It doesn't have to be scary!

Having a child with special needs doesn't have to be a scary thing. Yes, there will be scary days. Perhaps a medical diagnosis, or a new developmental diagnosis. You take those, you work on them, and you move on. Me personally, I don't feel like caring for Arina is any different than caring for my other children. Each child has different needs, and we work on all of those. But we are a family, all of our children are equal, and all are treated the same.

Currently Arina is totally nonverbal. She has zero, full words. We get a ba or a da, but that's about it.

But this girl can sign like a pro! Once we bought her Signing Time, she just took off. I'm happy to report that right now, she has no communication problems. She doesn't get frustrated when she can't talk, we know exactly what she wants by her signs. Its been a Godsend! So if you haven't pushed signing with your child with special needs, do it now!

Yes there are other frustrating things. This girl is busy, busy, busy. She doesn't sit still for 2 seconds! I have to quadruple check to make sure the doors are locked, because is she gets out, she'll be gone in no time at all. That's a very scary thought!

But my little girl can learn!

She can stretch,

And she can dance.

You just have to give them the tools. Don't ever underestimate their abilities. I just hope someone can see these pictures and have hope, just like these did for me about two years ago.

I noticed a huge difference in Arina and my almost 2 year old niece when they played together. My niece seemed much more mature than her older cousin. For once Arina didn't seem as "normal" as I thought she was! But Arina is who she is, and she is an amazing little girl, just like my niece!

Don't ever Dis my Ability!!