“I can’t believe that her son is already talking. I’m still struggling to get mine to say his first words!” “Look at that mom taking all of those pictures of her daughter. I haven’t taken a photo in a year. I am such a bad mom.” “Ugh. Look how healthy her kids are eating. I…
We have a legally binding contract in our home stating that if Max keeps his body healthy for the day, he will be rewarded with enough sugar to propel him into several lunar orbits. Yes, I’m telling you unashamedly, this is actually part of what we call our “healthy body program.” My 25 year-old son…
“She ruins everything!” I said to my mom when I was six and my big sister bumped into an art project I’d been working on all day. And again when I was twelve and she wanted to hang out with me and my friends at my slumber party. And again when I was seventeen and she…
My feet bounced under my chair, my mind raced, and my jaw hurt from chewing my lip. I was nervous and anxious waiting for test results…but not my own. The results were from a test my son, Dylan, took that would reveal whether or not he had learning disabilities. After years of struggling in…
I just texted these words to my 23-year old daughter who has autism. “Hi. I haven’t talked to you in a week. How are things?” Katie lives across town in a little house by herself. She loves it. It seems to be working for the whole family, but such a casual interaction with my child seems strange….
There are times when it feels like our life is one step forward and two steps back. The problem with us as humans is that we tend to concentrate on the two steps back, not the one step forward. If you don’t learn to break it down in a positive way, you will find yourself…
As a new school year is beginning here in Northeast Ohio, many kids and families will face a daunting challenge at church. Transitions are highly anticipated by most kids and families. At many churches, preschoolers entering kindergarten start to attend elementary school large group worship next Sunday. Kids entering sixth grade begin middle school programming…
For two and half months last fall, I felt like a prisoner wearing a ball and chain. Not on my foot, but on my left hand. Not a ball made of iron, but of therapy appointments two or three times a week as well as hand and thumb exercises every two hours. Day after day….
When Alec was first diagnosed, I became obsessed with finding out everything I could about autism. I researched every autism theory, every therapy and spent every waking minute on the phone or online with other parents trying to create the best possible plan for Alec’s care. If someone told me that they were providing their…
Sometimes, as an attempt to comfort your heart as you are struggling through a new diagnosis, or even years afterward, friends or family might offer consolation by saying something along the lines of, “God chose to give you a child with autism because He knew you were strong enough”, or one of my personal favorites,…