Ok, so I know that every mom things that her daughter is awesome, right? Well, mine REALLY is! I am so blessed to have a daughter with such a beautiful spirit. She is so very loving, kind, and responsible. She had such a struggle to even come into this world. She was a twin, and her brother passed away halfway through my pregnancy. The doctor put me on bedrest and told me that there was only a 50/50 chance that she would survive. When she made her way into the world, it was with a lot of excitement for sure. We were so very grateful that she was healthy, and we hoped to give her brothers and sisters in the future. I used to say that I wanted a “house full of children.” However, God had other plans… and she was the only child I had.
After several failed adoption attempts, we realized that we WERE supposed to have that “house full of children,” but they wouldn’t be OURS. Our house has ALWAYS been the place where our daughter’s friends hang out, eat, cry, and have fun…. and nothing makes me happier than to see them happy in our home.
Homeschooling Shelby was such a joy. Yes, we had our moments of arguing over math or writing, but most of the time we just enjoyed learning together. We changed our method to unschooling when Shelby was about 9 1/2 years old, and WOW ~ Giving her that freedom to truly learn at her own pace and to choose what she learned was amazing. I started to see her making very mature decisions and taking on challenges that most children her age shied away from.
At the age of 13, she joined the volunteer fire department in our area…. and it was apparent that she had found her calling. At the age of 13, she knew what she wanted to do with her life. At 15 years old, she told us that she was ready to start college so that she could pursue her firefighting career. I was a bit skeptical… but she wasn’t! She knew that she was ready…. and she had met all of the “requirements” for graduating from high school, so why not? She started college 1 week after her 16th birthday, and she is now 18 and in her 5th semester of college. Am I proud? Yes… but not because of her grade point average or accomplishments (even though they are amazing) ~ I am proud of who she IS on the INSIDE. She is everything I could have ever hoped that she would be… and I look forward to watching her reach her goals and see her dreams come true.
For the rest of December, the staff here at Knowledge Box Central wants to share stories of our Christmas traditions with you and hear your stories in return!
