2009 February

Johnnie Tuitel

I want to pass along some information about a workshop for parents of children with special needs. Even if this doesn’t apply to you – will you help and spread the word if you know someone who can benefit from this workshop? It sounds awesome.

Kent Intermediate School District and Grand Valley State University College of Education are co-sponsoring this event. It will be held on Saturday, March 7 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the Pew Campus DeVos Center of GVSU. It’s a great opportunity for parents to meet other parents and service providers in our community. There will also be seminars about trusts and wills, cooking with your kids, autism, middle and high school transition, fitness and family fun, and low tech sensory solutions.

The keynote speaker is Johnnie Tuitel, an inspirational speaker known as “America’s Pioneer Handicapitalist” and happens to be from East Grand Rapids. He is also the author of the Gun Lake Adventure Series, and the founder and development director for Alternatives in Motion, which provides wheelchairs to the uninsured. What an amazing person!

The workshop is only $15. Send an email to pdhub@kentisd.org for registration information. If you go, or know someone who does, please let me know what it was like!

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Weekend Top Five

I really enjoy reading a blog called “The Wheelz Are Rolling“. In short, this is a mom that totally keeps it real, and I dig that. She does a ‘Weekend Top Five’ and I decided to participate this week. You just list the top five things that happened to you this weekend. Like Gonzo, but in reverse.

1. We had a pretty good weekend. We kicked it off by finding out that against all odds, my recently laid-off sister got a job! We were so thankful to hear about that and insisted she drive here from Lansing so we could congratulate her in person. Aren’t we lovely?

2. Dollar beer, dollar dogs baby. We cashed in some free vouchers we had for participating in the Put A Lid On It program and got Griffins Tickets Friday night. A really nice guy gave A.P. a Griffins trading card. It is encased in plastic and has a piece of a jersey in it.

3. My husband, in an incredible display of dad-ness spent two days this week volunteering in A.P.’s classroom. He was rewarded with a nice mention in the Friday Newsletter from A.P.’s teacher which made us all very proud.

4. Last week, we got Maybelle a fish. She named it Couchy Jones. (Close runner up names were Lampy Jones, and Chairy Jones). Sadly, Couchy only lived a few days. My husband quickly replaced the dead Couchy for a nice, lively one and the kids never noticed. Couchy Jones Junior (the Junior is silent) lived through the weekend, and we feel like this one is going to make it. Oh… the deception.

5. The Steelers. The Steelers. The Steelers! My husband is a die-hard Steelers fan and is beside himself with excitement. He’s so happy he forgot all about the fact that no one in town had any ‘Arn City’ (that would be Iron City to you and me) beer to wash down the goodies at the party we went to.

Head over to Kristi’s blog if you’d like to post your own Weekend Top Five!