Amanda! I am so sorry I never saw the post about photos!! I didn't have any but we will next time!

Hi Amanda,

Just saw your note. You're right - of course - the holidays and celebrations are for everyone!

Wanted to reply to you just so you understood the context of the comment "The holidays are about the kids." I'm thinking it might not have been clear in the article. This portion of the talk was about how to help kids with special needs feel good through the holidays.

In that light, when parents focus on THOSE kids and stay in tune with keeping them less stressed (which means fewer meltdowns which can be epic for some of our kids) then everybody has a better time.

Specifically, we were discussing cutting back on the party schedule and telling the parents they don't have to feel obligated to go to 5 parties a week or to be there for the whole party if it's going to stress out them and their child. Where's the fun in that, right?

So, our recommendation is to remember that the holidays are for the kids...and not your MiL or her expectations of what a perfect holiday dinner looks like.

I hope your holidays were great!

Thank you, Amanda, for this wonderful article on Peter. I hope everyone will join us tomorrow at 10 am to share the dedication of this park on Union St. in honor of Peter's tireless dedication to Charlestown.