a little background

hi, my name is mandy and I have two amazing little boys. My oldest son, Ty, has been diagnosed with autism (which is what you will read most about in this blog); I also have Tripp, who is an amazing little brother to Ty (who you will also hear alot about). I was encouraged to start this blog to document our journey through life and life with autism... my world has been rocked in last few years and i have responded in good ways and bad ... but Jesus has gotten me through all of it...





i hope i can be an encouragement to you, and for the friends and family that will read this - maybe this will keep you posted indepth on what Ty is learning! :) and the adventures of Tripp too





thank you for reading, and if you have any questions, comments or smart remarks; feel free to post them.



Friday, April 11, 2014

Disney...

I've heard a lot about Disney World and their policy change on allowing people with disabilities the right to skip lines at the theme parks. Here's the low down - apparently in the past if you had autism or another disability you were allowed access to the front of the line for the rides - I assume you would still have to wait if there was another individual and their group in front of you who also either had autism or another disability?? And now the rule is - that's no good anymore because people abused it. Well first off - how terrible that people would lie and abuse the system. Second - we need to calm down. Now there is a lot of backlash from the autism community over this change and people claiming discrimination and even suing Disney because of it? Really? I haven't personally been to Disney since college, and now that I've done the math in my head I won't tell you how long that's been BUT, Disney was always fun and most of the rides and the lines were overwhelming for a typical person, so I can imagine it would be a sensory overload to anyone with a disability especially autism. However, I don't think that gives you a right to sue. I do think it means that workers should be trained and ready to react in a pleasant way to anyone they come across, whether that's an unhappy screaming 2 year old or someone who is having a melt down because their mind and body physically can't handle whats going on around them. But not to sue. Disney is a business and they are a business that captures your attention and your pocket book from the moment you walk in the gates. From what I remember there are lots and lots of things to do and see and especially if it's your first time - then everything will captivate you! All of the movies and cartoons come to life and you enter a world that is filled with overpriced trinkets and lasting memories. But for an advocacy group to sue a theme park over waiting in line seems a bit much in my book. They do offer fast passes and from what I understand you can plan and maneuver through the park pretty easily with those? Yes waiting can cause meltdowns and an unhappy experience - but what if everyone that showed up at Disney had a disability and they all demanded to jump to the front of the line? How would they choose who got to go first? I'm not saying that this isn't hard and that being granted a straight shot to the front wouldn't be ideal, BUT come on? Let's also think about that family that is coming to Disney because cancer might take them and they want a fun memory. Or the one's that saved up and sacrificed for years just to make their kids happy. Disney takes planning - But demanding to go to the front of the line and not getting it, so you sue is not the answer. Last time I checked I was not given a pass at walmart to skip everyone because we don't like to wait in line, or any other store? But no one is suing them? Disney is suppose to be fun and we are all being a bit selfish and over reacting if this is what our focus is on? How about therapy and funding for schools? Let's advocate for that - not a front row seat to a theme park?


I'm sure I will get positive and negative reactions to this post and I get it. My intention is not to piss anyone off but to just give a different perspective. If they had done something harmful to someone it would be different. But from what I can see from the outside all they have tried to do is make people happy and we all know that you can't make everyone happy.