The Therapist Who Helped Me See My Boy

I want to thank and honor my son’s first speech therapist, Elizabeth. She, with one sentence, gave me the strength and hope for this journey we are on, and even though she isn’t our speech therapist anymore (he goes through the school district now that he is four), I replay what she said to me often. Sometimes daily. Sometimes multiple times a day. She helped me see my boy. The amazing boy he is. And not just an imaginary “what if” doom and gloom version of his life. One sentence…

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Thank 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…

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I’m Thankful for the Way You Take Care of Us

Meet Ted. His name suggests exactly what you’d think it does. A simple guy. A good ole boy. A guy who can fix your brakes or loan you his trailer. A guy who chops wood and knows how to do drywall. A guy whose humor is subtle, but hysterical if you catch it. A guy who loves any meal you cook for him. A guy who loves to hunt, but rarely gets to go. A guy with a strong handshake and even stronger integrity. A quiet guy, but great conversationalist.…

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I 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.…

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I’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…

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I’m Thankful For Our Therapists

We’ve been doing therapy since my son Nicholas was 6 months old. He was behind from the very beginning, and wasn’t hitting his milestones at all. He was oversensitive to everything, would arch his back a lot, and needed help with most things. It was recommended by his pediatrician that he start seeing an occupational therapist (OT). Those were some hard therapy days. Nicholas was uncomfortable and cried a lot. We worked on tummy time, sitting, feeding, and fine motor skills with little success. Because of his sensitivity his OT…

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A Great Grandfather and Autism

It’s been almost ten months since Pop went home to heaven. He was 82 years young and it still is a big transition and heartbreak for our family. He was hilarious, full of faith, and a lifelong learner.  Our eldest son Emmett was diagnosed with autism at three and a half years old, long before this I was reading books and studying everything I could in early intervention because my heart knew it would be a benefit for him. Alongside me, through it all, was Pop, reading everything I read,…

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Mom, I Can Never Thank You Enough

You know the saying, “It takes a village.” Well, now I totally get it. Being a Mom is no walk in the park. You are constantly doing for everybody else, and rarely have time for yourself. I went the whole weekend without showering. I even skipped dinner and didn’t realize until I was starving at 10pm.  Mom brain is in full force, at all times! So, on the days when I feel like I am at my weakest, and I get a random call from my Mom asking if Harper…

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Thank you for Being the Friend I Needed

Our husbands (then boyfriends) had known each other for quite a while before we met. It was only a matter of time before we crossed paths. We all ended up carpooling to a wedding together, and after that weekend the rest was history. Our then boyfriends became fiancés. We both got married roughly two months apart, and later that year we both found out we were expecting. What a whirlwind. I should have known the stars had aligned when I met you. We spent the next nine months going to…

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Thank you for being You

I want to thank you kid. It’s as simple and as complicated as that. I want to thank you for being you. This morning I dropped you off for your first day at an all-day play program. You had never been there before. You didn’t know what to expect. I promised games and kids and fun. But I could tell you were a little nervous. On the drive over you were so excited to have a lunch packed. That was a huge deal to you. As usual you were peppering…

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