Helping Families Minimize Chaos and Maximize Joy
Raising kids with special needs is hard than I ever imagined it would be. In 2002 and 2015 Chuck and I adopted babies with special needs. Both were drug and alcohol exposed. One would later be diagnosed with autism. In 2010 I gave birth to our youngest child, Apollo, who was born with a double aortic arch, a rare congenital heart defect. Come read my stories and share in our heartbreak and triumph as we raise children with special needs.
Seven years ago Chuck and I handed our curly-haired two-year-old over to a cardiothoracic surgeon we had just met days previously, entrusting him with our son’s life. We had flown all the way from Washington to Texas with one-way tickets. When we left Washington we had no idea what was going to happen. We knew…
I went and saw Joker last night with my son, Judah. We were originally going to go with Kalina and her boyfriend, but the schedules didn’t work out so it ended up being just the two of us. As we walked into the theater, Judah quipped, “I can’t decide if it’s worse to see this…
Post contains affiliate links. I was sent some of these books for review purposes but have received no compensation for this post. Kids with Sensory Issues Can Be Challenging My firstborn, Adalia, was a sensory-seeker. She was rough and tumble, fearless, and wild. She loved deep pressure. Long before we knew anything about vestibular systems…
This post was hard to write. God is pushing me to deeper levels of faith that have me searching the scripture and clinging to His words. Nice, Christian Platitudes Aren’t Enough When Chuck and I set out to adopt in 2001 we had one objective only, to offer a home to a child who needed…
ABA Therapy for FASD and Autism: One Year In, Is It Working? In January we hit our one one year mark of ABA* therapy for our son with FASD and autism. Last night we had a team meeting. I meet with our team (psychologist, and behavior technicians) once a month. We go over his current “program”,…
It’s the Small Things in Life: Living With Special Needs Siblings We hear it all the time. It’s the small things in life that are important. And it’s true. I feel this even more as the mom to special needs children. Yes, I feel it for them, but more often lately, I feel it for…
Let’s Be Honest: Why I Quit Sharing Photos of My House Okay, friends, it’s time to get real. Those of you who are long-time readers may have noticed that I have cut back drastically on the number hanging out around the house, photos I share here. I have almost entirely quit sharing photos of our house….
First of all, I want to say that I have nothing but encouragement and positive comments and messages after my last post When Church is Hard. I wrote that in a moment of raw, honest pain, but there is something (several days later) I would like to follow up on. That post was about my…
I am going to be completely honest and vulnerable in this post. In fact, I’m not even sure I will hit “publish”. It is Sunday morning, 10:46 am. Church is in session but I’m not there. Instead, I am at home, in my pajamas, with writing this on my laptop. Why aren’t I at church?…
Special Needs Parenting: Sometimes Hopes and Dreams Don’t Get a Vote I enrolled Apollo in our local elementary school earlier this week. This is the school his older siblings have attended and the school he attended for kindergarten and first grade. He is thrilled. I’m a little bit heartbroken. Or maybe more than a little…