Arizona Mama

It’s the little moments that count with our kids and I am trying to be very intentional with our time together.  I make sure that I am playful with him even when I am trying to work or clean house.  He can help me in his own way and he feels valued. Our family is [...]

Summertime in Arizona is very hot and often restrictive in what we can reasonably do outside with our special needs children.   Creativity is often needed in choosing activities that are suitable and takes into consideration their special needs.  There aren’t a lot of options for younger children and sometimes cost is a factor.  However, I [...]

It’s that time of year when schools open their doors to parents for Parent Teacher Conferences.   Even if you have had an IEP within the past few months, it is still beneficial for you to meet with the teacher and therapists.  It’s different than an IEP in that they can sit down and go over [...]

This month Autism is thrown into the spotlight and hopefully people will become educated on who the faces of Autism can be and what the different shades of Autism are along the spectrum.  Autism is found in several generations of my husband’s family and we were concerned that our son was following that path.  For [...]

There haven’t been a lot of television shows or movies that deal with aspects of special needs.  Fortunately, that is changing.  NBC’s ”Parenthood” has a child with Aspberger’s Syndrome (one of the autism spectrums).  This show has highlighted some of the challenges and some happy moments that families have with Aspberger’s children.   In my opinion, it has [...]

St. Patrick’s Day is fun for kids to dress all in green and try not to get pinched!  There are a lot of great crafts and things you can do to engage your child in the holiday without involving the traditional ale.  My son has absolutely loved doing crafts not just for this column but [...]

This is the time of year where most parents think about what they want their children to experience when they are not in school.  Summer is just a few short months away and the best way to beat the heat is to plan ahead with activities.  It’s especially important for special needs children to be [...]

I remember as a child all of the different crafts that I did in school and at home around the holidays.  Valentine’s Day was a big one for us because that means we got to decorate and play with hearts.  As a little girl, I loved hearts and glitter!  You can recreate that fun and [...]

Most kids love animals, but special needs kids tend to gravitate towards them faster than most kids.  Animals have been used in therapy sessions for kids who have post tramautic stress disorder, abuse,  and various other afflictions.  There is a therapy ranch in Nevada that strictly used horses and trained therapists to help children learn [...]

Photo via i29 Have you ever wondered what a classroom that is designed by therapists and engineers to incorporate disabilities into the learning environment would look like?  Did you even think it was a possibility?  If your child has ADD,  ADHD, can’t sit still or can’t focus, then you might see something in the future [...]