Posts Tagged ‘autism and nonverbal’
Thank You for Learning About Autism
I want to say the hugest, most heartfelt thank you to each and everyone of you who has supported me and my family on this journey. I know that so many of you have fallen in love with Cooper and our story. Sawyer, Harbor and Wynnie too. And of course Jamie. 8 years ago I sat on my couch in Duluth, MN and I created a blog. I named it Finding Cooper’s Voice. And I truly had no intention of anyone every reading it. I poured my heart out to…
Read MoreThe Things That Matter
One of the things I adore the most about my son Cooper is the way he gets excited over things. Things that most people may not think are all that big of a deal. Like a cow in a field. Or when it rains. The wind in his hair. A tractor. When we drive by Target. A train t-shirt. People who look like Santa. Halloween decorations tucked away in a closet. Photos of mom and dad as awkward teenagers. And when his brother gets a haircut. Of course Cooper needed…
Read MoreThe Big Reveal is Tomorrow!
Tomorrow is the day! Finally! The big reveal of my book cover. I am so excited for you all to see it. Cooper and I will go live right here (time TBD) to reveal it. He is going to be so excited. He adores photos of our family. So much so that he carries them, sleeps with them, and loves them until they are worn thin. The photo we chose for the cover is one of his absolute favorites. This photo came in a close close second and was almost…
Read MoreForever Boy Cover Reveal in Two Days!
2 more days until my book cover is revealed! This photo was a strong contender and is one of my absolute favorites of the boys. We won this photo shoot actually. A friend nominated us and the amazing Kacie Ko donated her time and took our family photos. We had just moved from our ‘forever’ home to a new city three hours away so Cooper could receive therapy. It was a very lonely time for Jamie and me. We didn’t want to move. But helping Cooper was our top priority.…
Read MorePreorder Forever Boy Today
Four more days until the cover of my book, Forever Boy, is revealed! It is available on Amazon now though for preorder! This photo is one of the runner ups for the cover. It’s one of my favorite pictures of my boy and me. Someone asked me what the book is about and how it will differ from my blog. When you have a child diagnosed with something, anything, your world changes in an instant. It gets smaller for one. Suddenly, you feel like you are the only person on…
Read MoreLet Them Show Us the Way
When you have a child diagnosed with autism, at some point you will be told all the things they may never do or achieve. Whether it’s from a friend of a friend, a medical professional, an educator, the internet, or an evaluation where you spend hours filling in little bubbles next to questions that cut you like a knife. The limits will be placed. I wish it didn’t happen. I wish instead we were told about how yes, it will be different, and yes there may be parts of development…
Read MoreKindness and Grace
Let me set the scene for you… My husband and two of our boys plus baby get on the elevator. We are loud and busy. Our two year old is trying to push all the buttons. I am using my hip to block him. Our ten year old is autistic and adores elevators. So he is happy flapping and dancing. Just as the door is about to close to bring us to the second floor of the hotel my husband yells out…‘I’ll hold the door for you!’ And a big,…
Read MoreTreasures
I am doing a 25 days of autism photo challenge with Autism adventures with Alyssa on my Instagram page, Findingcoopersvoice. Today is day 19 for me. ‘Post a picture of your child with their treasures, or any item they love.’ Can we just all take a moment and acknowledge how incredibly cool these photos are. Cooper adored putting his favorite treasures in lines. Now I’m not autistic so I can only speculate as to why he did it. To me it seemed like he wanted order in a crazy world.…
Read MoreWorth the Wait
There are really precious moments in life. Like when your father-in-law comes to find you to say… ‘Cooper and I just walked around the campground. He held my hand the whole entire way. He’s never done that before.’ He just beamed as he said it. Ten years is a long time to wait as a Grandpa. But worth every minute. I’ve never met a more loved or treasured little boy. Finding Cooper’s Voice is a safe, humorous, caring and honest place where you can celebrate the unique challenges of parenting…
Read MoreThe Beauty of a Brother
Laughter. You know the kind that comes deep from the belly? It’s the best. And when you hear it coming from someone else you immediately smile. Especially when it’s two of your children. Ages 10 and 2. Brothers. One would assume they don’t have a lot in common. Or a lot of time for each other. But they do. See they both really love The Good Dinosaur and Cars. And bull dozers and fire trucks. The older one loves acting out scenes from movies. He will zip around the house…
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