Sensory-Friendly Movie Time!

This was posted on my friend Anne's Facebook wall.  She is very involved with FEAT, the local autism group.  I'm sure she has a Really Important Position but, for the life of me, can't remember what it is!  (Sorry Anne!)  Anyway, those of you with kids with sensory issues, please support this in hopes that there can be more events like this...

Sensory-friendly showing of the CARS 2 movie this Saturday, July 2, at 10:05am at the RAVE Stonybrook Theater on Hurstborne. They will have the volume down, lights dimmed and we are free to bring our own snacks. Kids are free to move and enjoy themselves! PLEASE pass this along as we need a good turnout in hopes they will see the need and will continue to allow our kids to enjoy going to the movies!

Barren Heights has opening for summer!

If you haven't seen my post about Barren Heights Christian Retreat, you need to check out their web page.  I just checked and there are still openings for weekends for this summer.  Barren Heights provides free weekend experiences for families with a child with special needs.  The camp is located near Bowling Green KY on Barren River Lake.  It's a TON of fun for the whole family!  My girls and Sam talk about it all the time and we went last summer.  If you have the opportunity, PLEASE take advantage of it.  It's a memory-maker!  Here's the link to their schedule...
http://www.barrenheights.com/schedule

Early Childhood Training Series presented by Parent Outreach and FIND

THE PARENT OUTREACH PROGRAM
in collaboration with
FIND OF LOUISVILLE
(Family Information Network on Disabilities)

present:

 FREE

Early Childhood Training Series

 

10am-12pm or 6pm-8pm

at

The Council On Development Disabilities

1151 South 4th Street

Louisville, KY 40203

 

April 26, 2011

What All Families Should Know About Brain Development

 

May 17, 2011

Keys to Social-Emotional Readiness for Young Children

 

June 21, 2011

Building Social & Emotional Resiliency in Young Children

 

To register for these sessions,

contact Pamela McDaniel at 584-1239.

 All training materials developed by the University of Kentucky, HDI, 
Kentucky Early Childhood Transition Project (KECTP)

     The Council on Developmental Disabilities 
is a Metro United Way Agency

Update on updates...

We have been moving the past week and I don't have internet access yet at my new home.  Sorry for the delays in posting - I hope to be back to a regular schedule in the next week!  Thanks for your patience.

Check the Conferences and Seminars page...

There are updates and a couple of new ones added, including one tomorrow night (4/12) at teh Council on Developmental Disabilities.  the topic is Wills, Trusts, and the Recoed of Information.

Saturday Night Respite Program

This came to me through the Down Syndrome of Louisville newsletter…

Little Flock Baptist Church is offering a Respite Program called

ESCAPE – “To Life Not From Life”

1^st Saturday of each month (October – May)

5:30-8:00 pm

Little Flock Baptist Church

5510 N. Preston Hwy, Shepherdsville, KY

The program is free of charge

To enroll your son/daughter or for more information, please contact:

Sammy Chick, Director of Special Needs Ministry

(502) 955-8760 or specialneedsministry@littleflock.com

Volunteers will engage participants in crafts, games and fun!

The program operates on the One on One Buddy System – one volunteer for each participant.  All volunteers for this program have undergone criminal background checks and an RN is onsite for emergencies.

Elizabeth

Sign Language Website with Videos

This was just sent to me from a mom of a sweet little boy with Down syndrome.  He has a great sign language vocabulary!

“There is an awesome website for ASL, you just type in the word you want the sign for and it shows a video clip of the sign (and the finger spelling, if you want).”

The website is Signing Savvy. 

Elizabeth

More Camp Opportunities...

Can you tell I’m trying to get Maddie’s summer planned? J  I don’t know about you, but when summer rolls around, I panic trying to find things to keep Maddie occupied and out of trouble.  She loves the routine of school and summer is just an endless cycle of routine-less days for her.

Here are some more options for camps:

The Center for Courageous Kids is a fantastic camp located in Scottsville, KY near Bowling Green.  They have disability-specific weeks and really give the kids an amazing camp experience, no matter their abilities.  The camp is beautiful!  It’s clean, features full-time medical staff, and is close to a hospital, if needed.  Maddie went last year for the first time.  I was nervous because she’s never been away from home except to stay with her grandparents and I was sending her away for 6 days!  But it turned out to be the best 6 days ever – for her, as well as for me.  Best of all, the camp is completely free.  Yes, free.

I'm pretty bummed that there's not a Down syndrome week this year, but there are many others available.  Just check the list once you go to the website.

