Special Needs

Empty Nest Be Damned.

We’ve had a couple of rough weeks around my house with some health issues popping up for our adult son who is disabled. He has autism and cerebral palsy, is nonverbal, and now is blind in one eye. Retinal detachment, they think. We’re awaiting appointments to verify this diagnosis. He’s going to be 20 in…

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Special Needs Future Planning

What Worries Me Most About the Future: Jamie functions at 18 – 24 months level. This is a huge topic for me because I am, by nature, a worrier. So there are plenty of things I can find to worry about, to obsess over. From the tiniest thing to the monstrous, I can obsess about…

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Autism in My Home

Autism Awareness Month is every day for me April is National Autism Awareness month and while I celebrate Autism Awareness every day, I thought it would be nice to share with all of you what Autism means to my family. My son, Jamie, is almost 16 years old. He was born 5.5 weeks early and…

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Tips for Air Travel With Kids and Kids With Special Needs

We are traveling again. Soon, our family of four will be packing up and heading out to a family wedding. This entails us (me) packing for four people, planning the dog’s stay at Grandma’s house while we’re gone, and of course, making all of the travel arrangements. The hubs tries to help, but honestly, he’s…

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Dads Are Superheroes Too

Dads of kids with special needs are often forgotten in the special family dynamic. I’m lucky enough to know several fathers of amazing kids with special needs. These dads are the best of the best. They go above and beyond typical parenting. Just like moms of kids with special needs, the dads have extraordinary jobs put…

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Jamie and Laurie – BFFs!

Last summer I was scrolling through Facebook while Jamie and Ri watched a show. I came across a post by the Laurie Berkner Band. If you haven’t heard of them, you’re probably living under a rock and probably not reading this right now because you don’t have wifi under said rock. The Kids’ First Concert!…

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13 Signs You’re a Mom of a KWSN

There are many things that let us know we have special kids who happen to have special needs. Since some of our friends and loved ones don’t know a lot of them, I thought I’d give them a little Cliff’s Note into what identifies us.  If you agree with any of these or would like…

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Brandy Eckman

Wishing for Talking

There are days when I wish more than anything that my son could talk.  He is 10 years old and is non-verbal.  I know I’m not alone in wishing this.  A lot of Mamas and Papas out there have never heard their child utter a single syllable.  Some of us have heard our children speak…

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Two hours in the life of this Mama

Sunday night I am lying in bed and thinking to myself, “I need to go to Kroger tomorrow and to the bank.  Then I need to go get my nails done again because they look like shinola.  Somewhere in there, I need to get gas for the van, take Abby to the groomer’s, and then…

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A new diagnosis for Jamie

For this Wishful Wednesday, I had a pretty good post about wishing people wouldn’t lie.  I was alost done and realized it was time for me to take Jamie to his yearly neurology appointment.  So, I saved the document, got Jamie ready to go and we took off down the road.  Little did I know…

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I’m drifting.

I’ve been stewing.  Sitting here wondering how to get more readers when what I should be focusing on is venting through my writing.  And enjoying the process of writing.  I don’t know if anyone is reading this, other than my writing partner, Nicole.  At this point, I really just want to talk about my life…

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Grief.

Having a  child with special needs can consume every minute of your life if you let it.  Yes, you go through the grief of it all.  Yes, there is a depression that hits, and yes, there is acceptance.  I’ve been through it and I’ve come out the other side a stronger and more patient person…

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This isn’t what I signed up for.

So, when Joel and I got married, we dreamed of having a baby right away. We got married in September, and by December, we were expecting. Unlike some of our dearest friends, we have never had any trouble getting pregnant. Seriously, it was like he looked at me funny, and BAM! I was pregnant. What…

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A brother is a friend given by nature

Truer words could not be spoken.  My two kids have been friends, right from the start.  When we brought Riley home from the hospital, Jamie was instantly in love.

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Modifying Your Home

When it comes to us parents of KWSNs, we are the Ty Pennington’s of modifying our homes to suit our kids’ needs.  We have modified our own home and we have friends who have done the same to enable their children to use things in the house without assistance.  Wouldn’t you add a step stool…

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