Growing up fast: siblings of special needs children

A few weeks ago, I was doing makeup for a client and she said something that spoke directly to one of my mama fears. My client is in high school but her maturity level is well beyond her years. As she was sitting in my chair, I told her how mature she is, how she […]

Family, Special Needs

Hey moms, is a robe on your Christmas list again this year? Oh man, gotta love this SNL skit. I just rewatched it for the first time since last Christmas and it had me laughing just as hard as the first time I saw it…. because it’s a little more accurate than I’d like to […]

Special Needs

How to care for yourself as a mom during the holiday season

Hey moms, is a robe on your Christmas list again this year? Oh man, gotta love this SNL skit. I just rewatched it for the first time since last Christmas and it had me laughing just as hard as the first time I saw it…. because it’s a little more accurate than I’d like to […]

Special Needs

How to care for yourself as a mom during the holiday season

How the Peloton changed my life… and I’m not talking about weight loss

I got emotional in the middle of my Peloton ride—and it’s not my first time that’s happened.  (20 min country ride with Ally Love aired 10/3/21 if you want to hop on and ride this one) Has this happened to you? Like sweating my butt off, breathless and a tear or two falling down my […]

Special Needs

Emily Barton rides the Peloton and works out with Ally Love

The question I got asked this week was, “Is she deaf?”  As a mom of a daughter with special needs, I’m used to answering questions people have—or reading peoples’ faces when they have questions but are too uncomfortable to ask.  This was the first time I had been asked this particular question, but when I […]

Special Needs

5 things I want you to know about my non-verbal child

Cerebral Palsy warrior

The question I got asked this week was, “Is she deaf?”  As a mom of a daughter with special needs, I’m used to answering questions people have—or reading peoples’ faces when they have questions but are too uncomfortable to ask.  This was the first time I had been asked this particular question, but when I […]

Special Needs

5 things I want you to know about my non-verbal child

Cerebral Palsy warrior

How to talk to your kids about inclusion

With the start of the new school year, there are a couple of things weighing heavy on my mind and one of them is the topic of disability inclusion. As a mom of a special needs daughter, this is something I manage almost daily as we interact with typically-developing kiddos and their families, but it […]

Special Needs

Back to school for kids is usually synonymous with “lots of time in the car for mom.” AM I right?! After a full first week of school and driving everyday back and forth between Jaxlee’s therapy, there are a few items I just can’t live without. I’m all about making life on the road easier […]

Special Needs

7 must-have car essentials for busy moms

Back to school for kids is usually synonymous with “lots of time in the car for mom.” AM I right?! After a full first week of school and driving everyday back and forth between Jaxlee’s therapy, there are a few items I just can’t live without. I’m all about making life on the road easier […]

Special Needs

7 must-have car essentials for busy moms

Special Needs Mama: Three-week physical therapy intensive with LEAP Pediatric

If you have followed along our journey, the whole reason I write about clean living is because of the transformation I’ve seen in our daughter Jaxlee. (More about her story here!). Because the special needs community, especially all my other special needs mama’s, have made such a huge impact on me, I wanted to share […]

Special Needs

Special needs support

As a first time mom of a daughter with Cerebral Palsy, I didn’t spend much time at playdates with other kids Jaxlee’s age. I preferred to hang out with my friends who didn’t have kids or friends whose kids were significantly older than mine.  Looking back, I realize this was an act of protection and […]

Special Needs

How friends can support special needs parents

As a first time mom of a daughter with Cerebral Palsy, I didn’t spend much time at playdates with other kids Jaxlee’s age. I preferred to hang out with my friends who didn’t have kids or friends whose kids were significantly older than mine.  Looking back, I realize this was an act of protection and […]

Special Needs

How friends can support special needs parents

Why and how I make time to workout as a working mom

It’s 11:25 a.m. I just got off my Peloton bike. It was my hardest ride yet—30 min Tabata Ride with Ally Love.  I’m just shy of three months postpartum, but making time for a workout is already a huge priority for me. No, this isn’t because I feel social pressure to get my body back […]

Special Needs

Emily Barton Peleton