As my last birthday passed I began to hear an odd sound. It started off in quiet whispers but is getting louder and louder as time passes on . It is so loud now that I recognize it for what it is....my biological clock warning me the alarm is soon to sound and final call is fast approaching.While we made the decision years ago to not have more children, I've waxed and waned with my feelings of maybe, possibly, reopening that door. I have researched adoption, even special needs adoption. I have researched foster parenting. I have researched genetic science if we did want to open the biological door. With two neurological defect pregnancies in my 20's I doubt I have it in me emotionally to chance our genetic match up in my late 30's.But tonight as my oldest roamed the mall with his friends, I had the chance to just sit. That is all. Just be. This is VERY hard for me. But I did it. I watched children come and go and play and I marveled in how they could make toys out of chairs and each other. How rolling around in the grass outside by the fountains at Park Meadows mall was as exciting to them as a trip to the Lego store.I marveled at their sense of joy and peace in just being. ...
Boys. The Truth Is…You Are American
Dear Boys,Every year at St Patrick's Day we don our green and fly our Irish flag proudly. And we proudly tell you stories of our roots in England, Holland and Lithuania. But I just realized what an injustice we have done to you. You are not Irish. Or English. Or Dutch. Or Lithuanian. You are in fact, in the purist sense, Americans.You have ancestors who are the founding fathers of Concord, most of New Jersey, and key ports of New York. You have historical homes built by your great grandfathers still preserved today. You have great grandmothers who came here to flee both potato famines and communist rule.You have ancestors who have fought in every US War, and on both sides of the Civil War.I am sorry. I thought that by telling you you were Irish, or Dutch, or what have you that we were giving you a historical identity. But I realize now how wrong I was. Every ancestor you have came to this country and gave their blood, sweat and tears so that you, my sons, could proudly say, I AM AMERICAN.To say anything else trivialize your rich history of those who have built this country-whether they came here in the 1600's or the 1900's. YOU are their dream. YOU are why they ...
Proud Owner of An Ugly New Car
I know, you are all tired of me writing about the great car hunt. But it is over and I don't want to leave you hanging....Not exactly a thing of beauty in my eyes. It is one of those car styles that you either love or hate. I happen to not be super crazy about the boxy style but I am super crazy about how well this fits a wheelchair user with little to no modifications. We will be installing a flip down transfer seat like this just to make it as safe as possible. We don't have a cost yet on the transfer board but I am pretty confident it will fit in the $1200 budget Ford gives for after market mobility aids.I was completely in love with the Buick Enclave but after talking with after market mobility specialists found that it would be impossible to convert to a drop out, swivel seat which Carter would need due to seat height. One person thought they might be able to but it would be more than the typical $8,000 cost to modify a seat to turn and come out of the car.The Flex seating is 6 inches lower than the Buick. It doesn't sound like much to non wheelchair users but when you are transferring you really want to not have any height difference. There is only an 1 1/2 inch ...
The New Car Short List
Last week I posted about the great new car hunt being on. With Carters surgery less than 2 weeks away, the decision needs to be made pronto.I have received some really great advice and suggestions and here is what I have learned:Car dealerships are not open on Sunday in Denver. WHAT is up with that?VW has some of the best, responsive social media reps out there.I may be better off with a *gulp* MINIVAN. Oh, it creeps me out to even type it. I am a truck/SUV type girl.While a mini-van makes a ton of sense I am just not sure that I can do it. The big players in the market are the Sienna, Odyssey and Town & Country. Sienna is the ONLY one that offers AWD and that is pretty high on my list. Plus the 2011 has these wicked cool reclining seats that may look gimicky but for long car rides I can totally see how they could help with Carters leg circulation issues. Topping the reason for a mini-van? They can be converted with wheelchair ramps pretty easily. I just don't know if I can do it though. Toyota's have had a lot of issues lately although I was happy to see they are mostly manufactured at a plant in Indiana. But, I may have mentioned, it is a minivan!Topping the list of mid-size ...
Social Media for New Car Shopping?
In the next month I plan to buy a car. Whether or not it is new will depend on pricing and other details but the main gist of my car hunt is to find something for Carter and I. Let me repeat that---for the first time I am looking for a car that fits just Carter and I. That feels so good to say! Finally! Bob will take the older SUV and pass that to Con next year when he starts driving. So, this car is really about making life easier for the two of us to get around-wheelchair and all.I'm wondering how I can bring social media and blogging into this hunt??? Cause the deal is, I AM buying the car. I have no illusions that by being a blogger I should get any sort of deal, let's face it, I am not that popular of a blogger~LOL! What I am hoping is that the social media departments of some car companies may help to make sure I find the RIGHT car for us. I am going to be blogging my way through this both here and on Spina Bifida Connection because in the disability world, the right car makes all the difference in your level of independence-whether you are the driver or not. AND for a mom with a wheelchair using kid, it makes all the difference in how much work is involved getting the kiddo ...