SPD Symposium Wrap Up (3 of 3)

Dr. Lucy Jane Miller PhD, OTR/L signing books.














If you haven't red the first two posts, I encourage you to start there -- they are below this one.

5:30am hit again.

This time, I was not so eager to get out of bed. I was plotting in my head how to sneak out of the conference to take a nap. Logistically, that was harder than getting my three kids to three different schools every day, so it didn’t happen.

But as I squished my now bruised feet back into my heels for a third day, I did have one plan: Find time to talk with Dr. Miller.

I arrived at the hotel once again and was greeted by the now highly anticipated breakfast buffet, which I supplemented with some hot tea and honey. I was tired, my throat was scratchy (from talking too much, I know, you’re shocked) and I was afraid that the lack of sleep was catching up with me by way of a cold. But, this day had some great speakers, and I wasn't going to miss them!

Standing room only for Dr. Stobbe's talk -- first
time I had heard someone talk about development
over the life span that actually applied to my son.
I listened to Dr. Gary Stobbe’s lecture on Autism and Sensory issues across the lifespan – and I have to say it was so incredibly nice to hear someone talk about life as a whole. Not just the transition times: Preschool, high school, adult hood – but to talk about my child as a whole being. It was wonderful, and he had a PACKED house. Dr. Stobbe has a charming way about him, he speaks with true heart and an obvious understanding of those he works with. He told many anecdotal stories, but my favorite was a local 16 year old with Aspergers who is interviewing colleges. This young man’s mother was talking on the phone with a representative from MIT, and she felt that she needed to be honest about her son’s diagnosis so that they knew what to expect, “My son has Aspergers, so I would need to know you can accommodate that.” To which the man at MIT laughed out loud and said, “So does half my department!”  Now I know where to send Matthew.
Read more »

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

FTF: Friendships Lost Leave Openings for Others by Gina St. Aubin

Image
As my First Things First series comes to a close, I am moved by all of the essays that have come before this, but also truly inspired by our last 2010 FTF post.  So, here is December's First Things First article, which was written by Gina St. Aubin In Colorado, Gina St. Aubin is a wife, mother, blogger, and advocate for those with intellectual and physical challenges. You can visit her blog Special Happens , follow her on Twitter as @Special_Happens, or look for her on FaceBook . For more information about First Things First click here . There is also a list of the previous First Things First articles under the " Guest Posts and FTF " tab at the top -- with the obvious title of "First Things First Articles".   I will be announcing the 2011 FTF writers in just a few days -- LOOK FOR THEM! : ) ----------------------------- Friendships Lost Leave Openings for Others by Gina St. Aubin Who hasn’t looked around and taken an unwitting inventory of their lives; which p...
Read more

Music Lessons

Image
Do your kids love music? Mine sure do. It was probably 4 years ago now, and I was driving out of our subdivision with all three boys in the van – Gabe was in Kindergarten, which makes Nick 2 1/2 at the time and Matt around 6 months. From out of the back I hear the boys talking about playing musical instruments. “Mom,” Nick starts, “Can I have a drum set?" I grin, “Maybe someday.” “Can I have a Tuba?” Gabe interjects. “No.” I laugh out loud at the image of my son, much smaller than a Tuba, attempting to play it. But, that planted the musical seed for all of us. Flash forward four years, and I am contemplating putting Nick and Gabe in Piano lessons. Why Piano? Because it seems that might be the most convenient to actually attend. And, Nick tried Drum lessons at three different locations, but he was just too young at the time. Not to mention, I don’t want a drum set in the house, but could live with a keyboard. I bet you’re shocked that I am not interested in a drum set, huh? My husb...
Read more

Putting the Fun in Dysfunctional by Patty Porch

Last month, on the way home from my nephew’s baptism party, my husband said, in a shocked tone, “That was the best family party we have ever been to. The kids were amazing and had so much fun! I wasn’t even stressed out or worried about the kids getting over stimulated. What just happened?” Throughout the rest of our 3-hour car drive home, we discussed what had made this particular party so much fun. We also compared it to other parties that were not nearly so pleasant. Parties that ended in tears and meltdowns, parties that we had to leave because one of our kids was just too over stimulated to handle. Parties that I swore would be the last I attended because things had gone so poorly for Danny and/or Charlotte. We realized this particular party in September had been so successful because we have some family members who are 100% committed to making family gatherings pleasant for my two SPD kids. Though my family has always been supportive, they haven’t always known how to help. ...
Read more