@SpringbrookBHS National Converge Autism Summit: Day 0

I wanted to share a quick update. I'm calling this day 0 because I'm here before everyone else. The actual summit begins in the morning and will last for 2 days. I'm finally in Greenville, South Carolina and settled in to my second hotel. I'll be here for the duration of my trip. Here's a brief video update about how everything is going. ☺ https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cc4K-wQF-YV/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y= Happy to answer any questions you may have. I'm exhausted and going to bed but it's been a good day. I'm looking forward to interviewing Ron Suskind in the morning. I'm also going to be meeting Kate Swenson of Finding Cooper's Voice tomorrow as well. I really miss everyone at home but this is an important trip for a number of reasons and I love…

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Just a quick update

Super quick update. I'm well on my way and heading towards Greenville, South Carolina for The National Converge Autism Summit, put on my my friends at Springbrook Autism Behavioral Health. I was feeling pretty anxious this morning but with a little help, I got that the anxiety in check. After driving for many hours today, I'm fighting off a headache and some good old fashioned exhaustion. I'm keeping the details of my travels private but I'll be sharing tons of stuff from the summit later this week. Most will be on IG so be sure to follow me there. Link at the top of this page or click here. ☺ I'm going to get some rest and hopefully shake the headache. I want to say thank you for all the…

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I can get really frustrated with myself

I've got a jam packed week ahead of me and it's all pretty exciting stuff. I have a few interviews this week and will close them all off with Kate Swenson from Finding Cooper's Voice. She's going to be on the pod to talk about her new book Forever Boy. I'm looking forward to that. There's a lot of prep going into this upcoming trip and my brain has been working overtime. I was gently reminded today that I can sometimes overcomplicate things. I'm following some really good advice and making a list of everything that needs to get done before I go. I can finally get it out of my head and into paper. I made a list tonight and I'm going to refine it as I go but…

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A brief review of Sago Mini: First Words

I love technology, especially when it can be used by everyday people to improve their everyday lives. A few years back I spent some time with an app called Otmiso, which is a game-based learning app for kiddos with special needs. You can see it reviewed here. I found it to be a really cool app for kids and I want to take a minute to point out a new app that I've been looking at recently. SAGO Mini has partnered with the above mentioned Otsimo, to create a new app called SAGO Mini First Words. First Words is designed with the help of speech therapists, child psychologists, and other early childhood development experts. I appreciate this as I'm a big fan of things backed in science and medicine. Real…

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Feeling Grateful

I'm physically and emotionally getting ready for my big trip and I realized a few things. I'm going to be gone for five days and I've never been away from my kids for that long. I've never gone on a solo trip before and I've never been alone for more than a day or two. I was talking through this the other night and I recieved some really good advice. I understand the advice in my head but I'm not sure I can explain it well. Basically, the advice had to do with me feeling lonely while I'm gone. Honestly, that's something I've been a bit worried about. Rather than running from that feeling or trying to push it away, instead, I should lean into it. The idea is to…

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Making progress

It's been a long week, especially with the kids being sick on and off for the last two weeks. I didn't get a break last weekend because they were sick. I was feeling burned out, overwhelmed, and frustrated. I feel like that's pretty normal considering and also temporary because life gets better. I woke up this morning feeling really good. I slept so well last night and apparently checked all the boxes. My Samsung Health Sleep Report The boys were supposed to visit their mom today but because they still are a bit under the weather, it's been rescheduled for a later date. While I could use the break, I get it and it is what it is. No biggie. I've spent the morning responding to emails and working on…

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What happens today doesn’t represent the rest of your journey

Its been a minute cause I'm currently remodeling the space I use for these videos. I've been reading the personal stories of people in the Autism Parenting support group I built in reddit. I wanted to hop on here share some thoughts about the autism parenting journey, feeling overwhelmed, and even desperate along the way. I've been there and these stories are heartbreaking at times. I hope this provides at least some comfort to those of you out there in the trenches. You're not alone and remember, what happens today doesn't represent the rest of your journey. I also want to invite you to join the other 8,500 families in my Autism Parenting sub. It's a safe space to talk about parenting, learn from autistic adults, and connect with others…

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Feeling anxious and excited

I've spent part of the day planning my trip to South Carolina later this month. I've been invited to things like this many times, I've even been invited to speak. This is the first time that I've accepted an invite and while I won't be speaking, thank God, I will be doing interviews and some promotional things for the National Converge Autism Summit. That's pretty exciting for me. At the same time, I'm also nervous because this takes me way outside of my comfort zone. The truth is, I like kinda being the person behind the curtain. Video conferencing took me some time to get comfortable with. I don't mind being on the other side of a screen and definitely don't mind being able to hide behind a blog post,…

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