Ashlynn is 14 years old. It’s almost unbelievable to me that a decade ago, an entire TEN years ago, we almost ended up a tragedy. It’s so traumatic even now I can never re-read the post. I‘ll link it here, but I’ll never re-read it. I don’t need to. It’s forever branded on my brain like a tattoo. She was four at the time. I still don’t know if she
Long ago before I knew terms like Dyspraxia, or Developmental Coordination Disorder or Dystonic Cerebral Palsy, I knew my daughter was falling behind in her developmental milestones. She only “army crawled” and nine months and didn’t fully crawl until well after a year. Learning to walk seemed like a pipe dream goal. I would observe on social media other people’s babies learning to walk and crawl so early. I would
When Ashlynn (my daughter with Logan Dias Syndrome that caused a host of disabilities) was younger, I’m not sure I ever pictured her riding an ATV. However, I remember excitedly buying her a power wheel for Christmas. She had just turned three. I had visions of her riding it up and down the sidewalk! I couldn’t wait for her to receive it! I remember taking this perfect photo and couldn’t
If you’ve ever watched your baby fail to meet the simplest of milestones.. If you’ve sat in meetings and offices and were told things like 1% percentile If you’ve felt a pain you can’t describe that is only eased by hope.. You know why regression hurts so much. If you’ve ever driven your child back and forth to countless therapies.. If you’ve ever felt a mix of pride, happiness, grief
We are currently in the middle of the COVID 19 pandemic. I think it’s week 4. I’m not sure. Time blurs. I was feeling it yesterday. The weight of it all. Not being able to leave the house. All the closures. Working from home while teaching my children and doing their assignments with them. The unknown about when this will end. All the cancelled events. I wrote last night I
I never knew before I had a child with an IEP (individualized education plan), how awful these meetings can be for parents.