Two Special Boys was started on behalf of my two wonderful special needs boys. In 2005 we were inducted into the world of Special Needs. We would not mind if the boys had a few less diagnosis but we would not trade them for anything. This site has been designed to help bring awareness and acceptness to children and families with special needs. From time to time we will through a product review or giveaway in the mix.
I have really come to realize that life is all about ups and often major down. In February my almost 16 year marriage finally feel the rest of the way apart with it ending in separation in early March. I will admit that initially I felt as if my world was crashing down around me. I quickly learned that it was the start of a whole new life for me and my wonderful boys. I have put the piece back together for the most part and being a single mom is not so bad. The only hard part seems to be child care however thankfully we are living with my parents and the have been beyond amazing at helping me with the boys. I have been truly blessed with wonderfully supportive family to which I am thankful for every day. Through their support, an awesome therapist and some of the most amazing friends life is better than it ever has been. I have lost some friends due to the separation but have decided they weren’t true friends anyway and have made a few new special friends that make life special everyday. The boys have handled everything like troopers and also seem better with their new life. Billy behavior is better and is doing so much better in school. He is doing amazing. I have often heard everything happens for a reason and where we may never know why things happen there is always a reason why they happen. I have come to the conclusion that God decided I had been tested enough and deserved the reward of being happy. Every night I now go to sleep with a smile and wake up with a smile knowing that each day my life is a blessing and is just going to get better. I want to thank all of my family and friends new and old that have given my the strength to pick up the pieces and put them back together. You guys have given me the strength and support to become the new me. There will always be struggles but I know that I am a better person now and I can handle anything. I am proudly becoming a new and better person and mom. There is no looking back, no going back just steps forward some maybe baby steps but any step forward is a good one. Thanks again for all the love and support.
One of the things that my family loves the most about Disney Pixar Movies is the wonderful shorts that they produce. We have long been a fan of Cars Mater Tall Tales and now Disney Pixar Movies is pleased to release a new short starring the fabulous characters from none other than Toy Story 3.
Toy Story 3 Hawaiian Vacation will be released as the intro to Cars 2 that will premiere in theaters on June 24, 2011. Make sure you like Cars 2 on Facebook to keep up with all the latest.
In honor of the 5th annual National Walk for Epilepsy, Two Special Boys has gone purple for the month of March.
On the morning of April 1, 2005 our old son Billy experienced his first full-blown seizure and had to be rushed to the Emergency Room at our local hospital. In the weeks that followed our world was turned inside out and upside down as we learned just what our 18 month old son was going through. We spent most of the day in the ER and when we were finally sent home that night, we were told to follow up with his pediatrician the next week. Well 4 days later as we sat in the exam room talking with his pediatrician about what had gone on he began having a series of Myoclonic seizure and that is when we first realized that something was really wrong. We set up appointment to see specialist at Children’s National Medical Center in DC, however before the day of the appointment arrived he went into a series of seizures where he was having severe seizure about every15 minutes. This got him transferred to CNMC. After a long 24 hours in the ER we were informed that our son has Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy. In the months that followed we learned that he had most likely having Myoclonic Seizure since birth and that he was having them at an extremely high rate. He was started on his Keppra his 1st anti seizure medication and what seemed like a doctors appointment every two weeks. As the evaluation continues we were told that due to the frequency of seizure, he also had a host of other conditions that made him that more special. He has extreme ADD, extreme ADHD, Mild Cerebral Palsy,Developmental Delays, PPD-NOS(autism spectrum) and that he would likely have learning issues. Since that first diagnosis we have been through a total of 5 different anti seizure medication as well as having our second child also diagnosed with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy.
Epilepsy affect more than 3 million Americans. Every year close to 200,000 new American will be diagnosised with Epilepsy. Epilepsy doesnt descriminated against age , sex or nationality, though is most often diagnosised early in childhood or later in life. Epilepsy is a neurological condition where people become susceptiable to seizure, changes in behavior, changes in sensation, and awarness which are brought on by the brief electrical distrubance. Epliepsy can be hard to treat and must be monitored carefully. Where there is no known cure for Epilepsy there has been some tremendous progress in the different treatments available for those that live everyday with seizures. The National Walk for Epilepsy has helped raise the funds needed to fund the research into new promising treatments.
I am asking everyone to please think about making a donation to the National Walk for Epilepsy. It doesnt matter the amount, every dollar counts. Epilepsy effects so many people and helps feed so many other conditons that it would be nice not to have to watch anyone else go through what Billy and so many other Epileptic go through on a daily basis. You can log onto National Walk for Epilepsy and make a donation to this walk.
