Find Your Voice Summer Workshop

The last couple of summers I have participated in a summer workshop. (You may remember the fun Creativity Boot Camp posts.) I've mentioned before summer is a rough time of year for us when Noah is out of school. I enjoy participating in these type of workshops because they force me to be creative at a time of year when scheduling time to be creative is hard. So I was excited to learn about the (free!) Find Your Voice Summer Workshop. 

The Find Your Voice Summer Workshop is a free eight week class that is all about embracing, finding and practicing with your storytelling voice taught by the talented Kristin and begins on Monday, June 24th, 2013. Each Monday morning lessons will be made available on the rukristin blog and in the Find Your Voice Facebook group. Each week's lesson will include thoughts on several topics pertaining to the theme of the week, a coordinating worksheet, and several creative prompts. There will be inspiration from contributing team members in each week's pdf as well more inspiration as in a follow up blog post each Wednesday.  I'll be participating in the class and then sharing my projects here as well as on the Coley's Corner Facebook page. I'm also excited that one of my besties, Monika, will be participating in the workshop as well! 

If you'd like to participate, you can find more information here. If you sign up, be sure to drop me a note and let me know! I'd love to come check out your projects! 

Five Minute Friday: Perspective

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is PERSPECTIVE. 

Sometimes I think a lot in life boils down to your perspective; to how you see your life and your world around you. Your perspective can lead to your happiness or to your unhappiness.

Last Friday night, Noah had a huge autistic meltdown. In the course of this meltdown, a soda was thrown, I was scratched, Noah bit himself, he was crying, and I was near tears myself. I was feeling pretty down. I called my parents and got Noah calmed down, mopped up the spilled soda, and put us both to bed. When I went to bed, I was feeling pretty defeated.

I’ve never been one to let life get the best of me. Sometimes it tries to get the best of me but there are a couple of things that I tell myself in the midst of a storm to try and keep a positive perspective and outlook.

1. God never gives you more than you can handle. 
2. You were made for this.
3. Breathe. 
4. And tomorrow is a new day. 

Those simple little mantras give me hope which gives me a fresh perspective after a bad day and life is really all about how you see it.

Quote of the Week: Story of Your Life

"When writing the story of your life, don't let anyone else hold the pen." 

~ Unknown

Quote of the Week: Words

"Words are the voice of the heart."

- Confucius

Grateful to be his Momma

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week’s prompt is grateful. 

I am grateful for so many things in my life but in light of a heartbreaking conversation with my son that I blogged about earlier in the week and other events that have been going on in the news and in life in general, I think the thing I am most grateful for at this very moment as I’m typing this post is my motherhood to my precious boy and my precious boy himself. 

I’m grateful I’m able to be a mother. I admit, I want more. We’ve tried to have more children which resulted one baby we named Darcy who went to Heaven’s nursery before she was even born and then two more miscarriages after that. But I’m coming to the realization that more children aren’t necessarily in the cards for us. And that’s ok. I will be grateful that I am a Mother and just be the best one I can to my Noah. 

And my Noah…. Gosh, where do I begin with how grateful I am that he is my son? I have made many mistakes along the way but he is just amazing all the same. Sometimes I just watch him sleep and my eyes fill with tears and I think, “how did I end up this blessed.”  And there are times where being his Mother is SO hard. When he is in the middle of an autistic meltdown, I think “why me?” But then I remember those moments where I am overwhelmed at how blessed I am to be his Mother and it gets me through. 

I am also grateful for all the things I have been able to watch him do. As the Mom of a child with special needs, I often feel like I’m present at a miracle when he does something for the first time. When he first started commando crawling, the first time he said “Mama,” when I watched him try so hard at Special Olympics in the wheelchair race; all of those were little miracles in my book and I am so grateful. 

I am so grateful and humbled that God chose me to be this little boy’s Momma. 

Home is a Feeling

It’s Friday – the day where I join other bloggers and take five short minutes to just write from the heart. Five Minute Friday is hosted by Gypsy Mama and this week we’re writing about home.