Southeast Christian Church operates Camp Freedom each summer.  A couple of my friend’s children have gone in previous years and loved it!

Camp Freedom features all the activities you would expect at a summer camp, from swimming and fishing, worship, crafts and plenty of eating!

The cost is $125 and registration is online at SECC's website. Just click on the Country Lake tab on the left side, and follow the prompts for Summer Camp to find Camp Freedom.

Dreams with Wings runs a teen/young adult summer program throughout the summer.  Again, my friends who have sent their children here rave about it.  They have two different programs: one for children with autism and one offered through a partnership with Down Syndrome of Louisville.  It’s an eight-week program that encourages independence, continued learning in life and social and communication skills.  They have typical staff ratios of 3:1 or 4:1.

The camp runs from June 8^th – July 29^th, Monday-Friday from 8:00 a.m – 4:00 p.m.  Full-time participation runs $110 per week and part-time (T, W, TH) is $80 per week.  I’ve heard that you can use your Michelle P Waiver to pay for it but I haven’t received my packet yet so I can’t confirm that right now.

For an enrollment packet, email Jackie Shircliff Clark at Dreams with Wings.

Home of the Innocents has two 1-week day camp sessions each summer.  Camp runs from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. at the Home.  Maddie has attended the last two years and really enjoys herself.  Each child is paired with a high school volunteer for the week and they develop some nice friendships this way.  They do crafts, swim (this year the new therapy pool will be available!), have time in the Snoozelin room, cook, eat, and much more!  I haven’t received my registration form yet and the website doesn’t have information about it, but you can call the Home at 502-596-1000 to be put on the list to receive information about it.  This one fills up very fast because of the limited amount of children they can take.

Hope these suggestions help you have a happy Summer!

Elizabeth

What We Do, Makes a Difference

Thanks to my friend, Mary Kay, for sending this to me.  Thought you all might enjoy it…

The Beatitudes for Friends of Exceptional Children

Blessed are you who take time to listen to difficult speech: 
For you help us to know that if we persevere, 
We can be understood. 

Blessed are you who walk with us in public places, 
And ignore the stares of strangers, 
For in your companionship, 
We find havens of peace. 

Blessed are you who never bid us to "hurry up", 
And more blessed are you 
Who do not snatch tasks from our hands to do them for us, 
For often we need time rather than help. 

Blessed are you who stand beside us 
As we enter new and untried ventures, 
For our failures will be outweighed 
By the times we surprise ourselves and you. 

Blessed are you who ask for our help, 
For our greatest need is to be needed. 

Blessed are you when you assure us, 
That the one thing that makes us individuals 
Is not in our peculiar muscles, 
Nor in our wounded nervous systems, 
Nor in our difficulties in learning, 
Nor any exterior difference. 

But is in our inner, personal, individual self 
Which no infirmity can diminish or erase.

Elizabeth

EnTech Technology Camps

enTech (enabling Technologies) is associated with the Auerbach School of Occupational Therapy at Spalding University.  Their vision is to promote and foster independence and the potential of all persons by providing creative technology solutions.

Founded five years ago, enTECH works with independent organizations to provide direct technology-based intervention services or technology consultation to organizations that provide direct services to children. The technology-based services include augmentive communication, switches, and adaptive seating along with other options.

They also offer a technology-based activity program for children ages 3-12 called KITE (Kosiar Integrated Technology Experience).  It’s a technology-based activity program designed to provide physical, cognitive and sensory experiences.  The children rotate through different stations such as computer experience, arts & crafts, group games and sensory and motor experiences.  Each participant is paired with a KITE buddy.

The weeklong sessions are $65.  Children ages 3-6 attend from 9:00am-noon and 7-12 year olds attend from 1:00pm - 4:00pm.  Camps are held the following weeks:

April 4-8 (JCPS Spring Break week)

June 13-17

June 27-July1

July 11-15

You can access the registration forms online at: www.spalding.edu At the top of the page, click Academics, then enTech will show up on the left side of the page.

For more information, contact Mary Kaye Steinmetz at msteinmetz@spalding.edu or by phone at 502-585-9911 ext 2012

The camps fill up VERY quickly so if you’re interested, I’d inquire immediately.

Elizabeth

Free Family Camp Weekend!

          Those of you who know me have heard (probably more than once!) about our awesome family weekend last May to Barren Heights Christian Retreat.  Located in Scottsville KY (near Bowling Green), the focus of their free family weekends is to give families that have children with physical or developmental disabilities a time away to “relax, rest, and rejuvenate.”

