aVERY BRIGHT LIFE

I hate being cold. And I hate bending. So trying to teach Avery to ice skate was a perfect storm. An ice storm, if you will. This episode is about how activities like swimming, riding a bike and skating are things we usually teach our kids at some point. But, for some of us achieving these skills feels impossible. And we feel guilty about that, so we keep trying. And sometimes we get frustrated and sweaty and sweary about it. But we want our kids to enjoy the same typical childhood activities as their peers. 

Also, there's a story about a boy and a big white helmet that makes me laugh out loud. 

Here's the link to the aVery Bright Life Resource Page with links to Programs, Services and Resources for Youth with Disabilities. 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

Some topics, like the atrocities inflicted upon our indigenous people, are hard enough for most of us to comprehend. But how do you explain residential schools and the horrific treatment of children to our kids whose intellectual and developmental disabilities make experiences like these so hard to grasp? 

This episode was published, today, September 30th—Orange Shirt Day and our first National Day of Truth and Reconciliation—which is a prime example of the tough talks we have with our kiddos. 

These topics are definitely tough to tackle, but we can't assume people with cognitive disabilities can't comprehend big issues. Children and young adults with intellectual disabilities should be included in these conversations. We just need to be mindful of the vocabulary we use and also try to end discussions with a positive call to action or an explanation of what we can do to help or make things better. 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

I'm not a perfect parent and I'm not always positive, but here are five perfectly positive parenting tricks that work for us. These can be applied to kids with disabilities or kids who are simply pushing their parents' buttons. Parenting is hard. We all need strategies that work. Plus, a story/rant about a mom at Walmart who had a tantrum in front of Avery and I. Avery shares her thoughts on that. Then I offer some delicious and unsolicited breakfast ideas because... tangent. LOL! 

Content Warning: Language (just a tiny bit 🤷‍♀️)

Link to: How To Spoil Your Kids Awesome 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

You'd think talking would be easy and natural, but it's not. Speech is complex. And it certainly doesn't come easily or naturally to many kids with disabilities. My kiddo included. In this episode we share seven strategies that have proven helpful to us in our efforts to help Avery speak more fluently. There is also a list of our favourite "Avery-isms" thrown in for fun. With her permission of course. 

Check out my friend Kathy Buckworth's new podcast/radio show... Go To Grandma 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

This episode starts with an apology (from me) and ends with a high school update from Avery. And somewhere in the middle, there's a story about a snot sandwich. So, this one's a winner folks. You don't want to miss it! 🤣

Here's the link to the sweet Instagram post from @angelarepke.

***

This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

This is an admittedly self-indulgent and possibly dramatic episode. But, everyone I love is leaving me this week!! My husband returned to work after being home for over a year. Avery is leaving for high school. And my son is headed to university tomorrow. And I'm sad. But I'm pretending not to be. So, please enjoy my discomfort. Oh, and there's also the story about how my son upped the dramatic tension by passing out cold in his room yesterday. It's okay, he's fine. But yikes. Fainting offspring is not for the faint of heart. 

***

This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

Looking for the positive is a good thing. Until it's not. Some circumstances in life are just profoundly sad. Shaming people into trying to find the positive in tragic situations is not helpful. This episode is about toxic positivity with personal examples geared toward the disability community. It's also about how NOT to be "that" person by doing these things instead. 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

Hey! It's Sponge Lisa Tight Pants here. We spongey empath types tend to soak up the vibe around us so when the world is hurting, we hurt too. So, in an effort to avoid dwelling on the dark and heavy feelings, we're trying to highlight some of the bright, fluffy, happy, cute things that are all around us. 

Based on the wildly popular and positive TikTok trend where people are listing the little inconsequential things that people do that make them happy, this is our list.

We'd love to hear what little human (or animal) behaviours bring you joy. 

Watch: #cutethingspeopledo on TikTok. 

Read: Sponge Lisa Tight Pants

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury.

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Partnership Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

If you like Grey's Anatomy, you'll love this episode. It's the perfect mixture of medicine and drama. LOL! This is our experience with otoplasty or ear correction surgery. As with so many topics around disability, this one also has an element of "why would you do that you ableist parent!?" There are some who say that parents don't have the right to make decisions about altering their child's physical appearance or to "fix" their differences. Major decisions like these require the patient's consent. I get it. I do. But alas, when Avery was five years old, she had her ears pinned back (they don't actually "pin" them by the way). This episode is about why we went ahead with the surgery and what the procedure and recovery were like. Avery provide her input and I answer the question..."Knowing what I know now, would we make the same choice?" 

For all the medical details and to learn more about otoplasty AND to see before/after photos including the one where Avery looks like Willie Nelson, follow this link to the blog.

***

This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury. 

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Advertising Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜

I'm in the midst of a nasty bout of insomnia. So whilst I'm lying awake at night, I have pretend conversions with anti-vaxers and anti-maskers and I try to figure them out. I aim to be more empathetic than judgemental. Sometimes I succeed, and other times I scream into my pillow. 

These are my thoughts. Scattered as they are. 

Bottom line... I want my friends and family to be healthy and safe. And I want what we all want, for this god awful pandemic to finally be over. 

Sorry for the audio. Again. I think I may be cursed, technically. 

I accidentally deleted Avery's joke at the end. That's okay, it wasn't funny anyway. LOL! 

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This podcast was recorded in Garageband and edited by Lisa Thornbury. Lisa needs a professional sound person. 

Read more and find the transcript for this episode at averybrightlife.com.

And, come chat with us on social! No seriously, c'mon over! It's fun there.

Instagram: @LisaThornbury

Facebook: aVERY Bright life (formerly Forever In Mom Genes)

Twitter: @LisaThornbury

Questions or Advertising Inquiries: [email protected]

Have a comment, question, episode suggestion or just want to say hello? We’d love to hear from you! Message us old-timey style by commenting on our podcast page. Or show us your techie and leave an AUDIO message via the Anchor messaging button! We might even use your voice message in an upcoming episode!

Thanks for listening. 💜