It’s a typical school day morning, and I am in the kitchen double checking Zoe’s lunch bag, snack bag, toiletry bag- loading her backpack . I glance up, over the kitchen counter, just in time to see Zoe, who is hovering nearby in her walker. She is smiling and elaborately shaking her groove thing to…
Category Archives: Advocacy
BELIEVE! No One Can Know the Limitations of Another
We are in the process of formalizing a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder with secondary Anxiety Disorder (at-risk for depression) for my “gifted” 9-year-old daughter. For me, this process began more than 2 years ago, brought to light by the abusive treatment she suffered at the hands of her 2nd grade teacher who drove her to tears…
Is that too much to ask?
This week my husband’s grandmother passed away. She was 93 year old, never took more than a multi-vitamin in her life. She did however, several years back, begin her journey with Alzheimer’s Disease. It was a long journey, spending 10 years in a nursing home. She had 5 children, 12 grandchildren…and so many great grand…
The Safety Dance
Well, our little Houdini is at it again. We try to keep it safe and locked down around here, but the truth is he is getting older and bigger and smarter and he’s figuring it all out. See, most devices and locks and whatnot are for BABY PROOFING. Not IAN PROOFING. Even autism-specific products. We…
Telling Your Child With Autism That They Have Autism
I’m not a big television watcher but the buzz this week on social media sites was apparently Max’s parents finally sitting down and telling him he had Asperger’s (that Parenthood show). Now, on the show Max is like, ten? Something like that? Ten. Soak that in for a minute. And they were JUST telling him….
Healthcare ALERT
As special needs parents we must keep informed about developments in health care coverage. Regulators are working on new rules that define coverage for 2014 and according to this news report their work may well affect our kids.
Special Needs Come & Go
I’ve been raising my identical twin sons — who happen to have Down syndrome — for nearly 6 years now. By all counts, they have “special needs”. We’re now in the process of confirming a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder for my 9-year-old daughter who is also in our district’s gifted program. SHE too has “special needs”….
Bug Off
My sweet little boy has a list of diagnoses a mile long—most of which I could care less about, but the doctors insist on fussing over. However, there is this one thing that causes me to worry incessantly, act a fool in public, and makes my husband roll his eyes (or maybe he’s planning an…
People First?
Since I’m on the subject of pet peeves I figure I’ll cover another issue that’s not really a pet peeve of mine, but something I’m curious about other’s opinion. In last week’s post, I wrote about the proper term for individuals with Trisomy 21. It was pointed out to me that in England and Canada…
I Can’t Stand The Thought of Missing Something Again
Today, early in the morning, we’re headed out for an eval. B is my concern. He’s my #3, my last, my Momma’s boy. I love him as I love the others and I’ve watched him closely, as I’ve watched O. Most of the issue centers around his speech, his annunciation or lack of it. There…