One of the greatest things about people is the ability to be creative. Except when it’s a four year old creatively pretending to play a CD she made (out of cardboard). In your minivan’s CD player. Yep. Since then, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking of the music I’m not listening to. The favorites…
Category Archives: Conditions and Diseases
*Tap, Tap!* Where has my funny gone?!
I usually crack myself up on a daily basis. In fact? I use humor A LOT to get through the tough days in my house. I think I get THAT gene from my Dad. He’s a practical joker and hilarious joke teller. I am so relieved that Jillian, at the ripe old age of 2,…
Winds of Change
Due to Precious’ intellectual disability, she is moving along her own curve, but the good news is that she is moving onwards and upwards. In order to get some funding for “personal growth and development support” and “family relief and support”, like house cleaning, we have to complete an annual application form for the government…
Debbie Downer
Have you ever been in a group setting and felt like a total Debbie Downer? You know, the Saturday Night Live character who always talks about natural disasters and deadly diseases bringing everyone down and halting all conversation? Well I have. Shortly after my daughter’s diagnosis I was invited by a friend to one of…
Inclusion Runs Deep (Or It Should, Anyway)
For those of you who don’t know my story… yet (and for those who do, sorry, you’ll have to suck it up and read it again), My beautiful Boys are a matched pair who also happen to have an extra copy of the 21st chromosome. Yes, my amazing 5-year-old identical twins have Down syndrome. That…
Best Medicine…
I often call it a worped sense of humor…you know where you can make a joke out of anything? Sort of like “Rosanne” remember that sitcom? I love(d) that show. It to me was as “real life” as I wanted to get. Then my son was born, I would say laughter got us through it all….
Autism:This One Goes to Eleven
Did you ever see This is Spinal Tap? Classic movie with Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer and Michael McKean? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Well, if you hadn’t, I’ll fill you in. There is this classic scene in the movie when Christopher Guest’s character shows Rob Reiner (yes, that Rob Reiner) a special amplifier that their band created….
Music at Mary’s Preschool
I have not formally introduced myself. My name is Chaney. I am Mary’s mom. Mary turned 5 in October. She loves music, horses, Dora and going outside. Mary uses a DynaVox VMax for the majority of her communication. She also has a trach and a g-tube. Mary is diagnosed with Arthrogryposis, Agenesis of the Corpus…
A Different Kind of Stalker
I’ve always tried to live my life being respectful of others. I’ve tried to teach my children the same. For example, I often remind my children that it is not polite to stare at someone who is different. It’s a rule I’ve tried to follow my whole life, and yet, over the past several years…
Ballet – The Penguin Move
Most nights when I put the kids to be I lay down with them and talk about their day or whatever is on their minds. When I put Haley to bed on Tuesday night she told me that she was sad that she missed her dance class on Monday because the while her regular teacher…