A Smoking Hot Thankful Thursday

Good morning and happy Thankful Thursday! I'm linking up with hosts Rebecca Jo, Leslie, and Jennifer.  

It's a hot one here in the Neighborhood (capitalized because I live in Mr. Roger's hometown). Temps will be in the mid to upper 90s today and the humidity is already at the "soggy" point. 

This week I am thankful....

** still, for my job, though there have been a couple of setbacks.

** One of my clients, who was my age and had Down Syndrome, had been in the hospital for a couple of weeks with a blood clot in her lung (maybe more than that...that was just the initial diagnosis). I received a text Monday evening that she had "gone home to heaven." Aw. But she was a believer so I know that's where she is and for the first time she is healthy and whole and having a great old time up there!

** Perspective.

I lost another client, not due to death, but because of an incident while I was with him this past Saturday. He is a nice enough young man, diagnosed with autism and a couple of other minor things, and he is VERY high functioning. So high, that I honestly believe he shouldn't be labeled. He lives on his own and the goal is to get him to a point of not needing any support staff. Not sure that will ever happen because, and I hate to say this, but it's true...he is L-A-Z-Y.

His parents know it's true. The people in charge of his case know it's true. ALL of them told me not to let him walk all over me, to be in charge, to push him to do his chores, etc. I did encourage him to keep working when he was forever wanting to "take a little break," but I was so nice about it that I worried I wasn't pushing him enough.

Yeah, right. On Saturday he was supposed to clean up his apartment. I suggested he start by going around and picking up all the trash and putting it where it belonged. Okie-dokie. He literally picked up 2 pieces of garbage and then said he was taking a break. I responded with, "Hey, I know it's Saturday and you're tired, but how about picking up a few more things and then taking a break?"

BAM! With absolutely no warning at all he went berserk. He swung his arm around and set the huge glass of pop he'd just poured flying. It soaked his sofa, floor and wall. Then he started grabbing his video games and throwing them. His cell phone was the next thing to go flying. Then he started kicking over tables. Finally, he threw himself down on the sofa and pulled his head and arms into his shirt. 

I was stunned...and more than a little fearful. He just happens to be 6'3" and weighs well over 300lbs. He is a BIG boy! I am grateful his anger was directed at his stuff and not at me. Had it been aimed at me, he could have done some real damage.

After speaking to his parents and my employer, I was willing to keep working with him and he had, in fact, expressed his willingness for me to come back this week. So it was a bit of a surprise to get a text message from his mother on Tuesday letting me know I didn't have to come because he was so embarrassed and upset that he was taking a week off. I wanted to clarify so asked if I would be seeing him again at all and that is when she admitted that she had asked my employer to assign someone new....all while going on and on that it wasn't my fault, that I'd done what everyone told me to do, but he's now just soooooo embarrassed and upset that our time together would never be productive, that it'd be better for him to start over fresh with a new person.

I was upset. First, I think it's a mistake to not help him face up to his mistakes and learn how to handle them since they want him to learn to live independently. Second, it was a big hit in the income for me to lose him. I saw him for 10 hours a week and at the highest pay rate since we had so many goals to work toward.

I met with friends for dinner on Tuesday and they prayed for me and helped me see that maybe God was getting me out of there to protect me. (This should probably be yet another item on the list.) See, there was NOTHING about a temper in the boy's file. Not. One. Single. Word. And he has done this before. It may have been a little while since the last time, but he has done it.

My boss made sure to note it in his file now so that the next person will have a clue what they are walking into.

** For some time spent enjoying God's beautiful creation. I took a client to a nearby park I'd never been to before, but had heard about for years. It was very beautiful and serene there, but there sure wasn't much water running over the falls. I'm wondering what it looks like today after a night and day of thunderstorms?

Looking out through the falls.

Looking at the falls from the front.

** it looks like our new grandkitty is going to be okay. For 2 days she was terribly sick with a fever of 104.9. All she did was sleep. She wasn't eating or drinking and her back end is obviously causing her some pain. We all feared that maybe Leah had been too rough in playing with her.

A $400 visit to the vet resulted in x-rays and blood tests that showed absolutely nothing. The vet didn't even feel confident in telling the kids that the poor thing would live since they just didn't have a clue what was wrong. They gave her a shot to reduce the fever and sent them home with pain pills and a syringe to force some food and water into her. 

At home, she suddenly started meowing to get out of the crate so they let her out and she ran to her food and scarfed it down. She still was pretty lethargic after that, but at least she ate! We are praying she continues to feel better today. She's such a sweet thing and has the patience of a saint with Leah.

Comfy and cozy in Mommy and Daddy's bed.

** for Pinterest recipes that turn out well. I tried a recipe for a shrimp boil done in the Crock Pot last night. It was so easy and it turned out so well! Tim often orders this at seafood restaurants and he said it was better than most of those!

** for a couple of hours in the pool with Colton splashing and having silly fun, just the two of us.

** for surviving yesterday when I had both kids alllllll day and we were stuck inside. Both were in whiney moods and not getting along with each other at all.

** as I always am, for all of you!