The month of April is designated as Autism Awareness Month and it's exactly one month away! I've been spending some time thinking about ways that I can promote autism awareness. After several weeks of brainstorming, I think that I have finally developed a master plan. And guess what? Some of what I have in mind will require your help and support! Here are my plans for Autism Awareness Month: Thirty Days of Autism Facts: Are you following...
My son recently received the opportunity to participate in Surfers Healing Day Camp. It was an amazing experience that our entire family will never forget! Surfers Healing is a nonprofit organization that was founded by Israel (Izzy) and Danielle Paskowitz. Their son, Isaiah, often dealt with sensory overload issues and was diagnosed with autism at a young age. Izzy, a former competitive surfer, started taking Isaiah surfing and discovered that it helped to calm his son. After seeing the success that surfing had...
It’s easy to love and serve God when everything is going your way. But what do you do when it seems like your world has turned upside down? Do you still give God praise and trust Him? Or do you just walk away? Dear Hubby and I were very active in ministry during our early years of marriage. We loved God and served Him with our whole hearts. Before we started trying to conceive, we...
Dear Hubby and I enjoyed our time as newlyweds together. We traveled, we were spontaneous, and we had all of the time in the world for each other. As a matter of fact, we were having so much fun that the years flew by quickly for us. We were knocking on our 30s before the realization came that we should probably consider settling down soon to expand our family. Our plan was to have at...
Our Autism journey has been like a roller coaster ride. We’ve experienced the lowest of lows and the highest of highs along a path with many twists and turns. Here’s our story… It all started back in 2008. Big Brother was 15 months old and not talking. He had already met his other developmental milestones, so I didn’t immediately think that anything was wrong. Plus, we were in the process of moving halfway across the country...
Dear Hubby and I decided to throw Big Brother a party for his birthday this year. He recently discovered how fun parties could be (click here for the scoop on that), so we decided to make sure his birthday was extra special this year. We asked him if he wanted a Thomas the Train Party, a Disney Cars party, or a Disney Planes Party. However, that didn’t go so well. Big Brother kept changing his...
I’ve been writing about special needs ministry all of this week. Monday’s post was about “Going to Church with a Special Needs Child.” On Tuesday, I posted about “How Special Needs Ministry Blessed My Family.” Wednesday’s post asked the thought provoking question, “Is Your Church Special Needs Friendly?” Today’s post wraps up the series by giving you information on how to start a special needs children’s ministry. "My life goal is to see the world's...
On Tuesday, I wrote about How Special Needs Ministry Blessed My Family. While I’m very thankful for my church, I know that there are other families that would greatly benefit from a ministry like this as well. Here’s why you should seriously consider having a special needs ministry at your church. Is your church special needs friendly? Most people would say yes right off the bat without even thinking. But having a church that is...
On Monday, I started a new blog series about the importance of special needs ministry. The first post, "Going to Church with a Special Needs Child," explained how the seed of special needs ministry was planted at my church. Here’s what happened after one special lady decided to water the seed, tending to it until it began to sprout… Our church’s Special Needs Ministry began in August 2013. Big Brother was the only child in the...
I was having a rough morning. Despite my best intentions to be on time, a last minute diaper change had me running late for church. I picked up my baby boy from the changing table and moved quickly through the house, grabbing the baby bag, my purse and coat, and my oldest son. I loaded the boys and our belongings into the family vehicle and headed off to church with the sincere hope that we...