At its heart, EOWD is about our family’s journey of navigating daily life as a caregiver with aspirations, while realizing and coming to terms with my own neurodivergence and figuring out my place on the spectrum.
Long before EOWD became a website and evolving resource, it was our family mantra. It was our way of describing how we moved through the world, made decisions, communicated, adapted, and kept going. Today, EOWD is the core of my being.
My goal with Exploring Our World Differently is to encompass my past, present, and future journey and to share my stories as an individual and as a parent to a non-verbal adult on the autism spectrum. Over time, I will write about how we met or failed to meet the challenges that came our way. I will share with you my personal experiences and challenges in areas of personal and professional development. As a recruiter, I will share opportunities that enable work-life balance. Finally, as an avid reader, ongoing lifetime learner, and a huge proponent of personal development, I will share resources and quotes for positivity and growth.
It took a long time to work through life's challenges and overcome my fears to bring EOWD and EOWD Autism Living to the world. The autism and neurodivergent community is as incredibly unique as the spectrum is vast. No two individuals or families will share the same experiences or have the same needs.
In my experience, ASD families seem to spot each other relatively quickly. It is always a pleasure to meet a stranger who hesitantly approaches to ask the big question in a curious whisper, "Does your son have autism?". My understanding nod lends them relief and opens the doorway to the conversation. Over time, it inspired me to begin sharing our story.
There have been many times when a stranger has approached hesitantly and asked, in a curious whisper, “Does your son have autism?” My understanding nod would bring visible relief, opening the door to a conversation that usually carried the same message: You understand something about this life that most people do not.
My hope is that EOWD becomes a place where people feel less alone. A place where families can find encouragement without judgment. A place where autistic individuals and people with different abilities are seen with dignity. A place where caregivers are reminded that their lives, dreams, creativity, and well-being matter too.
Today, Exploring Our World Differently is growing into more than a personal blog. It is becoming a space for stories, resources, inclusive products, caregiver encouragement, affiliate recommendations, and future coaching support for families who are trying to build lives that work for them — not just lives that fit into someone else’s expectations.
I genuinely enjoy connecting with people and helping them explore opportunities that better support their goals, responsibilities, and quality of life. Thanks to technology, I have been blessed to work in hybrid roles since 2006 and in fully remote positions since 2012, through a combination of independent contractor and W-2 positions. When I am between recruiting roles, I lean into the gig economy, creative projects, blogging, ecommerce, affiliate marketing, and the continued development of EOWD.
Special needs families also often face difficult choices between family needs and career paths. I was fortunate to learn how to find and create work that allowed me to be available for my family while still building a professional life. My experience began in retail and expanded into mystery shopping, data entry, scheduling, sourcing, and eventually recruiting — work that became a true passion.
Every autistic person is unique. Every family experience is different. Still, there are shared moments that many parents, siblings, grandparents, caregivers, and supporters recognize — the uncertainty, the exhaustion, the fierce love, the learning curve, the advocacy, the joy, and the quiet victories that others may never fully see.
While some families experience a child who develops typically and then suddenly withdraws, I knew from the beginning that there was something very different about my child. He was not sick, but concerns were raised early. He met many physical milestones ahead of schedule and seemed to be a master escape artist by the time he was one year old. At the same time, his sensory and intellectual differences were apparent from infancy, along with significant delays in communication, play, and social interaction.
When Ted came into our lives in 2004, our perspective began changing for the better. His presence, patience, and understanding helped shape the life we have today. More to come on this later.
Although we were surrounded by well-intentioned and loving people, very few truly understood what we were experiencing. There were many times we felt stressed, isolated, and unsure of where to turn. Resources were limited, and even when help existed, we often did not know what to seek, where to find it, or how to access it. So we did what many families do. We followed instinct. We learned through trial and error. Some days were good. Some days were manageable. Many days were simply about survival.
As a family, we enjoy hiking, camping, fishing, and spending time outdoors, even though we do not get out there nearly as often as we would like. We are still working on that part. My husband, Ted, and I both work full-time. Ted works in a group home supporting adults with special needs, and I work from home as a recruiter, blogger, creative director, and full-time caregiver.
But while there have been challenges, there have also been countless joys. As a family, we have chosen to see life as an adventure — not always an easy one, not always a predictable one, but one filled with meaning, growth, love, and discovery.
We may not all travel the same path, communicate the same way, or experience the world through the same lens.But we can keep learning from each other. We can keep creating support where support has been missing. And together, we can keep exploring our world differently.
Today, Exploring Our World Differently is growing into more than a personal blog. It is becoming a space for stories, resources, inclusive products, caregiver encouragement, affiliate recommendations, and future coaching support for families who are trying to build lives that work for them — not just lives that fit into someone else’s expectations.
My hope is that EOWD grows into a place of inclusion, where people feel less alone. A place where families can find encouragement without judgment. A place where autistic individuals and people with different abilities are seen with dignity. A place where caregivers are reminded that their lives, dreams, creativity, and well-being matter too.
While I will share much of our personal journey, my intention is not to make EOWD solely about us.
Instead, my vision is to create a multifaceted resource for others walking similar paths — parents, caregivers, families, autistic adults, educators, advocates, and anyone seeking greater understanding, inclusion, connection, and support.
But while there have been challenges, there have also been countless joys. As a family, we have chosen to see life as an adventure — not always an easy one, not always a predictable one, but one filled with meaning, growth, love, and discovery.
Special needs families often need to make tough decisions between family and career. I was fortunate to learn how to find and create a work-life balance that enabled me to be available to my family and meet our unique needs. My experience in retail led to Mystery Shopping and Data entry, which led to scheduling, sourcing, and finally --- recruiting. My passion. I truly enjoy connecting with and helping others explore opportunities that better enable them to reach their goals. Thanks to technology, I have been blessed to work hybridly since 2006 and fully remote since 2012 between Independent Contract and W2 roles. When I'm between recruiting roles, I lean into the gig economy.
Our family’s journey has shaped nearly every part of our lives, including our finances, career choices, health and wellness, relationships, social life, daily routines, and long-term planning. Like many families supporting a loved one with different abilities, we have had to learn how to live outside of what the world often considers “normal.”
As parents and caregivers of individuals with different needs, we often become creative problem-solvers by necessity. We learn to think outside the box. We adjust plans. We listen differently. We communicate differently. In our family’s case, we have spent years developing a deep understanding of nonverbal communication, routines, sensory needs, and the many unspoken ways a person can express who they are, what they need, and how they experience the world.
As parents and caregivers to special needs individuals, we often live our lives outside of social norms, continually thinking outside the box, and developing our (at least in our case) non-verbal communication skills.
Although many have experienced a child who suddenly withdrew, I knew that there was something very different about my child from the beginning. He was not sick, but concerns were raised early. He was ahead in many physical milestones and seemed to be a master escape artist by the time he was one year old. However, his sensory and intellectual issues have been apparent since infancy, and he showed significant delays in communication, play, and socialization.While every person and family experience living on the Autism and Asperger spectrum is uniquely different, there are a lot of similarities with which parents, siblings, grandparents, and caregivers can empathize and learn from each other.
USE THIS FOR WELL INTENTIONED POST
Though many well-intentioned and loving people surround us, none understood what we were experiencing, leaving us feeling quite stressed and alone more often than not. With limited resources available, we did not even know what to seek, where, or how. So, we did what instinctively came to us. Some days were great, others were okay, and many were just about survival. When Ted came into our lives in 2004, our entire perspective began changing for the better, leading us to the life we have today.