Meet Our Team
TammyAn extra chromosome is the least of your worries when you are also dealing with a life threatening diagnosis, trachs, g-tubes, oxygen machines, daily medication schedules, and ostomy bags. A former educator with degrees in Early Childhood and Elementary Education, Tammy left the public school system to dedicate herself to family life and raising her six kids. Married for 21 years to Reed, the love of her life, Tammy considers herself to be truly blessed. Each new day brings new adventure, along with yet another outrageous medical bill. But with the words CARPE DIEM boldly emblazed on her heart, Tammy is on a mission to share how a life with Down syndrome is truly a life worth living. Tammy can be found at Praying For Parker where she blogs about life with Parker, an outrageously cute, medically fragile child with Down syndrome.You can also reach Tammy at hods5mom at aol dot com and follow her on Twitter where she is known as ParkerMama. |
Kim
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Melody
She knows about premature babies, failure to thrive, fetal alcohol syndrome, cerebral palsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, pervasive developmental disorder and Asperger's Syndrome (autism spectrum), bipolar disorder, sensory integration disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, strabismus, eczema, gastroesophageal reflux, reactive airway disease, apnea, asthma-allergies, food allergies, insufficient growth hormone production, small stature, severe abuse/neglect of children and its effects, a child's multiple surgeries and homeschool. She knows about raising boys. Melody will tell you her oldest son, Andy, was born of her body and her three younger sons, Lee, Mac and Wil, were born of her heart. Her boys are the inspiration of Melody's writing and photography. Maybe they will inspire you. The most important thing to know about Melody is that her life is full of love….and dirty clothes…and dirty hands…and dirty feet… You will also find Melody at Slurping Life sharing photos and a few words from her special life. |
Michelle
Through their oldest child Jacqui, Michelle has grown a passion for supporting families who are parenting children through extreme medical challenges. Jacqui has been through a lot in her young life. She was born with a rare birth defect known as a lymphatic malformation (LM) in the form of a large mass on the right side of her face and neck which collapsed her trachea when she was just two weeks old. After months in the NICU, Jacqui was finally brought home — with the addition of a trach, a G-tube, and a diagnosis list a mile long. To date, Jacqui has heroically endured 27 surgeries and procedures, traveling across the country for several of them with world-renowned vascular surgeon, Dr. Milton Waner. Jacqui's trach was able to be reversed, but she still has her G-tube due to a second rare diagnosis known as Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome. Michelle believes that humor, perseverance, and faith are the keys to surviving the unique challenges faced by parents of children with special needs — and that life's sweetest joys often spring from the most heart-felt tears. She believes that the primary purpose of a parent with a special needs child is not to understand why these children have been given so many challenges to overcome, but for each parent to use the talents entrusted to them to the best of their ability so that these incredible children are taught the skills they need in order to meet life's challenges with grace and strength of character. Together, she and her husband, Ken, share a common goal as parents: To treasure every moment and raise their children to be extraordinary individuals. Michelle can be found writing at 5MFSN every Friday, each Monday for Magic Marker Mondays, and on the first Thursday of every month for 5MFSN's Beyond Ordinary Blog Carnival. |
Melinda
Between trips to the playground and packing school lunches, she also balances life as a full-time college student and a flamenco dancer. In her remaining free time (ha, ha) she dabbles as a jewelry designer, is a beauty product aficionado (read: addict) and classic film enthusiast. |
Trish
After being referred to Early Intervention and a developmental pediatrician at his two-year old checkup, her son was diagnosed with autism shortly before his third birthday. At the age of 6, he is starting kindergarten this fall and will be in a regular class with some additional therapy and support for his special needs. Besides being a voracious reader and a blogger, Trish also enjoys helping other parents through a local autism organization and in the special needs children's ministry at her church. She shares her thoughts at Another Piece of the Puzzle. |
Jennifer
