Search Results for: welcoming
All Aboard the Holiday Express…
The holiday season. I liken it to an express train on a long, straight track: You can see it coming from miles away, but you don’t realize how fast it’s approaching until it’s flying by, leaving your ears ringing, your hair a windswept mess, and the pit of your stomach churning with unspent adrenaline. With…
A Matter of Life: Suicide Awareness and Prevention
Motherhood can be a dream. Nothing compares to welcoming your own children into the world, to watching them take their first steps, to hearing their first words, to seeing them make friends, go to school, graduate, begin their careers, start families of their own... Motherhood can also be a nightmare. Nothing is more agonizing than…
One Mother’s Search For A More Peaceful Place In the Midst of Pandemic
“Jeez wuh-leez!” she blurts exasperated. I have dared to request that my daughter put her shoes away. As she stomps off to her room, shoes in hand, I have to turn away to conceal the grin creeping up my cheeks. Yes, the attitude and the stomping are unacceptable, and I will address them…as soon as…
Autism and Talking to Strangers
“Mommy, can I go talk to other people?” These sweet words were spoken to me recently by my son. Where were we? Once or twice a winter, my son and I drive up through the Angeles National Forrest. We live in the foothills below the San Gabriel Mountains, so this drive is easy for us.…
How to Deal with Meltdowns
As I prepare to talk about how to work with children on the autism spectrum with my co-workers and staff at my job, it made me think about one of the many key elements… how to handle a child’s meltdown. What’s my job? I work at a gym's child care, the place where you can…