Comments on: Testing, Testing….

By: Amy in Minnesota

Amy in Minnesota — Sat, 31 Aug 2013 13:19:33 +0000

Amy, I love your writing and your perspective, filled with insight, humor and honesty. I’ve been reading your blog for many months and am taking notes on how you navigate the world with your daughter. I can relate to your early feelings for Sophie, that loving her didn’t exactly happen the way it did with Annabelle. My lovely son is almost two and for many months after his birth diagnosis, I felt like he was an alien creature for whom I was caring until his space family picked him up. It’s all different now, of course. Anyway, keep up your amazing work, with your writing and with Sophie.

By: teeps

teeps — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 14:15:52 +0000

Do get some rest. Some good rest. Every day. And also, be kinder to yourself. You are NOT a control freak. (Well, not for insisting on attending IEP meetings, anyway. Wink.) I, as a high school teacher, can’t tell you how frustrating and disheartening it is when parents do NOT attend their child’s IEP meetings. But I’m going to try. These meetings are not (or shouldn’t be) smoke and mirrors or empty rhetoric. These are children’s lives from this five minutes to that five minutes in the classroom, and a well-written and thoughtful IEP can make a huge difference in a child’s educational experience and even life (I have a special education teacher friend who is often up at 3 am writing his IEPs because he can’t sleep, either — or find time in his teaching day to write them). Of course the converse is true as well. There are parents who advocate for their children in these meetings out of love and concern and hope and partnership. And then there are parents who try to control everything — including many, many of of the wrong things — because they really aren’t sure how to love or support or hope for their children. Then there are the parents who don’t attend… Amy, hug yourself for me. This is good, important work. What an amazing role model you are for Sophie.

By: Arnie Sealove

Arnie Sealove — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 23:37:03 +0000

You write so well that I felt myself feeling your concern. No easy answers come to mind. But two thoughts did occur:

1. Parts of the Serenity prayer. “…grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can , and the wisdom to know the difference.’

2. There is a Buddhist teaching that goodness is good depending upon the state of mind (the intent) of the giver. It is more than the act.

You are a good person and trying the best you can. hopefully

By: Cole

Cole — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 10:09:23 +0000

I get it. Once words are in your head it is hard to get them out. Almost impossible, because even though you can build up a damn around them, over them, etc, they’re still there at the core. There is a lot I could say about the psychologists lack of professionalism, lack of thinking before SHE spoke- which is in fact true. There is a lot I could say about the tests themselves and how people function when taking them. I read these tests and determine disability for the government for a living. And when and if you want those words to cover up the unprofessional professional’s words I will happily provide them. Because they are equally true, and while they can’t erase what she said, they can maybe clarify or add some light to it. In the meantime, though I get it.It’s that questioning ourselves as human beings, as mothers that I think helps us to be better ones the next day and time we are called on. You’ve got that. And you’ve got Sophie. And that’s a lot. xoxoxo