Halloween is a holiday that I look on more fondly now that my kids have just about outgrown it. I don’t mean to be glass half-empty, but it can be seriously challenging for neurodiverse families.Now that most of my kids would rather hand out candy then go door-to-door for it, we can just sit back and enjoy the costumes. So, I offer you a few things as a neurodiverse parent who for years went into Halloween not knowing whether the memories for that year were going to be good or otherwise: first, a frank and sadly true comment from someone…
Author: Lee Lynch
October is National Book Month, and it’s also (through October 15) National Hispanic Heritage Month (proper care and diagnosis is a significant challenge for neurodiverse Latinas and Latinos). Plus, we recently launched our first book – Rocket Around Washington DC, so there are three great reason for us to focus on inclusive books. What is an inclusive book? A clear definition is hard to come by, but this quote sums it up beautifully:“When kids can see themselves in books that they read about, and they read about characters who look like them and have families like them and live like…
In the midst of this National Literacy Month and on the cusp of National Book Month (October), we are thrilled to announce the release of our first visual adventure guide book for kids – Rocket Around Washington DC. This book – available in print (here) and eBook (here) formats – is special to us for five reasons. First, it’s been a part of our lives for so long, Emma calls it the seventh member of our family. More than two years ago, as the pandemic kept us cooped up, we hatched the idea for Rocket Around, and today it is finally a reality. Second, Rocket –…
As a family of travelers, traveling for us means the three p’s: planning, photos and paperbacks (or audiobooks, but that doesn’t start with ‘p’=). We’ve blogged a lot about planning, and shared many pictures along the way, but we haven’t talked much about books, outside of our reviews section and a blog that mentions the Library of Congress (fun fact – the LOC apparently receives a copy of every book ever copyrighted but they don’t keep them all – they keep those they believe are worth keeping in their libraries dispose of the rest – ouch!).I love bringing books along on a trip, both because I can’t fall asleep…
Having just gotten back from rocketing around New England, I am reminded how much the travel backpack matters.Home base was Connecticut, and from there we did day trips to New York City and Rhode Island, plus a two-night excursion to Maine with a stop in New Hampshire on the return to CT.Anticipating these day and overnight excursions, we brought along backpacks that we’d bought before a trip to Switzerland and Germany.Every time we’d do an excursion, family members were responsible for packing and carrying their own backpack. This does three things – first, it lightens the load on mom and dad, second, it teaches our…
I’ve struggled to get one of our kids to engage in our trips. He’s always along for the ride, but not really interested except on rare occasions (e.g., if we go to a baseball game, sports museum, or beach). Usually, he’s using his headphones to listen to music on his iPhone as we wander around great places like Berlin or Miami, take in beautiful natural settings like mountains or lakes, or ride planes, trains and automobiles across states and countries. Getting him to take them out is a battle and the complaining begins as soon as his smart phone battery is drained – “When can we go back to the house…
Florida is both the U.S. state most visited by tourists and has the number 1 tourist destination in the U.S. Last year Disney World in Orlando welcomed 74 million visitors, nearly achieving pre-pandemic levels. From Disney to the Everglades, the state is dotted with cities, beaches, and, attractions that draw neurodiverse families from all over the world. This second segment in our multi-part blog series offering online and printable games and activities to keep neurodiverse families happy while traveling features activities both created by Rocketaround.com and by others about the beautiful state of Florida. Happy travels! State of Florida activities https://village-npb.org/731/Online-Resources-for-Children https://mrnussbaum.com/florida-interactive-map http://www.apples4theteacher.com/usa-states/florida/ Jacksonville https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jacksonville-activity-book-for-kids-jacksonville-beach-moms/1142270005 – $$ Miami Rocketaround.com Miami…
Our neurodiverse family has always brought games – e.g., word searches, fast facts, scavenger hunts – along for adventures. Some of us have pretty short attention spans, so these go-to activities are for when the adventure is longer than our attention span. For example, I could spend hours wandering around any Smithsonian Museum; several of my kids can hang for about half the time it takes me to feel like I’ve had a worthwhile visit. Also, car, train, and plane rides can feel kind of torturous for my kids, but games break up the monotony. Which kinds of games work…
Over the past few months, I’ve reached out to people in the neurodiverse community whose perspectives I enjoy reading or hearing and asked them to ‘partner’ with me – i.e., let me share their perspectives through Rocketaround.com. Rocketaround.com is pleased to introduce you to one of these individuals, Michael John Carley – an amazing man who wears many hats – Editor-in-Chief, author, blogger, school and business consultant, program director, neurodiverse advocate, adventurer, father, and the list goes on. Below is an email about ‘Summuh Reading’ he sent to his followers/listserve this week and I thought you might enjoy it. The topics it covers…
Okay, so I missed publishing this on Father’s Day, which was my original plan. But we were traveling on that day and since then so we’ll just say this was published during Father’s Week. And anyway, fathers in neurodiverse families deserve a whole week to celebrate them and the difference they make for their families. The Dad in our neurodiverse family is an amazing partner and friend – he makes us laugh often, which we need and understands when we’re down or frustrated. He’s an excellent planner of our various adventures, and a crack photographer whose artistic eyes capture what…