It's so easy to tear myself down over what I feel are weaknesses or inadequacies on my part. I find that more often than not, I catch myself comparing my parenting abilities to that of the typical parents I'm surrounded by all the time. Read more at the link below
This issomething I've been meaning to talk about but haven't gotten around to it. I know many of you parenting kids with Autism and or sensory processing disorder will be able to relate to this. I'm talking about how difficult it can be to feed my kids. This is one of those things that unless you're experiencing it, it's extremely difficult to wrap your head around because instinct tells us that if the child is really hungry, they'll eat. In more typical cases, that may apply but in cases of Autism and SPD, this does not apply. When it comes to my family, there are numerous reasons why feeding my kids is very difficult to do. These reasons are all intertwined, tangled and knotted up together. It's very challenging to…
Going into this post, please know that I truly understand that every parent faces challenge and struggle. Parenting isn't easy and that should go without saying. When I speak about the unique challenges facing Autism parents, it's not meant to invalidate the difficulties associated with everyday parenting. At the same time, just as it's important to understand that parenting in general isn't easy, it's important to understand that Autism parenting is something all together different. Something that's gotten under my skin a bit recently, is the way some people have reacted to my mentioning of taking a nap on some days. I'm not sure why anyone would care about that but clearly it's rubbing some people the wrong way. I've decided that I'm going to share a few thoughts I…
I got everything I needed to get done this morning, done. That's pretty awesome. That being said, it's one of those days where I am just so beat, I ended up having to take a nap. It may seem like taking a nap is more of a choice and I guess in a way it is but for an Autism parent like myself, it's not that simple. I had reached a point where I was simply no longer going to be able to function. It's hard to understand and I don't mean any offense to regular parents out there because all parenting is tough. So often, Autism parents are tasked with having to function on levels that regular parents rarely or ever even have to and we do so with…
I sure have been quiet lately and I'm sorry for that. The truth is I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed and writing about it sometimes feels like living through it twice. Forcing myself to write doesn't end up being helpful at all because it's writing to maintain the blog instead of writing to maintain myself. That said, I'm feeling the need to write and so here I am. I think the last thing I talked about was Gavin's current state of cognition and how it's heartbreakingly regressing once again. The summer has run its course and I think everyone needs the school routine back. Things have gotten stale and while I love my kids to infinity and beyond, we've spent a great deal of time together with very few breaks in between.…
One of the things that I've found really frustrating along my Autism Parenting journey is a lack of validation. It used to be that when we would send our kids to their Grandparents for a little while, they would come home and we would be told how well they behaved. I think most parents would take that as a compliment. In my case, I hated hearing that. I know that probably sounds crazy so let me explain. First of all, I have amazing kids but they're unbelievably difficult to manage. I struggle every single day to maintain my patience, sanity and my family's forward motion. It's not easy. It's not easy by a mile. There are times that I feel like such a horrible parent because I just couldn't keep…
Whenever I doubt that the world will ever truly become Autism Aware or that my efforts make a difference, something comes out of left field and renews my faith in humanity. I've decided to start sharing some of the many messages I get from people all over the world. Normally I keep these private because I just feel that's the way it should be. Having said that, I've had a change of heart and here's why. I think it's really important for people to realize that one person can make a difference. I want my readers to know that sharing their story can truly have an impact on the world, even if it's one person at a time. All it takes is one person to make a difference. One person…
August is going to be a tough month for us. We're really struggling with groceries because it's so hard to find things that the kids will actually eat and eat more than once. Elliott and Emmett are both going through something because it seems like everything they used to eat, now tastes funny.. This leads to wasted food, frustration and it has a significant impact on our limited budget. I'm not sure how we're going to pull grocery shopping off this month but the one thing we have going for us is that school starts in about two weeks. This means we don't have to worry about the boys during the day and that will save on food, therefore extending our budget. ☺ While that's a blessing, it's also a curse…