            Joe and Toni Rose (undoubtedly, one of the most kind-hearted couples I’ve ever met) started Barren Heights because they wanted to help other families enjoy the same type of family weekends that their family has enjoyed over the years.  Each retreat weekend is Friday through Sunday and has plenty of activity to keep the kids happy while providing for much needed relaxing time for parents.  Once you get there, everything else is included and provided with awesome Southern hospitality!  I can’t say enough about the weekend, really.

            And yes, it’s free.  But you have to sign up!  They take 3 families per weekend so if there’s another family you’d like to go with, make sure you sign up at the same time.  We went down solo and really enjoyed meeting the two other families who were there.  One even came up from southern Georgia!  When you sign up, you’ll pay a small deposit that is refundable once you complete your weekend.  You can also choose to donate your deposit if you want to.

Here’s their website – take a look!

Barren Heights Christian Retreat

And here’s the link to our family album if you want to see more pictures…

Barren Heights Family Photos May 2010

I hope your family can take advantage of this great community resource this year or in the future!

Elizabeth

Website for Reading

Another parent sent me info about this awesome website that is free and educational.  It reads the books to your child so it is great for those who aren't fluent readers yet.  It has a section just for special needs that uses the reading signs if they are not a reader.  There is no catch, your membership is good for a year, no cost. 

MightyBookJr.com offers "interactive books that inspire early childhood literacy for grades K-6th." With over 850 interactive books in English & Spanish, you're sure to find one for your family to enjoy. Songs, games and puzzles are included.

MightyBookJr.com normally costs $99 per year for a household membership, but with the coupon code learntoread, you will get your membership for FREE.

Another good reading website that is used extensively is Starfall.

Elizabeth

iPad App Blog

A friend forwarded me the info on this blog - it talks about lots of things iPad and special needs related...

Lillie's Pad

With the increased use of the iPad and iPod touch in the special needs community,  I thought it might be something you could use.

Elizabeth

Powdered Vitamin Option

I’m sure many of you experience some of the same challenges I do in regards to making sure my daughter gets the appropriate amount of nutrition each day.  One of the things I also have to deal with as far as Maddie is concerned is her inability to chew solid foods.  So, we puree everything!  Consequently, there are some days that I am not as creative with her foods as I should be and she probably isn’t eating the healthiest.

For a long time, I’ve wanted to give her some sort of vitamin supplement but going the chewable or gummy route wouldn’t work for obvious reasons.  And the thought of crushing vitamins everyday really just didn’t work into my plans.  Enter Smoothie King – one of my favorite treats.  The two girls who own the Smoothie King franchises that I frequent are so knowledgeable!  I told them about Maddie and asked them how they put vitamins into the smoothies, because I never taste that vitamin taste.  Their Dad own Simon’s Apothecary here in Louisville and he sells a line of vitamins that actually offers a powdered, berry flavored multivitamin.  I decided to try it.

I mix ½ scoop of Integrative Therapeutics Mega Multivitamin Powder Mix into her applesauce and she LOVES it.  I tried it myself and it doesn’t taste “vitamin-y.”

According to the label, the mix is yeast, gluten, wheat, and corn-free and has no artificial coloring or preservatives.  It contains 23 vitamins and minerals and supplies 100% or more of the US RDA of most essential vitamins and high levels of all the B vitamins.  It contains the following antioxidants: lutein, zeaxanthin and N-acetycyteine.

In addition, if you are in need of a pharmacist who is very knowledgeable about traditional pharmaceuticals as well as natural remedies, call Alan Simon at Simon’s Apothecary.  They are located at 9217 U.S. Highway 42 in Prospect and the phone number is 502-228-4161.  He is a fabulous resource to this community!

Elizabeth

Pages Added...

Since it seems to be seminar and conference season, I added a page just for that purpose.  So from now on, all the seminar and conference info will go on that page.  I also added a Support & Advocacy page where I will be adding contact info for support and advocacy groups, both locally and nationally.

Elizabeth

ARC of Kentucky Annual Conference

The ARC of Kentucky is hosting their annual conference on April 15-16 at the Hilton Garden Inn on Crittenden Drive.  The conference is for individuals with disabilities, family members, friends, policy makers, service providers and more.  There will be breakout session covering a range of topics from self-advocacy to education issues to community living.  I know lots of people have questions about the Michelle P waiver and other waiver programs and there are special sessions that discuss those as well.