When we think of the word home we typically think of our physical houses, residence, or where we live. 
But to me, home can be so much more than that. Home can be a way you feel. There are many times I feel “at home” but I’m not in my physical home. 


At an amusement park with my family, I feel at home.....
Crafting and hanging out with friends, I feel at home.....
Going on road trips with my boys, I feel at home.....
Browsing through my favorite store, I feel at home.....
Holding my honey’s hand in the car, I feel at home.....
Listening to a sermon at church, I feel at home.....
Being surrounded by family and friends, I feel at home.....
At a Miracle League game snapping pics of my baseball player, I feel at home.....


Home means so much more to me than just a structure or a dwelling. It’s not so much about a building, it is totally a feeling. It’s a sense of security, a sense of comfort, and a sense of feeling loved, safe, protected, and appreciated. Our physical dwellings are just temporary homes but the feelings of being home are something we can take with us no matter where we go.

Would you Go Backwards in Time?

Every Friday, I'm joining other bloggers for 5 Minute Friday (hosted by Gypsy Mama) to take just five uninterrupted minutes to write from the heart. 

This week's prompt: Backwards.

Do you ever wish you could go backwards in life? Ya know, go back in time and fix the mistakes you made. 

This actually has been on my heart a lot lately so it's ironic that today's prompt is backwards. 

I have made a lot of mistakes and errors in my life. Those mistakes have caused me and some of my loved ones pain, grief, and sadness. But you know what? I don't know if I'd want to go backwards and get a total do over. Although I'm far from perfect, I like the person I have become. I am content and happy with this place in life. I'm strong and I know it. I was made for this life and I know that too. While there are trials and tribulations, I have many many blessings that outweigh those. 

If I were to go backwards and get a do over - would I still be me? Would I still have gone through everything I went through and be in this same spot in life? I don't know the answers to that. 

One of my favorite scriptures is Jeremiah 29:11. 

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

While I don't think God necessarily intended for me to make the mistakes and errors in life that I did, once they were made and I turned to him, he led me to this place in my life. 

If anything, I'd love to go backwards for a brief second, back about 10-15 years ago and hug the younger version of me and tell her eventually she's gonna be just fine. 

Every Day Reflections

Every Friday, I'm joining other bloggers for 5 Minute Friday (hosted by Gypsy Mama) to take just five uninterrupted minutes to write from the heart. 

This week's prompt: Every Day

Every day I strive to be a good Mother, wife, friend, Christian, daughter, sister, etc. 


Every day I am faced with trials and tribulations as well as triumphs and victories.


Every day I look into my son's eyes and see so much more than others may see. I see miracles. I see determination. I see strength. I see love and innocence. I see that in him every. single. day. 


Every day I realize that I am blessed and have more than others. Every day I give thanks to God for all that I have. I am grateful. But every day I also experience grief, sadness, sorrow, loss, guilt, and pain. But I push forward, work through my issues, and count my blessings. 


And every day, I remind myself I was made for this. I can do this. I can overcome the challenges. And almost every day I do. 

On Forgetting

Every Friday, I'm joining other bloggers for 5 Minute Friday (hosted by Gypsy Mama) to take just five uninterrupted minutes to write from the heart. 

This week's prompt: On Forgetting

There are so many things in life that I want to forget like failing geometry in high school, a speeding ticket, or all the dumb mistakes I made in my youth. 

But as I always am in life, I'd rather focus on the positive and in this case the things I do not want to forget. There are certain moments in time I live over in my head and my heart on occasion to make sure they are never forgotten and embedded into my mind for life. 

I hope I never forget the overwhelming love I felt the first time I saw Noah. Here I was, practically just meeting the little boy, and the overwhelming love I felt for him almost knocked me over. I hope I never forget his tiny fingers and precious little newborn nose an how he was so anxious to be in the world that he came so early. I hope I never forget those weeks of worry spent in the NICU and then the pride and joy I felt finally felt when we were released to go home, such a simple milestone for most babies. 


And even though it is bittersweet to remember, I hope I never forget the love I saw on my second son's mother's face as I placed him in her open arms. I hope I never forget the days he and I spent together in the hospital when he was all "mine."

