How I Got to Be Two Goats Away From Crazy

My sisters Maribeth and Jennifer, along with my two nieces and nephew, paid our family a visit after we started our adventure in raising chickens. Everyone was enthralled with my built-in petting zoo, especially the kids who were all under seven years of age. Each day, the kids would chase around our ten week old baby chickens and discover some of their free-range hiding spots. One afternoon of some particularly fun times of chicken hide and seek, we ran inside to get some lemonade when disaster struck.

No More Harried Holidays

I wrote a version of this 2009 for a parenting magazine. My kids were still quite impacted by their autism at the time and I was still in overwhelm mode. Fast forward to today and I am so happy to report that my kids are really doing well. However, I find the stress of the holiday craziness creeping up on me already. Sigh. Old habits die hard. Re-reading this article this morning, I realized that much of what I discussed in 2009 applies to families with young children - ones with and without special needs. Prioritizing what is important to a family's holiday celebration applies to families of all ages. I hope I remember to find joy this season and not focus on what really doesn't matter.