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The Windmill Project Midwest Area Newsletter
August 1, 2001
Hey… Have You Heard?
Back to School Training For Parents!
Topics include:
*An overview of mental health disabilities
*Federal and state law on special education
*Strategies for success at school
*Parents and professionals: how can we make this work?
*Sensory Integration and behavioral strategies
The same workshop will be held at two locations.
Monday, Aug. 20, 8:30 am to 1:00 pm
Holiday Inn, 2365 43rd St. N.W. Owatonna, MN
For directions call, Holiday Inn @ 507-466-8900
Thursday, Aug. 23, 8:30 am to 1:00 pm
Hilton North, 2200 Freeway Blvd., Brooklyn Center, MN
For directions call, Hilton North @ 763-566-8000
The workshop is free for parents. Continental breakfast and
snacks will be provided.
Class size is limited, call MACMH @ 1-800-528-4511 to
reserve your space.
Do You Have Questions About Special
Education?
Check out the Minnesota Special Education Website. It provides information for
parents, professionals, and others interested in the education of children with
disabilities and their families.
http://cfl.state.mn.us/speced
Terry Beck (Regional Windmill Project) is assisting Karry Udvig and Amy Ortega
in putting together a group of parents whose children receive mental health
services reimbursable through MA. The information gathered will be used to help
identify training and education needs, and provide information to the department
on where additional services are needed or how current services need to be
changed to meet the needs of children and families. This would be a one-time
meeting, during the week of Aug. 13th or Aug. 21st, location yet to be
determined. If you are interested in helping, please contact Terry Beck @
1-877-286-3892 or
tbeck_wm_atn@hotmail.com
A Child Lost…
Our deepest sympathy goes out to the Paul & Joan Kirkeide family of Herman. We
are saddened by the sudden loss of their daughter Nicole. Our thoughts and
prayers are with them during this difficult time.
What Do You Think?
The following is an overview of the results from the surveys returned to me so
far. I mailed out 49 surveys, and received 2 requests to be removed from the
mailing list, and 18 completed surveys. If you haven't had a chance to fill them
out and mail them back please do so A.S.A.P., this is your chance to let me know
what activities your family considers a worthy use of our family support
dollars. Thanks.
- The idea of a family directory was well received, so I
will begin working on that this fall. I will respect the wishes of the few
families who don't wish to be listed or contacted or have their photo used.
- 3/4 of our families have access to a computer and the
Internet and would likely use a website offered by Windmill Project. Again,
I will start working on it this fall, but this is a larger project and not
one within my current range of expertise. My goal is to have it up and
running in less than one year's time. Only four families showed interest in
setting up a chat room time, so I will think on that some more. It's not
ruled out yet.
- Of the responding families, only one-half have ever
attended a regional retreat in Alexandria, and most of them have only gone
1-3 times. The barriers preventing the families' attendance were pretty
evenly split, but each family averaged 2-3 barriers. The families who
attended the retreat the most frequently also seemed the least interested in
it becoming a Saturday only event. However, the response from all of the
families suggested that this was one way to allow more families to take part
in the retreat.
- Only one family had never attended a local retreat in
Morris, and they are new to the area. Most families have attended more than
four retreats. The pizza/swim parties have been a huge hit with everyone.
Most families were willing to explore other options, but few suggestions
were given as to what new activities to try. At last count, the family prom
idea had received 8-no, 5-yes, 1-maybe and 3-don't knows. This may be
something we try once and then gage family response. The summer potluck with
a kite-fly was also well received, with the majority of you wanting it to be
in Morris every year. We will start that next summer.
- It seems that everyone wants as much information as
they can get, with the preferred distribution method pretty evenly split.
Most, though, liked the print materials and a professional speaker, so we'll
start there.
- The parents only dinner and discussion received 1-no,
9-yes, 2-maybe and 5-don't knows. This is something I'd like to try this
year, but it will depend on funding after the other two local retreats and
the website start-up, etc.
- Sib-shops received 1-high priority; 4-same, 8-not a
huge priority at this time, and 4-don't knows. This is something that can
change as the current siblings age or the only-children have siblings down
the road. At any rate, it seemed to rank as a lower priority to most
families than the starting of a website.
Life Lessons
As families that include children who have special needs, we do not have the
same freedoms that many other families take for granted. For instance, we often
times do not have the freedom to come and go at will. Our days are based not
only on our own schedules, but on the schedules our children must keep with
various professionals, and by and large, on the schedules of those professionals
as well.
For many of us, just getting out of the house takes extra
planning. But getting out of the house and having a good time at the planned
event, or simply finishing your errands, almost requires an Act of God.
By leaving your home, you have already deemed the
destination worthy of your time. Success is hard work. The enjoyment you
experience will almost always be equal to the level of your preparation. My
husband and I found our outings went better if we prepared Ben to receive the
new environment, and prepared the new environment to receive Ben. This statement
means different things to different people. What it means to you should be based
on your child's specific special needs and your expectations as a family of what
is to occur that day.
In our case, Ben's health required the temperature to be
neither too hot nor too cold. This made outside activities nearly impossible at
certain times of the year. But, if we could insure that there would be a refuge
nearby, such as someone's home, or a public building, or our van, then we were
more likely to attend the event as a family and have it be as successful for us
as it was capable of being.
Your child will have his or her own requirements to
participating in family activities, and you as parents will have your own
"tricks of the trade" to make the day go as smoothly as possible.
Days Like Ours
Spaghetti Pie
1 pkg. (6oz.) spaghetti noodles, cooked and drained.
2 T. butter
1/3 C. Parmesan cheese
2 eggs, well beaten
¾ C. cottage cheese
1 lb. Ground beef or pork sausage
¼ C. green pepper, chopped
½ C. onion, chopped
1 jar (28 oz.) prepared spaghetti sauce
½ C. mozzarella cheese, shredded
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook noodles to pkg.
directions and drain. Stir butter, parmesan cheese and egg together, stir in
noodles to coat. In a 9 inch buttered pie plate, form noodle mixture into a
crust. Spread the crust with cottage cheese. In a skillet, cook beef or pork,
onions and green peppers until meat is browned. Drain fat and add spaghetti
sauce. Heat thoroughly. Spread meat and sauce mixture onto noodle crust. Bake at
350 degrees for 20 minutes. Top with mozzarella cheese and continue baking until
cheese melts (about 8 minutes). Makes 8 servings.
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