Halloween: Celebrate What Your Family Can Do

Today can be one of those days that can cause parents of children with special needs to take pause. To lose their breath for a second. To take notice of differences. To feel slighted. To wish it could be easier. To give up for a second. To skip it all. Halloween. For me, in those early years post diagnosis, I took comfort living in our own comfortable bubble. But days like Halloween, pulled us out. And pushed us away at the same time. We were not like the other families.…

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Halloween and Autism

When it comes to Halloween and autism….whew, there is a lot of advice out there. And have you noticed a lot of it is really intense? Like almost intimidating. A lot of it makes me feel like I’m doing something wrong as a parent. Blue buckets. Signs. Saying trick-or-treat. Everyone should get candy. Do this. Not that. What I find the most interesting about all the preachy advice is that the ones giving it aren’t walking with our family on Halloween. They don’t know what works for us and what…

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Open Hearts for Halloween

It’s that time of the year again, friends. And I’ve got a lot of feelings. This Halloween, please acknowledge and keep in mind that not all individuals will “look the part” that you’ve dreamt up, fall under the imaginary age bar that you’ve set, or ask verbally for their treat. They’re not lazy. They’re not ”spoiled”. They’re not ”ungrateful. They may be overstimulated. They may have sensory issues. They may not communicate with words. Eye contact may turn them inside out. They may be learning how this holiday will look…

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Trick or Treating – Age is Just a Number

With Halloween coming up there has been a lot of debate about trick or treating. I have seen a lot of really positive posts making people aware of all different styles of communication and different expectations for trick or treaters.  There have also been a lot of negative posts regarding age. I just want to point out how difficult these special occasions are for children with special needs and their parents.  It doesn’t matter where you fall on the spectrum or whether there are other types of special needs. There…

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The Great Blue Pumpkin Debate

As Halloween quickly approaches and you prepare for trick-or-treating with your children, there is one staple item you need for the night — something for them to collect all of the candy! If you are like me, you have taken the quick and easy option: the standard $1 orange pumpkin pail from a big box store. But have you noticed these traditional Halloween pails are now available in some new colors? These colors are the center of great debate in the disability community. You see, each new color supports a…

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3 Halloween Safety tips for Kids with Autism

Picture it: It is October 31st. Your neighborhood is alive with the buzz of kids trick-or-treating from house-to-house. You are walking hand-in-hand with your child, who is looking cuter than ever in their over-the-top costume. But instead of excitement as a parent, you feel something quite different: Fear. Anxiety. Worry. Why? Because as a parent of a child with autism, trick-or-treating brings with it much more than fun. It brings with it the need to protect your child at all costs. Protect them from overstimulation. From people who misunderstand their…

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Halloween 2020

Happy Halloween friends! Cooper had his best Halloween ever. He happily and proudly wore his costume. And the hat! I cannot believe he wore the hat people! He willingly walked with us. He visited four houses! And only went inside one. In his defense he knows where they keep the good paper. He picked out exactly 7 treats and ate none. Thankfully his brothers helped him out. He pointed to his bag to say trick or treat and signed thank you at each house. Then he was done. We were…

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Advice for the Special Needs Parent on Halloween

Today can be one of those days that can cause parents of children with special needs to take pause. To lose their breath for a second. To take notice of differences. To even feel slighted. Halloween. For me, in those early years post diagnosis, I took comfort living in our own comfortable bubble. But days like Halloween, pulled us out. And pushed us away at the same time. We were not like the other families. We still are not. And that can sting sharply or even in a dull way,…

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Not A Typical Halloween

Last year, after many challenging and ultimately failed trick-or-treating attempts, I had an idea. What if we went out, to a set number of houses, during the day, with less chaos and zero pressure. No other kids. No scary decorations. No crowds of goblins and Elsa’s at each house. I sent a message to four of our neighbors and they willingly agreed. I explained to them we may not make it and if we did, it may be ‘colorful.’ They didn’t care. They were excited to be part of Cooper’s…

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Preparing for an ASD Halloween….

Holidays are an interesting time for a parent of a child with Autism. And each holiday comes with it’s own unique challenges. There is also the fine line of….’how much do we actually participate?’ Cooper doesn’t understand Halloween. Or costumes. Or Trick-Or-Treating. For starters he is the least greedy kid ever….he will get one piece of candy and be great for the rest of the night. He doesn’t like to walk so the idea of walking from house to house is ridiculous. He would need to be carried or put…

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