It’s been quite a busy summer ’round my house! Lots of changes and new directions to explore! One of the things I am most excited about is my new little video series where I’ll be sharing all the real life stories that have made my journey with my kiddos fun and interesting! The underlying theme of how my kiddos have achieved great thing is that I EXPECTED great things, EXTRAORDINARILY great things from them! I can talk all I want about the resources that support our success like Individualized Education Plans and assisstive technology and inclusion and blah blah balh… but the real meat and potatoes that people seem to want more of are the day to day things we actually do. The real life stuff other families do. The things kids do. How did we do it? From playdates to sports teams, vacation destinations to hometown activities, I’ll share the stories that make us, well, us! Remember: if you want your child, or yourself, to achieve great things, you have to expect it!
You can see the videos first at our Facebook community here: www.facebook.com/thrivingblind
You can also see the collection at my website www.kristinsmedley.com/thrivingblind or click here.
So now for Video #1: The Tour Guide! Since we are launching while many kiddos are heading back to school, which means many parents of blind kiddos are biting finger nails and losing sleep stressing about how this will work, I share the story of my crazed over-protective self way back in Kindergarten with my oldest blind son. No judging here – remember this was a loooooong time ago before I knew any better! I have calmed down a bit since then… sort of…
VIDEO NOTES:
1:30 My number 1 fear of Michael in Kindergarten!
2:23 What I told the principal to do to prevent that fear from becoming reality.
4:22 When the plan failed and the fear became reality!
6:40 The wonderfulness that came from my plan breaking down!
7:24 What never occurred to me about my son!
8:05 Who should insure children have success in an educational setting?
9:20 What do you do after you Set Extraordinary Expectations?
Stay tuned for more episodes – and let me know your crazed stories of raising your kiddos!
Hugs, High Fives and Fist Bumps,
Kristin
Kristin Smedley is an author, non profit leader and TEDx speaker. She originally planned to be a third grade teacher… and then two of her three children were diagnosed as blind. Kristin now shares her journey of raising her kids to not just survive challenges, but to thrive! She speaks around the globe regarding blindness and resilience, and she just launched her new video series teaching people to SEE: Set Extraordinary Expectations! Watch her TEDx talk here and get info regarding her new book here. If you are interested to have Kristin speak at your upcoming event, email her at smedtalk@gmail.com or contact her here!
