Happy New Year!

[Guest guest]

I always like to share my resolutions during this time of the year, we have many new members to our list servs who haven't seen them before. I hope all you and your families have a very Happy New Year!!

One thing I have learned is that parents of children with disabilities need lots of stress relievers. One of the ways I (and our family) have learned to deal with our families challenges is through humor. Laugh with us, not at us!

AN AD/HD MOTHER'S RESOLUTIONS

by: Carol SadlerAn AD/HD Mom with two AD/HD Daughters & CHADD Coordinatorhttp://communitylink.accessatlanta.com/groups/chadd (Permission to reprint giving proper credit) 1. I will not have a nervous breakdown after finding the purple nail polish poured all over the bathroom counter top, I will just take a picture and consider it "ART". 2. I will remain calm in my daughter's IEP when the teachers report to me that my child is manipulative and a liar, I will simply ask them "So, what's your point?". 3. When my kids get older I will explain to them the meaning of "Piles" and teach them the technique of extracting the exact piece of paper you were looking for. 4. I will refrain from killing my sister-in-law for giving my children finger paint and a trumpet for their birthdays, I will simply "lose" them while they sleep. 5. When I lock my keys (with the car running) and my children (strapped in their carseat) in the car, I will explain to the 911 operator that it is not a joke, and I will finally remember to go straight to the hardware store and get a second set of keys. 6. I will never get in the car for a 10 hour road trip to the beach without first giving my husband two Valiums and my children their medication. Always remember, it is not "Vacation", it is merely "RELOCATION"! 7. I will be more empathetic & try harder not to laugh when my child's teacher calls from school and asks "Did you give your daughter her medication this morning, I don't recognize this child?". I will not take the opportunity to point out to this teacher that the child she is seeing, is the one I see in the afternoon when she sends home two hours of homework. I will merely try harder to remember to set out my entire family's medication first thing in the morning, so I do not forget or re-dose. 8. When my daughters are grown, I will teach them the 10 minute shuffle before dad arrives from work, which consists of sweeping/vacuuming/mopping the floors; picking up the toys, homework, hammer & nails; washing the paint off the cat; un-tying the dog from the trampoline; retrieving the bicycles from the front of the subdivision; and having a well balanced dinner (from Kentucky Fried Chicken) on the table when he walks through the door. 9. When the 4th Pharmacist in a row at midnight tells me that he is out of my children's Adderall, I will refrain from jumping over the counter and beating him to a pulp! 10. When I'm tired of my relatives telling me "There is nothing wrong with your children, they are just being kids", I will refrain from leaving them for a month (without their Ritalin!). 11. I will develop an ability to have a conversation with an adult that doesn't revolve around CHADD, LDA, IEP's, accommodations, Psychiatrist's, Psychologist's, emergency room visits, developing my children's social skills, or the differences between Ritalin and Concerta. (Well, maybe not!) 12. I will always protect the rights of my children, especially their right to IDEA, Section 504, ADA and to be contributing members of society regardless of their disability! I will focus on their "Abilities", not their "Disabilities". I will continue to teach teachers that "FAIR" does not mean EQUAL" and tell them to "Occasionally Challenge, but DON'T Consistently Frustrate"!Carol SadlerCoordinator, Cherokee/Cobb County, North Atlanta & Central GA CHADD(Children & Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder)http://communitylink.accessatlanta.com/groups/chadd CHADDer e-newsletter: GA-CHADDer-subscribe ADHD Parent list:GACHADD-ADHDParentSupport-subscribe ADHD Adult list:GACHADD-ADHDAdultSupport-subscribe