“What can I get Bridget for her birthday? (or insert a holiday here)” is one of the most dreaded questions of the season for me. I could give a list a mile long for her sister, from the inexpensive barrette to the pony. Bridget stumps me.
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Dear Bridget,
Holy crap you are SEVEN years old today. TODAY. You, my love and my light, are an incredible girl.
This year you have done so much more than I ever expected.
You give the best hugs and have the sweetest smile.
You have the evilest laugh when you take your sister’s headband and run around the counter.
You have charmed more stickers out of the receptionist at therapy than any other child.
You are full of sass, and I mean sass. Continue reading
I have this great friend, Eli, who blogs over at Coach Daddy. Each month he asks fellow bloggers for six words to describe something. This month it was about the story we would tell, in honor of National Memoir Month. Yes, at this point I think there is a day, a month and heck even an hour to honor something! It’s where Eli gets his inspiration, so I don’t judge 🙂
Please visit his blog and discover what how I and many others what six words we would use for the title of our memoir.
I am usually an optimistic person. It drives my husband crazy that I always look for the silver lining. The truth is, life with Bridget isn’t always easy. Beyond doctor, therapy, school and paperwork there is also just life with a child who cannot express her frustrations.
Recently I was taken aback when I was told that I am doing parents a disservice because I am promoting that having a child with special needs is all sunshine and none of the darkness. I asked if they read more than one of my blog posts, because I tend to vent quite a bit on our struggles. Continue reading
I’ve tried not to write this post. I told myself not to get involved.
That’s a problem and there is a bigger one.
We have presidential candidates saying there must be a registry for a religion. We have Senators stating that we will only allow Christians and Jews to seek sanctuary on our shores. We have sanctioned racism on social media. We have allowed fear of a few jeopardize the many.
When did we stop being home of the FREE? Continue reading
Today I am so very honored to be featured on SheKnows Media, discussing how when you have your first child, they are barely out of the womb before someone will ask when they will have a sibling. I would always say never. I could not imagine sharing the love I had for this child — nor having the patience to deal with another one. For years, I was told I would love both children equally but differently. Five years later when — surprise! — that second child was born, I finally understood what “equal but different” love meant.
To read more, click here
Deep breath, you think to yourself. You can do this, you encourage yourself. Breathe in, breath out. You breathe slowly, with determination to calm your brain at this latest hiccup in her life. It should not be this hard to raise a child. You read all the parenting manuals. You have spoken to other moms that you feel are superior and more experienced than you. You have become an expert, yourself, in learning all what all the medical jargon means. You have navigated the State forms, the School IEP meetings and Insurance requirements.
Then then pitcher sends you another curve ball and you have to begin all over again. Continue reading
When your child is young and in school the teachers have a rule: if you send a birthday invitation to one child, all must be included. This is how Bridget got invited to a birthday party where we didn’t know anyone. Continue reading
Dear Abby,
I’m not quite sure how it happened, but it feels like just yesterday you were this girl:
If we were having a glass of wine, I would tell you that my leg freaking hurts. Training for the half-marathon is tougher than I ever expected. Running this weekend for my “long” run of 11 miles I was feeling great. I had remembered to fuel properly and as the miles went by I was amazed how much the training had paid off. Until mile 10.5 when all of a sudden a pain in my leg forced me to stop and walk the rest of the way home. It is getting better but my confidence is shaken.
If we were having a glass of wine, I would tell you my child might not survive her teenage years. I am tired of the eye roll, the sigh and the fact that because I said so is no longer a valid end to an argument. She is lucky she is cute. Continue reading
(Un)Diagnosed and still okay 