Have Grace like an OT

We met with the Occupational Therapist, Stephanie, again on Monday. The visit was great, lots of tips, but one thing has really stuck with me.
While Stephanie was trying to get Timmy to roll over she kept saying to him, "You are strong. You are capable."

Every time I help Timmy with his exercises, I've been saying those words as though they are part of the exercises. "You are strong. You are capable."
It keeps popping into my head at random times throughout the day too.

Usually when I get stuck on a phrase it's because I'm having an epiphany about something, so I've been asking myself why.

I realized that although intellectually I knew that Timothy was strong and capable, emotionally I hadn't grasped the positives about Timmy's situation.

I'm sure part of it has to do with my first experience with OT. When David was 13 months old he was tested by an OT to see if he was meeting his developmental standards because the world's worst pediatrician was trying to label David failure to thrive. Everything about that visit was stressful. I was exhausted, David was exhausted, we were at a hospital, away from home, David was undergoing mountains of tests, every minute I was learning something new about David's health (a truly humbling mommy experience), AND I was trying to prove to the world's worst pediatrician that, although sick and small, David was thriving.
So, even though the current situation is totally different I know I've been holding that memory on my sleeve when we meet with Stephanie. Somewhere in the back of my mind I'm still trying to show that awful ped (and myself) that my children are thriving.

Thinking about that made me realize why the phrase has been stuck in my head: Stephanie's choice of words turned my perspective toward OT on it's head. It reminded me about the fundamentals of parenting. Because when it comes down to it, every parenting situation is like doing Timmy's OT exercises. As gracefully as we can, every day, we encourage our children to stretch, and that grace comes from knowing that our children are capable. We are setting them challenges that we know through our faith in them that they can achieve. Because I already know that my child is thriving, because thriving isn't something static, it's a process, it's constantly evolving. Timmy is strong and he is capable. (David was, and is, too.) It's the ultimate positive parenting thought - You are strong. You are capable.