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
Caregiving, Challenges, Living Life Daily, Love, Special Needs Parenting
Cindi Ferrini
Counting the Cost

How many of us counted the cost (both emotionally and financially) of what it would take to raise a child and/or care for an aging parent? Many are doing both…Because we love our child, we don’t often consider the cost because we simply do what is needed and want the best for them.

Counting the Cost
Caregiving, Challenges, Down Syndrome, Special Needs Parenting
Evana Sandusky
For When You Don’t Feel Thankful

My daughter arrived in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the middle of the night on the eve of Thanksgiving. A tough respiratory virus attacked her lungs, and she needed a substantial amount of oxygen support. And now, this unexpected illness meant Thanksgiving was going to be completely different than we had all planned.

For When You Don’t Feel Thankful
Challenges, Hope, Scripture, Special Needs Parenting
Kara Dedert
When Thankfulness Seems Impossible

Are you scrounging for thankfulness this holiday season? Holidays can be a challenge for those walking through hard days. Perhaps you feel like you've been handed the short-end of the stick; your child is struggling, you’re exhausted and it seems like everybody else has life with a bit more gravy. It’s easy to focus on our circumstances, take stock of what we have and where we are and end up feeling completely void of thankfulness. Is there a cure for this? 

When Thankfulness Seems Impossible
Autism, Caregiving, Challenges, Hope, Special Needs Parenting, Spiritual Growth
Sunita Theiss
Discovering What God Already Knew About Me, ...

I first suspected I had ADHD as a teenager, but finding the right professional to take me seriously was much harder than I expected. Previous attempts only ended in frustration and tears.

Discovering What God Already Knew About Me, Through My Children’s Diagnosis

Church

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Looking Back at 2020 from God’s Perspective

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Looking Back at 2020 from God’s Perspective

It’s easy to come up with a list of challenges that took place in 2020. But Melanie Gomez learned some important insights about remembering 2020 in the way God instructed the Israelites, as they entered the Promised Land.

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Reasons for Praise in a Difficult Season: Reflections on the Promises Fulfilled by God

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Reasons for Praise in a Difficult Season: Reflections on the Promises Fulfilled by God

During the recent Christmas season, as I pondered the state of the world and all of the trauma that I went through in 2020, a message from a messianic rabbi about the Magnificat led me to ask a truly hard question similar to what Mary could have also asked: do I believe the God who carried me through so many difficulties and challenges in the past will carry me through new ones as well?

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7 Ways to Include Special Needs Families in the Social Scene

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7 Ways to Include Special Needs Families in the Social Scene

Inclusion and mainstreaming have long been a back and forth quandary for classrooms and school, but what about family functions and social life issues? Cindi and Joe Ferrini offers seven ways they try to give their son some social life experiences to “fit in” that may work for your family too, just in time for holiday gatherings.

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A Nativity Role for Every Child

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A Nativity Role for Every Child

What nativity play part is there for a disabled child, and what does the answer to this question tell us about society as a whole and church as a part of it? An excellent question, with insightful answers from Mark Arnold.

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Welcoming Siblings Home for the COVID Holidays

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Welcoming Siblings Home for the COVID Holidays

As I sat down to share life with fellow special needs parents in this blog, it occurred to me that the best I might offer was a shared prayer for the upcoming holiday season. Perhaps you, too, are thinking out of the box about how to make the most of new and unexpected holiday dynamics. Together let’s pray, Lord, make our homes an instrument of Your peace.