** Information provided in this blog post was found on the National Walk for Epilepsy Website.
Question of the day- Most of us started our blogs as a way to have a outlet to be able to vent about what is bothering us or to voice a pet peeve, my question to all of you is How do you handle when the time comes that you just need to vent or seek help dealing with a spouse and your spouse is a follower of you blog and twitter? Do you find that it makes it hard to open up to your other readers and seek a second opinion on the situation. When we blog we put stuff out there for total strangers to read and comment on, but knowing that my husband is going to maybe read can make it hard to express what I need to put in a blog post to kind of clear my head. So I would be interested in seeing what other bloggers opinions are What is the going opinion should blogs or social media be spouse free??? Please share your opinion.
Wow have you been wondering where Two Special Boys has been on hiatus since Mid-January. I have been very busy getting Scuba Bill Photography up and running with a lot of help from Holly over at I Like It Frantic. It was a lot of hard work however the feed back is that the site is looking good. At this point we are ready to start booking sessions. We have decided to set pricing depending on each customer budget, having special needs children we know how tight money can be. As for Two Special Boys in the coming days I am hoping to have a new theme up and running as I am looking for a fresh look for the site. In the next several weeks we will have a review for a new product from Purex(R) and we will be hosting a Nutella Party thanks to the wonderful folks at Nutrella and Mommy Parties. I am looking forward to the Nutella party every time I see the commercial I want to try it and just never have. So everyone please check back here often and let us know what you think of the changes. Also anyone looking to get Easter Photos done please stop by Scuba Bill Photos, we have some new backdrops coming very soon. They will be perfect for the Spring.
My husband has to be one of the hardest people in the world to shop for, but this I had the perfect solution…his own website. As long as I can remember my husband has loved to shoot photos. As parents we have been blessed with special needs children so he has gotten quite good at taking photos of them. He also has a love for scuba diving and shooting underwater photos. Recently he attended a dive show in Baltimore, MD and while talking with one of the vendors at the show, the vendor suggested he post his photos on the web so the idea was born to start a website so he he could publish his pictures. My sister Holly (I like it frantic) and I began the hard work of trying to secretly start the site (Scuba Bill Photos). We have worked very hard to get his site up and running so please stop by and check it out. We had hoped to keep it a secret until Valentines Day, however my sister Holly (I like it frantic) was contacted by Shari (Love is Forever) about her fashion show that is coming up on February 26, 2011 to benefit Children’s Hospital and well one thing lead to another and Bill was chosen to do a photoshoot at both of her shows that day. With all the emails and information that has had to be shared back and forth with, we decided to tell him early. Bill has not been seen without his camera within arms reach since. If anyone is looking to get family photos, or has an event that needs either photographed or video-graphed please contacted him at (Scuba Bill Photos) or via email at bdautrich@scubabillphotos.com to set up an appointment.
This photo was taken by 7yr old Scuba Bill Jr. A chip off the old block.
Have you ever been doing laundry and either miss adding the fabric softener to the rinse cycle or can’t find that little ball thing that you use for liquid? The wonderful Folks have come up with the perfect answer. No more forgetting where you put the softener ball and no more missing the rinse cycle. The wonderful folks at Purex ® have developed a new product that is being released in store today.
The wonderful folks at Purex® are releasing their Purex Complete Crystals Softener. These crystals are
There are super easy to use, simple add them directly into the washer at the start of the washer cycle and forget about it they will dissolve during the wash cycle leaving your clothes smelling wonderfully clean. I used the Purex ® Complete Crystal Softener today for the first time, not only did the clothes come out feeling and smelling great, the crystals have put a great smell in the air of the house.
I have come up with a couple of extra uses for the Purex ® Complete Crystals Softeners. The first use is place them in a small open container on placing the container on books shelve or dresser in the guest room it fills the room with the wonderful fragrance of these crystals. The second use is I took and made small fabric pouches like a sachet and placed them into my dresser with my other clothes.
Pros: Due to the fact that Purex ® Complete Crystals Softeners are 92 % natural and not oil based they are safe for all types of fabrics even delicate and children’s sleepwear. Most fabric softeners because they are oil base over time leave a residue on your clothes and interfere with the flame retardant that is used to protect children’s sleepwear. Price at between $3.99 and $5.99 they are perfect for even a tight budget like mine.
Buy It
Starting December 28, 2010 Purex ® Complete Crystal Softeners will be available at Wal-Mart Stores and then in starting in January and February they will become available at other retail stores such as Target. Also check out O Magazine, Real Simple, and Family Circle Magazine for press release.
I was sent a sample of this product to review. All opinions are my own and are not swayed by the company.
