It occurred to me...

...that God has been doing something with Emma I didn't quite recognize.

We have heard for a couple years now that kids in Emma's classes at school and at church just love Emma.  They want to help her and play with her, and they pray for her during their nighttime prayers.  We have always wondered if Emma is nice to other kids and if she talks to them a lot - we don't hear her have much interaction with them, but we also haven't been with in her classrooms, either.

In the last couple of months, Emma has come out of her shell big time.  And she's hilarious.  We continue to hear that other children love Emma.  We've been hearing it more, actually.  And seeing these pictures sent to me from her daily summer camp at our church, I realized something...God is blessing this sweet child of ours with a personality that draws kids to her.  Because she can't walk, kids come to her.  She asks/tells them to come play with her, and they willingly go.  And if she takes off in her wheelchair, they follow.

Four square:

Water day:

I remember a high school soccer game recently when kids were running around Emma, and she was having a blast with them, laughing, even hugging them.

At a 4-year-old friend's birthday party recently, the birthday girl's 7-year-old sister drew Emma a picture that included Emma in her wheelchair, with a note across the top that said, "I love you, Emma!"  Emma had never ever met this girl before.

At a party this past weekend, Emma invited herself to spend the night with a family she did not know, along with another boy she did not know.  I couldn't believe it.  Obviously, she didn't spend the night with them, but who is this child, and what did she do with my shy daughter?  She actually approaches other kids now and asks them their names.  At this same party, she didn't. watch. tv. (her favorite pastime).  Instead, she engaged the other kids who weren't that interested in tv, either.  It was miraculous and so heart-warming.

So God is teaching our child to be patient, kind, outgoing, fun, and funny so that other kids are drawn to her and want to play with her.  Since Emma can't necessarily do all the things that other kids do and go to where they are, He's making sure that other kids want to come to where she is.

There is no better feeling than seeing God love your child.