In this episode of Parenting Impossible, Host Annette Hines and her husband Mark Worthington discuss issues surrounding sending children back to school in the Fall. Annette addresses the additional challenges kids in the special needs community are facing during this transition period and shares her experience with distance learning. “This pandemic has given us an opportunity to look at our educational system for all children with fresh eyes – but particularly for our children with special needs,” says Annette. “Let’s put all our preconceived notions aside about education, wipe the slate clean, and start fresh. Here are only a few…

Back when my children were little, homeschooling was still a bit more radical than it is today given the current pandemic. For those of you who don’t know me, I was raising two daughters mostly alone after an early divorce. My oldest, Elizabeth, was profoundly disabled, blind, wheelchair-bound, intellectually impaired, and nonverbal. She was a 29-week preemie and very medically fragile. She was funny and sweet and loved butterflies. Diagnosed with a life-limiting mitochondrial disease at age 2 ½, we, unfortunately, lost her when she was 17. Then there was my youngest daughter Caroline, who I don’t talk about or…

Music therapy is a subject near and dear to Parenting Impossible Host Annette Hine’s heart. In this episode, Roman Music Therapy Services Executive Director Meredith Roman Pizzi joins Annette for an in-depth discussion on the difference music therapy can make in the lives of special needs families. Ms. Pizzi is a thought leader and a passionate champion for the music therapy profession. She’s devoted her career to developing business models for the delivery of music therapy services and is an advocate for music therapy on the systems level. Ms. Pizzi founded several music therapy organizations and programs, including Roman Music …

The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly changed almost every aspect of our lives. This includes how we work, socialize, and learn. In Episode 59 of Parenting Impossible, Host Annette Hines and guest Dr. Ingrid Amorini-Klimek address what special needs education could look like in the future. Dr. Amorini-Klimek is a lifelong advocate for special needs families, the sister of a special needs brother, and has extensive experience as a special education teacher. For many years, she worked as an administrator for a large educational system but said, “Over time she became disappointed in the bureaucracy that failed to listen to the…

Certified Financial Planner Rob Wrubel joins Annette Hines all the way from Colorado Springs, Colorado for this episode of Parenting Impossible. Rob focuses on financial planning for families with special-needs members. It’s a community familiar to him both professionally and personally. Rob is the father to three children, including his 17-year-old daughter Sarah who has Down Syndrome. He is also an author and has written books titled, “Financial Freedom for Special Needs Families,” as well as “Protect Your Family, Life Insurance Basics For Social Needs Planning.” Rob is getting ready to release a new book titled “Special Needs Trusts in…

In the Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District case of March 2017, the Supreme Court reviewed the educational rights guaranteed under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The heart behind this case was the IDEA’s requirement that states provide all eligible children with a “free appropriate public education” (FAPE) through individualized education programs (IEPs) that could be tailored to their unique needs.   As a result, the Court developed upon its analytic framework for FAPE: The Court  unanimously agreed that 1. Individualized education programs must be appropriately ambitious in light of (a student’s) circumstances, and 2. Every child…