Heather
twospecialboys.com
Fighting our Special Needs Dragons
Twitter:@2specialboys
The wonderful folks have given gracious enough to give me some coupons so that some of you lucky readers can also try this lovely product. Three lucky winners will receive a coupon for a free bottle of Purex Complete Crystal Softener.
Giveaway Rules:
Winners are chosen at random by And the winner is, if you want all your chances counted, make sure you leave individual comments, not all in one.
Winner has 48 hrs to contact me or another name will be chosen.
Contest ends on January 11,2011. Winner will be posted shortly afterwards.
Contest Open US Bloggers only.
Mandatory Entries:
You must either follow this blog or follow @2specialboys on twitter.
Extra Entries:
Blog about this giveaway and leave your link here.
Tweet about this giveaway and leave your link here.
Leave a message about your worst laundry nightmare here.
As Christmas is quickly approaching I am sure that many of us are trying to find that perfect gift for the child that has everything well the wonderful folks at Crayola and I have a couple of awesome suggestion for you just in time Christmas.
Recently I had the pleasure of reviewing 4 of Crayola’s newer products and had a great time doing so. As a child growing up I remember looking forward to that new box of Crayola Crayons and coloring book that Santa always left in my stocking, it nice to know that Crayola has continued to provide that joy to children year after year. The Crayola Company seems to just keep coming up with fresh new ideas to help bring out the creativity in children and the following products are no exception.
Introducing: Crayola Magic Presto Dots
These cool dots are a special magic type clay that allows children to use their imagination to build different creatures and art projects. We had a blast building different monsters with our Magic Presto Dots. Magic Presto Dots are marked that they only stick to themselves, and where they do stick to themselves quite well we did have to be careful because if you do not place some wax paper down on the table first it will stick to the tabletop some. We did not have a problem with it sticking to anything. Magic Presto Dots comes with two special cutters that you press into the dough and then touch it to another piece of dough and the two dots stick to themselves. The only draw back to Magic Presto Dots is that they stick to themselves to well. When we were making our creatures a couple of times we decided that we did not like a spot where a dot was and would try to move the dot only to find that when it was moved that it left part of the dot behind. I can say that where Magic Presto Dots are fun to play with, I am not sure I would purchase them as unlike similar products on the market they are a one time use only. For my parent friends with children with sensory issues, I can tell you that my son does not like play-doh due to its texture and smell, but he did like the Magic Presto Dots, I just wish that they were reusable.
Introducing: Crayola Color Wonder Sound Stage
A couple years of ago Crayola came out with these wonderful Color Wonder Markers. These markers only work on the special Crayola Paper. They will not mark on walls, hand, clothes, or anything else. We have brought several sets since they came out. When my son has a birthday party to go the Color Wonder Sets are usually his first choice of presents to give (and receive too). The Color Wonder Sound Stage is a wonderful addition to the Color Wonder line up. You place the cartridge in the sound stage and then as your child colors on it the picture makes different sounds. The Sound Stage comes with 3 sets and you can purchase additional sets to go with it. I will defiantly purchase these for birthday presents and Christmas presents. To my parent friend with children with sensory issues this has been a great tool for us. It has been very calming to my son and helps me get him back in control when he is out of control and he really enjoys spending time with his sound stage.
Introducing: Crayola Glow Explosion Spin Magic
I am in love with this product. Out youngest son is disabled and as a result is hard to buy for at Christmas time. My son is considered to be legally blind due to Cortical Vision Impairment. He has some vision but we don’t know what he actually is seeing. We have been working with a Vision Person here in our area since his injury, Mr Matt. Mr Matt always talked blacking out Bobby’s surrounds and just having color so that it is easier for Bobby to focus and learn to focus and this product is great for him. The Crayola Glow Explosion Spin Magic works when color on the special paper with the markers and the attach everything to the Glow Explosion Spin Magic Base. Next you turn the lights off and turn the Glow Explosion on and depending on which of the two setting you choose you either see the images floating and spinning in the air or the outline of the object with the glowing light behind it. Bobby seems to love it. I had a conversation with Mr. Matt about the Glow Expression Spin Magic and after the Christmas Holiday he wants to do some trials at school with it and is thinking about buys some himself was some of the schools. The best part of the Glow Magic is my older son gets to color it and set everything up and get to be hands on with his brother’s therapy. They have both enjoyed this product. I strongly suggest everybody to use the code above to check out the Story Studio. I had a hard time get my son to take a break, and that say a lot since he has a short attention span and does not stay on any one thing for very long.
