I was twenty-five years old when I became a mom, and my world changed forever. Like all new parents, I suddenly realized the needs of our small bundle of sweetness would rule my heart and my days for years to come. Unlike most new parents, my husband and I soon had to surrender our son to the cadre of surgeons, doctors, and nurses in a distant city who could save his life. Before we could kiss him … [Read more...]
Unto Us a Child Is Born
For the first time in many years, my husband and I are greeting the coming of the Christ Child in the presence of a baby. Our sweet grandson is almost 10 months old, and we are oohing and aahing over every new task he masters. Hand-clapping. Feeding himself and making a mess. Drinking from a sippy cup. Creeping and crawling across the carpet for the first time. The wonder of Christmas … [Read more...]
6 Disability Lessons Learned from a Kitchen Knife
About six weeks ago, the knife I was using to remove the label from a container slipped and severed the tendon in my left thumb. After waking up from repair surgery to a left hand swathed and immobile in a ginormous splint, the surgeon outlined a list of restrictions. No lifting with the left hand. No driving. No getting the splint wet. Those three restrictions plunged me into the world of … [Read more...]
10 Positive Ways to Advocate at School
Advocacy at school. For many in the special needs community, that phrase conjures images of parents breathing fire while toting armloads of files and folders into an IEP meeting or annual review. Not a pretty picture. And, if the truth be told from my vantage point as a former teacher, it's not the most effective way to advocate at school either. During my 25 years in public education, the … [Read more...]
Mid-September Is a Good Time to Pray
Mid-September. The time of the year when the bloom is off the new school year rose. Lovely summer tans begin to fade. New shoes get scuffed. Spiffy school clothes lose their sizing in the wash. Haircuts go scruffy. The first wave of viruses rips through the classroom. Kids, who have been on their best behavior for days and weeks, begin to crack under the strain, and their true personalities … [Read more...]
Moving from Us versus Them to We
For 25 years, I dreaded August. Not because of my anxieties as a parent. But because of my anxieties as a teacher whose inclusive fourth grade classroom contained a high percentage of special need and at risk students. What made me anxious? Getting the classroom in order. New procedures that ate away at preparation and teaching time. Meeting students. Meeting parents. Not having the … [Read more...]