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I’m always trying to do this
Well, it’s been 6 months now since we moved to St. Louis Missouri and life is starting to feel settled. The kids are in school, the husband works from home and I accepted a full time positive with an office outside of the home (Praise God). Every so often I will stop to wonder if…
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CODA: My Mom, My Identity
By Chelsea Hull originally published in The Communicator 8/2021 When the movie CODA came out recently, I watched it immediately and related to it on so many levels. When I tell people my mom was deaf, I get a lot of different reactions and questions. People often refer to me as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults),…
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Love, Teaching and Loving the Special Children we Teach
Chelsea Hull (SPECIAL MOM & FORMER TEACHER) Have you ever had a teacher tell you, “I LOVE your child”? Or “I just LOVE your child, BUT…” Have you stopped and thought about that? Was it COLLOQUIAL? Do you think it’s appropriate for a teacher to tell a parent they LOVE their child? Probably not literally.…
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My Veteran and Gratitude in 2022
Is it really that time of year again? Time to pause and thank our service members who have placed themselves in harms way to protect our civil liberties and freedoms. I’ll wake up and thank my husband. I’ll call my dad and thank him. Veteran’s Day is so different than Memorial Day for us because…
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Autism Mom, Squared
By Chelsea Hull I find lots of things fascinating about my family’s journey, some of it IS difficult and overwhelming. However, I can laugh at the funny moments and smile during the precious times. When challenges arise that come along with raising a child who has a high IQ but limited impulse control, I love…
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Autism on the Playground
“This will go down on your permanent record” is not only a quote from a Violet Femmes song, it’s what a noon duty told my sweet Kindergartner a few years ago. Since then, I’ve come to forgive her for saying those harsh words to my son. I know all adults are human and we all…
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Before the Time of the Sign Language Interpreter
By Chelsea Hull In a boring, white college classroom, about 15 of us sat on chairs. Everyone looked all bright-eyed with bushy-tailed. The emptiness of the room made our thirst for academics arousing, the anticipation of meeting the teacher, exciting. The crisp white blinds blocked the bright parking lights from glaring rudely in the room.…
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Assessing an Autism’s Mom’s stress level: You’re cracking me up
Being Active Duty means my family has Tricare medical insurance. Tricare called the other day when I was driving. We had just had our household goods packed up and moved into our long term housing for the summer. After taking the call I agreed it was a good time to talk and engaged in the…
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This Spouse and the Spectrum
Happy Fourth of July, 2021! This Active Duty Navy spouse and mother of two children (who require special love and attention) is proud of her Sailor. Navigating life in the military and watching my husband climb the ranks fills me with such honor toward his service. While I’m updating my next business plan or gathering…