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Okay, so I couldn’t be more excited! I’ve been writing for decades. I’ve written short stories, novellas, novels, poems, limericks – you name it. Some of them were badly written. Some of them languished in editing land – not terrible, but never finished and nowhere near good enough to publish.

Contrary to popular belief, writers don’t sit longingly in their office chairs, writing to their heart’s delight for weeks on end. Most of us procrastinate like you wouldn’t believe. Instead of jumping onto that day’s word count, many writers furtively glance around their homes and decide that today is a great day to clean the baseboards, darn the socks, weed the garden, and hand sew a new quilt.

So while working on Half A Brain, I made myself sit in the chair and finish the first draft. Then I forced myself to edit and finish the second draft. And the third and so on. I worked on it until it felt done – of course it isn’t perfect, but it feels good enough.

The coolest part about the whole process is how wonderful it feels to be a writer. Something I’ve always said I was, but now truly feel I am.

For the past six months, I’ve been listening to podcasts. I listen while driving, while gardening, while walking, and while cleaning. I am addicted. I love their simplicity. Someone else does all the work and I get the benefits.

Now don’t get me wrong. I love reading. There is nothing more enjoyable than curling up in bed and turning the pages in a treasured book. Podcasts can’t touch that experience. But they can enhance and educate and supplement.

I am a nerd in the truest form. I love learning for the sake of learning. I can’t get enough of discovering new ideas, expanding my perspective, and reinforcing my values and beliefs. So I love the accessibility of podcasts and the infinite topics available to peruse.

My favorite podcasts right now:

Mary Susan McConnell does a weekly podcast called Mama Bear Podcast featuring woman who are raising children with special needs. She lives and podcasts in Tennessee. You can literally feel yourself sitting on her porch, “drinking your beverage of choice,” while listening to her smooth voice.

In the Accepting the Unacceptable Podcast, Jody Warshawsky provides education and information for moms raising children with autism and special needs. Her empathy and loving advice make you feel like you are never alone during your special needs journey. From normalizing the chaos that ensues during holiday celebrations to welcoming mom’s incredible stories of perseverance, Jody rocks!

In the Unexceptional Moms Podcast, Ellen Stumbo and Erin Loraine offer hope and encouragement for special needs parents. From discussing working options for parents of kids with disabilities to embracing our limits, this podcast provides practical advice for navigating the joys and struggles of raising a child with disabilities.

In the Epilepsy Spectrum Podcast, Tiffany Webb discusses everything epilepsy. Suffering from epilepsy herself, Tiffany shares her own struggles and successes. Tiffany also interviews parents who have children with epilepsy, provides financial resources, ways to decrease stress, and treatment pros and cons. This is a fabulous resource for anyone who wants to know more about epilepsy.

I hope you discovered some new listening material. Let me know if you check any of these out!

Hi and welcome to my blog! According to the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration, 9.4 million children living in the United States have special health care needs. Raising a child with special needs is both a joy and struggle. Some days are filled with rainbows and unicorns. Some days are filled with gray skies and dread.

You need support and empathetic advice about raising your child with special needs. I write a monthly newsletter and blog posts about parenting and the special needs community.

In my monthly newsletter, I provide you:

• Information
• Tools
• Techniques
• Book recommendations
• Product recommendations

In my blog, I post pertinent information and articles that I think you will find useful.

I’m a special needs mom to a daughter with multiple disabilities including cerebral palsy, epilepsy, visual impairments, and developmental delays. I am also a licensed mental health therapist in the state of California. While I can’t provide you personal therapy, I can provide you tools and techniques I’ve learned over years of helping other parents and children. 

I’m hard at work on my debut novel Half A Brain: Confessions of a Special Needs Mom. It will be released Spring, 2020.