Here goes nothing

OK.  So Ive finally decided to blog.  I'm not really sure why but Ive always liked writing in journals about my thoughts and feelings.  So I figured this could be a good thing and give it a shot. 


Yeah when I was a young girl I had a diary.  Nothing special and who knows whatever happened to it.  But my first journal I wrote in for about 4 months.  I had started shortly after losing my baby back in 2000.  She was stillborn at 33 weeks.  I had a fairly good pregnancy and had just seen the doctor several days before.  Heartbeat was good.  Then nothing.  Cause was unknown.  I will say writing that journal was very therapeutic and helped me get through a very difficult time.  I hope to share it with my children.  And one day I will write about her for you but this is just my first entry and I really want to just give you some highlights.


So what is this journey without a map going to be all about you may wonder.  Well, for starters, I'm a single mother to 4 children.  My oldest is now in her 20s.  I'm very proud of her and all her accomplishments.  From time to time I will blog a little about her.  But this journey entails my life and raising my 3  young boys all of whom have special needs.  Somehow what I thought would be fairly easy raising 3 young boys changed one day.  And somehow I ended up  going down a road that didn't come with a map.  No complete direction as to where we are going or where we will end up.  But I will say this much I am a very persistent person and will always look for the answers I need for my boys to succeed in life. Children with special needs tend to get labels.  Sometimes this can be a good thing.  Especially when it comes to getting your child what they need.  This applies mostly in the school setting. 


I would like to keep my first blog to a minimum.  So I'm just going to let you know what I'm dealing with.  My oldest son was diagnosed with Klinefelters Syndrome.  He also has ADD, seizure disorder, asthma, and speech and language delay.  I'm in the process of seeing whether or not he is anywhere on the Autism Spectrum with leaning towards PDD-NOS.  My middle son has ADHD and he will be tested for Aspergers (high functioning Autism).  Then most of you know about my youngest son.  He has Prader Willi Syndrome, seizure disorder, central sleep apnea, hypothyroidism, far-sighted, and respiratory issues (mostly in the winter time).   I'm sure I probably forgot something.  But he has had a total of 3 surgeries all before he turned 4.  


So one can see as most have said to me "you have your hands full."   Yes, I sure do.  There are days where things are so crazy that I wonder how I ever made it through.  Which is why I decided to name the main title of my blog 'Journey without a Map.'  It just all made sense to me.  I'm on this journey with 3 young boys, sometimes with no direction and yet we manage to get through another minute, hour, day, or week together.  So many therapies, doctors appointments and tests.  I always wonder where are we headed next?