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Raising
Special Kids is Changing to My Special Kids
Raising Special Kids site is coming down soon - by the end of the month, but don't worry, I am putting together a brand new site from Raising Special Kids - and because that brand is already in use by www.raisingspecialkids.org, I am changing my site to www.my-special-kids.com. I will have the index page up and will rewrite and post the pages as I go along, updating and adding new information and experiences. Stay tuned! Community GardenOur kids loved getting involved with the Community Garden this last summer - and keep asking when we can go back to the garden!  How We Got Involved We got to know the people who organized the garden through one of the Community Living Skills Training (CLST) groups our daughter, Cosette, attended several years ago, that was sponsored by the Community Mental Health Children's Services. Our daughter, who is ASD and Bipolar, helped work in the garden as part of her CLST summer program. The next summer, we met the same people at both the local farmer's market and the peoples Coop food store.  Our Special Kids They invited us to come out, as a family, to help work in the community garden. It just happened to be at a time (Wednesday evening from 6:30 to 7:30 or so...) when we could actually do it, so we decided to give it a try. Taking 4 special needs kids out to do anything is never an easy decision, but then again, staying home on a warm summer evening wasn't too thrilling an option either. So, we took them all - Cosette (15 ASD and Bipolar) Brianna (10 anxiety and depression) Anielei (4 physical disability with emotional reaction) and Aja Marie (3 Sensory Integration Dysfunction). They all have food and environmental allergies, so we really had no idea how it would turn out.  Success! They loved it. They worked with us and the other volunteers (mostly college kids) and had a great time. And they are learning all about plants, gardens, natural growing, and of course, bugs. They keep talking about going back - all winter long. Daddy, when is it going to be summer so we can go back to the garden? And camping, Daddy. This summer, we plan to volunteer again, but we are also going to put in our own family garden out at my parent's house.  Benefits Of The Community Garden Introduce your kids to nature early, including gardening. They will develop a lasting appreciation of all living things, and a better understanding of the food we eat and where it comes from. Oh, and support your local community garden and eat local food!  A footnote here: there was very little of the produce out of the garden that all of my kids could actully eat. Just as with cooking, you don't have to be able to eat it to enjoy working with it for someone else. They gain the knowledge and exeriences of doing something for someone else without any thought of return. We could all use more of that. Return from Community Garden to Activities More about the girls at Anieleirose.org |
