Each time I open one of my kid’s lunch bags, I feel like a TV executive looking over the latest Nielsen ratings. The goldfish are gone—yea, we have a hit. The popcorn looked like a sure-fire winner yet it was untouched. Pull it. I am ruthless. I can’t waste time and money on a snack that doesn’t score. As a mom, I have to make quick decisions every day. Many are no more … [Read more...]
Motherhood Gave Me My Voice
When I became a mother 15 years ago, I expected some perks with the job. The way a newborn will hold on to your finger when you are feeding her, or the way your two-year-old’s face lights up when you walk into a room. Being the one who gets to hear your son ask God to bless the baby in mommy’s tummy or hear your daughter say I love you for the first time. These … [Read more...]
Down the Rabbit Hole Again
Each year as April and Autism Awareness month rolls around, I find myself in a strange position of wanting to write something about my family’s experience of dealing with a range of developmental and learning disorders. At the same time, I feel that I don’t really have the right. All three of our children have received special education services for a range of developmental … [Read more...]
Facing Reality
The other day I was in the middle of my morning routine of packing snacks, reminding people to wear underwear, and ordering them to brush their teeth, when I happened to see it, my special needs daughter’s red take home folder. Inside the folder, along with the words she worked on that day and drawings of the weather for her calendar, was the all-too-familiar Parent Intake … [Read more...]