I hope I never forget the amazing feelings I felt on my wedding day as I married my best friend and soul mate. It took many trials and mistakes to find him but it was worth it to be so happy and surrounded by love from family and friends. 

There are so many other things in life I hope I never forget; memories with my family and friends, stories they have told me, where I was during important moments of history and so on but my five minutes are up. 

Check out this week's 5 Minute Friday Link Up to read others' thoughts on forgetting.

When the Seasons Change

Every Friday, I'm joining other bloggers for 5 Minute Friday (hosted by Gypsy Mama) to take just five uninterrupted minutes to write from the heart. 

This week's prompt: When the Seasons Change


When the seasons change, or rather when this season changes, summer will be upon on us. Want to know a secret? I loathe summer. Seriously, I dread it every. single. year. I do enjoy the laid backness (I know, I made up a word) of summer but what I don't enjoy is what it does to my son.


A lot of special needs kiddos need, thrive, and crave routine and structure and my Noah is no exception. In fact, I think at times he probably is on the extreme end of needing structure and routine. He likes plans, knowing what is going to happen when, and he adores school and the routine, structure, interaction, an stimulation that school provides. 


In the summer there is no school obviously. (He does go to a day camp for special needs kids for half days 4 days a week for a couple of weeks.) But the summer is just hard for him which in turn makes it hard for me. I try hard to provide him with routine and structure. We have "Momma school" where we work on things he was working at during school so he does stay in a routine with what he was learning and I try to make things fun for him but even giving it 110 percent, I simply can not provide the same structure, routine, and social interaction that school provides him with. And that leads to autistic meltdowns, more outbursts, and an unhappy Noah which makes me frazzled, frustrated, and unhappy as well. 


The good news is I do have some things planned for "Momma school" (he's really into the computer lately and now has his own Facebook page so I might let him write some guest blog posts or something over the summer too!) that are different from the past so hopefully that will be fun and as much as I am dreading it, I am remembering that Christmas break and spring break weren't near as bad as they have been in the past so I'm hopeful that this summer won't be as bad either. And we have a PCA this year so that will help as well. Despite my feelings, I'm trying to have a positive attitude and remember that I can do this because I was made for this. 


Oops, I just wrote for 6 1/2 minutes instead of 5. ;)

My Writings

I love to write. I have always enjoyed writing, whether it was in a journal, a story, or a poem. I guess I just never realized that it was good enough to share with people or even publish. I really started writing a lot after I placed my son Charlie for adoption. Before that, I wrote off and on writing occasional poems or journal entries about being the mother of a child with special needs, but becoming a birthmother is what helped me find a writing voice and gain confidence in writing. Now that I have found that writing voice, I've realized that the world is pretty open to me. I can write and actually get paid for it! I am not limited to writing only about adoption. I can write about anything and everything I want. And sometimes, the writing is just for me. I get something out of it regardless of whether or not anyone else does while other times my purpose in writing is to inspire or inform others. And other times, it's writing that I share whether it be on this blog or an actual article that I'm getting paid to write. For those of you who wish to read more of what I have written, I thought I'd post links to various articles, poems, and essays here on this page. I'll break things up by categories where appropriate. NOTE: This page and list is a work in progress. I'll be adding to it because unless I stop writing all together, there will always be new content! Where I Write: Here (Of course :) ) Busy Mommy (Special Needs Editor) Adoption Blogs (I write in the open adoption blog, crisis pregnancy blog, and occasionally the adoption news blog.) Poetry about Noah: Mama Knows Noah's Prayer Adoption Related Poetry: Visiting Special Needs Articles: What is Cerebral Palsy? Wheelchair Friendly Ameusement Parks Jenny McCarthy's Book on Autism: A Great Resource Misc.Quotes for Mothers Out of the Box Wedding Gift Ideas Reality TV: How Far is too Far? For Those who Love John and Kate plus Eight

Reviews: Cock of the Walk in Ridgeland, Mississippi: Amazing Catfish No Way Jose's in Pigeon Forge, TN: Awesome Tex Mex Food