Posts Tagged ‘Special Needs Parenting’
The Gift of Perspective
This ‘ten year challenge’ social media trend has me reflecting. There’s a lot of living and learning I went through over the past decade. I finished university, survived my first heartbreak, started my teaching career, gained and lost important relationships, bought and sold two homes, navigated the shock of a miscarriage, found my way back to that guy who broke my heart, had a daughter with and married him, battled through the Autism diagnosis of my toddler and started on an unexpected journey of special needs parenting. Today, I found…
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 MoreThank you Mom for Giving me Strength
To the best grandma and mother, Thank You! Thank you for taking your two Autistic grandchildren once a week for 3 years so I could have a break. A break to recompose myself. A break to have a date night with my husband. A break to go to Walmart without screaming kids. A break to sleep. A break from being a special needs mom for a few hours. I could go on and on about the breaks I get to have thanks to you! Thank you for being the grandma…
Read MoreI’m Thankful for the Talking back
Last Saturday, a friend of mine came over. As we were sitting on the stairs chatting, the boys were upstairs with my parents. I heard them jumping up and down on the guest bed. I immediately called upstairs, saying, “BOYS! Come down here, now please!” Immediately, I heard my son Yuri say, indignantly, “NO!” And then, I heard, his brother Aki say, “NO!” Although I immediately said, “excuse me!?” There was still a big part of me that chuckled as my parents said, “they’re pretending to sleep now!” and I…
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 MoreA Thank You Letter To Bubba’s Twin Brother
Dear Braidan, My sweet little buddy… I’m not sure there are words to describe just how truly thankful I am for you and everything you do for your brother…but I’m going to give it a try. Since the day I brought you and Ethan home from the hospital, you have been inseparable. You’d want to be close to each other touching and cuddling. You’d steal each others binkies and giggle at the silliest things. I loved it! Sissy loved taking turns feeding you and helping you both learn new things… …
Read MoreAutism is Joy. So Much Joy.
Autism. It’s not glamorous, easy, or fun. It’s cancelling plans you’d been looking forward to, and not wanting to explain because you don’t want pity or sympathy… Or even worse…someone acting like they understand something that you have to live to grasp. It is size 7 diapers at three and a half, and fearing having to put your squishy cheek little boy in adult diapers. It’s baby gates, high chairs, and it’s closed top cups. It is toys still in boxes because your son would rather spin the wheels on…
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