have 7 grandchildren. (I only care daily for 4 of them...that's MORE than enough!) Of those seven, SIX, yes, SIX are BOYS! and I mean ALL-BOY boys!! The six-year-old, Tyler, who is the main subject of my home-schooling, has Cystic Fibrosis. CF is a life-shortening disease with its cure yet to be discovered. He is subjected to daily treatments of several medications via an SVN machine and another machine called "The Vest" which beats his little chest for at least a half hour at a time, at least twice a day. This, plus inhalers and pills and enzymes with everything he eats. Needless to say, homeschooling provides privacy and much needed 1:1 focus. He comes with a three-year-old brother, Caleb, and a two-year-old "cousin-brother" (a long story of adoption)and a baby sister (also being adopted) who just turned one.

Prior to this, I was enjoying a career as an Activity Professional in a geriatric health care setting. I loved my job and was on the State board and nationally certified. So, it was a sacrifice to take this on. One that is definitely rewarding but extremely challenging as well. There are days when I wonder what I was thinking when I said yes to my daughter! I am going to cut and paste some excerpts of my journal as the days go, to show you what I mean. I would like to share ideas for homeschooling, info on CF and hints for dealing with preschool boys. Bye for now...you can call me Char...

1 comment:

Chloe said...

My sorority, Beta Sigma Phi, has CF as it's main charity. I am no longer active, but I bet that since you live in such a large metro area, you might contact the national board and get "adopted" by a nearby chapter.

I so admire you, taking on this challenge!