Book Blog
Welcome to This Life We Got
For the past nine years—ever since my daughter Sienna was born—I’ve been writing our story here.
What began as a blog has unfolded more like a book: chapters of family, advocacy, education, and inclusion, written with raw honesty and heart. This space is a peek behind the curtain of our lives, where vulnerability meets persistence, and where I hope you’ll find inspiration for whatever you need today. Readers often tell me it’s the honesty that keeps them coming back. I’m so glad you’re here. Use the search bar to dive into any topic that speaks to you—family, advocacy, education, or inclusion.
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Where are the Gestalts?
As we begin incorporating Natural Language Acquisition (NLA) strategies into Sienna’s everyday life, I won’t lie—my brain feels like it’s juggling flaming Post-it notes. Haley and I sat down to start compiling Sienna’s gestalts—those beautiful little scripts she uses to…
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The Key to Sienna’s Voice
“Mrs. Striner, you called the meeting—why don’t you begin? We appreciate the agenda you prepared.” The school psychologist gestures for me to start. I take a deep breath. Where do I even begin? “Before we dive into the agenda, I want…
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Everything You Need to Know About What’s to Come
For the past few weeks, I’ve had this aching sense of dread and foreboding. How will I know if the government has gone too far? How will I know when it’s time to leave — to protect Sienna? The sheer…
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Why Every American Should Be Terrified of Project 2025
Project 2025’s end goal is simple and terrifying: – Consolidate federal power under an authoritarian presidency. – Dismantle programs that protect and serve the most vulnerable. – Privatize public systems—turning healthcare, education, and even civil rights into commodities. – Rewrite…
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Searching for Answers When Disability Derails Your Plans
There’s a fracture in the autism community—one that runs deep and personal.On one side: parents searching for hope.On the other: advocates begging them to stop chasing lies. I get it.I’ve been the mom searching. I’ve also seen what happens when that…
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A New Glass Ceiling for Folks with Disabilities in America
“Mommy…Can we talk about something?” Haley looks up at me with those big brown beautiful eyes. Sienna is in bed already. If this is important, I can handle it. “Sure. What’s up, kid?” She clears her throat. “What will happen…
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Whispers of Inclusion in a World That Should Be Shouting
Shannon shares her sentiments about the evolving conflict in the disability community around certain words.
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Ableism, and RFK Jr’s Dangerous Obsession with “Fixing” Neurodivergent Kids
Let’s talk about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s latest claim from his cabinet meeting—because it’s not just absurd, it’s dangerous. He promised that by September, we’ll know the cause of autism. Just like that. A deadline. As if science works on some kind of…
