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How Superheroes Decompress: Respites & Shawarma (A Tribute to Volunteers)

May 20, 2014 | Categories: "How Can I Help?", How to help, Humor, Joni and Friends, Ministry and kidmin leaders, Mommy Martyrdom, Parent Support, Special Needs Ministry, and Uncategorized. Tags: control freak, Fun that works, How Can I Help?, how to help, humor, Joni and Friends, Ministry and Kidmin leaders, One Body, and Special Needs Ministry.

Confessions of a Respite Groupie Hello. My name is Diane. And I am a self-professed Respite Groupie. If there’s a church respite event within a 45-minute radius of our home: We. Are. There. “Neither rain, nor sleet, nor dark of night…” Whatever, man. We are there. It’s the only event I’m ever on time for. It blows my mind that a group...

On Motherhood, Meals & Mayhem | Mother’s Day 2014

May 6, 2014 | Categories: Loser Mommy Moments, Mommy Martyrdom, No, You're Not The Only One..., and Uncategorized. Tags: Asian, control freak, humor, motherhood, mothers day, and Parenting.

Breakfast of Chumpions One winter morning in 1988, I ran out the door on my way to school. I was late, per usual, so I skipped breakfast. High school seniors are too cool for breakfast anyway. My mother wasn’t having it. She chased me out to my car in her pajamas, and pressed a half-eaten SKOR bar and Coke into my hand. “Must eat something!” she insisted. A Coke and a candy...

Faith through Disappointment – Part 1: ALCF Women’s Conference 2013

Oct 15, 2013 | Categories: Faith Rehab (Mad at God), Grief & Loss, Healing, How to help, Letting go, letting God, Mommy Martyrdom, No, You're Not The Only One..., Parent Support, Recent Diagnosis, and Uncategorized. Tags: Faith Rehab, fear, Grief & Loss, how to help, and Why?!.

On October 5, 2013, I had the privilege of speaking at my church, Abundant Life Christian Fellowship in Mountain View, CA. It was an honor to be part of the teaching team for the annual Women’s Conference, composed of keynote Dr. Gloria White-Hammond, and five fellow workshop speakers: Each uniquely gifted and passionate about seeing women healed and made whole. For the 2013 theme of...

Screwtape Screws with Autism: How To Ruin a Special Needs Family

Aug 27, 2013 | Categories: Grief & Loss, Humor, Mommy Martyrdom, and Uncategorized. Tags: Screwtape.

In homage to C.S. Lewis’ “Screwtape Letters,” How to effectively ruin a family affected by autism. *************************************** My Dear Wormwood, I understand you’ve been assigned to a special needs family for your next Patient. Autism, to be precise. Regrettably, I am dismayed at the Administration’s dismal appraisal of...

“I Can Never Die”

Mar 22, 2013 | Categories: God Understands?!, Grief & Loss, Letting go, letting God, Mommy Martyrdom, and Uncategorized. Tags: anxiety, fear, future, surrendering control, and worry.

Who Will Take Care Of My Child After I’m Gone? Parents of “normal” children don’t have to worry about this. It’s a given that children grow up to become independent and go off to raise children of their own. Not so for my family. As a perennial, functionally five-year-old, our autistic son will remain dependent on us for his daily care, for the rest of...

Mother’s Day, Post Mortem

May 13, 2012 | Categories: Devotionals, God Understands?!, Grief & Loss, Mommy Martyrdom, and No, You're Not The Only One.... Tags: mothers day.

The Day After All fanfare is done. Restaurants recover from the busiest day of the year. Florists sweep away forlorn bouquets that weren’t pretty enough to get picked. Drugstores stash away the picked-over greeting cards. Maybe they’ll get recycled next year. For many women, it may not have been a joyous day of celebration. Perhaps no one feted them like “Queen for...