Little Room, Big Smiles

Claire met an amazing little girl this weekend. Her name is "E," and just like Claire, she has special needs.

I met E's mom about a month ago after stumbling upon her blog. I was fascinated by the story of how her daugher had found her voice using a communication device. When I learned that she lived locally, I knew I had to reach out to her. She kindly offered to meet me for coffee one evening, and I jumped at the opportunity. We spent the evening talking about our daughters, their lives, and the world of special needs.

I think I will forever consider that meeting a turning point in my own journey as a special needs parent. At the time, I was so worried about Claire. She was having several seizures a day, and I felt completely helpless. She still was not smiling socially, and I felt completely hopeless. So many questions kept churning in my mind: With multiple seizures every day, what kind of life was Claire leading? Was she happy? Would she ever be able to enjoy things? Would she ever understand how much she is loved?

E's mom helped me see Claire in a whole different light. She told me about the rich life that E leads. She has a best friend. She has favorite colors. She has a favorite Disney character. She likes to wear her hair a certain way. She looks forward to things. I came away from our meeting with a full heart and a strong resolve to help Claire have the best life possible, in spite of her condition.

E's mom was kind enough to invite Brad, Claire and me to spend a Saturday afternoon with E and the rest of her family. She showed us a lot of therapeutic toys that E uses and gave me some great ideas about toys and equipment to try with Claire. She also offered to give Claire E's old "little room," which E had outgrown.

A "little room" is a sensory space designed for visually impaired children. It is a small box with toys and objects hanging close together. Visually impaired children can explore the objects by touching them, hitting them, listening to the sounds that they make, feeling their textures, etc. The toys stay in the same place, so children learn object permanence and spatial relations.

The moment we put Claire in E's "little room," it was clear that she liked it. She kept banging objects together and letting out little bursts of laughter. I think we even got a few smiles out of her.

The experience definitely got a few smiles out of me.