Sharing recipes, crafts and frugal living, the challenges and triumphs of parenting a neurotypical child and a child on the Autism Spectrum. Yoga Instructor said goodbye to her nightly glass of Chardonnay to give up habits that were not serving her purpose in life! The CocktailMom name remains, however with a new focus on healthy and authentic living.

10/31/2014

It Takes a Village



You've heard the phrase "it takes a village to raise a child", but have you ever really believed it? Yes, it's awesome that you have the friends you can call on last minute to pick your kids up from school when you are running late and sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on the beltway. Or who babysit for you so that you and your spouse can go out to dinner at a restaurant where utensils are used or see a R rated movie.

Having a child on the Autism Spectrum has made me a true believer of the phrase "it takes a village". There is a village of specialists that work with him daily at the school so that he can maintain being successful in a mainstream classroom. A wonderful woman who is his dedicated aide has become part of our family. She loves him and cares for him at school so that I don't have to worry about his safety or if he's being left behind. 

A village of family and friends celebrate his accomplishments right beside me. People who know how much it means to me to be able to film a music concert. Yes, I know parents do this all the time. We post videos and pictures of our children but my village knows what a huge accomplishment it is for my oldest son Logan to walk onto a stage full of 250 people and stand in front of the same number of people sitting in the audience and play a song on his viola. 

Because once upon a time we had to avoid large groups of people because Logan couldn't handle it, it was too much stimulation. He would often crawl under tables or benches and cover his ears and cry.
Once upon a time he wore headphones to dampen the sound of music during his music class at school. 
And then a viola was put in his hands….and it all changed.

Thank you village for celebrating this life accomplishment along side me! 

2 comments:

Katy Collin said...

Thanks, G! I second the sentiment! I'd add that solo-momming makes me feel strongly the need for community. Knowing that people have your back when there is no other adult in the household to pick up slack and soften the blows of inevitable emergencies makes being "independent" possible. I'd also add that having the kids of other families act as role models means a lot. So thanks (you know who you are)!

Gretchen said...

Thanks for commenting. And thank goodness for us living in this amazing community!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails