It's hard to believe that this Saturday, November 17th, will mark the first anniversary of Sometimes The Wind Blows Sideways: Our Lives With a Special Needs Child.

The idea for this book came to me after many years of searching for answers about child's disabiity, and feeling alone in my situation. I knew that there must be others  who also felt isolated, so I set out on a mission to unite all of these families. Regardless of what our child's disabilites are, we all still struggle to understand and feel acceptance.

To celebrate you can now purchase the book at 50% off ! Simply visit CreateSpace.Com/3703816 and enter the discount code:F9RGRB28. This offer will good until Saturday November 24th, 2012.

I want to thank everyone who contributed a story to the book. Your words have helped others to realize that they are not alone in their journey.

As summer came to an end, the vibrant life that once thrived has withered into a colorful array of dry crisp leaves, and cool autumn nights. With the passing of another season came an unexpected and seemingly non-stop continuum of bad luck along my way, leaving me to figure out how to balance my life and still uphold my obligations.

The past eight weeks has flown by with a blur of ill health, bad luck, and dire situations for my immediate family and those surrounding me. With that I have one thing to say to the Universe: “We have served our time and are ready for better things.”

I am not in the circus, yet I constantly find myself trying to juggle work, family, and home. When I give my attention to one, the other two seem to drop to the floor because I could not keep them up while focusing on the first task. How do the performers (clowns or other parents) mange to keep all three parts of their core up and running without disrupting the delicate balance?

For each core part of my life, I have chosen a core counterpart to help me keep the balance. I am hoping that if I apply these philosophies, then each piece will be easier to manage. From now on, here are my new rules to live by:

*Take time for myself (Yes, I am allowed to take a nap or a long shower without having to feel guilty)

*Learn to say no (having a calendar that is always booked solid causes more stress. From now on I am going to only choose the most important opportunities and kindly say no to all others.)

*Stop feeling guilty if I can’t accomplish something (sometimes things are simply out of your control and there is nothing you can do about it.)

There are eight weeks left until the end of the year. I am going to make these the polar opposite of the past eight weeks and end the year on a good note. So now if you will excuse me, I have a long bath and a cozy nap by the fire to take before I go clear my calendar.