Truly understanding you are not alone is an important revelation. Some days you may find yourself angry, exhausted, and frustrated, but recognizing you are not the first person to raise an outside-of-the-box child will give you the much-needed hope and strength to fuel the long journey ahead. There are others and their wisdom is priceless! Life is all about perspective.  Accept the challenges you are bound to encounter and conquer them.  Raising a child is hard...period.  At the core, your outside-of-the-box child is just that:  a child.  As a parent, your job is to do your best to encourage them, provide for them, and ensure their needs are met.  Ultimately, we all want to see our children be successful, independent, contributing members of society.  Though there are circumstances where that may not be possible, each and every child is a wonderful gift who has been placed on this earth to fulfill their purpose.  We must be patient.  Only time will reveal what that purpose is. Th

This past weekend I attended the National Tourette Syndrome Education Conference in Washington D.C.  Tourette is still relatively new to our family, as it's only been 1 1/2 years since our son's official diagnosis.  This conference was the first time I had been around people who fully understand the life we live.  While it was so comforting to be surrounded by so many who get it, it was also heartbreaking to hear how many people had children (or were once children themselves) who were placed in an education system that did not understand their needs.  The lack of awareness and education regarding those living with Tourette is astounding. It is my firm belief that our education system is broken.  The method which our children are taught and the focus on standardized test performance has created an educational environment that deprives our children of developmentally appropriate practice, the opportunity for diverse and creative learning, and the social connection our childre

If you are the parent or guardian of a child with special needs, the public school system can be a tough one to navigate.  One minute you feel like you're finally on the right path and the next you realize how far you have to go.  Our family's ride has been a rollercoaster to say the least.  This journey has opened our eyes to the cracks within the system and fueled the desire to expose them in order to create a more productive, appropriate, and pleasant educational experience for children with special needs. As an educator with a degree in special education and a mom of children with special needs, I am completely baffled by the inconsistency and lack of transparency I have encountered on both sides of the table.  It has always been a mystery as to why it is such a challenge for people to listen to one another and devise a plan that is individualized... truly individualized ,  for a child with special needs.  It is called an IEP team for a reason:  to ensure a child's