Josiah's Journey

Navigating life with a special needs child.

NOT Chocolate Pudding

By 7:04 PM

I wait all week for one thing.  Sunday nights at 7 pm you will find me engrossed in ‘Secret Millionaire’.  What an amazing premise.  This series highlights goodness, kindness, compassion and generosity.  I was hooked from the very first show.  Turns out tonight's millionaire grew up just a few minutes from my hometown.  I have an even greater connection to the show now and watch with rapt attention.  Chandler and Jesse watch with me.  Josiah plays near by with some Mardi Gras beads and Rick is in the kitchen whipping up an Italian feast. 

During a commercial break I smell something that in no way resembles spaghetti sauce.  Puzzled, I look at Chandler.  She apparently notices too but says nothing.  Interestingly enough, we dismiss it and flip the channel to avoid watching commercials.  Every so often I glance over at Chandler and wonder what the strange odor is.  It’s becoming stronger, yet not strong enough to tear me away from the images on the screen.  I LOVE this show. I’m in tears as the Secret Millionaire begins to reveal his true identity and passes out tens of thousands of dollars to people in need. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Josiah approaching.   Funny, I think.  Where did he get chocolate pudding?  Then it hits me like a bolt of lightening.  That’s NOT pudding.   A quick glance down the hallway to the foyer reveals what I fear.  Josiah has been digging in his pants and throwing the contents all around the room.  There are brown spots ground in the carpet.  There are brown pellets lying on the floor.  There are brown streaks on Josiah’s shirt and shorts.  Josiah looks as if he had just been face painted with brown paint.  The boy is covered. 

One shriek from me sends Rick flying out of the kitchen.  We spring into action.  I grab the child.  He grabs the wipes.  Before he knows what hit him, Josiah is scooped up and whisked into the tub.  Just before stripping off his clothes, I run for my camera.  This is a Kodak moment.  When I need a good laugh, this one will do it for me.  It’s not long before Josiah is scrubbed clean.  The tub gets a good scouring and disinfecting.  The brown pellets are flushed, the carpet steam cleaned, and the clothes, well the clothes are still sitting, soaking in the sink. 

We are currently without a washing machine.  It died yesterday.  It gave out and spilled lots and lots and lots of water all over the laundry room and kitchen floor.  Twice.  We were out in the driveway in the midst of our garage sale and didn’t notice. That was a fun day.  Every towel we owned, including bath towels and hand towels and beach towels for a family of 7 was not enough to soak up all the water. 

Might have been better had the washer spilled gallons of water all over the floor today, AFTER Josiah played with brown poo,  Oh well, the new washer arrives tomorrow.  Did I mention that a sense of humor helps?



About the Author

Sandy is a wife and busy mom of 5, who bakes, bikes and blogs. She searches for joy (and humor) amongst the challenges of parenting a special needs child.

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