CaféMom introduces the YouTube series Our Special Lives. Each episode features a different family with a special needs child and we’re able to take a look into their lives, their challenges and their joys.
In the second episode we get to know Emma and her parents Lori and Scott Planson.
When Emma was born, she couldn’t open her eyes. Lori and Scott were first time parents, so they thought eventually she would be able to open them, until the pediatrician told them that Emma’s eyes were underdeveloped and that she was blind.
Initially, the doctors said she would have no sight at all, but Emma now has some light and color perception. Lori and Scott noticed it on a very special day. “The Christmas lights were up and she (Emma) would go up and feel all the ornaments on the tree”, Lori tells us. “She would go to a light and look at it and she would go to another light and looked at that. And she’d ask us ‘what is this’ and we would say, “That’s a red light.” “She would say ‘what is this’ and we’d say “that’s a green light’. Before long, she said red light, green light, blue light. She started telling us what they were.” “That was an awesome Christmas for sure”.
Lori and Scott want Emma to have a normal childhood. She started learning Braille in preschool, but she also takes part in typical childhood activities such as Girl’s Scouts, gymnastics classes, etc.
“If you treat your child different than a typical child they’re going to think they’re different in a major way,” says Lori. “With Emma, she knows she has certain modifications but she will never be treated differently in this house than any other child”.
“When you’re raising a child with a disability its hard, you get so frustrated, but on the flipside it’s so awesome when you figure out how to make something happen or you see progress and it’s so worth all that time that you’re unsure or had anxiety about.”
“The biggest thing I could tell other families is – It’s going to be okay”
Watch the previous episode: Autism
About CafeMom Studios
CafeMom Studios (www.youtube.com/CafeMomStudios) is a lifestyle network for today’s digital generation of moms that recognizes that motherhood isn’t all about parenting, but becoming a mom does change your perspective. CafeMom Studios offers a broad array of original content that transports viewers into the lives of compelling moms. The programming is entertaining and authentic, revealing the wonder and diversity of motherhood.
About CafeMom
CafeMom is the leading media company for moms, reaching an audience of more than 20MM across our properties (comScore, July 2012), which include CafeMom.com, MamásLatinas.com, CafeMom Studios, and the CafeMom Plus Network. CafeMom is the leader in developing custom programs for top brands, making it the premier strategic marketing partner to brands that want to reach moms in a rapidly changing digital environment. CafeMom lead investors are Highland Capital Partners and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. The company was founded by Andrew Shue and Michael Sanchez.
