eSpecially Ben

My memories of Sagamore Hill , home of Teddy Roosevelt , are all wonderful. I visited there numerous times as a child, teenager and adult. I have not been back in more than twelve years, but everything is as I remembered it. When in New York for Thanksgiving, I suggested we all visit. This meant my sister's family with three kids and my family too. We had some concerns about how the kids, all six under the age of seven would react to an old house with a lot of history. We never gave a minutes thought about how we might be received by the Park Rangers. That single omission turned our trip into a memorable one that we will be talking about 10 Thanksgivings from now. The estate that the house and museum sit on are magnificent. Our kids had a ball climbing trees, running, jumping and chasing each other around. We even hiked a trail through the woods that lead to the beach, something I had never done before. When we arrived at the museum with all the kids in tow and Ben in a str

Going out with a child who has disabilities can be an emotionally, physically and mentally draining event. Where can I park? Do they have accessible restrooms? Will people stare at us? What if my child decides to make a lot of noise? How will I get my child around? Because of these questions and worries, I am not surprised that there are always so few children with special needs out at Discovery Place, Imaginon, Nature Museum and all the other places Charlotte has to offer. It can be a terrifying thing to do! The first few times I took Ben out in his walker, I fought tears the entire time – tears for being so proud of him and for being scared of the possibilities, good and bad. In the 6 years that we have been taking Ben places, we have had one uncomfortable situation where a parent did not address their child’s rude comment. Other than that, we have many children come up and ask questions about Ben, his walker and why he is the way he is. I always make it a point to thank the child