All is Calm, All is Bright

I wrote yesterday's post immediately after the stormy bedtime. It was raw and honest and I edited nothing, filtered nothing. And, once again, the outpouring of support has been awesome. I've gotten great comments on the post, messages on Facbeook and by e-mail, had a couple of great phone conversations. Being away from it, not being in the heat of the moment, I don't feel like it's as a big a problem. And I've got a new gameplan in place for tonight's bedtime. Jeff is home with her today and she's played in the snow and been chilling out with Daddy. No sugar, carefully watching what she consumes. He's keeping all confrontations at bay. The next few days just focus on getting back to normalcy, routine. My daughter tests limits. It's her way. My daughter tests and pushes. My daughter's personality has always been demanding and deserving of lots of energy and attention. Not in an unhealthy way, not in an out of control way. At her next doctor's appointment, I will bring it up (if it's still happening). But until then, I've been offered some other resources through church and friends that have me rooted again, grounded again, and feeling far less alone. I think that's a huge part of it... when my compassionate, kind, funny, sweet, loving daughter is screaming, hysterical, crying... it feels like there is no possible way other people are dealing with the same thing. But once I open up and start talking... it turns out that we are far from alone. I wanted to share some peaceful pictures of snow in my neighborhood and around my house. We had a very lovely snowfall Sunday. I love the way my neighborhood looks in the snow. I love our Christmas lights in the snow. I love the sound and scent of snow and the peaceful calm of standing out in the midst of it. So these pictures are just as much for me as they are for you... because I need my calm, too.