"Of Hopes and Dreams"

Earlier this month Hubby and I attended a Conference for parents of children with special needs. Since it is hard for us to leave Sister all day with out one of us being with her (ok, it's probably harder on us than it is on her) we decided to split the two-day conference and attend one day each.

Day One Highlights from Hubby: The day opened with a father reading "Welcome to Holland" and it was Hubby's first time hearing the poem. Even if you do not have a child with special needs you can not read these words with out tearing up. He attended 3 workshops, his favorite being "Communication Strategies for Non-Verbal Children". He came home with an idea to come up with a personal communication chart using gestures and sounds that Sister already uses. I have started signing "more" and "eat" with her daily, but other than the occasional hand clap (more?) she has not picked up on them yet.

Day Two Highlights: Again, they opened with "Welcome to Holland" which I have become emotionally immune to over the last year. Actually, I relate a little more to "Amsterdam International" right now. I also attended 3 workshops, and learned a lot from each one. My favorite being "Advocacy: Making a Difference for Our Children" which has inspired me to take a more active role in advocating. The most encouraging part of my day was listening to the lunch time speaker, Kirk Garrett, Jr. He has accomplished much more in his 29 years than anyone had imagined. Being diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy did not stop Kirk's parents from giving him every opportunity to succeed. He credits their faith and determination for helping him become the man he is today. I hope to give both of my children the same gift of unconditional love and support.

I spent the entire ride home trying to absorb everything I learned that day. I probably would have cried the whole way home if I had not carpooled with a friend (we are new friends and I didn't want to scare her off). I was fighting back tears of overwhelming faith. I was so excited to share my day with Hubby and compare notes from his previous day. We stayed up late talking about the weekend and for the first time, in a very long time, the future.

We will definitely go back to next year's conference and anything else that comes up in our area. I am so thankful to have found this organization and look forward to becoming a more active parent in the network.