14 things that I find to be ridiculously, over the top hard, as a mother: Putting eye drops in a child’s eye who refuses to keep their eye open. It is not possible. Nope. By the end of the attempt everyone has pink eye. Wiping a child’s nose and mouth. Or, as I call it, absolute torture. Keeping a hat on a toddler. Enough said. Putting shoes on a child who doesn’t want shoes on. ‘What is happening? Why are you curling your dang toes?’ Getting a child to eat…
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When you think about a grandson’s relationship with his grandpa…. I imagine baseballs being thrown. I imagine basketballs being shot. I imagine a little shadow following grandpa around asking nonstop questions. I picture trips to the Dairy Queen for an ice cream cone. I think of hand holding. Snuggling on the couch watching cartoons. Or country westerns. Or the auto channel. In my head I hear stories….‘Back when I was your age.’ I imagine special trips and holidays. I’ll tell you the truth. We got something different. Not less. No…
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I am sorry I do not return your texts or phone calls. I am sorry I have to cancel last minute or do not make plans as I’ve promised. I’m sorry I am not the same person. Since my son’s diagnosis and his other medical issues, I am not the same person. I have noticed I have lost my spunk. My life is so chaotic. I feel my life is consisted of being on the phone with insurance or doctors. I am traveling to different therapies, five days a week.…
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We were sitting with the realtor about to discuss what we were looking for in a new home. I know she wanted to know about bedrooms and bathrooms and location. I didn’t care about that stuff. Not really. In the grand scheme of things that stuff wasn’t a priority. “We can’t be near a busy road. The house has to have a fence or the ability to add one BEFORE we move in. And most importantly, we cannot, under any circumstances, be near water. Non negotiable. I worry about windows…
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I share a lot of our struggle. I need it to be seen. It cannot be the part of autism that gets ignored to make others more comfortable. And I feel like so much of severe autism gets minimized. It has to have a voice! I don’t just want people to be aware or accept, I want you to be a voice, an advocate and see the whole picture. You have to see the dark, because it is there whether you want to see it or not. However, with that…
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It is November and the first progress reports have been sent home and parent-teacher conferences have happened. My son Caleb is adjusting well to 5 days a week of Pre-K. His speech has improved, we are using sentences with 3-4 words and answering some ‘yes and no’ questions without prompts. I am definitely seeing the growth from last year. His teachers and I both agree that we have to continue working on independence. He sticks to them like glue and gets jealous of the younger kids. At home, he sticks…
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What is the most difficult, yet important conversation you’ve had around your child’s needs? Maybe it was around medications. Or the decision to have more children. For Jamie and I, it was around forever. It took us years to be able to sit down and rationally speak about it. In the beginning, I’d bring it up. We’d fight. Months later, he’d bring it up after a few drinks, and I’d cry. We could never get on the same page at the same time. I think it had to do with…
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When my son was diagnosed with autism over five years ago, I thought it was a race against time. I thought if we did everything all at once, all the therapies and services, we would help him, and he would eventually get back on track. I knew he’d always have autism. I was never one that thought it would go away. But I did think we would help him, bit by bit, and eventually he’d be where he needed to be. Which at the time I thought was alongside his…
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I am thankful for my special needs daughter. I should probably clarify. I’m thankful for my daughter…not the special needs. I’m not a parent who says that I wouldn’t make life easier for her if I could. I would. But that’s a topic for another post. Today is about a golden birthday and it’s about being thankful. It’s a lesson that I’ve learned over the years about perspective. Today, November 12th, is my daughter Liz’s 12th birthday! Liz has a rare genetic mutation and along with that has come a…
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When my son was five years old, we had no good days. We had bad days and okay days. I am scared to admit that because I know someone reading this will judge me. They will say I am a bad mom. Or say I am weak for admitting that. But, if our story helps one person, gives one mom or dad hope, than it’s worth it. When my son was five, he was unable to communicate. He couldn’t tell us if he was in pain, or if his socks…
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