COVID19 Archives - Page 21 of 30

I stepped outside of my comfort zone and spoke my mind because it matters

I've said this before and while it may not appear this way on the surface, I'm way too self-conscious to enjoy appearing on TV. That said, I've been doing it anyway because some things are more important than my comfort level. I will continue to do so when the opportunity presents itself because I want to make a difference and do my part. Today was one of those days. I was asked by my friends at ABC News Live to speak again, but this time to how I feel about the current status of COVID19 and the news of Donald Trump being infected. I know many like to steer clear of politics but unfortunately, we no longer have the luxury of standing on the side lines, pretending like everything is…

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October 5, 2020

Akron Children's Hospital / Gavin / My thoughts / Pediatrics

Round 3 of blood work for Gavin

It's been a long day but a pretty good one. I didn't write yesterday cause I was not really in a place where I felt like writing. I spent the time connecting with other parents instead and that was really cool. Yesterday, I had to take Gavin for another round of blood work, this time focusing on his liver. I hate doing this because it puts us in contact with other people but it was a necessary evil. Gavin's levels have been off and we have to keep following up until we figure it out. I needed to get this done ASAP because the car goes into the bodyshop this weekend and I'll be car-less for a few weeks. Gavin has an appointment with gastro coming up and we need…

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October 3, 2020

COVID19 / Link / Lockdown / My thoughts / Remote Learning / School

Remote learning is going okay but I’m maintaining perspective

Moving on.... So we had a pretty decent day today. Elliott had to get his Chromebook swapped out, so Lizze and her Mom picked that up and took care of that for us. That was super helpful and I'm grateful. School is going better and the boys are starting to get into something that when you squint, sorta resembles a routine. At best, it's a bastardized routine but progress is progress. I'm not going to apologize for letting my kids be comfortable while they're learning. This whole thing is a nightmare and I have zero concerns about them chilling on the couch, bed or anywhere else that makes learning a positive thing. As long as the kids are appropriately dressed, in good lighting and they're teachers are happy with their…

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October 2, 2020

Link / Major Update / My thoughts

A Ginormous Update

Alright folks, I'm playing catchup here and this will be a rather large update. So buckle up, it's a couple pages. First things first, I feel like we had a pretty decent weekend. The boys had a great visit with their mom and aside from a few hiccups with Gavin related behaviors, it seems like a very positive experience. That's awesome. They adjusted to being home in short order and picked up life where they'd left off before their trip. We spent some time working on the house. The boys want to bolster our security, as do I, because of all the recent shootings in our neighborhood. Just the other night, there were three woman shot while they were sitting on their front porch. I heard the shots but didn't…

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September 27, 2020

My thoughts

My kids visit their mom this week and I have nothing planned for myself

I took the kids hiking today. We found a new trail, where we don't run into anyone else, which is why we don't have masks on in the picture. We had our masks with us in case we came across other humans but we didn't. The kids are going to see their mom this week and I don't think they could be any more excited. Assuming everyone is still healthy, the kids will go to school on Wednesday and I'll drop them off around 2pm. I have absolutely nothing planned for my time while the kids are gone. It would be ideal for me to have a list of things I want to accomplish but the reality is that I don't get breaks very often right now. The kids will…

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September 20, 2020

COVID19 / Emmett John / Lockdown / My thoughts

Shoe shopping online for my #autistic son

Let me just start by saying that I hate shoe shopping for Emmett, even in the most perfect of circumstances. I love Emmett to the moon and back. The issue is not that I don't want to spend the time or money, it's that sensory processing disorder makes finding things like shoes, socks and clothes difficult at times. Although, as he gets older, he's doing so much better. It can still be frustrating though, for both of us. I've talked about this a million times before but people suffering from SPD, and I use the word suffering on purpose, face challenges that the rest of us can't even imagine. In Emmett's case, he's very sensitive to things like texture, taste and smell. He doesn't like the feeling of clothes on…

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September 20, 2020

Inspirational Posts / My thoughts

Therapy is helping me become better

I had therapy yesterday and I feel like I'm making progress. I'm the picture of imperfection and I'm the first to admit that but the last to forgive myself for it. This last year has been incredibly challenging for me and that came after the hardest six months of my life. Losing my last two grandparents was so hard and I hadn't yet found my footing when my marriage imploded for a second time. That began a journey I didn't ask to go one but it was something I had no control over. Ensuring the kids got through all this has been my number one priority and honestly, that came at my own expense. Then COVID hit and our lives were turned upside down once again, just like everyone else.…

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September 17, 2020

Elliott / Emmett John / My thoughts

My kids cooked me dinner and I’m blown away

One of the things we've been working on during lockdown is life skills. I try to make the best use of all the time we have available to us and it's paying off. First of all, while Elliott and Emmett are both on the autism spectrum, they're incredibly high functioning. Aside from anxiety, SPD and ADHD, they do very well. The reason I point that out is because when I work on life skills, there's a difference between the way I approach the boys and the way I approach Gavin. They're two very different situations. For the last few weeks, Elliott and Emmett have been learning to cook. They never really showed much interest until recently and have picked it up very quickly. Elliott's big thing is scrambled eggs and…

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September 16, 2020