(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Wendy Lawrence and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.) I would like to honor and thank two wonderful teachers that have made miraculous changes in my two children. Ms. Midgett and Ms. Massey have changed our lives so much. I cannot thank them enough. First, a little about our family. My husband and I have two children, H (5.5 years old, Autistic, ADHD), and KJ (3.5 years old and some developmental delays, being watched for additional signs of Autism). We live…
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My son is almost seven years old. He has autism. He was and is nonverbal. I like to mention that because some kiddos with autism speak at some point and lose their speech. I can’t imagine how hard that must be for parents. To hear their child speak one day and not the next must be gut wrenching. Our story is a bit different. My son has never spoke. He has never babbled. He has no approximations. He mostly screeches, screams and hums. I’ve never heard a word like sound…
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(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Amber Watts and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.) The November I want to honor and thank my mom and my sister-in-law. We are working on building our daughter’s village but as of now these are the two I’m most thankful for. On the left is my mom (Reba) and on the right is my sister-in-law (Jennifer). Both with my baby girl. My daughter’s name is Kendal. She turned four on November 1st. As of now, she is nonverbal and…
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A few days ago I shared a letter I wrote for my son Sawyer. You can read it HERE. It was a toughie to share. It was brutally honest. It was real. And I really put myself out there. I purged every ounce of worry and self-doubt that I have about raising an autistic child alongside a typical child. Let’s get something straight. Cooper is an amazing little boy. He is funny and sweet and brings more joy than I can put into words. But…it’s different for me. I am…
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(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Carrie Indelicato and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.) I want to tell you about the best big brother in the whole wide world, my oldest son Danny. From the moment Danny saw his baby brother Aaron he was in love! I would often come into Aaron’s room in the morning only to find Danny had gotten there first, talking to his baby brother through the slats in his crib. Whether he was planting a kiss on Aaron’s big, irresistible…
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I’ve been doing the special needs parenting thing for seven years now. I’ve learned so much about myself, my son, autism, friends, family and life in general. Having a child with a disability changes everything. I’ve learned about exhausting, relentless behaviors. I’ve learned how demanding physical care can be. I’ve completed evaluations, made phone calls, and sent emails. I’ve felt the unique, confusing heartbreak that goes into raising a child with a disability. Some parts are great. I see beauty now that I never knew existed. Some parts are heartbreaking.…
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(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Joann and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.) This November I would like to honor and thank my son’s ABA Therapist, Ronnie. My name is Joann and my husband Jeff and I have two sons. Dylan is nine and Christian is three. Christian was diagnosed with Autism, Sensory Processing Disorder, Expressive Receptive-Language Disorder in March. He was also nonverbal. Christian developed typically until 18 months and that’s when we noticed he stopped babbling. All of the words he had were…
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There is a stigma around depression. A really, really ugly one. And I think there’s especially a stigma around mothers who have depression. If you’re depressed, you’re weak. Broken. You are medicated. You cry a lot. You sleep a lot. This isn’t true. At least not for me. I have a wonderful life. Two beautiful children. Three wild dogs. A wonderful and supportive partner. A beautiful home. I’m not weak. I am strong. I am freakishly independent. And I am not broken…at least not completely. I am not medicated. And on…
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It’s that time of year! You know the one. Questions are pouring in from family wondering what to buy your child with autism for Christmas. I always find it to be super stressful. My son does not play with toys. Honestly, he doesn’t play with anything. And it has only been six months since he started even caring or noticing gifts. Prior to that, opening gifts caused him a huge amount of anxiety. Which in turn caused anxiety for the rest of the family. Every holiday involved our family gathered…
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(Editor’s Note: This article was provided by Valerie McMahon and is part of Cooper’s, ‘I’m Thankful For You’ Campaign.) This November I would like to honor and thank my son’s Occupational Therapist, Debbie. I can’t thank her enough for the help she has given us. A little bit about our family! We moved from Maine to South Carolina when our son was 18 months old. My husband, Patrick’s dad, is a State Trooper and I am a stay at home mom. In my gut I knew he wasn’t a typical…
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