The answers are: yes, yes, no, and I can't remember! The questions: Is trisomy-21 the same thing as Down syndrome? Did you have prenatal testing? What about an amnio? And, what was it like having twin preemies? Jennifer is the author of Road Map to Holland: How I Found My Way Through My Son's First Two Years with Down Syndrome (NAL/Penguin, 2008) a memoir that offers practical advice and emotional insights to parents of children with special needs. You can read more about Jennifer and her family at www.jennifergrafgroneberg.com. |
DeborahDeborah, once a police officer, is now a computer professional who balances her work life and her very busy home life as the single parent of four unique children. Deborah’s birth son, Chip, is 17 years old and is a rising senior in high school. An excellent student, Chip is in the top of his class, and is currently researching college choices and planning his post-high school life. When Chip was 5 years old, Deborah adopted her daughter, Ashley. Ashley, now 13 years old, was born 14 weeks prematurely to an alcoholic birth mother. Diagnosed with deafblindness, epilepsy, ADHD, asthma, and a rare condition called Juvenile Xanthogranulomas which causes tumors to form. Ashley has had tumors removed from her skin, under her skin, her eyes and ears, her brain and has had her gallbladder removed due to tumors. She currently has three brain tumors which her neurosurgeon is watching carefully. While all that may sound rather daunting, Ashley is a strong-willed and opinionated teenager who insists of wearing dresses, even to bed, and often is sent to the school principal’s office for cursing in sign language. She is beautiful and funny and loving and a special treat that graces people’s lives. Two years after adopting Ashley, Deborah adopted her daughter, Jessica, then 9 years old. Jessica, now 17 years old, was diagnosed with brain cancer at the age of 4 months. Following two years of chemotherapy and radiation, Jessica was left with a significant cognitive disability and hemiplegia (limited use of the left side of her body). However, the time that Jessica spent in foster care – 9 years – has left significant emotional scars. Jessica is diagnosed with Reactive Attachment Disorder, a diagnosis common in children who have spent time in foster care, and manifested in outbursts of rage and aggression. Jessica has worked very hard over the past 8 years to work through these issues, and is making good progress. Her primary goal is to be a nurse’s aide and to live independently. And finally, three years ago, Deborah brought Corey, then 12 years old, into her family. Corey had spent the first 10 years of his life living with his prostitute, drug-addicted birth mother on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland. His grandparents then took him into their home in a retirement community in Florida, and soon after, worked to find a more permanent, more appropriate home for him. Unfortunately, Deborah has not been able to formally adopt Corey for two reasons. First, his birth mother refuses to relinquish her rights, and secondly, Corey is a member of the Cherokee tribe. The tribe refuses to permit his adoption outside the tribe. Those two things really do not matter because Corey is as much Deborah’s child as any of the other children. Corey and Deborah are now just waiting until Corey is 18 years old when he can consent as an adult to his own adoption. Given all that Corey has experienced in his young life, he is remarkably well-adjusted, and is looking forward to a career in the military. Needless to say, Deborah’s life is very busy and never boring. In addition to her job as a computer engineer and her single parent responsibilities, Deborah is president of a state-wide family support group for families whose lives are touched by deafblindness, and is a tireless advocate for all people with disabilities. She can often be found lobbying her state lawmakers and serving on many boards and commissions serving people with disabilities. She does find time to write her blog, pipecleanerdreams.blogspot.com, five days a week, and her writing has also been featured in local Virginia magazines and newspapers. Ashley’s story has also been chronicled in a book by Jonathan Mooney titled "Short Bus Stories". Ashley’s chapter in that book is titled “How to Curse in Sign Language”. |
Anissa
1 part love 1 part hope mix heavily with prayer That’s my recipe for life with my family. I blog at Hope4Peyton, chronicling life as a SAHM of three kids, Nathaniel is 10, Rachael is 7 and Peyton is 4. In 2006, Peyton was 2 years old and diagnosed with Pre-B Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and CNS disease. She’s withstood 2+ years of chemotherapy and radiation, a daily regiment of toxic drugs that we pray will keep her in remission. I hope to bring some insight from living with a child with a life-threatening illness and how it impacts the entire family…because through the pain, the fears, the tears, the overwhelming uncertainty of the future looms ahead, my recipe becomes more important than ever. I am all about living in the NOW, grasping every blessing and joy with a tight hold. |
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