AMEN!

Lessie-
It is so funny you mention this! I am living it right now! I have finally come to terms with the fact this summer that nobody should compare kids to each other! I am always thinking that "Averi isn't doing this or that like so and so's kid" and I am really sick of therapists and others telling me how they think she isn't caught up to her age group or that she doesn't act quite normal, and that maybe something may be wrong with her! DUH! She was in a coma for 5 months and lost her vision for heavens sake! Can you really seem normal after that? I am going to just plug my ears and run the other way screaming! I have gotten ulcers from people suggesting that Averi has something wired wrong in her brain or that she may be Autistic! Who cares!?! I finally went to a specialist and my doctor and asked them if they think she has something wrong with her brain and they both told me NO! Hallelujah!

Finally, I have started using the term "that's normal for Averi"! Yes, she still wears diapers and eats baby food and she is 6 years old which is very abnormal, but it is "normal for Averi"! The good thing is that seeing "lines on the sidewalk", spinning in circles, playing piano, riding the bus, going to school, identifying people by their fingernails, smelling everyone, listening to music, jumping on the trampoline, playing with siblings, etc. is normal for my "blind" child! So whatever! There are a lot of "not normal" people in this world, and being "blind" is pretty good compared to some things I've seen out there. And the bonus is that she won't have to see it! She won't have to see a lot of crap that I wish I could block out of my mind!

Lastly, I know a lot of blind people, and they give me hope! I know that all of these kids have the potential to do so much! The only restriction I can think of is driving! And, we can find ways around that-no problem! I think the more awareness the public has, the more "normal" being "blind" will seem. That is part of our responsibility as parents! I am making it my goal to not be worried and embarrassed and to let others learn from my beautiful, wonderful, "normal" child!

P.S.-It gets harder as they get older, sorry! I just wanted to warn you now so you know! But, that is my new "normal", we will just keep adjusting.

Normal

Have you noticed that since having a visually impaired child your concept of "normal", standardization, etc. gets shaken up? I was discussing education with someone the other day and our conversation sort of concerned me. He was talking about how school was for him in his native China. He said in China, if you don't fit the standardized educational system, then you simply don't pursue certain careers. He gave an example of one of his students whose mother was worried about her daughter. He said the woman felt like her daughter hadn't met a teacher that was able to connect well with her and present the information to her in a way that she could comprehend. He said, "The teachers aren't the problem, your daughter is the problem. She needs to learn to catch up with the group."

Now, he obviously knows the child in question better than I do. But still, his insistence that she fit a socially constructed mold bothered me. Depending on our children's level of impairments, they will fit better or worse into our society's educational mold. Now I know that the ADA works tirelessly to help them accommodate, but I worry that attitudes such as the above will affect how well our children are accepted in the mainstream. My son, for example, will not learn the same way other children do. He simply can't. However, cognitively, he seems to be capable of quite a bit. Why should his visual impairment be used as an excuse to keep him from developing his mental capacity to the best extent possible? Do you see my concern?

Something that I've had to face, as I raise my child, is that while he's normal in a lot of ways, id est, he needs love, care, interaction, stimulation, etc., he's simply not normal enough in his mechanical abilities. The vast majority of humanity opperates on a visual assumption. We vary grately in the way we see the world, but see it we do. And our entire system is built around this.

Maybe you guys are thinking, "Yeah, nice that you could finally join us, Lessie." But for me, the implications of this are only now beginning to dawn on me. Part of me understands, now, why there are organizations out there that advocate so passionately for a rewriting of society so that it fits more closely with "normal" from a visually impaired perspective.

Am I making sense? My son's way of existing will always be normal to him. But to everyone else, he will be "other" in certain ways. I worry about our society's ability to accept that even though he's different, he's capable and worth the accomodations.

The Brown Family

Here we are! Just thought I'd post this to give you a visual.

P.S.

I changed up the blog a little to hopefully make it so more people can view and post on it from our ISDB group. I am sending e-mails when we post something new to some of the people on my e-mail list (If you don't want this, e-mail me and I will remove you). I don't know how to test it out. I just hope this makes it more user friendly! We'll see right?

The Picnic Was Awesome!

Horray! The picnic was so fun and we had tons of people! I am so happy so many people came! It makes it worth my time in planning. I of course didn't get to take as many pictures or talk to as many people as I would have liked to! I was sick that night, so I wasn't as social as usual!

I also forgot to take pictures of everyone, but I took some. I will try to take more at a later date! If you want to load some here it would be awesome to see the kids/families and faces with names! I have a goal to someday have a monthly playdate, but I am not so organized. Someday...

Anyway, here are the pictures, it was fun to see new kids and meet new people! I hope you all had a good experience there.

(L)Elisa with daughter Lucy,(R) Lessie with son Gareth

Daisy-Sorry-I forgot her mom's name!

Lucy

Averi

See ya!

Amber

Picnic Tonight!

Picnic tonight!

I am totally bringing my camera so we can post some pictures here! This way we can actually put names with faces and all that stuff.

OFFICIAL PICNIC ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!

picnic:

WHEN: June 17, 2008

WHERE: Tautphus Park Equal access playground shelter

TIME: 5:30

If your last name starts with A-M bring a dessert, N-Z bring a salad or potluck dish!

PLEASE COME IF YOU CAN! IT IS AWESOME TO MEET EVERYONE!

R.S.V.P. to me 552-2219 (Amber) or Kathryn 589-2032 by June 16th so we know how much main course and drinks to plan for.