Special Needs – Page 4 – Pollywog's Place Blog

Keep Showing Up

Published on January 5, 2024January 3, 2024 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog3 Comments

I’m so tired this morning and I want to go back to bed. I stayed up later than usual trying to finish up my first perpetual menu plan. I drank too much coffee too close to bedtime and then I couldn’t sleep.

The morning came way too early and I’m still not feeling 100% myself so I was very tempted to lay in bed today. I had to do a lot of self talk motivation to get myself out from under the blankets but I did it.

I was thankful that I have been taking the time to prep the big coffee pot in the evenings. All I have to do is turn the warmer on and add water. My coffee brews as I change my clothes and it sends its lovely aroma to greet me… and then my unusually loud kids remind me that I really do need to be up and at ‘em.

We all have these mornings, days, weeks when we just don’t want to get up, we don’t want to do anything but lay in bed and binge watch our favorite YouTube channel or TV series. That’s ok but we can’t let ourselves get stuck in those habits.

I even forgot all about my new meal plan and was going to have one of the kids pull something from the freezer for a ‘mystery meal’ but they were too excited about the menu plan to let me do that so I’ll be placing a grocery order in a little bit.

I can think of 100 valid excuses for not getting out of bed every day as it truly is a struggle for me most days because of chronic pain. When you throw any illness on top or the fatigue from over doing it the day before that is a recipe for disaster.

I know I published about the Opposite of the Proverbs 31 woman a few days ago and this is still lingering in my head and my heart. I know I have eyes watching me heart’s depending on me to lead them the right way. Even if I didn’t have a houseful of kiddos there would be others watching behind the scenes.

I want to be a good role model and I strive to live as God would want me to live so that motivates me to keep showing up every morning. I know I’m not perfect and I have to ask Him for help every single day because I can’t do anything without Him. Even when things seem bleak and dreary I know He has a plan and I just have to keep trudging on.

If you are feeling down and weary please don’t give up trying. I know how tiring it can be to do the same thing again and again and again especially when it feels like you don’t make a difference but please know that someone is watching.

I am praying for each and every person reading this that they will find the strength to endure whatever trial they are going through and that they will have the courage to face any challenges that come before them. I am praying that they will feel loved and appreciated for who they are and that they can show this love to others. I pray that they can feel the strength of God in their lives and the joy that only He can bring. I am also praying for renewed health and strength and for God to bless you more abundantly than you could ever hope for.

Amen!

Have a blessed day!

Update with more pictures! Preparing for Christmas… St. Nicholas, Gifts in a Jar, and so much more!

Published on December 5, 2023February 22, 2024 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog5 Comments

We’ve had a busy weekend… well, I have. I’ve been working on my pantry makeover and I’ve completely moved things around 3 times already! I will post pictures as soon as I have it the way I like it but it is an improvement already and I think it makes better use of the breakfast nook space that just didn’t work for us.

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Free Printables for Holiday Shopping plus some tips for buying for special needs kiddos!

Published on November 28, 2023November 28, 2023 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog8 Comments

It might be a little late in the game for these goodies but I needed to make some for my Holiday Planner anyway and I figured I’d share them here just in case anyone else could use them. They really aren’t anything fancy but I did try to make a couple of festive options to help you feel a little more in the Christmas spirit.

We plan to start implementing the 3 or possibly 4 gift rule in our home because things are just so expensive and our kiddos really have everything they need and a lot of what they want so we don’t want them asking for tons of things that they won’t or can’t use. We really want them to stay focused on the reason for the season … we are dedicating these weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas for an Advent Study. We also want them to think about gifts and appreciate the time, thought, and money that goes into each gift they receive and not what they expect to find under the tree.

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Preparing for Daylight Savings Time

Published on October 18, 2023October 16, 2023 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place BlogLeave a comment

It is almost that time of year again and when you have so many kiddos with so many unique needs then this is something that can cause complete CHOAS in your household… along with weather changes, moon changes, and just about any kind of unexpected changes.

‘Losing’ that hour of sleep can wreak havoc on your body and upset your circadian rhythm which isn’t good. Here in our house, it’s really not good because we have kiddos who don’t understand the concept of time change and they just get unbearable to be around.

This year we’ve been trying a little experiment to hopefully prepare us for the upcoming time change and maybe keep things under control around here… fingers are crossed.

We’ve been setting our alarms 15 minutes earlier every Sunday night for the past 2 weeks and getting in bed a tad earlier at night… with the idea that when Daylight Savings Time actually rolls around they won’t have so much trouble with the adjustment… fingers and toes crossed now!

The kids have been a little grumpy the first couple of days of the week with the earlier wake times but it doesn’t last long. We usually head outside first thing in the morning to feed up and that seems to chase the grumpies away… yay! It has been shown that getting some daylight early in your day can help with your circadian rhythm and we already know that fresh air can work wonders.

On the night before the actual change, we always set the clocks ahead to prepare for the next day. Sometimes we do it directly after dinner so they go to bed a little early without realizing what going on… lol.

I will also try to have a ‘light’ school schedule for that first week after the time change so kids can get outside to work those grumpies out or take some naps if they need to. We already have some good routines in place so hopefully, they will help to keep us going on the right track without too many interruptions in the next few weeks.

What are your favorite tips for preparing for Daylight Savings Time?

You can read more about how Daylight Savings Time affects your body and ways to adjust HERE and HERE.