Inclusion makes you grin.

Being included makes you grin. 
Noah was invited to his 2nd pool party this year and you can see how delighted he is.

Noah couldn’t do any of the activities the other kids were doing. None of them. We knew that before we went. And it didn’t matter at all, in anyway. In his words “he had the best day ever” just floating around near his mates, getting to hang in the wave pool with them and splash them all of course!

It would have been so easy to decide that it would be “unfair” to invite Noah.. or that it would be “too hard” for him.

We are so so grateful to the people who see Noah as the great mate he is, another classmate they want to have along, just another person in the gang. 
Because that’s what he is. Just like all the other kids.

He doesn’t have special needs, he has the same needs as everyone else. To be seen, heard, included and loved. 
He’s got additional needs to help him join in.. but we will always find a way to do that.

The photos show him having a ball in the water and then out having a rest, getting warmed up, having a top up of fluids and grinning whilst he watched his mates climb the cargo net.

Thank you with all our heart to the people who see him. Who invite him. This day wasn’t about him. It’s about the amazing birthday girl and we were thrilled to be given the opportunity to be there too.

Be like Elsa..

Are things going well with your complex kid but you are waiting for the "bad thing" to happen?

I totally get it....I've felt that way too.

Of course we worry about our children…having kids is like having your heart walking around outside of our body and do whatever it likes. The feeling are as strong as if it were ourselves but we can’t control this little person.

When we are on the negativity loop we look and wait for the bad stuff to happy and that’s where so many of us end up. 
In the loop…over and over.

Instead of enjoying today and looking for a positive or a gratitude (anything at all, could be something tiny) …we are thinking f@$& "What if today is the day something goes wrong" I get it!!

Not only does it steal any joy from the days things are going well it also keeps us feeling on edge and anxious. 
Waiting for the shoe to drop is super common and we have ALL been there. More than once.

…but I also know living in the "what if" isn’t going to help him NOT have a reaction/seizure/anything else.

You know this too. There is freedom in the living in the "what is" instead of what might be. It’s all just a story we made up anyway.

Where your focus goes your energy will go and if you focus is on pain and suffering and the "might be" your energy will be there too.

The only truth is here and now…so …be like Elsa…let it go…and enjoy the peace xxx

There is no amount of worry that will control tomorrow. It only takes away today’s peace.

Inclusion not Integration

School is about to get started again and all sorts of children will be heading to the classroom.

Ordinary kids alongside ordinary kids with additional needs. Kids on wheels or on walkers or on foot. Kids who talk using computers, kids who talk with their smiles and kids that use words. Some that can write and some that can type. Some that eat with their mouths and some that eat with a tube.

Our children are so diverse and thank goodness for that.

To be able to see the world through so many different perspectives is wonderful. It's a gift.

I wanted to share with you the difference between Integration and Inclusion.

Integration puts people in the different groups and whilst often done with good intention, leads to exclusion and separation. It leads to kids with additional needs not being included in friendship groups and in play. Kids can only mirror what they are taught and if they are taught to fear difference and keep people seperate, then that's what they will demonstrate.

Inclusion believes ALL children are different (because they are horray!) and ALL children learn and play in their own way. Inclusion helps everyone. Inclusion is acceptance and respect for all.

For their rest of their lives children with meet with people who are different to them....in so very many ways...our world is a many splendored thing and every person has value to bring to a community. Teach them now that diversity and difference is the reason our world is so utterly wonderful. We must encourage them to meet this difference with openness, love, kindness and curiosity and not with fear.

Kids with differences want just what other kids want, it's not a "special need"
So please encourage your kids to include them. To see if they want to play, to ask if they can wheel them outside, to read with them, to chat with them...all the things you would do at playtime or in class.

Not being able to walk, or talk, or write doesn't take away from the fact they do want connection and friendship...just the same as everyone else.

Inclusion is about belonging as this wonderful photo of Noah and his mate Tilly shows.

We are lucky Noah has so many wonderful friends.

He's just Noah to them. Not Noah on wheels, or with the tube, or with the plastic legs...just Noah. How wonderful is that.

The Power of your words.

“Be mindful when it comes to your words. A string of some that don't mean much to you, may stick with someone else for a lifetime." -Rachel Wolchin

No matter who you are, no matter what you do, never underestimate the impact your words can have on others. ALWAYS be mindful of interactions with people. YOU can be the difference in someones day...make it a positive difference.

Let me give you an example….I bet you still rememeber something horrible a kid said to you at school or someone said. The person who said it however…probably still can’t. For the person uttering them a string of words can be meaningless…but for the receiver it can be life changing. 

This is why it’s so important to be mindful of what is coming out of your mouth. 

Especially in anger. We all know how hard it is to stop outselves when we feel angry..but here is something that might help you

A Japenese scientist named Dr. Emoto gained international fame from the film “What the Bleep Do We Know?!”  which praised his experiments on the cellular structure of water. 

During his experiments he seperated 100 petri dishes of water and he praised  half…and shouted at and scoled the other half. The results were remarkable with the praised water forming beautiful shapes and the scoled half becoming jagged and ugly. 

In another experiment, Masaru Emoto tested the power of spoken words. He placed two cups of cooked white rice in two separate mason jars and fixed the lids in place, labeling one jar “Thank You” and the other, “You Fool.” The jars were left in a school classroom, and the kids were instructed to speak the words on the labels to the corresponding jars twice a day. After 30 days, the rice in the “you fool jar” that had been constantly insulted was now a black modly mess. The rice in the jar that was thanked was just the same as it was 30 days earlier. 

There is no doubt words are very powerful. So why am I talking about rice and water? Well consider that our bodies are about 65% water…up to 78% when we are babies. 

How many times a day do we throw our words away? 

We say things like, “I hate my hair,” “I’m so stupid,” “I’m such a idiot.” 

Without stopping to think tha these words bring a negative energy to us and affect us on a physical level. Ancient scriptures tell us that life and death are in the power of the tongue. Words can start wars, cause harm and break souls…but they can also heal wounds, be uplifting and change lives. 

So THINK before you speak

Is it True? Is it Helpful, Is it Inspiring, is it Necessary and is it Kind. 

 "Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate, and to humble." -Yehuda Berg