Dear Moms, 

On this Mother’s Day, Easton Area Macaroni Kid celebrates you—all of you.  

Moms of neurotypical kids can expect flowers, crayon portraits, little plaster handprints, or paper plate artwork with scribbled signatures from their kids. They might get nickel-plated charms purchased with piggy bank savings from the school store or gift cards to Starbucks “Daddy” helped to pick out. They could share a mother-daughter manicure or a fancy spa day. They might enjoy a Mother’s Day brunch with the family at their favorite restaurant or a Mom’s Night Out where they drink wine and paint with their girlfriends.  There are plenty of ways typical families celebrate Mother’s Day—and we hope however you celebrate, this Mother’s Day will be very special for all of you! (Be sure to check out our 2019 Easton Area Mother’s Day Gift and Events Guide.) 

Holding the Helm

For moms of ‘quirky’ kids, Mother’s Day often means maintaining the status quo, keeping to the schedule, and doing what we always do—steering our family boats to calmer seas. It means being internally grateful for a million tiny gifts that have nothing to do with being acknowledged or doted on by our kids. Instead, we celebrate our own capacity to give and keep giving companionship, inspiration, courage, understanding, guidance, and all the love in our hearts to our kids. 

We do not expect or need gestures of gratitude from our kids once a year to know that we are important and loved. Still, on this Mother’s Day, Easton Area Macaroni Kid wants to remind moms of special needs kid in our community that we are essential and fierce. We already know this, but here are a few things to remember, in case we forget.

We are AWESOME: Here’s Why

• Nearly 7 percent of the kids in the U.S. receive special education services---that’s about 13 percent of the under-18 population. We are not alone. 
• Moms of special needs kids may experience stress-levels like those of war veterans with PTSD. We hide in the bathroom to do yoga or listen to music on our headphones for 10 minutes or more a day to keep our head space in tune. 
• The fatigue, work interruptions, and social isolation faced by many moms of kids with special needs can decrease our life expectancy by 9-12 years. But we know how important it is to maintain our mental and physical health so we can continue to support the needs of our families. That’s why we try our best to make time for physical activity, eat a heart-healthy diet, and find the occasional quiet moment to read, journal, catch up on social media, have coffee with an old friend, or do something special for ourselves. 
• We know that LAUGHTER is the best medicine when fending off the blues. That’s why we look for the humor in every situation. It’s survival—and it puts things into perspective. 
• We have needs, too. We may not have time to do the little things other moms take for granted, so we know it’s okay to occasionally ask for a day (or couple of hours) off from our mom duties to get a massage, sit on the beach or in a park with a good book, or sit in the car with an ice cream milkshake listening to Bohemian Rhapsody. Even a few minutes to decompress can help restore our mom mojo and replenish our well of giving. 
• We may look like saints, but we aren’t perfect. We are human. We make mistakes, just like those quirky kids we love. We make a million difficult decisions every day, and sometimes the choices we make don’t turn out the way we hoped they would. That’s okay. We know we are doing our best, and we forgive ourselves. 
• Our spouses may take a backseat some, or most of the time. We know better than to feel guilty, but we do try to find a little special time to remind them they aren’t forgotten—even if that only means occasionally sharing a favorite TV show snuggled on the sofa after the kids are in bed. 
• Yes, we are superheroes—to our kids. But we are also tired, stressed, worried, and sometimes insecure about our parenting skills. We do the research, educate ourselves, join support groups, and do our best every day. 

And that—along with the endless capacity for love—is everything.

Happy Mother’s Day—from Easton Area Macaroni Kid to all of you very special moms!!!