You can register for one or both days,  If you need assistance to pay for the conference, stipends are available through the Kentucky Council on Developmental Disabilities.  The Kentucky Council on Developmental Disabilities offers Consumers Involvement Funds to assist persons with developmental disabilities, family members, and their guardians financial assistance to participate in conferences, etc. For an application and additional information call 1-877-367-5332 or visit their website at www.kddc.org. You can also call The Arc of Kentucky office for an application as well. Applications must be submitted to the Council by March 31, 2011. NO EXCEPTIONS.


Here is the link for the conference...
http://www.arcofky.org/ky_annual_conf/Conf%202011/index.html

Thanks, Shelley, for sharing this!

Active Parenting Seminar - March 3rd Crestwood KY

Hope Huddles presents:

Active Parenting— Session 2B & 3

Date: Thursday, March 3rd, Time: 6PM—8:00PM

(Note: Extended Meeting Time!)

Location: Oldham County Schools Arts Center

7105 Floydsburg Rd, Crestwood, KY 40014

Come get a refresher course on your Parenting skills!

We all sometimes forget the best way to interact with our children, especially when we are tired, stressed, or overwhelmed. Come be a part of this interactive Video/discussion series that will help you fine-tune your Parent techniques for greater effectiveness. Although it is geared towards parenting children ages 5 through 12, the basic techniques are good for use with any age.

We will be presenting 3 out of the 6 sessions in February and March. Come join us!

Our Parent Support Group is designed to give you practical and helpful advice to help strengthen you as a parent. Best of all, you will meet other parents and caregivers just like you who want the best for their children and families!

* ** We Support ALL Oldham County Families !!! ***

FREE Childcare (all ages)

FREE Dinner!

FREE Door Prizes!

Just let us know you are coming by March 2nd so we can have enough food and childcare providers for everyone!

Please RSVP to Kathy Alsup at 502-472-6257

Parent Support Groups provide: * Advocacy * Encouragement * Empowerment * Friendships * Knowledge * Natural Supports * One Voice * Training * Understanding

Oldham County “Hope Huddles” Support Group is made possible by funding through OFL and Seven Counties Services.

Hart Supported Living Grant

I was talking to a friend of mine about wanting to get a touch screen computer monitor for Maddie.  She has been using one at school for the past several years and it really enhances her computer experience.  She has always been reluctant to use a traditional mouse but uses the touch screen computer with proficiency.  BUT, touch screen monitors are expensive!  She suggested looking into the Hart Supported Living Grant to see if it could be funded.

Here is some information I found on the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services website ...

“The Hart-Supported Living program is for Kentuckians with disabilities to request funds for supports so they can live in their homes and communities and avoid institutionalization.  The law,KRS 210.770 defines it as the following: "Hart-Supported Living Program" means grants which provide a broad category of highly flexible, individualized services which, when combined with natural unpaid or other eligible paid supports, provide the necessary assistance to do the following:

§  Provide the support necessary to enable a person who is disabled to live in a home of the person's choice which is typical of those living arrangements in which persons without disabilities reside;

§  Encourage the individual's integrated participation in the community with persons who are members of the general citizenry;

§  Promote the individual's rights and autonomy;

§  Enhance the individual's skills and competences in living in the community; and

§  Enable the individual's acceptance in the community by promoting home ownership or leasing arrangements in the name of the individual or the individual's family or guardian.

Right now, if Maddie wants to use the computer, one of us has to sit with her to help her navigate.  I can only imagine if she was able to access the computer via touch screen, she would be much more independent with her computer use!  So, I’m going to give it a try.

The application lists some examples of things that could be requested with the one-time grant: adaptive and therapeutic equipment such as communication devices, assistive technology, or a service animal; home modifications including ramps, widening doorways, adaptations to bathrooms; vehicle modifications like lifts, hand controls and carriers for chairs.

The deadline for application is April 1^st so if this is something you could use, hop on it!  The link to the PDF application form is located on the website in the right-hand column on the top under the header “Application for Program.”

Good luck!  I’d love to hear if anyone was able to use this resource.

            Elizabeth

Welcome!

I am so excited to get started on this blog!  I’ve spent the last week talking to friends and family about what kinds of topics they’d like to see featured on my blog and got some really great ideas.  I hope that you will find information that will help you in your journey as a parent or person who works with people with special needs.

            If you hear of a resource or see an article that helped you, it will probably help someone else too.  I would love for you to share it with me.  You can email me whatever information you have to inchbyinchky at gmail dot com.  I really want this blog to be a place where we can share ideas and support.  The purpose is to use the bits of knowledge that each of us has and collect it in one location.

            Elizabeth