Caregiving, Challenges, Living Life Daily, Hope, Love, Marriage, Special Needs Parenting
Joe and Cindi Ferrini
We're Not Alone

Seasons help us to realize we’re not alone. We might still feel alone but we can see things differently and then change our thinking, and even our responses. We know everyone goes through “stuff” but sometimes we need to recognize it just happens to be our turn. The harder part is that we still have someone we are caring for full time, 24/7 added to the new hard stuff!

We're Not Alone
Autism, Caregiving, Disability Awareness, Hope, Special Needs Parenting
Shannon Blosser
Christmas Doesn’t Have to Be Silent

For families like mine, with an autistic child and my own ADHD and anxiety, Christmas is rarely “calm” or “bright.” In fact, it is often loud, noisy, and overwhelming. Our children get overwhelmed by the lights and the new items. We, as parents, get overwhelmed by all the mess and noise. There are so many sensory inputs flowing through that you feel like you are in a never-ending vacuum of noise. And, that doesn’t even take into account that I’m operating on just a few hours of sleep after leading multiple Christmas services as a pastor.

Christmas Doesn’t Have to Be Silent
Caregiving, Challenges, Down Syndrome, Living Life Daily, Love, Special Needs Parenting
Evana Sandusky
A Tale of 2 Women, Vastly Different But Forever ...

Ruth saw a bright future for herself. She didn’t have an exact plan in front of her. But at 18, she vaguely knew what she wanted in the future: a master’s degree, a husband, a job she enjoyed, and children. Emma was on another path altogether. When Emma turned 18, she was already enrolled in a school for students with more significant disabilities.

A Tale of 2 Women, Vastly Different But Forever Tied Together
Autism, Challenges, Special Needs Parenting, Scripture, Non-Speaking Communicatio
Mark Arnold
Zechariah’s story: Lessons about non-speaking ...

Zechariah, despite being visited by an angel, doubted what he had been told, and so Gabriel told him that because of this doubt, Zechariah would not be able to speak until his son was born. So, he became unable to speak, and therefore unable to communicate through speech. What did he do? And what does his story teach us about people who cannot communicate by speech, or choose not to, today?

Zechariah’s story: Lessons about non-speaking communication
Caregiving, Special Needs Parenting
Stephanie McKeever
Finding Thankfulness in Disability

There were young kids, teens, young adults, even his best friend, all playing together, learning and laughing. But, there was no sign of my child. I searching the parking lot where everyone was talking and hanging out with their families; not there either. Here is where most people panic. But, deep down I knew; look with the younger kids. It was there I found him, rolling down the hill, filled with that bold childhood laughter, having the time of his life. No pressure here. No one asking him to make quick decisions he had to worry about in that football game. There was only freedom and joy. I want him to be something he isn’t sometimes, but I’m learning to start finding the thankful in disability.

Finding Thankfulness in Disability

Special Needs Siblings

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March 21st, World Down Syndrome Day

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March 21st, World Down Syndrome Day

Evana Sandusky shares about her daughter Jaycee, who has Down syndrome, but is so much more than what people often assume. Happy world Down syndrome day!

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Caregivers Can Do Hard Things

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Caregivers Can Do Hard Things

In the nearly sixty-seven years my mother and I shared on this earth, she taught me many lessons. The one I leaned on the most as our time to say good-bye drew near was this one: caregivers can do hard things.

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8 Tips to Enhance Communication and Autonomy for Individuals with Disabilities

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8 Tips to Enhance Communication and Autonomy for Individuals with Disabilities

Assistive communication technology was a big help for our son through school and his past 15-year work experience. Having limited speech until he was 12, our now 41-year-old son has found that sign language and this simple technology have aided him in better expressing himself. Each individual affected by special needs has various and different needs, abilities, and disabilities. By getting creative, you can tailor solutions specifically for your child to help them express their needs.

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Four Lessons Caregiving Is Teaching Me about Writing Fiction

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Four Lessons Caregiving Is Teaching Me about Writing Fiction

What caregiving is teaching me about writing fiction could fill a book. If someone had tried to tell me when I was a kid that caregiving and writing have a lot in common, I wouldn't have believed it. Writing may or may not be part of God's plan for your future but I know He has something in store for your future, and He's using your life as a caregiver to prepare you for it.

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Six Disability Allies in the Bible

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Six Disability Allies in the Bible

Disability ‘allies’ are people who are not necessarily disabled themselves, but who advocate for, journey with, campaign for, or in other ways support disabled people of any age. Here are six real and story-based people from the Bible who could be viewed as disability allies.