I am a Mom. Just an average every day Mom. I have things I think I do pretty darn well and I have things that I have definitely dropped the ball on. That said, I am happy, and I think my kids are happy, and I am elated with the young men I’ve helped to shape. You’ve probably heard it yourself. Parents will say, “I just want my kids to be happy.” Deep down we want them to find love and be …
Autism In a Picture
Many years ago the kids and I walked in a 4th of July parade in our community with the early childhood PTA we belonged to. It was sincerely one of the hottest days of the year and we were all melting by the time it was done. We ended up inviting some of the other members of the PTA who had walked in the parade to come to our house because we had an above ground pool for the kids to cool off. That …
Mama, Dada, Goodbye
I recently watched a new Jerry Seinfeld special in which, like many good comedians do, he covered a plethora of topics. One of his bits focused on babies. The claim made was that babies were only here to oust older folks. He has lines simulating what the baby is thinking like “who’s going to be wearing the diaper next?” To prove his point that babies are here to replace us “older” folks, …
The Orange Effect Foundation Grant Application Process
Faces of The Orange Effect Foundation Here’s a summary of what we do and how we do it for those of you thinking about applying and wondering how the process works. Applications are reviewed quarterly. You can mail them anytime, but the deadline to be included in the review means having your application postmarked on/by the 15th of the month that it is due (February, May, August, …
Consistency During a Lockdown
These times are unprecedented. Many of us are just going day-to-day making sure we brush our teeth. That’s okay. One day at a time has never had more meaning. I’ve heard from a few parents whose children receive speech or occupational therapy. They are distraught because they know how important consistency is, but they are following the rules and staying home to stay safe. They are asking …
Change is Hard. Change is Scary. Change is Good.
This post originally appeared in the monthly Orange Effect Foundation e-newsletter. It’s February. Here in Cleveland that can often mean a lot of time at home because the weather can be so cold and the skies so gray. For me that means the new year's resolutions start wearing off. Exercise becomes less frequent and dessert becomes more frequent. I tried to do some reading on …
Why I Wanted Vaccines to Cause Autism*
*Controversial Blog Post Title On Purpose Photo by Hyttalo Souza on Unsplash Last year, yet another study of over 650,000 kids showed no link between vaccines and autism. This article from Business Insider is thorough in the review of the study and the reason it is so important--mainly because we need to vaccinate kids. Parents who fear that vaccines cause any form of …
We Spend a Lot of Time Waiting. One Mom’s Thoughts.
I’m starting this post during the holiday season (you’re reading it after). I tried this year to shop small and shop local, so I’ve been standing in a lot of lines. It got me thinking about time and how much waiting one person might do in their lifetime. It could be waiting for a friend to show for lunch. Waiting for a call from a loved one. Waiting for a store to open to get a limited edition …
Highlighting Orange Effect Kids
As 2019 has come to a close we want to share with you just a few of the amazing kids that we have been able to help because of you. Liam Age 5 His family’s insurance covers less than two speech therapy visits a month, but 2x/weekly sessions were recommended by his therapist. OEF helped close that gap. His family is over the moon with his progress with the additional …
Surrounding Yourself with the Right Stuff (and the Right People) in 2020
The Orange Effect Foundation had an amazing 2019. We added additional board members who brought the group full circle on being able to help with application review, feedback, and fundraising. We had two amazing fundraising events! Our annual golf outing and a fun night at Platform Brew Co. We set some big goals for fundraising and although we didn’t hit them yet, we are well on our …
A Time To Be Thankful
November is one of my favorite months (besides June because that’s my birthday!). November is a month I have chosen the last several years to use for reflection and gratitude. It is the month of Thanksgiving after all! Over the years I have done many things during November. One of which is to write (yes, hand write and mail) a card every day to someone I am thankful for. Other years I do a …
My Love / Hate Relationship with IEPs
I usually don’t start a post with a disclaimer but please accept this one time. This post is based on my personal experience as a mom and is also based on the way things were run in the city of Cleveland, Ohio 15 years ago… so read it with all that in mind! I was going through a purging phase recently. Decided it was time to go through the boxes that hadn’t been touched since moving six years …
