Special Needs

The Journey Of Parenting The Exceptional Being pregnant with my daughter Magnolia was a breeze. They say girls take all of their mom’s beauty, but I glowed with her. She was my first baby, the long awaited first grandchild for my parents. You see, I was 31 when she was born. Magnolia commands attention wherever she goes so her birth was no different. She decided that Easter Sunday would be the best day for her grand entrance. 27 hours of natural labor, with no progress past 5 1/2 cm, and an emergency c-section later. Little Magnolia Rose finally arrived at 4:13am weighing 8lbs 9oz, and 21in long. I gave the background of her birth, because the next 18 months went smooth...

Strong As A Mother: Embracing The Journey With A Medically Complex Child We’ve all had the conversation at some point in our pregnancy. You know the one I'm referring to. A stranger, or maybe even a friend or coworker, will come up to you and congratulate you on your pregnancy. They'll gush over your belly and ask you if you would prefer a boy or girl. You'll say it doesn't matter. As long as baby is healthy and happy. Those words come out so effortlessly; it’s the generic response to this question and it’s true isn’t it? As long as the baby’s healthy, we couldn't care less about the gender. We never stop to think, what if my baby is not...

Before my personal experience as a NICU mom, I knew other moms who had been through a NICU stay. My sister and sister-in-law had both been there. I visited my nephew in the NICU. I saw what was on the surface: they left the hospital without their baby, the strict NICU rules, scrubbing in. Still, I had no clue what they were experiencing on a personal level, at least not until I had my son at 24 weeks, weighing 1 lb. 11 oz. and 12 inches long. From September 1, 2017, to June 25, 2018, Junior was in the NICU in critical condition. One of the toughest parts of his 10-month stay was the fact that not a single person knew...

I cried after I dropped my son off at daycare this morning. It isn’t his first day. It’s his fifth day. He cried, so I cried. Mom guilt hit me full force. I sat in the parking lot for a while after bringing him inside, reminding myself how important this new journey is for both of us. I’m finally able to work consistently and help my husband with the financial responsibilities of our family. As for Junior, he is getting much needed therapies and social interaction with his peers. This is good, but it doesn’t make it easy. I know it is, but it doesn’t change the fact that my chest is still tight hours later, and I can’t get...

Our daughter was diagnosed with Dyslexia in first grade. October is Dyslexia Awareness Month and I wanted to share with you some facts you may not know about dyslexia as well as signs so that you can be aware to help children in your life. Here are a few facts about Dyslexia that I did not know before our diagnoses: Dyslexia is the most common learning disability affecting 10-15% of the population. (1 in 5) Dyslexia commonly runs in families. Those with Dyslexia use only the right side of the brain to process language, while non-dyslexics use three areas on the left side of the brain to process language. Many educators will refer to “remediation” as the “treatment” for dyslexia....