So the other day, we’re driving around, and I hear Gideon from the third seat telling me he’s tangled, and he can’t get out. “I’m really stuck. Truly!” He uses “truly” very appropriately, to add emphasis and to make sure i know that he is telling the truth. It’s adorable. I send some very mommyish comments back to him about remaining buckled, safety, figure it out, etc.
Every few minutes, I hear a related comment. “I’m tangled. ALL of me is tangled. I’m TRYING! I think I’m bleeding. You’re going to have to cut this off. I’LL JUST BE STUCK HERE FOREVER!” I can’t see anything but his head in the rear view mirror and everything looks okay.
We get home, and I climb past the other kids to assess the situation.
And there’s, my oldest. Literally, all tangled up in the seat belt.
Let me take this opportunity for some education. (Sometimes I can’t help muhself.) My son is 5. He absolutely understands the concept of keeping a seat belt on. He follows these rules. All the time. At least, on his medicine. I never have trouble with him getting out of his seat belt without permission. However, this was late afternoon, and we were tweaking his current medicine regimen. And the medicine had worn off. (I’m certain there will be future blog posts about medicine tweaking with ADHD treatment. Because it’s part of our life. It’s always in my head. Stay tuned.)
No more medicine in his system, he couldn’t quit playing with the seat belt, even though he knows the rules and has the desire in his sweet little heart to follow them. He couldn’t leave it alone. Welcome to ADHD. And he got tangled. And then he wiggled so much that he locked the seat belt. Then wiggled some more, and it had no more slack, and it was starting to hurt.
Here’s a view from the back. (Ignore the bandaid residue, he wouldn’t let anyone take off the big-sized bandaid that he got from the school nurse. It stayed on for days.)
Husband is out of town. I’m considering getting back into the driver’s seat and going to the Honda shop. He’s really, truly stuck. What do I do?
Well, I laughed a little, because, what else do you do sometimes. I’m wondering how much replacement seat belts cost if I do have to cut them. I’m wondering if I have the instrument to cut them, can I do it safely, can Gideon sit still enough during that process, is there a YouTube video for this situation.. Do I call the Husband yet?
I ended up sliding the car seat out from under his little seat and helped him step up and out of the seat belt loop. Like taking off a pair of pants. It was so tight, it tugged his pants down.
I hesitated to share this one. Exposing my kid to ridicule, but I know the whispers that we, especially us moms, so readily listen to. The lies we buy into. That we, alone, can’t get it together when it comes to our kids. That we might be a failure. Maybe you haven’t even fully put words to those thoughts…
Apparently, I am not so cut out for this parenting thing.
Everyone will think, will know, that I am a terrible parent.
My kid is the worst. Hands down. The most difficult, the most trying, the most whiny…
I know I’m not the only one. Satan isn’t real original.
But, God teaches me, if I’m listening, and He’s taught me, is still teaching me, to recognize the wrong voice. I’ve had those thoughts. I’m learning to recognize them, and little by little, the power of that voice is fading.
“… Take every thought captive to obey Christ.” 2 Corinthian 10:5b. Those lies I buy are not obedient thoughts, not thoughts that bring glory to my Creator.
So I share this one, reminding, assuring whomever needs to be assured that you are not alone! Parenting IS hard. Your kid probably has done something crazy. But you’re not alone. And it feels so hard, so crazy, so big and impossible because it’s our own kid and our own responsibility and there’s all this pressure to produce a perfect little person. Pressure, on ourselves. Put on by our OWN SELVES.
Not from God. “My grace is sufficient for you…for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
I’m not built to do this on my own. I’m built to need. To rely.
To let someone else untangle me. When I’m really, truly stuck. To accept the grace. (Isn’t that so often the hardest part?)
And to teach me the right way so I get tangled up less often. “Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and a Light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105
“Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth… “ Ephesians 6:14a
love it! needed it!
Funny story, not so funny story this happened to us just this past thursday headed back from jh game in Bronte. We had stopped in Angelo and got kids Mcds and decided we’d stop at Sonic in Big Lake to get us wings since wings that night were buy one get one. Well we pull into Sonic and Colton in the 3rd row is going ballistic about being stuck in his seat belt. 3rd row sometimes locks up for some reason when going at high speeds so we said just unbuckle it and get back buckled. He says but i can’t I’m stuck. Aye ok so we tell Havana to go back there and try and help and she says the same thing he’s stuck. We are like how in the world is he stuck!! So send in the B team(me)! Well yep he’s stuck alright!! Seat belt all twisted up like yours and was only getting tighter!! He even somehow managed to flip over the back of the seat hanging upside down!!! Aye ya ya ya!! IDK how this mess happened!! So here comes the A team(Tomas). Guess what?!?! Not even the A team can get him out!! So we had to cut the seat belt!!! :/ So now I am in the process of trying to find a replacement seat belt and I’ve been unsuccessful so far!! Well unless I want to pay over $200 for it or over $600 for a whole new left seat!!