Posts Tagged ‘severe autism’
It Was Against the Health Policy
Today, we went to the library. It’s the same library I used to visit as a child. I’ve taken the boys several times in the hope of instilling a love of reading. Milo, my eight-year-old son with autism, was having a difficult time — nothing new — but I was taking care of things. I sat with him at a table in a corner of the children’s section while my six-year-old son, Linus, selected books nearby. Just seconds after I snapped this picture, a librarian approached us. I looked up…
Read MoreA Bittersweet Sixteenth Birthday
My son Brian’s birthday is next week. 16 years. 16 love-filled anxiety ridden years. 16 years that I could never have predicted in my most worrisome of scenarios, but the 16 years I’ve grown the most in my life. Some times you need knocked around to know what you are made of and knocked around is exactly how I feel as we turn the calendar to Brian’s birthday month. Brian’s birthday, 12-12, is the most bittersweet day of the year for me. It is more meaningful than any holiday, anniversary, or…
Read MoreThe Things Special Needs Parents Should be Talking About
There is a part of this special needs parenting thing that I’ve been thinking a lot about lately. I never thought about it when he was younger. Honestly, it never occurred to me as a thing to think about. I was so focused too. Focused on helping him in the moment. So this never occurred to me. But now that he’s almost 9, and we can breathe, and he’s at peace, it’s starting to creep in. This thing. This new worry. It’s seeping in around the edges of my acceptance.…
Read MoreWe’ve Never Visited Santa
We’ve never visited Santa. He’s never asked me for the coolest toy. We’ve never baked cookies together. He’s never made a Christmas list. Or sang in a Christmas pageant. No snow mans or Elf on the Shelf. For so many years, Christmas was just another day. He didn’t acknowledge the tree or decorations. He didn’t open presents. Or wake up early to see what Santa brought. I used to get sad. Holidays were hard. I had a little boy who was oblivious. And not only was he oblivious, holidays were really…
Read MoreWe are Thankful for You
And then it happens….one day you wake up and your in this place. This beautifully loud, exhausting, perfect place. You look around and see that you’re a mom with three boys. Three boys who are exactly the people they are supposed to be. No different. No less. You’re in the place where everything feels right. A place full of trains, dancing, Pokémon cards, hockey, and little boy kisses. You made it. Your heart is calm. Your days are bright. Your thoughts are positive. Your vision is clear. And the love.…
Read MoreI had Expectations
I read a quote today on Pinterest while I was hiding in the bathroom for five minutes listening to the chaos of my life outside the door. Babies crying. Kids arguing. Jamie babbling about how I have too many shoes. You know. Life. The quote said something like…sometimes we create our own heartbreak through expectation. Now if that ain’t just the honest to God truth. Expectations. We all have them. We all set them. With adulthood, marriage, parenting, holidays, even our careers. We have them because we are human. I…
Read MoreI am Thankful for the Most Amazing Uncle
My name is Corie and I am thankful for the most amazing uncle. I am the mom of two boys with one on the spectrum. My little guy was diagnosed “non verbal” and “low functioning” at the age of three. His name is Dante. He is now 12 and boy is he a firecracker. I would like to give a shout out so to speak to his Uncle Shane…AKA “Uncie”. A quick background on this “Uncie” character. Uncie is my oldest son’s father. So strange sounding but bare with me.…
Read MoreThe Importance of a Family Restroom
Before I had a son with autism, I feel like I was oblivious to a lot of things. I foolishly assumed that all kids went to restaurants, and used public restrooms and even transitioned from riding in a cart to walking. I didn’t know that some children are deathly afraid of automatic flushing toilets and hand dryers. I didn’t know that some parents are unable to go into gas stations or even go through drive thrus. But the biggest thing that I never even gave a second thought too…was public…
Read MoreKeep Moving Forward
So, I am sitting here, once again thinking about progress. And how important it is to stand still and reflect on much can change in a year. See, we stood still for years in the progress department. Any movement felt backwards. As a mom, I simply could not figure out how to get us moving forward. I felt like I was beating my head against a wall at times. But time, it has a way of happening. And all of a sudden, I look back and realize, we are in…
Read MoreTo the Mama who Wonders Why
I’m giving you this baby. He won’t be like the other ones. Maybe you’ll know from day one. Maybe it will take time. But eventually, you come to realize that something is different. It’s going to be hard at first. Not the love part. That part will be easy. But the fight to figure out what and why. That part will leave you depleted in a way that feels almost impossible to explain. You will be pushed to your limits. You are going to question everything you’ve ever done and…
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