Morgan's Wonderland

I had a wonderful experience at this place. Being the parent of mentally disabled kiddos, Morgan's had an emotional impact on me.

This theme park is built with kids with special needs in mind. The jeep ride has jeeps with tailgates that fold down and allows wheelchairs to slide onboard. The carousel does the same thing. Along with normal swings, they have swingsets that are built for wheelchairs and ones that will snug in a kid safely. They also have playgrounds with jungle equipment with ramps and walkways for wheeling kids. They have interactive video screens where kids can play the weatherman or have butterflies land on them, or marbles pile up on them, or fish that swarm around them. It's a very cool virtual experience. They also have a sand pit and a water area to give the kids the chance to touch and feel their world. It's a place where these little heroes can go and just have fun being a kid.

There is a lot to like about this place, but what really got to me was that close to 70% of the people there were handicapped and/or special needs and they were suddenly accepted for who they are. Having a kid like that can be uncomfortable in public at times. Kids tend to do unusual things occasionally, but at least those things aren't consistent. One of my daughters smells and touches EVERYTHING (people included). Another has to hug and talk to everyone and then has to get me to shake hands with them. She is difficult to understand and has no sense of personal space. A lot of people just don't know how to react to them. I've seen people scowl at, get annoyed at, get frightened of, or gawk at my kids. On the other hand, I've seen my kids touch people's hearts in ways that us "normal" people can't.

What was so special to me about Morgan's Wonderland was that my kids, just like all the other special needs kids, were suddenly the "normal" ones. The adults there, like myself, understood each other and our families. I felt like there was an overall atmosphere of comfort. I didn't have to worry about awkward moments. I felt like my family belonged and no one was looked at unfavorably or as being "strange". I'm not saying that society always gives the impression my kids are outcasts or don't belong when we're in public, but there are those all too often awkward moments.

I'm really thankful that a place like this exists. Maybe one day it won't be the only one of it's kind in the world. This place made me really happy and got me a little choked up. Seeing all the special needs kiddos enjoying themselves and doing activities that aren't possible at your local park or theme park was definitely a wonderful experience. Finally, there is an entire place outside of their home that belongs to them and where they are completely accepted and recognized as people of value.

Grunt

Sometimes seizures will spark more talking or new words. Sometimes they cause slowness and unbalance. And sometimes..... they cause strange new grunts with a weird sort of tune.

Nikki has had some bad seizures again. She seems back to normal after almost two full days of being “out of it” and not being her normal self. Tonight, she is alert and oriented x3 and has been going around making these tuneful grunts with a smile. It’s weird, wonderful and funny.

I love it when she smiles and is happy.