Interesting encounters

One of the things we were worried about as we considered adopting a child with a limb difference was how other people might react. I'm happy to say that almost all of our contacts have been very positive. Alex is such a cute little boy and we've had lots of people come up and say that. But we have had a few different encounters that I thought I'd share. My favorite occurred when Ellen took Owen and Alex to a local restaurant where we knew several of the cooks casually. One of the cooks smiled and waved at Alex, who was wearing a one-piece winter suit that's a bit baggy. I guess she thought his right hand had come out of his sleeve or something because she kept saying "Where's your other hand? Let me see your other hand." Ellen smiled and waited for her to move on to some other question, but the cook persisted in wanting to see Alex's right arm. Finally Ellen said, "Actually...he doesn't have one." The poor woman's face turned bright red and she said "Oh my God!" and ran away. The other interesting reactions are all with young children. Today a little boy saw Alex and said "That kid's arm is cut off!!" Fortunately we were able to put his mind at ease by telling him that Alex was just born without an arm. At a birthday party this weekend, another little boy was not so easily assuaged. He wanted to know that the arm would grow in later, wouldn't it?

Honestly, we hardly notice Alex's limb difference anymore. It's just a part of who he is, as if he wore glasses or had a special shoe or something. I'm sure there will be challenges we'll face as he gets older, but so far, he's an amazingly easy kid with a wonderful temperament and we feel so lucky to have him as part of our family.