Happy 16th Birthday, Noah

It doesn't seem possible that Noah is 16 today. He has taught us so much. Patience, understanding,, gratitude, determination, bravery, how to love unconditionally, the list goes on and on. He is a true Hero and he continues to inspire us everyday. Our family wouldn't be the same without him.

Happy 16th birthday, Noah!!!!

We love you to the moon and back.

To Feel Butterflies Again.....

In April Scott and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. We were so in love. Since then we have had 3 awesome children. Two beautiful daughters and one amazing son.

Our life together hasn't been at all like what we had imagined. In fact it's been very hard at times.

With three children and one with special needs it has been hard to find time for each other. All my time and energy went into taking care of Noah. I've said before that couples that have a special needs child tend to get divorced. I'm glad we are still together but, there is a part of me that would love to find a way to reconnect with Scott. I love him but, I want to feel butterflies in my stomach again when he walks in a room. I want to fall head over heels madly in love with him again. I was hoping to maybe get away together maybe  go on a cruise to celebrate our 25th anniversary. Unfortunately  it's just not in the budget. We really need to reconnect as a couple.

A Special Needs Mom's Journey

I've been on this special needs Mom journey for almost 16 years. Some days have been really hard. Other days it has just become a way of life that it doesn't seem to bother me. As I look back on the last 16 years I have seen myself  change into someone I don't even recognize sometimes.

 I've have worked so hard to take care of Noah that I've neglected to take care of myself. Most days I'm so overwhelmed with everything that needs to be done that I shut down and do nothing. I've forgotten what it feels to like to be me. Even when I'm out and about and someone sees me, a lot of times I hear, I know you your Noah's Mom. I feel honored to be known as Noah's Mom but, it would be great to be known as  Susan too.

With the new year I've been trying to find ways to take care of myself and find ways to make myself feel less overwhelmed. So far it has been working. I took the time to redo Noah's schedule so I have more time for myself. I've been eating healthier and working out everyday. So far it has been working. I've felt less tired and a lot less overwhelmed. I've have set goals for myself and I'm well on my way to a better me.



Respecting Noah

When Noah and I were at the last ABR training they had a small presentation about respecting your  child for who he is. I really feel I do a pretty good job at that. We don't spend our time running from this therapy and that therapy. The only therapy we do is ABR. I do 2hrs and 15min a day doing therapy M-F. Since we've been home I have changed up his schedule  a bit through the week. Noah used to go to school M-F. 8:30-12:30 and then we would come home and start therapy. Now with the idea of respecting Noah more I thought about what he enjoys most about being at school. I decided that Noah loves being with his friends the most and I really wanted him to be with his typical peers as well more. My vision for Noah is for his typical peers feeling comfortable around him and not to be afraid to at least say hi. Starting at the beginning of the year Noah has been going to school from 8-2. He has been going to the lunch room with 3 teenage girls and loving it. What teenage boy wouldn't want eating lunch with 3 girls without adult supervision? I think it's now the best part of his day.

To add to the idea of Noah interacting with his typical peers, we are continuing to go to all the home boys basketball games. This year we have even made cookies for all the players and coaches for every game. We get to the games early enough that Noah can watch the boys playing around in the gym before the games. The team is starting to get a lot more comfortable around Noah. They are starting to come up to him during their practice to say hi. Thanks guys, that means a lot to us. Noah is starting to feel like one of the guys.