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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The Importance of Stepping Outside Your Family's Comfort Zone

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The Importance of Stepping Outside Your Family's Comfort Zone

Melanie Gomez shares how leaving behind the ease of familiar routines and comfort to take a vacation with your child with special needs provides priceless growth, reconnecting and refreshing for everyone in the family.

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Six Caregiving Advocacy Tips I'm Learning All Over Again

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Six Caregiving Advocacy Tips I'm Learning All Over Again

The six caregiving advocacy tips I’m learning all over again come with compliments from my mom. She’s experienced some health challenges over the past few months, so my siblings and I are advocating on her behalf. During my years as caregiver for my young son with chronic medical needs, my husband and I gradually discovered six caregiving advocacy tips that work in any caregiving situation.

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Five Things I Did Right - and Wrong! - as a Mom

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Five Things I Did Right - and Wrong! - as a Mom

Moms (and probably Dads, too) are constantly analyzing in the rearview mirror of life what we did right and wrong. I have worked very hard at being an intentional and “always there” mom. Due to that very fact, I have had much opportunity in our special needs life to make plenty of mistakes. Here are a few thoughts regarding my parenting that I did right (good) things, and some wrong (not so good) things!

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She Calls for Me, I Call for Him

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She Calls for Me, I Call for Him

My daughter is a gifted communicator even though she rarely speaks in sentences. “Mom” is one word that has a multitude of meanings. There’s one version of my name that I hate hearing, the one that conveys to me that she is upset or scared. As she yells “mom,” I often cry out to God in those moments, too.