It was brought to my attention that if you don't have a blog, you don't have as many opportunities to enter. For shame! Why don't you have a blog? ;) An email to a few of your friends will do the trick. Just direct them to this site and don't forget to add me to the email so I can give you credit for it.
We've got to spread the word about Autism Awareness Month!
1. Write a blog post about autism, link to me, and let me know about it. This will earn you 5 entries into the drawing.
2. Encourage your readers to comment on my blog. If they let me know where they came from, they get an entry and so will the person that referred them.
3. Share something autism related in the comments and you'll get an entry. This can include a link to an article you read or a new store that gives proceeds to autism related charities or whatever. There is no limit to how many times you do this as long as the information is unique each time and hasn't been shared by someone else already.
4. If an item you shared (from #3) makes into one of my daily blog posts, you'll earn an extra 3 entries.
5. If you donated to an autism related charity this month, let me know and you'll get 5 entries. This includes donating through my side banner (or someone else's), sponsoring somebody for an Autism Walk, giving an extra few bucks at Toys 'R Us, and items you've purchased through my little fundraiser. So, if you bought some cards...you get some entries! I obviously have no way of verifying this (other than the purchases through me personally) so please be honest. If you've donated a prize for this contest, you also receive 5 entries.
You can contact me through the comments or email me directly at:
sra_nelson AT yahoo DOT com
Providing Caleb with the therapies he needs can get kind of expensive. I've been trying to supplement our "free" services through the school district by working with him myself but we realize that this is not the ideal situation for either of us. In an effort to defray some of the costs, I have taken on a part time job filling out paperwork. I have a mound full of forms that can potentially help us pay for some of Caleb's extra programs. Respite subsidies, Social Security Disability, etc... I don't know if we'll be able to qualify for these but I'm taking the time to fill them out just in case. We're not grad student poor anymore but we're certainly not living it up on an inflated salary or a two-person income. Hopefully we'll qualify for some sort of monthly stipend that can cover co-pays or help fund a student to help out.
This is part of the reason that raising awareness is important to me. Our lawmakers need to know that we are not being served. Insurance doesn't cover therapies. Doctors need to be better informed. Teachers need to be trained. Parents need help.
I feel a great responsibility to help Caleb as much as I possibly can. He's not only our son but he has a birthmother that wanted to give him opportunities that she wasn't able to provide at that time in her life. We had no idea that autism would be a part of the picture but I know that it is something that I can handle. I have a supportive husband and I'm able to stay home to take care of our children. This has got to count for something.
Please consider how you might be able to spread the word about autism. You can send a message to your Senators here encouraging them to support funding for the Combating Autism Act and to have them co-sponsor autism friendly legislation. Let me know if you wrote to your lawmakers and you'll get some entries in the drawings as well.
This is part of the reason that raising awareness is important to me. Our lawmakers need to know that we are not being served. Insurance doesn't cover therapies. Doctors need to be better informed. Teachers need to be trained. Parents need help.
I feel a great responsibility to help Caleb as much as I possibly can. He's not only our son but he has a birthmother that wanted to give him opportunities that she wasn't able to provide at that time in her life. We had no idea that autism would be a part of the picture but I know that it is something that I can handle. I have a supportive husband and I'm able to stay home to take care of our children. This has got to count for something.
Please consider how you might be able to spread the word about autism. You can send a message to your Senators here encouraging them to support funding for the Combating Autism Act and to have them co-sponsor autism friendly legislation. Let me know if you wrote to your lawmakers and you'll get some entries in the drawings as well.
Thanks for the link. I was able to copy and paste some of your comments to my legislators.
ReplyDeleteMom
Christy-
ReplyDeleteInspired by the amazing walk yesterday and by YOU, I just sent messages to my legislators as well.
Here's hoping they're listening!
My kids were watching Nickalodeon this morning before school and saw a preview for an upcoming show on Autism. Its a documentary about Autism as seen through the eyes of the kids who live with it via their siblings and friends.
ReplyDeleteIt should be a good teaching tool for the girls since its about what kids think and how kids feel about it. Its Sunday at 7:30pm on Nick. We are going to DVR it and watch it with the girls.
I followed your link and sent email to Ben Nelson and Chuck Hagel. Will try to put the link into my blog!
ReplyDeleteJoanne
i also sent a message to the legislators, that was way too easy!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you reminded us -- I almost missed my chance to share my autism-related things before the drawing (although I would have shared them anyway because they're just that interesting).
ReplyDeleteFirst, you've probably already seen this fascinating video, In My Language, created by an autistic woman.
Second, Dr. Temple Grandin is amazing. Seeing how much she has accomplished with her unique abilities and perspectives on the world makes me wonder what my nephew with Asperger's syndrome will accomplish in his life.
Third, one of my husband's favorite books is An Anthropologist on Mars, which features an article about Temple Grandin along with several others about other people with neurological disorders that give them unique perspectives on the world.
If I were a good auntie I would write a blog post about my nephew with Asperger's. We're so proud of him -- he has been mainstreamed into a regular third-grade classroom with the help of a dedicated, full-time adult aide, and he is excelling at his schoolwork. He likes to read, he's great at math, and he's a very talented artist. My family is grateful every day that the Kyrene School District #28 in Tempe, AZ provides the continuing assessment and support my nephew needs to get the same educational opportunities offered to every other "normal" child in the district. Involvement by the principal, teachers, counselors, and others in the district has been tremendous.
This comment has gotten so long that I think I'll just copy it and post it on my blog!
P.S. I donated in your sidebar in honor of my nephew :-)
Christy,
ReplyDeleteI was in TJMaxx today and noticed a little stack of cards on the counter with a puzzle pieces on them, so of course I had to ask what they were. I was happy to learn that they were for donations to support autism research (which is what I thought)! Yeah for TJMaxx! I'm glad to know that they support the cause. It makes me even happier to shop there.
And yes, in case you're wondering.
~Gigi