Another AWESOME Giveaway!

I just entered and you should too! Florabella Actions is giving away (1) $200 GC and (1) gorgeous THEIT camera bag!

Amazing Contest from MCP Actions!

MCP Actions, the BEST blog featuring tons of photography tips, is having a contest for the Tamron 18-270mm Di II VC PZD Lens for Nikon, Canon or Sony dSLR Cameras!  Check it out and try to win it yourself....but if you win you have to promise to share with me :)

Win $5k & Help Kids with Learning Differences THRIVE in an AMAZING School!

There is an amazing little school tucked away in the suburbs of Lyndhurst, OH called Julie Billiart School.  Named after St. Julie Billiart, JB is a Catholic school sponsored by the Sisters of Notre Dame, accepting students of ALL faiths in grades K-8 with special learning needs.  Their unique teaching methods allow for students with Leaning Disabilities, ADHD, Asperger's Syndrome and other Autism Spectrum Disorders to thrive in a peaceful, safe environment.

My little sunshine, Logan, is in the 2nd grade at Julie Billiart School.  This is second year at this amazing school.  Many of you know that Logan is on the Autism Spectrum (maybe getting a diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome in the alphabet soup of diagnosis names since his original diagnosis at 2-years-old.)  Logan thrives in the small teacher to student ratio of two master's level teachers with 11 other classmates.  He receives Art Therapy, Music Therapy, Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy (both traditional and sensory), Social Skills Therapy and modified ABA as part of his regular daily curriculum.  It's a dream come true.  The school also offers students full access to emerging technologies with Smart Boards in every room and the use of Mac Books, where each student after grade 3 has their own to use during the school day.

Such amenities do come at a pricey tuition cost.  Most students, including Logan, are able to afford this wonderful opportunity through scholarships.  One of Julie Billiart's largest fundraising events takes place on October 2nd and is the Oktoberfest.  Tickets for the event can be purchased through the Oktoberfest link.

The greatest way that YOU can help Logan's school is buy purchasing a raffle ticket!  The winner of the drawing receives $5000!  The seller (our family) receives $500 for selling the winning ticket!  What could YOU do with an extra $5000?  Being the winning seller and winning $500 would mean soooo much to our family after going through so much financial hardship over the last 5 years of privately funding Logan's therapy.

I will make it super duper easy for you to buy a ticket!  I will take Paypal as payment for tickets.  Tickets are priced at $10/each or $50 for a book of 6.  Simply use the Paypal link below to order raffle tickets and I will happily fill them out for you and mail the stubs to you free of charge!  Of course, there are fees involved by using Paypal so a dollar or two would be appreciated to help offset the costs.....not necessary but it would be delightful.  Please include your full name, address, phone number and email address with your order.

Julie Billiart School Tickets

(1) Ticket $10.00 (2) Tickets $20.00 (3) Tickets $30.00 (4) Tickets $40.00 (1) Book = 6 Tickets $50.00 (2) Books = 12 Tickets $100.00 Donation $1.00 Donation $2.00

Email me at tarasantilli@gmail.com for my address.

Please help me make this event a success for Logan's school and help him and the other special kids that Julie Billiart School serves.  Please share this link with friends, family, colleagues, in-laws, out-laws or anyone that you might think would like to make a difference in the life of a child that needs a little extra TLC in the classroom.

Thank you for considering to donate!!  Hugs and love from our family to yours!

Top 20 Reasons Moms of Kids With Special Needs ROCK

Top 20 Reasons Moms of Kids With Special Needs ROCK

From Ellen's blog.....I HAD to repost this.  Happy Mother's Day to all of the special mother's who fight by my side and teach me strength and courage each and every day!


1. Because we never thought that “doing it all” would mean doing this much. But we do it all, and then some.
2. Because we’ve discovered patience we never knew we had.
3. Because we are willing to do something 10 times, 100 times, 1,000 times if that’s what it takes for our kids to learn something new.
4. Because we have heard doctors tell us the worst, and we've refused to believe them. TAKE THAT, nay-saying doctors of the world.
5. Because we have bad days and breakdowns and bawl-fests, and then we pick ourselves up and keep right on going.
6. Because we gracefully handle the stares, the comments, the rude remarks. Well, mostly gracefully.
7. Because we manage to get ourselves together and get out the door looking pretty damn good. Heck, we even make sweatpants look good.
8. Because we are strong. Man, are we strong. Who knew we could be this strong?
9. Because we aren’t just moms, wives, cooks, cleaners, chauffeurs, women who work. We are moms, wives, cooks, cleaners, chauffeurs, women who work, physical therapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, teachers, researchers, nurses, coaches, and cheerleaders. Whew.
10. Because we work overtime every single day.
11. Because we also worry overtime, but we work it through. Or we eat chocolate or Pirate's Booty or gourmet cheese, which aren't reimbursable by insurance as mental-health necessities but should be.
12. Because we are more selfless than other moms. Our kids need us more.
13. Because we give our kids with special needs endless love, and then we still have so much love left for our other kids, our husbands, our family. And our hairstylist, of course.
14. Because we inspire one another in this crazy blogosphere every single day.
15. Because we understand our kids better than anyone else—even if they can’t talk, even if they can’t gesture, even if they can't look us in the eye. We know. We just know.
16. Because we never stop pushing for our kids.
17. Because we never stop hoping for them, either.
18. Because just when it seems like things are going OK, they're suddenly not OK, but we deal. Somehow, we always deal, even when it seems like our heads or hearts might explode.
19. Because when we look at our kids we just see great kids. Not "kids with cerebral palsy/autism/Down syndrome/developmental delays/whatever label."
20. Because, well, you tell me.

Imported a REALLY Old Blog

I am really kicking it old school!  I just imported my super, duper old blog called "Tiaras Make You Taller" that spanned 2007-2009.  I just might get caught up today with a box of tissues looking at my babies when they were so teeny tiny.  My gosh, they have grown!  I saw a post where I blogged about Devon learning to crawl.  My goodness, right now she rips up the driveway on her Barbie scooter and digs through my purse for lip glosses (hey, she takes after her mamma....a girl needs her gloss!).  And Logan!  It was the days before he became the Wii Zen Master.

Keep me away from ANY and ALL adoption agencies at this minute because I just might start a homestudy and get fingerprinted or something wild like that.  Oh wait, I'd have to clean in order to have a Social Worker come over....that might be a deal breaker...lol!