Introducing: Crayola Crayons
Crayola Crayons need no introduction for the most part, however be on the lookout for these specially marked box of Crayola Crayons. Inside these special marked box is a code that when go go to www.crayola.com you can click on the link for the Story Studio where you can upload a photo of your child and the program takes there face and turns them into a cartoon character and allows you to make different coloring book story that can be printed out and colored with your Crayola Crayons. Crayola has graciouly set up the following code PRY4DBJJ so that you can try the program. We had a blast exploring the different options that the program has, we enjoyed making coloring books for my niece and nephrew as Christmas Presents. The Story Studio
is yet another great tool that Crayola has developed to promote a child’s imagination. There is endless options in the program that any child will love exploring the options over and over again.
These products were provided for review by Crayola and MyBlogSpark. The opinions expressed in this review and giveaway are strictly those of me and my family, the free products in no way influced our opinions.
Crayola and MyBlogSpark have also given me the opportunity to giveaway a set of these wonderful products.
Giveaway Rules
*Winners are chosen at random by And the winner is, if you want all your chances counted, make sure you leave individual comments, not all of them in one!
*winner has 48 hours to contact me or another name will be chosen.
*contest ends December 29. Winner will be posted shortly afterwards.
*open to US Bloggers only.
*rules for each entry must be followed to be valid.
MANDATORY
v You must follow this blog or follow 2specialboys on twitter. If you already do please leave a comment that you do.
EXTRA ENTRIES
v Tweet about this give away using @2specialboys and #Crayola
v Like Crayola on Facebook and leave a comment here.
v Visit Story Studio and share your character here.
v Blog about this give away and leave your link here.
“Better Late than Never”. I am not sure who to give credit to for this quote but it does some up some of the events of this week. As some of you may or may not know when our youngest son was 13 months old he suffered a traumatic brain injury when he hung himself on a mini-blind cord. He is now 5 years post injury and is still in the recovery process of things. After his injury we went through holly heck with the sheriffs department and child protective services. The more upset we got about things the more we were told that people were just doing their jobs and where to an extent they did do their jobs the drop the ball in one import area that they should not have. Due to the fact that Bobby was injured on a consumer product his injury should have been reported to the US CPSC and it never was. This past week I had the pleasure of hooking up with the organization Parents for Window Blind Safety. They work hand and hand with the US CPSC in trying to get manufacture to produce safer blinds and to recall dangerous blinds. According both groups Bobby’s accident have bee reported and never was so now we are in the process of filing his report. We will be working with other families who have either lost a child or had one injured change the laws and help make things safer for children. We will help council families whose children survive their injuries and support them through the recovery/healing/grief process. In the coming weeks there will be special post with statics and information on window blinds and I ask anyone with small children or friends with small children to read the articles and to please watch the safety videos that were added this week. Windows blinds are dangerous and are a real hazard that needs to be done away with. There was an injury as recent as the week of Thanksgiving in the state of NJ. I am not sure of the status of the child at this time but I am asking anyone that reads this post to pray for the child and the family as it is a traumatic experience for everyone involved.
Today is National Special Education Day. I must admit that for the first time in that last 5 years that I am truly truly thankful for the wonderful Special Education teams that we have been blessed with. The teachers, aids, and therapist that both of our boys have been blessed with are true angels. The first year that Billy was in our local school system he did have an awesome Special Educator and Aide that worked very hard with him. However after we have not had very good experience with either boys Special Education Teachers. Last year Billy’s teacher actually told me that he would never make it and that she would not stop her instruction for him. She paint a picture of him that the teachers want to take him out of an academic classroom and place him in a life-skills class. We fought like crazy to get them to not put in Life-skills, and in the end we did win the battle. This year Billy was placed in the TASSC program at a different school. Billy’s Special Education Team this year are magic workers. He still has a lot of work to do to get to the level that he needs to be, but after just one marking period where the Team takes the time to modify his work and to create work that is going to hold his interest. Billy recently had surgery and two days after his surgery his teacher took the time to call us at home to check on how he was doing post-op wise. The sweetheart that she is was on Thanksgiving Vacation from school. I meant the world to him that she called him and said she was missing him. Bobby also has a pretty awesome team this year. Bobby’s Life-skills teacher is so in love with him that I think if I would let her she would take him home. He comes home from school so happy every day and is progression so much. His Speech Teacher this year has even been pretty good with him. Over the past 5 years years we have had to deal with her trying to get clearance for Bobby to eat at school and this year we finally got that clearance and when Bobby decided he was a big boy and didn’t want to drink out of a sippy cup at school the Speech therapist made him a special cup so that he could drink at school big boy style. We may only be one marking period into the school year but this year has the making of the best school year yet for both boys. I wish that with the amount of progress they have made this year that they had always had such great teachers, there is no telling where the boys would be at if they had.
