Our church has a unique situation. We have a husband and wife pastor team. They take turns doing the sermons, and each one of them has different strengths. It is a great combination, and our church is very child oriented.



This past Sunday, our pastors were on vacation. We had a “guest” minister. Every Thursday our church sends out an e-mail listing what is going in the church for the next week, who has been hospitalized, and anything else that may be relevant. This week we got a little bit of information on the guest minister. It said that he worked with the Autism community very heavily.

During the sermon, he was talking about hardships, and mentioned his autistic son, and having meltdowns. My ears perked up. It was the only mention of his son, but I made a point to talk to him after the service was over.

I introduced myself, and explained my background with foster care and adoption. We talked a little bit about some of the treatments that are being done with autism, specifically the bio-medical part, and hyperbaric therapy. He was not familiar with either of them, so I gave him a little bit of background.

We then began talking about the struggles in getting services for our kids, especially within the schools. He, and many other parents, are fighting the uphill battle. I have not had to battle with the schools, my battles lie elsewhere. I did relay to him a little bit of history on Julie and LuLu. He understood completely, and is fighting similar battles. I know that he and I will be talking in the future. I think we can lend strength to each other’s battles.

The other thing that happened this weekend, happened while I was at a Pampered Chef party. Most of the ladies in attendance were from my church. I love my church family. They have been incredibly supportive, and I don’t have to tell them twice how to handle my kids. If I walk into church with a different child, they’re never sure if it’s a child that I have for respite, or as one pastor put it, one that I’m “taking for a test drive.”

After the party was over, we were talking about Hannah. My friend, Judy, asked for specifics on what she could and could not do with her. Hannah is absolutely adorable, and smart as all get out, so people fall in love with her quickly. Judy asked if she was allowed to hug Hannah, could she sit next to her and read a book with her, could Hannah sit in her lap, and other scenarios. I answered her questions, and know that I will not have to have a further discussion with her. In addition, she will set the example for other people in the church.

When we were at Lay Academy class, the ladies included Hannah in our activities, but no one made an effort to have any physical contact with her, and would not give her any food or anything to drink without asking me first.

I wish everyone were lucky enough to have a support system like this in their lives. It is so crucial to our survival as special needs parents.