A Wild Ride: Our Blog

SPECIAL NEEDS: MANAGING STRESS WITH A SMILE

Having a special needs child in your life brings new meaning to the term loving unconditionally. We break the old rules and stigmas every day, while trying to create a new and wonderful world for our children.

Join us for a day of helpful hints and upbeat attitudes from those that live a life like yours. As well as useful information you can use immediately to help your daily life stop being so stressful.
Hurry… seating is limited.
REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!
Your registration includes audio recordings of all the sessions!

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All of these workshops will talk to parents of the special needs child and provide innovative and concrete tools and resources for managing your home and your life with less stress and more smiles!

It includes workshops on:

1. Understanding and measuring you child's success

2. Managing your child and yourself with less stress

3. The ABCs of support groups

4. Dealing with sibling rivalry (Speaker: MARY & ME!)

5. Parenting without yelling

6. Organizing your special child's room

7. The Imperfection Movement - using humor instead of guilt (Speaker: Our Friend Patty over at Shut Up About Your Perfect Kid)

For more information, visit the Momference Web site. When you register, receive a discount by using WILDRIDE as the promotion code.

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SPECIAL NEEDS: MANAGING STRESS WITH A SMILE

Online Webinar and Teleconference
Saturday, April 26, 2008, 10:30am - 5pm

At one time or another, every mother has encountered those stressful moments when there are a million things to do including baths, laundry, homework, and meals. With a special needs child, the stressful moments multiply quickly as attitudes and parenting skills must be adjusted in a world that does not understand the plight of a special needs family.

In the Momference event, “Managing Stress with a Smile,” the first of a three part series sponsored by The Special Needs Family, moms learn how to mange stress by:

• Accepting imperfection for themselves and their special needs child,
• How to stop yelling and start setting goals for achievement,
• How to manage the dynamics between siblings with and without special needs,
• The basics of finding the right support group

Register Online. For discount, use promotional Code: WILDRIDE

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In the Chicago area?

KEYNOTE ADDRESS – JENNY McCARTHY
5 Days That Will Change Your Child's Life
The Sixth Annual Autism One Conference Returns to Chicago

Wednesday, May 21 – Sunday, May 25

THE REALITY OF RECOVERY
Autism is a whole-body condition with many causes and many roads to recovery. Some children develop autism from vaccines, other children from exposure to molds, pesticides, and a host of environmental toxins.

The pioneering efforts of parents and practitioners have brought new appreciation about the underlying causes that create the conditions of autism. Understanding the causes has led to safe and effective treatments that are helping our children get better.

Main Conference: Friday, May 23 – Sunday, May 25

BRILLIANCE IN ACTION
Learn at the breakthrough presentations highlighting over 100 of the most eminent autism experts across five tracks:

1. Biomedical Treatments
2. Behavior and Education Therapies
3. Complementary and Alternative Medicine
4. Adolescence and Adulthood
5. Government and Legal Issues

MORE REAL ANSWERS
From the time you arrive to when you leave you will be immersed in an environment of help, hope, and answers. Sign up for a Mentor Mom who will help you 24/7, get detailed answers in the workshops, sample, and get the recipes of special diets in the hotel
restaurant, take advanced parent training classes, and participate in the Arts Festival classes.

NEW FOR 2008

- Seminar with Amy Yasko, PhD - Interpreting Lab Tests Seminar
- Thai Cooking as part of Special Diets
- News Desk with In-Depth Analysis
- Defeat Autism Now! Clinician Seminar
- Advanced Parent Training

Pre-Conference: Wednesday, May 21 – Thursday, May 22

EMPOWERMENT FROM EDUCATION Some topics require hands-on, day-long training. The Pre-Conference Days are rich in practical purpose and presented in a manner to quickly bring you the knowledge to help your child immediately.

Wednesday, May 21. The Art of Special Diets. Preparing and cooking special diets was never so easy and delicious. Good food is the first foundation of recovery.

Thursday, May 22. Defeat Autism Now! Clinician Seminar. Learn the science and join the movement of practitioners who are effectively treating autism.

Thursday, May 22. First Responders – Law enforcement officials learn how to effectively spot and safely deal with situations involving individuals with autism.

Thursday, May 22. Law Day. Everything IEP. Become your child's most effective education advocate.

Thursday, May 22. What to do when a child won't eat. Feeding Disorders and Developmental Delays.

Learn more at Autism One or email or call Ed at 714.680.0792.

Autism One is a parent-driven, charity organization helping children and families with autism.

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Oprah, here we come! Okay, well, maybe it’s not Oprah, but Mary and I are honored just the same.

Stephanie Haber from the Special Needs Family asked us to present at Momference on April 26th . We are part of a day long teleconference program titled Special Needs: Managing Stress with a Smile. Our topic is My Brother, My Sister, My Enemy, My Friend: The new definition of sibling rivalry.

What is Momference?

Momference is the first global expert resource created especially for Moms seeking the best information to help them in their efforts as women and mothers.

