This year has held a lot of challenges and uncertainty for many families around the world, especially for our children on the spectrum.  Most schools have been either held online or in classrooms with many restrictions for children to learn.  Parents have had to deal with juggling work around school, hours have been cut or jobs have been terminated, making family situations extremely stressful and harder to manage.  Even therapies have had their share of obstacles this year with limited therapy times, virtual sessions, or none at all. All of these changes have had affects on our kids in a variety of ways.

When I think about my own situation and speaking with other families, the one thing I continued to hear was that parents and caregivers have become closer to their children during this time.  We have learned to slow down the pace and spend more quality time with our kids.  I am incredibly thankful for the time I have had with my son during virtual learning, therapies and creating fun times in and outside of the house.  I have become more in tune with my son’s strengths and weaknesses.  We are moving forward together on a better footing with his academics and therapies than ever before, which is a wonderful milestone on this journey.

My son has been a trooper throughout this year amidst the tremendous changes that have taken place.  This is his final year of elementary and although I wanted him to experience a face-to-face school environment, he has worked well with the online learning and I know he will be back in class in the fall for a new endeavor with middle school.

Although, I am forever grateful for the positive outcomes with my son over this year, despite the challenges, I will be glad to start a new year.  One that holds the promise of seeing our extended families again, our children being able to play with cousins and friends and visiting places that were planned many months before COVID. We are ready to embrace 2021 with a feeling of excitement and joy. I pray your families have come through this year with some positive moments, but I also hope that the new year ahead will be amazing and fruitful for you and all our communities across the globe.  Happy New Year, as we celebrate moving forward into 2021!