Dearest Reagan, On the brink of your 6th grade graduation from elementary school, I wanted to share with you how proud I am of you and all of the ways I’ve seen you grow. You are my first-born child and the oldest of four. You are the leader of the…
“CLOSE THE DOOR!” Brady demands when I stealthily open his bedroom door to get a small glimpse at what he’s doing. We’ve removed the lock so he cannot really keep us out, but he makes it clear that while he’s creating art- whether a drawing or an origami boat- he wants…
Hello World! I am just not comfortable and mom is struggling to figure out why. She doesn't realize (yet) that I have a lot of sensory issues and tummy problems. I forgive Mom though. She picked up on my cues and saved my life at 23 days old. After 3…
As a parent with an autistic child, I’ve heard the saying: “If you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met ONE person with autism.” This statement, attributed to Dr. Stephen Shore, is completely true. Imagine an alien observing just one of us and then going back to outer space to…
I grew up as the oldest of 4 children but didn’t like speaking up because of the direct attention it drew. I was never comfortable with people looking at me for more than a glance and certainly didn’t want to stir the pot with any controversial statements. If I was…
“It's very important for the parents of young autistic children to encourage them to talk, or for those that don't talk, to give them a way of communicating, like a picture board, where they can point to a glass of milk, or a jacket if they're cold, or the bathroom.…
