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

Special Needs Parenting

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Strategies for the Marathon of Special Needs Parenting

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Strategies for the Marathon of Special Needs Parenting

I’ve come to realize that one of the greatest reasons He sent me out on the road was to teach me lessons through running that apply to the journey of being a special needs parent. Over and over I encounter similarities between the two. Most recently I discovered something that I truly was not expecting. I believe the Lord showed me this about running so that I would apply it to the rest of my life.

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Life Hacks for Blended Families with Special Needs

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Life Hacks for Blended Families with Special Needs

When guest blogger Jess Ronne and her husband met, they were both widowed with seven children between them, including Jess’s son with special needs. Through their nine years together, Ryan and Jess have learned a few important skills—life hacks, some might say—while navigating the complicated terrain of special needs parenting in a blended family. Here are seven practical ways they’ve been able to make it a successful endeavor (most the time).

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Sweet Joy in the Middle of Goodness

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Sweet Joy in the Middle of Goodness

The orchard was heady fare for a midwesterner eager to escape an Iowa winter for a week. I walked around in shirtsleeves and sandals, admiring trees laden with yellow and orange fruit. I breathed in the tang of fresh citrus. Even so, part of me was ready to return home and resume interviews with parents raising kids with special needs and disabilities for a book proposal about stress and compassion fatigue in caregiver. Talking to these families, on the phone or in video chats, has been as sharp and delicious as an orange eaten in a citrus grove.

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Goodness and Abundance, When Healing Doesn't Come

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Goodness and Abundance, When Healing Doesn't Come

Instead of answering prayers for healing, God sent peace, and I didn’t want any part of it. Peace felt like a consolation prize. I wanted my baby whole and healthy, and I believed peace meant that God wasn’t going to heal my son. Paralysis seemed too hard, and even with God holding me close to Him, I didn’t see how life could be good again.