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My Knees Hurt!

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I turn 52 in July. My adopted son is two years and nine months old. The 50 year age difference concerned me when we adopted him. Then God introduced me to several men within a few weeks who had either biological or adopted children with the same age difference.

 

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These encounters muted my concern. The reality still exists that I am in my early 50s with an active 2-year-old.

Challenges

My knees really do ache. My son began calling me his playground. Like any 2 1/2-year-old boy, he enjoys climbing all over his daddy. He would climb to the top of my bald head (he asked me where my hair went the other day) and slide all the way down my body if I let him.

He asks me to chase, to jump up and down with him on the bed, and to spin around in circles. He tests my response time and quickness when we are in public places with his sudden spastic movements. I crawl around the floor with him all the time. Almost always that turns into me laying on my back to catch my breath…or a quick nap.

The biggest difference that I notice is that my friends in their 20s and 30s who have toddlers seem to rebound quicker than I do.

Thanksgivings

I referred to all of that above as challenges, but really they are joys!

I am thankful for my health that allows me to chase, run, jump, spin, and crawl with my son.

I am thankful for the amount of time I can spend with my son. Twenty years ago I worked an eight-to-five job. I would have missed most of what I get to see and hear him do these days.

I am thankful for our financial stability that 30 years of adulthood and wise stewardship has given us.

I am thankful for the years of life experience that has taught and molded me into the man I am today.

I pray that my son will benefit from these blessings that God has poured out on my life.

We adopted our son in September, 2012. The concerns that I had then have faded over the eight months since. Thank you God for showing me that I don’t need to worry about being 50 years older than my son.

Now I pray for a long life so I can see him become a man, a husband, and a father. Hmm…would it be too much to ask for good health at age 80-90 so I can still chase, run, jump, spin, and crawl with my grandchildren?

Anyone else around 50 years older than their children, or know someone who is? Please share!

About the Author

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I am a longtime Austinite. Married my beautiful wife over 35 years ago. Adopted our son September 2012.
As a small business and nonprofit coach/consultant, I have found my sweet spot. I lean on my varied background of corporate, small business ownership, writing, and pastoring as I work to help small business owners and nonprofit founders build the business they want to have.


  • I am 43 with our little one about to turn 4 next month. So I can relate! Not quite the same age difference, but close! 😀 My response time certainly is not what it was 20 years ago when my oldest biological child was turning 3! I am thankful for being very flexible! I am thankful for The Lord bringing something called the 90 day challenge into my life so that I have lost weight, eating healthier and am exercising! Things like heart diseas, high blood pressure and high cholesterol are hereditary in my family. In truth that worried me! But at my physical this year, my blood work came back as being BELOW the numbers for being at risk for heart diseas, and my borderline high cholesterol is GONE!! 😀 So, God took away my excuses! He is pretty amazing that way!

  • As I sit here reading your post with a knee brace on one knee and the other knee hurting, I can relate! My knees are talking back after 10 years of getting up and down in the floor with the boys while we were homeschooling, (After all, who wants to do school work at a desk or kitchen table, right?) As I’ve been following your blog, I’ve often wondered what my part is in the foster care/adoption world now that I am a 45-year-old “empty-nester” and don’t have the time commitment of employment. It hit me today. I have the blessing of babysitting for sweet friends who are fostering an infant and hoping for adoption. They have called me several times now to stay with him during the day when they have meetings with CPS. God’s giving me opportunities to do my part in the foster care world by being available to stay with this sweet little one when his parents need me. Plus, through my contact with you, they’ve received encouragement from your blog, and I’m giving them a copy of your book. God has blessed my by giving me an opportunity to minister to these hopeful parents simply with my time, and to pray over that little boy every time I get to stay with him.

    (I consider my husband as having just as much a hand in this as I. He works long hours each week and is the reason I am able to have the free time that I do to be available for needs such as this. I consider him my co-partner when God brings along a need I can meet!)

    • LeAnn, thank you for sharing that. As I have written in some of my blogs and in my book, not everyone is supposed to foster or adopt. But there are so many ways that we all can care for at-risk, vulnerable, or even orphaned children. What you are doing by supporting this family is very important and invaluable. I KNOW that couple appreciates what you are doing.

  • I turn 55 next month and my adopted daughter is 4. And my knees hurt too. I totally understand the challenges and joys. Thanks for your post.

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