Special Olympics experience in All kinds of nonsense spewing forth

I spent Sunday at the Special Olympics with my daughter. She was a chaperone for one of her special ed students.

I thought I knew my daughter inside and out....I was wrong.

I saw a whole new side of her, the professional side, and I am impressed!

I saw the compassionate, loving, caring, patient side of her.

I have never been more proud!

It was a wonderful day, making e even more thankful for my children, their goodness, their health, both physical and mental.

Her student was 17 years old, in a wheelchair with no ability to move the left side of his body. His verbal skills are extremely limited. He also was a BIG boy, over six feet tall!

Her obvious love for him seeped out of every part of her. She talked and chatted with him, answered a zillion questions, repeating her answers over and over again since he asked the same questions over and over again!

I met all of the people that she works with and heard wonderful things about her experiences while student teaching.

I cried throughout the day, just out of sheer emotion of the day.

I am so thankful that my daughter has been given this special gift of working with these wonderful kids.

We came home after a full day of being outside in horrible weather, chilled to the bone. Wet and cold. Early that evening, she started running a fever body aches and chills, nausea and horrible headache....by yesterday morning, she was worse so she didn't go to school, which is a first for her. She suffered all day and night, very little sleep, very weak.

She needed to go to work today because she is having her final observation before graduation.....she felt terrible and looked even worse! I am hoping that after the observation, she will be able to come home.

We were chatting o. Sunday about the upcoming prom for her students. Her date will be the young man that she chaperoned during the Special Olympics. I asked hi. If he was excited about taking her to prom and he said, " Ms. S, prom, yay!" And then he said, " can't dance, can't dance" I just roared as did my daughter!

I love his humor and she was so surprised that he made the joke.

Graduation is May 10th with her grad party on June 21st.

Her boyfriend is standing up in a wedding on June 24th in Maui and as her graduation gift, we are helping her get to Maui.....she does not know yet as I a. Planning this with her boyfriend. She will flip!

She is the first of our children to graduate from college, it has not been easy for her since she has some pretty severe learning disabilities herself, which is why she chose to go into special ed. She has to work very hard for her grades and has actually made the deans list for the last 4 semesters. She has also been invited to join the National Honor Society.

Proud does not even begin to explain the feelings.....

Not only is she beautiful, funny, respectful, responsible and resourceful, but she is hardworking and pretty darn smart too!

She is everything that I wish I could have been at her age.

I love her!