The Momference mission is simple: celebrate, empower, and educate women who are moms in all aspects of their lives. More than just a place where experts share information with mothers, Momference is a community of women and mothers interacting in virtual environments to gain insight and support from the most powerful group on the planet: each other!

Every month, our virtual programs are conducted 100% via phone conferences and online webinars, creating unique opportunities that educate and inspire women. Momference teleconferencing puts you in a “virtual meeting room” with renowned experts (that’s Mary) and thousands of like-minded women (that’s me) from all over the country to discuss the topics important to women everywhere...all without the hassles of traveling or getting a babysitter!

Stay tuned for more information on our presentation.

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It occurs to me that loving another person is not easy if you don’t love yourself first. Thanks mom for that useless advice, you say. But wait. Hear me out.

How many days go by in a whirlwind of activity: work, school, after-school activities, more work, household upkeep, meals, doctor appointments, therapist appointments, PT appointments, parent-teacher conferences? Every day. Right?

Well, I’m living proof that I parent better (translation: I don’t scream as much) when I’ve taken a few minutes for myself.

Here are a few of suggestions to help make that happen:

• Do something that you love doing. Be creative. Leave a chocolate under your pillow for YOU.
• Give yourself the gift of love. Take a long bubble bath, curl up with your cat, dance to your favorite music. Notice how good it makes you feel. And plan on doing it again!

For other Love ideas, visit Plant the Seeds of Love.

And speaking of love, for those in the Seattle area, here's an upcoming event worth chekcing out.

On Thursday, November 8, four bestselling authors share their ideas on:

Parenting Like an Adult: Top Parenting Authors Talk About Preserving Your Inner Adult, Romance and Marriage While Raising Kids.

This event is sponsored by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Parent Map.

Featured authors include:

Christie Mellor, author of The Three-Martini Playdate (I haven’t read the book but I love the title.)

Heidi Raykeil, author of Confessions of a Naughty Mommy: How I found My Lost Libido

Faith Conlon and Gail Hudson, authors and editors of I Want to Be Sedated!: 30 Writers on Parenting Teenagers. (This is an anthology of essays by many different authors, some famous, some not, some rich, some poor. Very well done. I also like the title. My son saw the book on the table and wanted to know if it was for him or for me. Hmm.)

And it’s free!
When: November 8 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Queen Anne Books, 1811 Queen Anne Ave N. in Seattle
Phone: 206.283-5624.
Visit Working Dad for more info.

Posted by Elizabeth at 7:22 AM in Classes & Seminars | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For seminars throughout the U.S. visit:

Cross Country Education
Education Resources Inc.

Seattle Area Classes and Seminars:

Below are classes, groups and seminars offered in and around the Seattle area. This information is provided by Catherine Whiting , MS, OTR/L, and Shannon Renae West, MS, Registered Counselor.

Bainbridge Island, Washington

Sensory Avoiding and Sensory Seeking Behavior (from babies to adults)
Presented by Catherine Whiting
Saturday September 29th
10:00 .am. -11:30 am
13881 John Street NE
206.855.7996
Free. Adults only please. RSVP

The classes below are held at Collaborative Family Therapy
9431 Coppertop Loop, Suite B
206.780.7822

Voices: A Group For Adolescent Young Women
This group for middle school and junior high teens is intended to be a fun and creative place for teens to bring their voices together: to talk about their experiences, to support one another in friendship, and share their expertise and encouragement about navigating the teen years as young women. Shannon West will facilitate this group. Wednesday evenings, 6-7:30, beginning in September through November.

Getting Along Beautifully: Parents and Children Living along the Autism Spectrum
Two groups will take place simultaneously: one for elementary school-age children who fit into the Autism spectrum, and one for their parents. Groups facilitated by Sally McIntosh Stoehr and Kimberly Delaney. Tuesday evenings, 4-5:30, beginning in September through November.

Families In Transition: Groups for Parents and Siblings in Transition
These concurrent groups, one for children ages 7-12 and one for parents, will focus on providing support for all family members going through a significant family transition around separation, divorce, and/or remarriage. Siblings are encouraged to attend together. Children may attend without a parent in the parents' group, and likewise for parents. Groups facilitated by Sally McIntosh Stoehr and Kimberly Delaney. Thursday evenings, 6-7:30, beginning in October through mid-December.

Seattle, Washington

Nutrition Therapy For Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Presented by Elizabeth Strickland
October 17th 8:00-3:30 $179.00

Renton, Washington

Best Practices in Treating Pediatric Feeding and Swallowing Disorders
Presented by Angela Mansolillo
Nov. 2-3rd $379.00

Shoreline, Washington

Augmentative-Alternative Communication & Assistive Technology Conference
Presented by many practitioners (including Dr. David Beukelman, PhD, CCC-SLP,Dr. Stephen Glass; Steven Shores)
Shoreline Conference Center
January 31st-February 1st
199.00 for one day and 325.00 for both days

Photo © Konstantinos Kokkinis - Fotolia.com

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