Posts Tagged ‘special needs siblings’
‘I Want To Look Out For Him’
Someone once said to me…’siblings to children with disabilities are not special. And they shouldn’t be treated as such.’ I’ll tell you this…in all my years of sharing on social media, very few statements have bothered me as much as that one. I adamantly disagree. This kid. His life is different. Not bad by any means. Wonderful if you ask me. But it’s different than most of his peers. He sees and hears and experiences things most people never will. And we choose to call that a blessing. We work…
Read MoreRemember, Your Sister Talks to Angels
Recently my daughter Sage who holds her feelings in like they never existed, who would rather use her fists to deal with hurt, broke. Her sky blue eyes welled up and her upper lip quivered as a stream of salty tears spilled down her cheeks. My dearest Sage, You have a job more important than other kids your age. Not only do you have to protect your littlest sister from dangerous situations, you must also protect her from hate and evil. Sage, there will always be mean people who spew hate. Yes…
Read MoreYou Will Be His Best Advocate
Sawyer, I am writing down the stories of you so that someday, when you are older, we can look back together at them. Sawyer, your brother Cooper started at your school last week. At first I didn’t know what you would think. Would you be nervous? Excited? Worried? Of course, you amazed me. Your response when I told you was….’now I can watch out for my brother, mama.’ You were so excited. I was a bit worried though. I want you to be a kid and not have to worry…
Read MoreThis Kid is a Keeper
Someone once said to me…’siblings to children with disabilities are not special. And they shouldn’t be treated as such.’ I’ll tell you this…in all my years of sharing on social media, very few statements have bothered me as much as that one. I adamantly disagree. This kid. His life is different. Not bad by any means. Wonderful if you ask me. But it’s different than most of his peers. He sees and hears and experiences things most people never will. And we choose to call that a blessing. We work…
Read MoreThe Secret Club of Siblings
Today is an exciting day. Today, I made a friend. As a young adult in a new city, this is a pretty huge achievement. We met at our apartment complex’s pool after I saw she was reading a book I have been meaning to read and the conversation moved from there. We talked about the places we want to visit when COVID is over, griped about our landlord, joked about how the Midwest is like your annoying sibling — if you’re from there, you’re allowed to make fun of it.…
Read MoreLet There Be a Sister
One green, green day, the Lord looked upon the world. He admired his sons and his daughters. He smiled at all of the wonderful animals, and he gazed tenderly at each new baby. The round blue earth, with all of its people and puppies and flowers and trees, seemed complete. But the Lord was not so sure. He thought about it for a while, and then he said to himself, I am not done yet. I need someone who is a little different. Let there be a boy, he said,…
Read MoreMom, What Happens When You Are Gone?
My daughter Isla is 11 years old and has a unique subset of autism that has broken me and put me back together in ways I never could have dreamed. You always assume you will have so much to teach your children and then God giggles a little bit and sends you your greatest teacher in the form of a 7lb 14oz bundle of curls who will eventually be diagnosed with something that is forever. Interestingly enough I have recently been reflecting on the lessons that motherhood has taught me…
Read MoreA Friendship Blossoms
Autism can be hard to understand especially for a toddler. All my son wants is just a relationship with his older brother, who up until a few months ago wanted nothing to do with him. Two boys with completely different personalities: Nicholas who is laid back, keeps to himself, quiet (most of the time), and has autism; and Daniel who is outgoing, social, independent, strong willed, and most of all, persistent. For a long time I didn’t know if my boys would have a good relationship with each other. I…
Read MoreAs Moms, We are only One Person
I read something the other day. It said that it appears that I neglect my middle son. I don’t share him enough. I wasn’t angry. Although it was Christmas Eve so I did side eye her timing. People say lots of things and don’t really fully understand that I share mere minutes of our day. Sometimes seconds. In fact, it got me thinking about motherhood. And time. Not love because we all know we love our children equally. Although I tend to increase mine a hair towards the ones who…
Read MoreThe Invaluable Things He’ll Teach Him
I have three boys. They are 9, 6 and 1. The older one giggles a lot. He loves the Price is Right and Steve Harvey from Family Feud. Especially Plinko and when the answer is any price in the thirties. He doesn’t say much but he sure can get his point across. So, if you have a question for him, don’t be afraid to ask. Give him a minute to respond though. I promise you he’s listening. He just needs to process. The middle one is the one with the…
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