Category: Ariana’s Posts

  • March Gratitude & Some Reading/Viewing

    Gena I know how important a certain level of on-line privacy is to you, so my respect for you and for that is the reason I am keeping the details here scant. You and I both know what was done, and while I might not share those particulars publicly, I certainly believe they are worthy…

  • “No Pressure”

    Andy and I watched Encanto for the first time this past Sunday, broken into sessions wrapped around the chunk of hours I needed to work with a new habilitation provider. As I listened to Luisa sing “Surface Pressure,” I felt how aptly and concisely it seemed to capture the way I feel so much of…

  • Valentine’s In Pieces

    With most every other post I have ever done about how things feel from my side, I add some sort of statement within that post acknowledging that I completely understand and do not judge people for feeling that the challenges our son has are outside their comfort levels when it comes to personally helping out…

  • Revisiting Moments of “Grief and Rage”

    Nearly 3 years ago, I shared with those of you reading our blog at that time some words of the hilarious guitar goddess Mrs. Smith to describe some of my feelings about some of the things people say to us about the circumstances we are in. At that time, I shied away from saying that…

  • February Gratitude & Some Reading

    To Eowyn The razor thin edges on so many words, the shattered shards of a strong divide, coated thickly with the dust of nearly a decade replaying only echoes of it all… a formidable array of obstacles that would have dissuaded many from trying to bridge such a potentially jagged and emotionally fraught gap. Thank…

  • A Quick Spotlight For Hannah’s Drawings

    I am a woman richly blessed with two beautiful children, though much of my writing here focuses on the needs and circumstances that have arisen from only one of them. Hannah’s participation here has always been at her discretion- she can contribute what she would like or not, as she feels inclined. Regardless of what…

  • Key Moments From Our Latest COVID Quarantine

    Andy actually wasn’t the first person in our family to develop symptoms, nor was he the source of our exposure- though he was the only one to be PCR tested because of his job. Two days after I got my new piercings, our sweet Hannah had brief unmasked contact with her boyfriend…who developed symptoms the…

  • “What The Heart Wants…”

    To be the mother of a child with profound disabilities is in many cases to wobble precariously along a thin ledge comprised of a great many sacrifices while trying not to completely loose yourself, yet feeling as if some days are still spent in free fall, searching for the person you could have been or…

  • January Gratitude & Some Reading

    To Nicole These unsettling pandemic years have changed so many things, including when we were able to meet. Nearly a year you were a case manager for our son before we were able to finally work together in person, and yet you still always called to check in with us and make sure we were…

  • Our Pandemic Public Therapy Progress Report

    A couple of weekends ago, on our last public therapy trip with Emily as Tony’s hab therapist, he laughed, smiled, and flapped as we walked towards the door of our local Fry’s. When we first started our public therapy programs, I never would have expected to see him looking happy in that context. The best…