Family fun and disability support for families with special needs

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This website is dedicated to my oldest daughter Monica who was born with multiple disabilities (cortical blindness and seizure disorder) and microcephaly due to an occipital encephalocele and Chiari malformation. She has a genetic kidney disease called PKD as well as hand and arm deformities from Amniotic Band Syndrome.

Despite numerous developmental disabilities, she is a delightful, motivated and affectionate young lady who continues to learn new skills and novel ways to enjoy life. See Monica's page and her Youtube channel.

Take a tour of our website or use the search box (above) to quickly find what you seek.

Dad and Monica

• Teaching self care skills is a process that begins at birth and goes on into adulthood. Children with disabilities find these skills difficult to perform for various different reasons. However, they will need to acquire these skills as best they can to live as independently as possible.

• Recreation therapy helps children with developmental disabilities to expand physical and cognitive capabilities. Recreation therapy is specifically designed to allow children to partake in leisure pursuits by eliminating roadblocks that impede the pursuit of sports, arts, crafts, games and other life-enhancing activities.

• Let me share a book with you, called Tu-Tu Much . I think you will find it delightful. Please enter the world of Lucy Lockets, a nine-year-old girl who is considered special. Lucy hates the word "special" because it means that she can’t walk, use her hands or speak very well. Although confined to a wheelchair, her mind, heart, and attitude soars with adventures and high spirits while coping with her bodily limitations, dealing with the preconceived ideas of others, and creating a positive image of who she is and her place in the world.

• Social Security disability benefits, which are often available to children with special needs, can provide ongoing monetary support. Benefits can help ease financial worries and provide the targeted care your child needs.

• Parents are different when it comes to how they teach their children about acceptance of people with disabilities. Some scold their kids when they ask what’s wrong when someone with a disability passes by, and other parents let their kids approach disabled people at will. This article offers ways to help your child think differently about people with disabilities.

• For too long, people with disabilities had been told that having families of their own was not an option. The truth is that there have always been parents with disabilities, and as our society evolves, more will have access to that opportunity.

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• Thousands of children with special needs and disabilities wait for families to offer them a permanent home. In the United States, thousands of children with special needs are waiting for permanent homes. Adoption can provide children with special needs the healing atmosphere and loving bonds that can change their lives.

• Making music enriches a special needs child's life in wonderful ways. Studies on the developing brain show dramatic lifelong improvements in language, math, spatial skills, coordination, memory and motor skills by learning to make music. Music therapy can be an effective tool for persons with disabilties.

• Arts and crafts are important to the development of all children, but particularly valuable to children with disabilities. When creating art, the child is building a wide variety of expressive skills – both motor and cognitive.

•Developing motor skills is important for children. Teaching your child these motor skills through crafts or games allows your child to learn while also having fun. Learning these skills will help prepare them for when they go off to school.

• Sign language is used to communicate with people with hearing impairments, disabilities, and preverbal infants. Teaching sign language, simultaneously using signs and words, will accelerate a child's ability to speak.

• Through literature and poetry, children learn to cope more constructively with complex emotions like fear and jealousy, or stressful experiences, like starting school or moving to a new neighborhood. Parents and teachers of children with autism often use interactive reading to facilitate interaction and social skills.

• As with any child, it’s important to make your home as safe and secure as possible for your special needs child. Your home can also become easier to move in and maneuver around with a few minor home accessibility modifications.

• Moving your family with special needs to another home can be a daunting task; there are so many things to think about that even the most organized person can have a hard time when it comes to packing, hauling, getting everything ready at the new place, and settling in. Having a special needs child means you may have a different set of challenges and preparations, so it’s important to sit down, make a list, and talk with your family about the entire process to make the transition a bit easier.

• Family fun and fun games bring not only enjoyment but health benefits. Taking time for the things that you enjoy can help you feel better about yourself and more satisfied with life. When you feel this way, you may be more likely to exercise, eat well, get regular medical care and reach out to friends and family - all of which can benefit you physically and mentally for a more balanced life.

• A container garden eliminates physical barriers to make gardening accessible, creating an area where people of all ages and abilities can grow vegetables, fruits and flowers. Learn to plant and care for plants and enjoy eating them fresh from your own windowsill or indoor garden.

• When choosing developmentally age-appropriate toys, they should be slightly above your child's motor skill level, but ones that they can successfully played. If your child has been diagnosed with a developmental disability or delay, her pediatrician, speech therapist, teacher, or occupational therapist can offer suggestions on the types of developmental toys that will be most beneficial

• Developmental toys for blind babies. Babies with vision impairment or blindness have a unique set of developmental requirements. Milestones for a blind child are often significantly delayed compared to the development of a sighted child. Appropriate stimulation of other senses and proper intervention can be crucial. Careful attention to the sensory input given to the blind baby can be useful to help make up for visual losses.

• When our children have special needs, traveling becomes more difficult to plan, but it can be full of fun and memories. Travel is by its very nature an adventure, but factor a disability into the family travel and planning can get complex. One area of concern for disabled or special needs travelers is air travel. Disability and mobility concerns don't have to slow down your summer travel plans. This article offers tips to make your summer travel easier.

• When parents recognize that their child is not developing as expected and this is confirmed through diagnosis, the news will be traumatic with a future of uncertainty. Setting up an early intervention program can have significant impact on enhancing the future and education of children with learning disabilities.

• Due to a disability or after an injury, one may find it difficult to perform activities of daily living. It may be necessary to use adaptive equipment to perform self care and household activities, augmentative devices to facillitate communucation, and mobility aids to get around.

• Pregnancy books tend to gloss over the special needs pregnancy, and prenatal classes often ignore the possibility that you might give birth to a baby with special needs. Depending on the mother's risk profile, special fetal tests may be ordered to detect birth defects. After diagnosis, it is best to carefully follow safety precautions during pregnancy and be prepared for the birth of your special needs baby.

• Effective special needs planning requires a high degree of legal expertise. A Special Needs Trust offers a means of protecting your child's eligibility for benefits, while addressing the ongoing care and needs of your special needs child.

• The population is aging and creating a higher demand for home care. By the year 2020, 12 million Americans will need long-term care. Home care serves people of all ages who are disabled, chronically ill or in need of hospice care. Spending quality time with senior relatives can sometimes be a challenge. These fun activities to do with the seniors in your family will expose them to fun technology while still offering an old school approach that holds traditional merit for everyone involved.

• Many families embrace quality time with their senior relatives. These 5 fun activities to do with the seniors in your family will expose them to fun technology while still offering an old school approach that holds traditional merit for everyone involved.

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