2011 - Page 5 of 14 - Forever In Mom Genes

The Lies We Tell As Special Needs Moms

Aug 22 2011

I told a lie about my child. You’re probably expecting a joke or a silly pun right about that. Not today. I brought my daughter with me to the drugstore to buy eye drops (and shampoo and lip balm and a travel sized hairspray and milk. I need to get this impulse buying thing under control). As I stood in the skin care aisle (I also bought hand cream) Avery picked up various bottles and tubes and chattered away. Then she spontaneously hugged the guy who was stocking shelves next to us. She’s tactile and a hugger without boundaries, obviously. All the while a young female clerk was casting glances our way. Later at the checkout that same clerk was organizing the magazines. She asked, “How old is she?” An innocent question, but one I’ve come to hate nonetheless. I understand why people ask. ALL THE TIME. They’re just trying to figure Avery out. She looks her age-ish physically, but her social graces and immature speech patterns make her appear much, much younger. “How old is she?” is an attempt to make sense of the disparity. “How old is she?” asked the clerk. “She’s four,” I answered. […]

Aug 16 2011

I took a photo of my eyes a few weeks ago in all their teary, weepy, oozy pinkness. I had a bad case of conjunctivitis. I planned on posting the picture with info about the “dos and don’ts of eye infections.” However, it cleared up and I deleted the repulsive pic. You’re welcome. So guess what returned this morning? Pink Eye has reared its crusty head once again. The unfortunate victim this time around? My brown eyed boy. Make that, my brown and pink eyed boy. This morning he woke with one lid sealed shut. I had him lie on the couch with a warm cloth over his eye to loose things up. I left the room to grab the drops and in the meantime, Avery nicked the cloth from her defenceless, half blind brother and put the diseased cloth over HER eyes! She was moaning and making all kinds of dramatic, “whoa is me” gestures. Apparently she wanted a little of the attention her brother was receiving. Well little girl, it’s very likely you’ll be receiving more than that. In about 24 hours, I’ll have two brown and pink eyed children on my hands (speaking of hands, they should[…]

Aug 14 2011

The business of starting a small business gives me a thrill. I’m teased mercilessly by friends and family who have christened me, “Queen of the Big Idea.” I’m thinking I should start a club with like minded idea lovers to discuss, you know, ideas. I could call it, Mensa and Margaritas. We would obviously have to have t-shirts made. I just get so excited whenever an idea sparks. I become consumed by it. But, once the reality of the money and time required to take it to the next step sets in, the idea is filed away. And by file, I mean literally filed away in a file on my computer called, “Lisa’s Home Biz Ideas.” Each of these businesses-in-the-making has a name, logo and tag line in place. I didn’t go to business school, but I know you can’t start a business without a catchy logo in a cool font. Also, my business plans have cute icons and are in a pretty colour coded chart. So, a “big idea” hasn’t taken off for me yet, but it will. And it will be huge, I tell you, huge.

Aug 14 2011

We’re all subjected to the sting of embarrassment. We may flounder amid an awkward silence or flush in the face of a social slip up. It happens. It seems to happen to me a lot. I have a knack for saying the wrong thing—a joke falls flat or I call someone by the incorrect name (turns out I’ve been calling my neighbour Leanne for over a year. Her name is not Leanne). I’m quite skilled at plunging feet first into graceless situations; falling off curbs, walking into sign posts, exposing body parts or food wedged between teeth. I bring these blunderments upon myself. I often half pay attention in social situations and it bites me in the butt. From forgetting names to joining in and laughing at an inappropriate part of a conversation. It’s not that I’m disinterested. I’m just easily distracted. I’m a poor multi-tasker. I end up doing too many things at once and my focus becomes fuzzy, resulting in a multitude of clumsy missteps. Updating my Linked-In account tonight (while talking on the phone, cropping photos and chatting on Twitter) I inadvertently sent out an invitation to EVERY SINGLE PERSON on[…]

Aug 12 2011

Our daughter has Epilepsy. The onset was sudden (at the age of three) and the year it took to bring her life threatening seizures under control was brutal. Now secure in the knowledge the medication is doing its job to keep the big seizures at bay, we’re able to breathe. I can even leave Avery for the night without suffering a panic attack at the theatre, spending the second act with my head between my knees. Today, we got the latest results of her recent EEG.They were abnormal and showed moderate seizure activity in her beautiful brain. *Our neurologist says lots of children out grow seizure disorders. I had myself convinced this would apply to Avery. I imagined the doctor shaking his head in amazement saying, “Wow. How wonderful. Generally Epilepsy doesn’t resolve this quickly.” He didn’t say any such thing. Despite this disheartening news, there’s still a good chance she will grow out of this. God, I hope she does. I also hope the medication will continue to provide a barrier between us and those frightening seizures. They were seriously alarming. We will just have to wait and see what happens. I hate that. Isn’t there a cosmic cheat[…]

Archive - 2011

The Lies We Tell As Special Needs Moms

Pink Eye

Minding My Own Small Business

Linked In Shame

Seizure Salad