Posts Tagged ‘Special Needs’
Our Stories Are Not All the Same
This will be my most unliked post, and I get it. I’m never trying to “start something” or offend anyone, but I do want to be honest in how I feel on this journey. My name is Danielle. I share our families journey at Story of Noahism. I made a tiktok a couple weeks ago and on that app comments get a lot of attention. More so than IG. And one of my top comments meaning hundreds, almost 1k to be exact, of ppl have liked it, goes something like…
Read MoreI Didn’t Have the Capacity For a Confrontation
Right after we moved into our current home, I registered to attend several open houses for homeschool co-ops and tutorials in this area. I will never, for as long as I live, forget one specific open house. As one of the teachers shared her plans for the fall semester, she referenced the potential number of students in her classroom based on the current number of interested families. “We have seven students…” she began. That number didn’t include Milo. I’d attended the open house with a friend who also had a son with special needs. That number didn’t include her child, either. Another teacher…
Read MoreOur Biggest Day
Lately, I’ve been sharing a lot of firsts for my son Cooper. Tonight, was the biggest one yet. He and I sat and watched an hour long flag football game together. He sat. He watched the timer. (Two 25 minute half’s is a long time!) He waved at his brother who was playing. He held my hand. He asked my 486 times for trains. And we were present. Together. A family of five. This wasn’t just any first. This was a first we have worked towards every day of his…
Read MoreHey You
Psst, hey. Look at me, I’m over here. Come close. I want to tell you something. You won’t win today. To be honest, I haven’t really noticed you in a while. I almost forgot about you. It seemed like the medicine was working and my son Jack was calmer and a little less agitated. Then, just last month, you returned with a vengeance—all ragged cuticles and sleepless nights. Anxiety. You would think I’d be used to you by now—that I could anticipate your next move, and figure out a solution,…
Read MoreChanging the Narrative
The other day I interviewed Joe of Joe James Autistic Awareness & Photography, an autism self advocate and all around cool guy. Each time I chat with him I spend days after reflecting on the wisdom and advice he provides me with. In our most recent interview, at least a dozen time he said, ‘I am autistic and proud.’ And at one point he said, ‘can you imagine if every autistic person said that? How the narrative of disability would change?’ Wow. Think about that for a minute. Right now,…
Read MoreThree “Simple” Words
I love you. Three simple words. Most of us throw them around loosely. Take them for granted. We say them when we hang up the phone. When a loved one leaves the house. When we kiss our little ones good night. Sometimes out of habit. It’s something a mother hears a million times.. over a lifetime. That is unless your child is… NONVERBAL. Then you might never hear it. One of those things that most don’t even think about. I have told my daughter “I Love You” everyday, multiple times…
Read MoreHe Did His Best
Today was a big day for this kid and our family. We went to the Afton Apple Orchard. You know the kind with lots of noise and people and waiting and walking. And we went as a family. We invited our friends to come along as well. See in our world, we need help. We know that now. We know our strengths and our weaknesses. And our Cooper, he requires both mom and dad sometimes. We had a lot of wins today. Cooper petted his first llama, sheep, donkey and…
Read MoreLook For the Silver Lining
So many things could be said about the lack of “sunshine” surrounding a diagnosis such as Autism Spectrum Disorder. It’s labeled as rigid. And scary. And lonely. And most people (including us early on) are uneducated about ASD. Simply because it is thought to be almost “taboo”. In our case, we went through all the stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining… all of them). Then you do yourself a favor, and you arm yourself with knowledge. Suddenly, the sky clears up, and you come around to the “acceptance” stage. I…
Read MoreSomewhere in the Middle Of Hope
Most days you can find me somewhere in the middle of hope at the intersection of not knowing what I’m doing nor where I’m going. This is the life I’ve grown accustomed to-the autism life. Covid-19 isn’t my first “new normal” receiving an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis for my son three years ago was. In an instant our priorities and responsibilities changed, our entire world was rocked as we knew it by autism. My son Stalen was diagnosed on the spectrum at twenty-one months. He is considered non-verbal. Today, he is a…
Read MoreDo You Ever Wonder?
“Do you ever still wonder what he would be like if he didn’t have Down syndrome?” She asked. It was an honest question from a new friend. She is several years behind me in this journey of parenting a child with Down syndrome. I vividly remember being where she is now. I remember feeling like the odd one out amongst family and friends- I was the 20-something who had a child with a disability. I watched as their children hit the milestones at the appointed time on that now dreaded…
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