Something Special

Well it’s official, one of my paintings is going to be featured on the cover of Something Special Magazine! It is a painting of Hailey and I can’t disclose which one, you’ll have to check back soon to see it. “Something Special” is a Magazine that is both a hard copy publication and an online publication. It is a magazine that is dedicated to helping parents who are raising children with special needs by offering resources, giving helpful hints on therapies, vacations, food, just about anything that you can think of. This is a free publication and a well written and informative resource to have. They write featured articles on many topics such as learning differences, behavioral issues, personal care and many feel good and inspirational stories as well. The woman who interviewed me was such a sweetheart and a kind and understanding soul. It’s as if she knew me for a very long time. The magazine covers a wide spectrum of disorders. You can find articles on Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Autism, Chromosome Disorders, Tourette’s Syndrome and Juvenile Diabetes just to name a few. I am not sure which I am more excited about, the fact that my painting is being featured on the cover of such a wonderful magazine, or the fact that Hailey is going to be featured on the cover of a magazine! As you all know, it is this grandmother’s opinion that Hailey is already the most beautiful girl in the world, I think her beautiful blue eyes should be on the cover of every magazine, because she is that beautiful and her contagious smile just happens to light up all of Boston Massachusetts. Our cover is the upcoming FAll issue, coming real soon. Do me a favor, in the interim, while we patiently wait for it to be published, show these great folks some love and support, head on over to their facebook page, and tell them that Janet from Painting for Hailey sent you! Can you guess which painting of Hailey they chose? Which one do you think is worthy of a cover? If you live in the Georgia area, this magazine is easy to find you can pick one up in Savannah, Pooler, Macon, Atlanta and Charleston.

Marvel Creates Deaf Superhero

This is just plain awesome.  Original article can be found here.

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Marvel Comics has a new character with a unique inspiration—a little boy. Four-year-old comic book fan Anthony Smith was born without a right ear and only partial hearing in his left. He needs the help of a hearing aid. But one morning he woke up and told his mom he didn't want to wear it anymore. Why? Because superheroes don't wear hearing aids, he declared.

Perturbed, Smith's mother emailed comics giant Marvel, inquiring about characters that might have share Anthony's struggle. The next day, they presented him with a picture of a hero called Hawkeye, who also sports a hearing aid. And they went even further, inventing a brand-new hero based on Anthony named "Blue Ear," the same moniker Anthony and his mom have always used for his hearing apparatus. They sent him a drawing, and he was so encouraged that he's been keeping his hearing aid in ever since. Kind of makes you want to give the guys at Marvel a big ol' hug.

Meet the Blue Ear.

The Most Beautiful Things

I was so grateful Jocalyn shared this trailer and film on her blog. It truly inspired me for many reasons, so I thought I'd share it! Here is the trailer and the actual, full film. Truly amazing.

Bringing Visibility to Disability

The Holland Bloorview Kids Rehab Hospital launched a contest called Film Possible. This contest brought about filmmakers of all ages and abilities to create 73 incredible videos about bringing visibility to disability. The Film Possible judges and voters narrowed the field to six. You can preview the top six videos and vote your favorite here. If you're anything like me, the only problem will be picking just one! Voting closes October 29th, so be sure to stop by soon. The videos are all under 2 minutes -- they are inspiring, funny and definitely worth just a few minutes of your time!

"Different... Not Less"

Temple Grandin: an HBO Movie.

Special Needs Issues Go Prime Time

I've noticed in recent weeks a few prime time episodes that have touched on special needs, and for the most part, these scenes have touched me. Let me share some snippets....

First, there was the "Wheels" episode on gLee. Let me tell you what, even if you detest all things Glee, I still insist that you watch the episode in its entirety here, if you haven't watched it already. Trust me, it will get to your emotions. Although it will take some time, I think it's worth it.

Here is the main star of that episode, Artie, singing a song about how he feels left out of the crowd because of being in a wheelchair....





Next up, also on gLee, the students think they have a competition in the bag because their opponents are from the deaf school. However, when the deaf students sing 'Imagine' using ASL, the students realize there is more to music than singing abilities. I was a puddle of tears when I watched this....





And last, but not least, Desperate Housewives.

A doctor told Lynette that her baby might be born with some mental or physical problem. Lynette then starts to think of her life and how it would change when she would have to deal with a disabled child.




First, we see Lynette in a desperate (no pun intended) state as she tries to do some movement exercises to the baby. Tom encourages and then demands from Lynette to try her best and that she is only frustrated because she chooses to not try harder. The next scene really blew me away. There is no music and not much dialogue to explain the scene. It starts with the disabled child being around 10 years old and asking for a sandwich. After being constantly asked, Lynette tells her son to go make one himself. The son gets really irritated but Lynette keeps pushing him because she feels that he needs to do stuff for himself. The kid finally makes a sandwich and smiles to Lynette. The episode then cuts to the son (around a decade older) graduating [from law school] and thanking his mother for pushing him and making him achieve in many aspects of life (quoted from Inside Pulse.)

My personal favorite part was this line from the son's graduation speech:

"[When she first found out about my condition], my mother was scared.... scared of my disability, my limitations.... then she realized what she was really scared of was my potential and that she'd miss something that would help me reach it. Ghandi said, "Strength does not come from a physical capacity; it comes from an indominable will." ...Every day of my life, [my mother] showed me how true [that saying] is."

This episode is also worth a few minutes of your time. Go here and fast forward to about 30 minutes in if you haven't watched it already. You'll be glad you did.

Have you seen any other special needs issues come up on television? What are your thoughts/feelings when TV attempts to portray life with special needs?