Nobody’s life is perfect. I think it’s important to say that. In fact, most people’s lives are not easy. But yet social media sets this precedent that every moment must be magical and perfect. And a competition. Holidays. Family photos. Sunday mornings. I see it a lot specifically in the world of special needs parenting. Whose autism is harder? Because I’m happy most of the time, obviously our autism is easy. That’s one game I absolutely refuse to play. I will not compete or compare or rank out autism against…
Do You Feel Like You’re Always Nagging Your Child? So often I hear from parents, “I have to constantly nag or it won’t get done…” Keeping neurotypical kids on track is a struggle and truth is that it’s usually harder with special needs kids. But does it have to be so hard? The answer is no. It doesn’t. There are so many tools out there, we’re just not using them with our kids. You’ve probably seen visual schedules in the classroom and if your kiddo goes to therapy you’ve seen…
Hi. My name is Carrie. I am married to a man named Joe, and we have five kids. Our second child, Jack, is diagnosed with autism. He is almost seventeen years old. We spend a lot of time working on open-ended questions with Jack: who, what, where, when, and why. Who is your favorite teacher? What would you like for dinner? Where did you put your glasses? When do you want to leave for the store? Why do you think Billie Eilish is the greatest singer of all time? See, you can’t answer these kinds of questions with…
I helped my boy get dressed today, as I do each morning. “One foot in sweetheart,” I quietly instructed, going through the familiar motions. I checked the calendar for a quick run down of our day… April 1st. The start of Autism Awareness/Acceptance Month. Letting out a sigh, I hurried off to gather items for Leo’s therapy sessions, my mind wandering to those earlier days, when excitement was all abuzz, as April neared. When we’d wear a certain color to commemorate the day… And Facebook posts and videos depicting individuals…
My son Stalen is almost 6 years old and on the autism spectrum. His safety is my priority, always. He has no sense of safety or danger. He elopes. He is a runner. He is an opportunist. As soon as he sees an opportunity he bolts. When these incidents occur, his strength and speed are super human. He has crossed beyond the tree line into the woods on me a couple of times. He has unlocked the door once and gone outside-luckily-into our fenced in backyard. He has bolted across…
Why does Autism awareness and acceptance really matter? There are many reasons, but let’s talk about one of the most important reasons… SUICIDE. Suicide is three times more likely for those on the Autism spectrum studies say. They say Autistics are more likely to have anxiety and depression which obviously leads to suicide. However, I think it’s important to discuss some other factors that weigh heavily into why Autistics have anxiety and depression beyond just Autism. You may be surprised to understand that the villain in this suicide story is…
We’ve spent so much of our time and marriage teaching our son how to communicate that somewhere along the way my husband and I forgot how to effectively do that with each other. Days are long, sometimes sleepless nights feel longer and the added stress of balancing therapy appointments, bills, insurance calls, and so on makes it harder to remember you’re on the same team. I’ll never say marriage is harder for those of us raising special needs children because I have no proof that’s true, but what I can…
My son, I wonder if you will always reach for my hand when we are walking. I wonder if you will always be precious and innocent. I wonder if you will always gasp at birds and at squirrels. I wonder if you will always point to airplanes. And wave to strangers. And bark when puppies walk by. I wonder if you will always run up to a mud puddle with such joy and excitement and then look back to get my attention before you jump in. I wonder if we…
My son, This morning was one of those great mornings. You and I, sitting side-by-side, taking in the morning in our own familiar way. You on the couch surrounded by 7 fleece blankets and treasures. Me, right next to you in the recliner, feet up, drinking coffee. The news was going on about something or another but I couldn’t really hear it over the music blaring from your iPad. You were dancing to it. Every few seconds you would pick up my arm and move it with yours to the…
There is just something about the third child. I hear they rule the roost usually. And are often little stinkers. Both true for this one. Right now he’s two years old. The third boy. The boss. He loves Nerf Guns, monster trucks, and Blaze and the Monster Machine. He has the most pleasant personality of anyone I have ever met. He adores his brothers. He drives both of them bonkers too. Without fear. He lives on chocolate. I kid. But for real, he loves snacks and treats and raspberries. Getting…
