It feels like we've been here before. The meltdowns, medicines, medical issues, doctor appointments; they are starting again. It's a familiar sinking feeling I get in my head and gut. This time, at least I know some of the warning signs of the coming storm. I see the look in my son's eyes; a shaking of his head. Quick, get him away from the multitude of public stares. A family member said to me, … [Read more...]
Unchanging God In A Changing Special Needs World
Some days are harder than others. We don't do change. You, too? And in our house routine is key. We mostly get up at the same time. We eat the same foods (cheese quesadilla, thank you very much), at the same Mexican restaurant. We watch the same television shows and go to the exact same places, on the same days, week after week. No routine equals mass chaos in our house. Routine comes above all … [Read more...]
One Thing I’ve Learned from Special Needs … Pray
If there's one thing I've learned from special needs ... pray. Pray. Before everything else. Pray. When I'm overwhelmed and in the midst of the chaos. Pray. When there's nothing else. Pray. With my eldest I can remember two distinct times of prayer when he was a baby. Two times. Two times I cried out to God in need in those early years. I'm sure I prayed, but life was just easier with a … [Read more...]
Somebody’s Always Watching
We all know disability draws the attention of others. I get it. I look, too. We often feel like everybody is Evan's friend. (Mostly pretty girls. Evan has moves like Jagger. Be jealous.) People we don't recognize will stop to talk to Evan because they know him from somewhere. Occasionally, they will tell us how they are acquainted with him. But usually, we go without ever discovering how our … [Read more...]
Special Needs Humble Pie
I got a big helping of that special needs Humble Pie last week. You may have been there yourself before. Maybe it was the public meltdown stares. Or people wondering with perturbed looks surrounding public restroom issues. Possibly, you've been in a special needs situation that has been a bit humbling. They come often. So often, in fact, I am pretty used to them. Special needs is humbling. But … [Read more...]
Thankful for the Disability Trenches
Nobody is thankful for the disability trenches. No thank you for wiping rear ends way past the expected age range or getting hair pulled out during a meltdown. I don't see the praises for IEPs that haven't really changed in years because the level of learning is pretty much the same year after year. And no Hallelujah for when high school is finished for the virtually unemployable. We only hear … [Read more...]